Inside The Mets

Mets' Carlos Mendoza weighs in on questionable triple play call

Carlos Mendoza gave his thoughts on a controversial triple play call during the Mets' loss to the Nationals.
Logan VanDine|
Apr 25, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza (64) argues with first base umpire Alfonso Marquez (72) against the Washington Nationals during the fourth inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
Apr 25, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza (64) argues with first base umpire Alfonso Marquez (72) against the Washington Nationals during the fourth inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

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During the New York Mets' gut-wrenching 5-4 loss to the Washington Nationals on Friday, a controversial moment took place.

The moment occurred during the top of the fourth inning with the Mets down 2-0. New York had a runner on first and second with no outs to begin the inning, when Jesse Winker hit a sharp ball to first baseman Nathaniel Lowe, which umpires thought was a line drive out.

Lowe then threw to second base, where CJ Abrams tagged out Mark Vientos for the second out, followed by Abrams throwing back to Lowe at first to get the third out that ended the inning and the scoring threat for the Mets. Carlos Mendoza immediately went out to argue with first base umpire Alfonso Márquez to no avail, since it was not a challengeable play.

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Even though the Mets did rally back and took a brief 4-3 lead after scoring four runs in the top of the eighth, the Nationals ultimately rallied to tie and win the game in the bottom of the ninth inning. After the loss, Mendoza weighed in on the controversial play when he spoke with reporters.

"It's frustrating obviously because we all saw what happened," Mendoza said. "I'm not blaming Alfonso [Márquez] because he's the one behind the play. But the other three, somebody's got to see that play, tough break for us."

The second-year skipper for the Mets also talked about why the umpiring crew did not get together after the play and the inning was over to discuss it.

"They said if somebody would've saw it, somebody would've just gone to Alfonso [Márquez], that's my frustration there," Mendoza said. "There's three more guys there. Somebody should be able to make that call."

While it remains to be seen whether that controversial call could've dictated the outcome of the entire game, it is very easy to understand Mendoza's frustration. Especially after seeing this so-called triple play on instant replay, where Winker's line drive was clearly played on a bounce.

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Logan VanDine
LOGAN VANDINE

Logan VanDine is a contributing writer for On SI's Mets. Logan is a graduate of Rider University where he majored in Sports Media and minored in Sports Studies. During his time at Rider, Logan worked for Rider's radio station, 107.7 The Bronc as a sports host, producer and broadcaster, and for the school's paper: The Rider News. He began his time with The Rider News as a section writer for sports and was a copy editor for two years followed by being one of the sports editors during his senior year. Logan also placed third in the New Jersey Press Foundation Awards for sports feature writing. Aside from his work at On SI, he is also a writer for FanSided covering the New York Giants and Mets and also covers the Giants for Total Apex Sports. Give him a follow on X: @VandineLogan

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