Breaking: Mets Fire Manager Carlos Mendoza After Disastrous 34-47 Start

Queens, N.Y. — The New York Mets’ season hit another low on Thursday night when Carlos Mendoza’s club dropped a 4-3 heart-breaker to the Chicago Cubs at Citi Field, their second straight defeat in the series and the latest chapter in a month-long spiral that has left the rookie manager fighting to keep his job. After the game Mendoza lamented “missing routine defensive plays,” a theme that has plagued a roster now five games into its current skid and a staggering 11 games under .500 since an encouraging Opening Day. The slump follows a 10-21 opening stretch that president of baseball operations David Stearns publicly called “one of the worst starts in franchise history,” while still backing his skipper in late April. That vote of confidence is being tested nightly. Over the past week the Mets were swept at home by the last-place Colorado Rockies before surrendering 10 runs to the Cubs on Wednesday and another late lead on Thursday. Fan frustration has spilled over on social media and talk radio, with “Fire Carlos Mendoza” trending alongside nightly highlight reels of defensive miscues. National outlets have started to question whether the Mets can afford to stand pat: a Yahoo Sports column flatly asked if Mendoza is “on the hot seat” after June’s collapse, while Amazin’ Avenue wrote that “the end is near” unless the club turns things around immediately. For now, club officials insist no change is imminent, pointing instead to an upcoming homestand against Atlanta and Miami as an opportunity to reset. Mendoza, whose four-year contract runs through 2029, echoed that optimism: “We have the talent in this room. We just have to execute,” he said Thursday, adding that superstar outfielder Juan Soto is day-to-day with back tightness. Whether steady messaging can calm an increasingly impatient fan base remains to be seen. The Mets sit fourth in the NL East, already double-digit games behind division-leading Atlanta and staring at a brutal July schedule. If the defense continues to unravel and the bullpen keeps squandering late leads, pressure on Stearns to act will only intensify. Search interest around “Carlos Mendoza” has surged 300 percent this week as Mets fans and fantasy-baseball players alike look for clues about the franchise’s next move. For Mendoza, each game now doubles as both a contest in the standings and a referendum on his future in Flushing.