After Refusing MRI, Noah Syndergaard Leaves Game in 2nd Inning with "Possible Lat Strain"

I just can't believe that Noah wasn't called out more by the press on what a dumb decision it was to not get the MRI in the first place. I mean, to use the excuse that he's so 'in tune' with his body that he doesn't need a MRI was just ass-backwards as well as putting himself before the team...and now this.

Mets Lose 3 Out Of 4 To Marlins

Your No. 1, 2 and 3 starters all pitch great and you lose all three games anyway?! Smh.

Mets Have To Be Really Concerned About Jose Reyes

Deadspin.com:

Mets converted third baseman Jose Reyes is absolutely lost at the plate so far this
season, and Terry Collins seems like he’s ready to pull out his hair over the slumping veteran. The Mets are only nine games into the season, and small sample sizes can render early season trends meaningless by September, but Reyes is really stinking up the place.

In 38 plate appearances, Reyes has had two hits, one walk, and 11 strikeouts. Collins initially had Reyes batting leadoff, but he was dropped to the seven-spot Tuesday and Wednesday, and looks headed to the bench for at least the next two games against their division rivals in Miami. 

One of those hits was off Clay Buchholz during a game in which the Phillies’ pitcher gave up eight hits to the 16 batters he faced in two-and-a-third innings before leaving the game with a forearm injury. A hit is a hit, but that one doesn’t inspire much confidence.

Reyes is putting a ball into play in only 7.7 percent of opportunities, the lowest in the league among qualified players who’ve had a hit (Russell Martin and Austin Hedges, we see you). He’s not even making productive outs, if you believe in that type of thing. He’s bad. You get the point.

I know that it's only been 9 games and there have been a few times where he's been a little unlucky, but I've never seen Jose Reyes look more awful than he has at the start of this season. Of course, the easy answer is to give Wilmer Flores more at-bats and play him at 3rd, but Reyes is better defensively and obviously gives you more speed on the bases too. Then too, I hate seeing Reyes bat 7th in the lineup--the guy's a certified leadoff hitter.

RELATED: Why Jose Reyes might not be long for Mets

For Now, We're Stuck with Zack Wheeler

NYPost.com:

Zack Wheeler had a forgettable return to the mound Friday, surrendering five earned runs over four innings on a brutally cold and windy night at Citi Field that had no semblance to the tropical paradise in which he had won his job this spring.

Wheeler’s fastball had early juice, but commanding his offspeed pitches was a challenge, and pretty soon the Marlins were jumping on his heat.

It’s a performance Wheeler should discard, right after he appreciates the fact he was back pitching for the Mets following two frustrating years of rehab from Tommy John surgery.

Not every comeback will be a success story from the start. Matt Harvey, returning from surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome, was terrific in his 2017 debut a night earlier, but Wheeler is clearly at a different place.

“I wanted to come out here and dominate today,” Wheeler said after the Mets’ 7-2 loss. “Just put my foot that I’m back and I belong here. But something as small as controlling your offspeed [pitches], that is easy to fix. I’m not that down. It stinks that I lost, but it’s a long season and I will be better. ”

The worst thing a starting pitcher can do is not give his team a chance to win and give Zack Wheeler credit for owning up to that last night. And granted it's only one start that you hope he can learn from, but with Matz and Lugo down, it's extra emphasis on hoping for the best from Wheeler.

RELATED: Mets’ expectations of Zack Wheeler should fall back down to earth following lackluster debut

Matt Harvey Leads Mets to Victory

Doc Gooden and Darryl Strawberry Are Friends Again

Newsweek.com:

Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry have ended their public feud from last summer and attended Monday’s Mets opener together at Citi Field.

Gooden posted a picture of himself with Strawberry and former Mets closer John Franco on Twitter, and Strawberry retweeted it.

This came a day after both Gooden and Strawberry turned to social media to say they’re no longer at odds. “Life is too short for madness,” Gooden wrote on Twitter.

Gooden, reached by phone, declined to comment. Strawberry hasn’t returned messages seeking comment.

The two former Mets stars from the 1980s feuded last August when Strawberry publicly accused Gooden of a drug relapse. Gooden denied it at the time, then said during a surprise appearance at Mets spring training that he no longer was angry with Strawberry.

“Maybe one day we get together and talk, but right now’s not the time,” he said.

This is good news as these two will always be attached via their long history together in New York sports lore. Still, if and when there's another time Strawberry thinks Doc using drugs, hopefully he'll go to Gooden privately instead of through the press.

Jay Bruce Doesn't Care If He Stays A Met

Newsday.com:

For Bruce, those boos for a childhood hero served as an eye-opener. They would be behind the first steps in an ongoing journey toward emotional detachment.

It is a strategy born not from bitterness but from pragmatism. The method may be cold. But the years have taught Bruce that to endure the wild swings of this game, it is necessary.

“First of all, and this is with all due respect to everyone reading this, how the fans think I feel — or how they create to themselves how I feel or how I look — could not have less of an impact on my day-to-day life. Someone the other day was like, ‘Oh, I could see it.’ No, they couldn’t. They assumed. They assumed that because I had a bad stretch, it’s ‘Oh, the market, New York City is too big.’ Oh, like I’m not able to perform under this pressure. Well, they’re lying to themselves.”

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“I believe that teams care about their players to the extent that they are required to, essentially. I believe that every team, every smart team, should always be looking to improve upon what they have. And if trading me helps you improve your roster, then I say go for it. I don’t care, I really don’t.”

What a dumb thing to say. I get that he's frustrated with all the trade talk and critics saying that he can't handle the spotlight of playing in New York. But why not let your bat do the talking and prove them wrong, instead of letting the fans think that you don't care if you play well or don't. Jay Bruce gets paid millions of dollars to play baseball, pretending like you don't give a shit just sends the wrong message.

Mets Break Camp with 26-Man Roster