Things aren't going very swimmingly up in Queens for the Braves NL East division rival. Tonight the Mets were bludgeoned by the Dodgers, but that wasn't the biggest news to come from this game. Instead, the baseball world is talking about the ejection of relief pitcher Jorge López.
López entered the night with respectable numbers. His 3.12 ERA and 0.6 bWAR in 26 innings has been one of the few bright spots in the Mets 2024 season. However, Lopez showcased his frustration when he didn't get a strike call on Freddie Freeman on a check swing appeal to third base. Lopez immediately had words for the third base umpire Ramon De Jesus, and when he was promptly ejected Lopez then decided to chuck his glove into the stands as he exited the field of play.
Jorge López has been ejected by third base umpire Ramon De Jesus.
— SNY (@SNYtv) May 29, 2024
López threw his glove into the crowd on his way off the field. pic.twitter.com/5BlF6badFQ
López burns Mets in wild postgame comments
We've seen the Mets make noise for the wrong reasons before, but this was another level. And the dumpster fire in New York didn't end on the field. As you can imagine, dozens of reporters swarmed Lopez's locker in the postgame media scrum, and Lopez then gave one of the strangest soundbites of the season.
Lopez would say that he had no regret for throwing his glove into the stands, and then followed that statement with the claim that the Mets are the worst team in MLB. Not often do you hear players voice frustration to THAT level. It's kind of reminiscent of when Adeiny Hechavarría was thankful for no longer being on the Mets.
I asked Jorge Lopez if he regretted throwing his glove into the stands. Not only did he say no, he then called the Mets “the worst team in the whole f—cking MLB.”
— Steve Gelbs (@SteveGelbs) May 30, 2024
I later gave him a chance to clarify and he confirmed that’s what he meant.pic.twitter.com/Io2Cqh3Bdj
Mets front office swiftly DFA Lopez
Obviously, the Mets front office didn't take kindly to those actions and comments as they quickly DFA'd Lopez after the postgame comments. The Mets now sit at 22-33 on the season, and are 16 games back of the Phillies in the NL East.
We know things haven't been going ideally for Atlanta, but these regular incidents in Queens are a good reminder that things could always be worse. Time will tell if Lopez burned his chances at landing another MLB gig, regardless he'll definitely be able to say his time with the Mets ended with a bang.