Quintana providing hope for Mets' rotation

BALTIMORE -- When the Mets made their organizational pivot to sell at the Trade Deadline, they knew it meant taking a probable step backward competitively, at least for the rest of 2023. They knew the next few months might get tough.

They might not have known how tough things would get this quickly.

A little more than a week after their Deadline sale, the thinned-down Mets are reeling, losers of seven of their past eight games and six straight after a punchless 2-0 defeat to the Orioles on Sunday afternoon at Camden Yards. New York dropped to a season-high 11 games under .500 at 50-61, matching its 2022 loss total in 51 fewer games.

This weekend’s sweep put the Mets on pace for 89 losses, which would be the most in AL/NL history by a team that won at least 100 games the prior season.

“We need to take each day and stay in the moment,” manager Buck Showalter said. “At times like this, you’re looking for things in your life that are consistent and that you can count on.”

Indeed, the Mets have more than a few questions to answer down the stretch and beyond. Let’s dig into two of them pertaining to their roster in some detail.

1. Can José Quintana return to form?
When the Mets signed Quintana to a two-year, $26 million free-agent contract in December, they envisioned him as the dependable veteran lefty fortifying an elite rotation. Because of a left rib fracture that sidelined Quintana for four months, he is only now displaying those qualities again after New York traded its more decorated starters.

Quintana looked much like his old self Sunday, striking out six across six-plus innings of two-run ball but suffering the hard-luck loss. He has yet to earn his first victory as a Met, but through four starts with the team, he owns a 3.42 ERA.

“I am getting more and more confidence on the mound,” Quintana said. “It feels better with my stuff and changing speeds, and all my strengths are still there.”

Said Showalter: “As advertised.”

For all the questions about the Mets’ 2024 rotation post-Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander, Quintana can provide more clarity about his health and certainty for the roster down the stretch with a strong finish.

2. What do the Mets have at the hot corner?
With the rest of the season all about seeing who can contribute to the future, the Mets continue to find opportunities for Mark Vientos, playing him either at third base or designated hitter most days since he returned to the Majors on July 21. The question now is what he does with those opportunities.

The results haven’t been immediate for Vientos, who went 1-for-7 with four strikeouts in two starts this weekend and whose poor judgment defensively Sunday led to the Orioles’ first run in the fifth inning. Overall, the 23-year-old is hitting .256 with one homer in 12 games since returning to the Mets' roster.

Meanwhile, the Mets’ other young third baseman, Brett Baty, is also grinding. He’s mired in an 0-for-18 slump and is 3-for-his-past-40.

“It’s been tough for him,” Showalter said of the 23-year-old Baty. “When you’ve done something so well your whole life … then reach the level where it’s a challenge, he’s going through that now.”

Vientos and Baty’s struggles are part of a team-wide offensive malaise, sparing few except Jeff McNeil on Saturday and Francisco Lindor more broadly. As a result, the Mets have been outscored by 25 runs (39-14) across their six-game skid.