Mets reliever delivers one of the worst sequences of the season

New York Mets relief pitcher Grant Hartwig entered Tuesday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates facing a tough situation.

He did not handle it well.

With the game tied, 1-1, and the Pirates batting with the bases loaded, Hartwig was summoned from the bullpen to try and get out of the inning. 

What followed was one of the worst sequences any pitcher had during the 2023 season.

He started by walking pinch hitter Jack Suwinski on four consecutive pitches to bring in the go-ahead run for the Pirates.

As if that was not bad enough, the very first pitch to the next batter hit Jared Triolo to bring in another run. 

Two pitchers later, he uncorked a wild pitch with Jason Delay at the plate to bring in a third run.

At this point he had thrown seven pitches, none of them for strikes, and had already allowed three runs to come across without a single ball being put in play. All three runs were credited to the previous Mets pitcher — Jose Butto — since he was the one that loaded the bases.

Hartwig's meltdown continued in the at-bat to Delay when he doubled to right center to bring in two more runs. 

Two batters later, Pirates outfielder Bryan Reynolds hit a fly ball to center that was misplayed by Tim Locastro, allowing it to roll past him to give Reynolds an RBI triple to extend their lead to 7-1. 

At this point Mets fans at Citi Field had simply become enraged and were loudly voicing their displeasure at both Hartwig and manager Buck Showalter. 

The entire season has been a mess and gigantic disappointment for the Mets, and the seventh inning of Tuesday's game was a perfect representation of that failure and frustration.