Apr 9, 2026; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets pitcher Luke Weaver (30) reacts after the top of the seventh inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
Luke Weaver finally said the quiet part out loud.
All the losing is messing with the New York Mets’ psyche, and the veteran reliever was the goat in their most recent loss. Weaver blew a 4-3 lead in the top of the eighth inning on Thursday afternoon by leaving a hanging changeup up in the zone that Washington Nationals shortstop CJ Abrams deposited over the right-field fence for a two-run shot that ultimately proved to be the game-winner.
The Mets’ 5-4 loss ensured they dropped the rubber game of their three-game set to the Nationals, while ending a nine-game road trip against manageable opposition (Twins, Rockies, Nationals) with a measley 3-6 record. They have lost five of six, and even more staggering, 17 of their last 20. They are the worst team in Major League Baseball with a 10-21 record.
“At the end of the day, the pursuit of perfection is an ultimate pressurized failure mindset,” Weaver said postgame Thursday. “Everybody wants to be the hero because we care and we want to win really, really bad. I don’t think success lives in that realm. It truly doesn’t. The freedom in which we play day-to-day is kind of being suffocated a little bit. I want to do my job, it’s that simple. There’s moments it feels really close, and then there’s one mistake that magnifies our situation.”
This isn’t just a bad stretch for the Mets. This is a historically bad start to a season.
Their 10 wins are the third fewest through 31 games in franchise history. Only the 1981 and 1964 teams won fewer games in such an opening stretch. Even the inaugural 1962 Mets, considered one of the worst teams in baseball history with 120 losses, had more wins through 31 games (12) than the 2026 club.
“We sit there, and we tell you guys that it’ll come,” Weaver began. “This is the game, this is the law of averages, but at the end of the day, those words don’t hold the same weight… the encouragement and the motivation to pursue the best person you can be and the best baseball player you can be is the only answer. Until we prove that, I understand the grievances from the outsiders.”
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