FanGraphs Weekly Mailbag: June 27, 2026

The very first thing to know in regards to the firing of Carlos Mendoza is that no one within the Mets’ clubhouse believes their poor efficiency is the previous supervisor’s fault. Not David Stearns, the president of baseball operations. Not Francisco Lindor, the franchise shortstop. Not Bo Bichette, the massive offseason acquisition. Not Andy Inexperienced, the farm director-turned-interim supervisor. Mendoza didn’t lose the clubhouse, Stearns mentioned at a press convention Friday afternoon, lower than six hours after the crew introduced the dismissal, whereas Lindor mentioned he and the gamers failed Mendoza.

It could be simple to level to the embarrassing sequence the Mets simply performed towards the Cubs at Citi Discipline, the low level coming within the second recreation of Wednesday’s doubleheader. Every of the 4 infielders made a minimum of one error; that hadn’t occurred since Sept. 8, 1962. New York recorded six defensive miscues in complete. However the reality is, neither one recreation nor one sequence did Mendoza in. The one factor shocking about his firing is that it didn’t occur sooner. The Mets went 34-47 (.420) below Mendoza this season, making them the third-worst crew within the Nationwide League. On June 12, 2025, the Mets held the perfect document within the majors. As of Friday morning, that they had a document of 72-102 (.414) since that high-water mark. This can be a crew in free fall, and the descent has lasted for longer than a full calendar yr. Throughout the offseason, Stearns and the Mets cleaned home of most of their veteran gamers and introduced in a brand new group of fellows. That hasn’t labored by way of the primary 81 video games of the season, and so the following factor to do was hearth the supervisor. Stearns mentioned throughout his press convention on Friday that his personal job is protected, that he has the assist of possession. The factor is, so did Mendoza — till he didn’t.

Jay Jaffe will take a extra detailed have a look at Mendoza’s firing and the Mets in a narrative early subsequent week, in order that’s the final I’ll say in regards to the information on this week’s mailbag. As a substitute, we’ll be answering your questions in regards to the unwritten guidelines of ABS challenges, what would occur if a crew have been made up of 9 Frank Thomases, the amount of cash a participant would make from spending simply 24 hours on a giant league roster, and extra. However first, I’d prefer to remind you that this mailbag is unique to FanGraphs Members. In the event you aren’t but a Member and want to preserve studying, you may join a Membership right here. It’s one of the simplest ways to each expertise the positioning and assist our employees, and it comes with a bunch of different nice advantages. Additionally, should you’d prefer to ask a query for an upcoming mailbag, ship me an e-mail at mailbag@fangraphs.com.