Those Mets

METS DIGGING THEIR OWN GRAVE

Carlos Beltran fixed his eyes on the ball, just as he had done hundreds, if not thousands, of times in his career. He was drifting backward, intending to make what would have been a fine yet makeable catch on Jayson Werth’s long fly ball. But just an instant before he jumped for it, Beltran banged awkwardly into the padded, green outfield wall. As the ball went over the fence, Beltran looked almost as if it had never occurred to him that anything might be there impeding his path. As a team, the Mets also appear to have slammed gracelessly into a wall they did not see coming. One day after the promotion of two youngsters left veterans wondering about the team’s direction, the Mets lost Sunday for the 15th time in 22 games, falling to the Philadelphia Phillies, 6-5. They finished the trip 2-4 as their playoff hopes continued to fade. The Mets managed to score five runs off Roy Halladay, but R. A. Dickey had a rare poor outing, allowing Werth’s home run in the second inning and Raul Ibanez’s three-run homer in Philadelphia’s five-run third. A team that was once considered a viable playoff contender, the Mets (55-56) fell nine games behind the Atlanta Braves in the National League East standings, and remained seven and a half back in the wild-card race. “We’re O.K.,” Manager Jerry Manuel said, expressing an optimism that does not necessarily reflect the current position of his team. “We still got a chance to have a run, but the run can’t be a short run. You’ve got to play well for about 35, 40 games now. I think we have the ability to do that.” With a lineup that featured seven players signed and groomed in their farm system — but not Jeff Francoeur, the home run hero of their last two victories — the Mets were hoping to inaugurate a new, youthful era. They had to face Halladay, adominant pitcher in the game. The Mets did well to scrape out five runs against Halladay, who was not at his best. They had a chance to tie the game, or perhaps take the lead, by extending a rally in the seventh inning. With the Mets trailing by a run, and runners on first and second and two outs, Beltran struck out for the third time and was then removed in a double switch. The Mets are off Monday and start a three-game series Tuesday against visiting Colorado, and Manuel said Beltran might not play again until Wednesday. With an 0-for-4 day, Beltran finished the trip 3 for 22 with seven strikeouts. His overall batting average dipped to .195. “I wish I can have better results, but right now, nothing good is happening,” he said. Beltran has also struggled in the field since starting his season July 15 after having off-season knee surgery. On Sunday, he got a late break on a Werth bloop single in the third, and Werth came around to score. But it was the inning before when he seemed so strangely out of his element. “I didn’t know how close I was to the wall,” he said, “and when I was about to jump, I just got stuck in the fence.” David Wright has also slumped. On Sunday he, too, went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts and finished the trip 2 for 23, also with seven strikeouts. “They both struggled on this trip,” Manuel said. “I don’t know what the final numbers were, what they actually did. But it just appeared they were in good situations and just weren’t able to get it done.” One of the few players to get it done lately has been Francoeur, whose homers provided the winning margin in each of the last two wins. Ordinarily, Manuel sticks with the hot player, but this time he elected to sit Francoeur in favor of the young Fernando Martinez, who was called up Saturday along with second baseman Ruben Tejada to inject energy and athleticism to a team in desperate need of a boost. Francoeur was dismayed to learn that he would be getting less playing time, and several veterans, including Wright, said the moves sent a mixed message about whether the Mets were still pursuing the playoffs, or whether they were in development mode. If victories do not come soon, it will certainly be the latter. “We’ve dug ourselves a hole, and we’re going to have to do quite a bit of work these last 50 games or so to get back in it,” Wright said. It is definitely possible, but there are walls standing in the way.