QUEENS, NY — The Boston Red Sox fired manager Alex Cora after a 10-17 start to the 2026 season on Saturday night. On Tuesday morning, the 9-19 Philadelphia Phillies sacked their skipper, Rob Thomson, and elevated Don Mattingly to managerial duties. The Mets are not following what has become this season’s norm for woeful, underachieving, bigger-market ball clubs, even if they are the most pitiful of all.
President of baseball operations David Stearns had a built-in date to fire manager Carlos Mendoza after Sunday’s despondent doubleheader sweep at the hands of the lowly Colorado Rockies. They were held to just one run across 18 innings, which officially made them Major League Baseball’s worst offense, and entered Tuesday night’s series opener against the Washington Nationals having lost 15 of their last 17 games. They were an identical 9-19 as the Phillies at the start of play on Tuesday.
“This is the reality,” Mendoza said on Tuesday prior to his team’s series opener against the Washington Nationals. “It sucks what happened to those two guys, guys that I consider some of the best at what they’re doing. Especially Thomson, one of my mentors. You hate to see it happen, but you understand that it’s the business. When you don’t see the results, it happens.
“I’m aware of it. I’m not going to run away from it, but I’m going to just continue to show up here and get the best out of my players. That’s not my responsibility, and I’m not spending all my energy [on it]. But I understand the situation.”
Monday was an off day between home series — a perfect opportunity to pull the plug on Mendoza after two-plus seasons at the helm, which also featured a significant collapse across the final three months of the season to miss the postseason following a shock run to the NLCS in 2024.
Instead, there was radio silence outside the DFAing of Tommy Pham, the signing of Austin Slater, and the promotion of No. 3 prospect AJ Ewing to Triple-A. Mendoza said that there have been no conversations with Stearns or owner Steve Cohen about his job status.
New York’s brain trust is sticking with Mendoza for the time being, though that could change quickly if things somehow get worse. Perhaps it’s Stearns’ unwillingness to admit that his hand-picked guy doesn’t have it in him to lead a contender in Queens. Maybe this is his way of saying that the roster that he built is full of flaws despite racking up a $370 million payroll, and that the manager can only do so much with what he is given.
Regardless, the latter is certainly true, and Mendoza’s players have not been shy about taking the blame. Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto have come to the defense of their manager over the last week, and reliever Tobias Myers was plenty poignant on Tuesday.
“There’s no coach in America that can save any team,” the right-hander told amNewYork. “Relationship-wise, I think Mendy is amazing. He communicates really well with the players. As tough as it is for where it is right now, he’s still the same guy every day. That’s hard to come by, and that’s a very good trait for a manager. But as far as helping us hit and pitch, it’s on us. No one can help me tonight if I get out there, and no one can help anyone in the lineup.
“So it’s just about keeping guys comfortable, which guys are. They aren’t freaking out. It’ll flip for sure.”
So far, nearly everything Stearns touched over the winter turned rotten. Bo Bichette, Marcus Semien, and Luis Robert Jr. are struggling mightily in their first seasons at Citi Field. Jorge Polanco, who was supposed to succeed Pete Alonso at first base, is on the injured list and has spent more time as a DH than anything else when he has been available.
“There are so many guys going through a tough stretch at the same time,” Mendoza said. “That’s kind of like the hard part to describe. Usually, you have three or four guys that are carrying the team while two or three are going through it. But right now, there’s a lot of people that are going through a rough stretch.”
There still is no starting rotation depth. Outside Freddy Peralta, Nolan McLean, and Clay Holmes, the Nos. 4 and 5 slots are wide open. David Peterson was demoted to the bullpen, but will get a second chance after Kodai Senga was placed on the 15-day IL with spinal lumbar inflammation.
“I believe in those guys,” Mendoza said. “I will continue to do so. It’s my job to get the best out of them. It’s our job. But you gotta believe in your players.”
For more on Carlos Mendoza and the Mets, visit AMNY.com
