The Hidden Pressure Impacting Carlos Mendoza with the Mets

While Mendoza has stood up for his team throughout their eight-game losing streak, some frustration began to surface at the end of their series with the Los Angeles Dodgers. It was a bit surprising to see Mendoza actually call out his players for not performing on the field after Wednesday's 8-2 defeat, a noted change of tone from his previously stated beliefs that they will find their way out of this in due time.

A bad season would undoubtedly lead the Mets to move on from Mendoza, who is in his third year at the helm as manager. Mendoza is also under extra pressure since he is managing this season as a lame duck, with The Athletic's Tim Britton reporting that the Mets haven't picked up their 2027 club option on Mendoza yet.

Britton notes that Mendoza is one of three managers currently managing without a guaranteed contract for next season. The other two are Arizona's Torey Lovullo, who has been in this situation many times, and Kurt Suzuki, who received only a one-year contract from the Angels in his first managerial job.

Why Didn't The Mets Pick Up Mendoza's 2027 Option?

It is certainly fair to wonder why the Mets allowed Mendoza to enter this season as a lame duck, which could undermine his ability to lead a locker room since players are aware he may not be back next season. It may have been bad optics to pick up his option after the collapse last fall, but Britton pointed out in his report that four other managers had their club options for 2027 picked up in spring training.

A manager's salary is not a prohibitive expense, especially to someone with the resources of team owner Steve Cohen, so perhaps the organization felt the point of symbolically extending Mendoza by picking up his 2027 option was moot. The San Francisco Giants picked up an option on Bob Melvin's contract last summer and fired him in the fall, which is not a great look that the Mets likely didn't want to duplicate.

Even if the Mets had picked up Mendoza's option for 2027, his job would not be safe if the Mets don't turn things around. Picking up the option would have at least been a vote of confidence for David Stearns' hand-picked manager, so it is very curious that the Mets are letting Mendoza lead this team without a locked-in contract for 2027.

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