The Put it in the Books Show – S9 E6: Mets Finally Wake Up… Then Kimbrell Blows It

For about five minutes, it actually felt like the Mets were putting things together. Three straight wins. Four wins in five games. The offense waking up. The starters finally pitching deeper into games. Actual signs of life.And then Craig Kimbrell came jogging out of the bullpen like it was 2017.The Mets were one inning away from getting back to 4 wins in 5 games before Kimbrell decided to turn Coors Field into batting practice, serving up a grand slam that completely killed the momentum and dropped the Mets right back to 9 games under .500. Tremendous signing. Really elite stuff. Nothing says “stabilize the bullpen” quite like immediately detonating a game in the 8th inning.And the best part? Nobody even knows if the grand slam was actually fair or foul because apparently the Colorado Rockies are still using security cameras from a 2004 gas station. Every replay angle was obstructed, blurry, blocked by fans, or shot from somewhere near Wyoming. The umpires called it fair… and that was basically the end of the conversation because MLB apparently entered the witness protection program when it comes to competent replay systems in Denver.So now Farace, Rodriguez, and Producer Joe try to figure out whether the Mets are actually improving… or if this team simply enjoys finding new and creative ways to ruin everyone’s mood.The offense HAS looked better lately, which honestly seemed impossible a couple weeks ago. Marcus Semien is finally starting to look like a functioning baseball player again both offensively and defensively, while Mark Vientos continues to prove why the Mets keep giving him opportunities. The power is real. The defense? Still feels like every ground ball comes with suspense music.And in shocking baseball news, when the starters pitch deeper into games… the Mets actually win. Incredible discovery. Somebody alert NASA. We’ll get into why the rotation settling down has helped and why Sean Manaea continues to look less like a reliable starter and more like a weekly social experiment designed to test Mets fans’ sanity.We’ll also cover injury updates involving AJ Minter, Jorge Polanco, and Francisco Lindor as the Mets try to survive long enough to keep the season from completely spiraling before summer even starts.The good news? April is over. The bad news? The Mets are still the Mets.Next up is 3 against the Diamondbacks before an off day Monday and a return home to Citi Field for a series against the Tigers.So yes… technically things look a little better.But every time this team gives you hope, somebody immediately drives it into a wall.LGM. #PiitB #Mets