Mets fans react to Justin Verlander walking 6 batters in game vs Dodgers: "He belongs in a retirement home"
The New York Mets lost in another one of Justin Verlander's starts as a shutout loss was inflicted on them by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Their loss at home earned the veteran pitcher his fifth loss of the season, with fans questioning the credibility of his signing in the offseason.
Justin Verlander has had a mediocre season so far as per his high standards. The 3x Cy Young award winner had a delayed start to the season because of an injury he sustained in the offseason. After his debut for New York at the start of May, he has posted a 3.72 ERA, 63 strikeouts and a 3-5 record.
In the game against the Dodgers, the 40-year-old earned three runs in the fifth innings after going scoreless in the first four. He struck out six batters but also walked six as it affected his longevity on the mound. He had to pitch 104 times to get through the five innings and the fatigue clearly showed.
In the fifth, Mookie Betts hit an RBI single on a bases-loaded situation. Freddie Freeman came out for his at-bat and hit a two-RBI double. Both LA veterans peppered Verlander's four-seam fastball on the 1-0 count. The Mets #35 left the mound after getting the remaining two outs in the innings.
Fans took to Twitter to voice their displeasure against Verlander and his performance in the game:
Justin Verlander will go down as one of the worst FA signings in @Mets history https://t.co/vrIqIKNHCj
@BenVerlander What do we have to do get Justin Verlander off the Mets? We don’t want him here anymore
He belongs in a retirement home. Sick and tired of this crap
@BenVerlander Justin was horrendous tonight, and he was still the better Verlander
Justin Verlander on the Mets https://t.co/qsdbgATl6r
@KayvonPlzSack surprised? he was on the verge of washed up when he left Detroit. only the "magic" in Houston (that also resurrected Gerritt Cole somehow) brought him back.
Mets need to hire the Astros "trainers"
@SNY_Mets He’s ready to retire once his checks are up
Hopefully he’s ready to go back to Houston and never wear a Mets jersey ever again twitter.com/sny_mets/statu…
I’ve never seen someone more ready to pitch 4 2/3 innings and give up 5 runs. twitter.com/sny_mets/statu…
Ready to walk 6 batters? twitter.com/sny_mets/statu…
Justin Verlander could get traded before the deadline
Justin Verlander's stay with the New York Mets rotation might be ending much earlier than what some fans had expected. Because of the size of his contract, various analysts in the media have assessed whether he could be traded to a different club to extract cash benefits.
The general opinion seems to be that Verlander might not be that committed to staying on with the Mets if given the opportunity to be traded elsewhere. It remains to be seen if Steve Cohen's management is willing to give away the marquee signing.