It didn't take long for the New York Mets to cut ties with reliever Jorge Lopez.
After Lopez was ejected by third base umpire Ramon De Jesus on Wednesday, he angrily tossed his glove into the crowd. The meltdown drew significant unwanted attention in a demoralizing 10-3 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers, as the Mets dropped to 22-33.
Unsurprisingly, reporters surrounded the infuriated Lopez after the game, wondering if he had any regrets over his tirade. But instead of expressing regret, the 31-year-old right-hander doubled down and went on a expletive-laden rant about his team.
"I don't regret it," Lopez said. "I think I've been on the worst team in the whole [expletive] MLB, so whatever happened, happens. I'm ready to come back tomorrow if they want me here, so I'll be here."
Shortly after Lopez's rant went viral, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported that the Mets had designated him for assignment. Although Lopez said that he didn't meet with team officials during his postgame interviews, one of Sherman's sources revealed that he met with both president of baseball operations David Stearns and manager Carlos Mendoza; the latter said that Lopez's glove-throwing incident was "not acceptable" and would be handled internally.
Regardless of how badly the Mets have struggled as of late, the team made the right decision in letting Lopez go immediately after the on-field incident and especially after the postgame rant. The rant looks even worse in retrospect when shortstop Francisco Lindor had initiated a team meeting earlier; the statement of the Mets being "the worst team in MLB" is such a devastating blow to the team's already low morale that they had no choice but to get rid of Lopez immediately.
Lopez will ultimately conclude his Mets tenure with 28 pitching appearances, a 1-2 record, a 3.76 ERA, and a 1.37 WHIP with 19 strikeouts against 11 walks. For his career, he has a 23-42 record with a 5.42 ERA and 1.48 WHIP in 258 games and 506 innings pitched.
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