A bad patch was made worse for the Mets on Wednesday night.
After Luis Severino allowed a game-tying RBI single to the Nationals’ Juan Yepez in the top of the fourth inning, the starter failed to back up the plate and catcher Francisco Alvarez, allowing another run to score after right fielder Tyrone Taylor made an errant throw.
SNY color commentator Ron Darling was not pleased with Severino’s effort on the play.
“This is inexcusable,” Darling said on the broadcast. “All it takes is a little effort on the part of the pitcher. When you give up a hit that could score a run, or a play is on third, 100 percent of the time, you have to back off.”
The same problem arose on the next play when Severino failed to cover third base after a single by Ildemaro Vargas.
“You just have to do it,” Darling said. “It’s one of those plays that you can go three seasons without it affecting you: the catcher blocks it every single time, or it never gets past the third baseman. Literally, three years.
“He (Severino) has stopped playing. It’s a shame. We have to go back. It’s the professional way of playing.”
Severino’s second error ultimately proved costly for the right-hander, who forced a lineout to left field to end the inning, leaving two runners in scoring position.
One moment in the next half-inning, however, seemed to exemplify the importance of what Darling was emphasizing.
After the Mets loaded the bases on a single by Jose Iglesias, Washington starter Patrick Corbin caught a mishandled throw from right fielder Lane Thomas behind the plate, keeping the runners at bay.
“Corbin does what Severino failed to do,” commentator Gary Cohen said.
Darling’s penetrating comments about Severino not backing down carry extra weight considering he won a Gold Glove in his own right in 1989.
The former All-Star pitcher joined SNY teammate Keith Hernandez as the latest Mets commentator to voice a complaint about something surrounding the team.
In the Mets’ win over the Pirates on Sunday, Hernandez expressed his displeasure at one of the chants Mets fans have been using on occasion.
