Mets’ Hurler Addresses Costly Mental Mistake With Clear Message

Luis Severino spoke out about consecutive mental mishaps he made on Wednesday.

Jun 30, 2024; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Luis Severino (40) at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports / Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

Although the New York Mets secured a 6-2 win over the Washington Nationals on Wednesday, the game included two moments that starting pitcher Luis Severino would like to have back. 

Severino was on the mound with two outs and runners on first and second base in the fourth inning, when Nationals first baseman Juan Yepez singled down the right field line. 

Every pitcher knows that they must back up home plate in this situation, in case the outfielder’s throw goes astray. But because Severino didn't back up Tyrone Taylor’s wayward throw up the base line, both baserunners were able to score on the play and the Nationals took a 2-1 lead. 

Severino repeated the mistake one hitter later; with Yepez at second, Washington second baseman Ildemaro Vargas smacked another single to left field. Once again, Severino stood idly on the mound instead of backing up home plate. 

Although Yepez didn’t score on that play, Severino escaped the inning without a third run scoring, and the Mets came back to win, both Severino and New York manager Carlos Mendoza addressed the former's consecutive mental mistakes during postgame interviews. 

“At first I thought [that throw] was getting caught and then after that, I saw everything that happened, but of course, that’s on me," Severino said of not backing up. "I should’ve done a better job tonight."

Severino’s two earned runs in 6.1 innings pitched Wednesday indicates that he still put together a good performance to keep the team in the game. But his mental mishap could have proved costly if his teammates didn’t rally for four runs in the bottom of the sixth. 

When Mendoza was asked about Severino not backing up postgame, he said, “We’ll address it. He knows,” per SNY. “He knows that he let the play develop and didn’t get to where he needed to get, so we’ll talk about it. We’ll show him a couple of the videos, and we’ll fix it."

Carlos Mendoza was asked about Luis Severino not backing up two plays in the 4th inning

"We'll address it. He knows" pic.twitter.com/R8zUI2OLLG

— SNY (@SNYtv) July 11, 2024

With Wednesday's victory, New York is knocking on the door of the NL Wild Card. They're currently just a half-game behind the San Diego Padres for the third Wild Card spot with four games to play before the All-Star break.