Angels’ bullpen loses another lead in loss to Mets

Walbert Urena #57 of the Los Angeles Angels throws a pitch against the New York Mets at Angel Stadium on May 1, 2026, in Anaheim, California.

(Robert Sloter - The Sporting Tribune)

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Another game, another lead lost by the bullpen.

The Angels held a 3-0 lead heading into the sixth inning, but right-handed starting pitcher Walber Ureña left the game with an injury after taking a 103-mph line drive off the shin on the first pitch of the inning.

From there, the Angels’ bullpen surrendered three earned runs in four innings en route to a 4-3 loss against the New York Mets on Friday night to extend the Angels’ losing streak to seven games.

“We're going to take accountability for it,” left-hander Brent Suter said on behalf of the bullpen amidst the losing streak. “We're going to make some adjustments and keep on attacking. But the key is we've got to keep wanting the ball.

“Once you fold the tent and don't want the ball or don't want accountability, that's when stuff really goes wrong. So you've got to keep warrior effort and warrior mentality and keep wanting the ball.”

Ureña threw a couple of warm-up pitches before leaving the game, and he walked off the field under his own power. After the game, manager Kurt Suzuki said Ureña was taken out as a precaution. Suzuki also said it looks like it’ll just be a bruise and that no further testing is needed.

He was effectively wild before his outing was abruptly ended.

Ureña tossed five innings and the only run that scored was third baseman Bo Bichette, who hit the comebacker off Ureña. He only allowed two hits and struck out four, but also walked three batters.

“You can see him settling in a little bit now,” Suzuki said. “A few starts under his belt. Not pressure, but with the anxiety of going out there, you see him kind of moving slower, and it's fun to watch when he's like this.

Despite only being in the strike zone 44% of the time, 60% of Ureña’s pitches were strikes because of his ability to get batters to chase out of the zone.

“Back in Kansas City, I tried to do much there,” Ureña said.  “Here, I'm trying to be quiet, be aggressive, stay calm every time.”

The Angels’ bullpen has now allowed 28 earned runs in their last 28 ⅓ innings pitched, which comes out to an 8.89 ERA. For the entire season, the bullpen’s ERA is now 5.69.

“What we can't do is fold the tent,” Suter said. “Can't do it. This is too hard of a league to fold the tent. We've got to stay the course, keep fighting, keep wanting the ball, and then it'll turn around, but it's heavy right now, for sure.”

It all started with Suter, who relieved Ureña. Suter recorded two outs, but also allowed a pair of hits, including an RBI two-strike single by catcher Francisco Alvarez to get the Mets on the board.

“Obviously, the pitch I want back is that 0-2 changeup to Alvarez,” Suter said. “Kind of had him where I wanted to. It was outside, but if I get that down and away, it's a foul ball or a ground ball or a swing and miss. Instead, he had a chance to get some bat to it and get it up out of the infield.”

Right-hander Chase Silseth then came in and allowed a two-strike single to second baseman Marcus Semien, which scored both runners on base and tied the game at 3-3.

“When we're making those mistakes, we're paying the price,” Suzuki said. “So, it looked like a couple of two-strike pitches up in the zone, and not balls that were smoked, but they put the bat on it, and right now it's finding holes.”

In the seventh, right-hander José Fermin gave up a solo shot to the Mets’ nine-hole hitter, shortstop Ronny Mauricio, to give the Mets a one-run lead.

A lead that was insurmountable because the Angels’ bats went stone cold after the first inning.

After designated hitter Jorge Soler’s two-run home run in the first, the Angels failed to record another hit. Shortstop Zach Neto was the only other baserunner for the Angels when he got hit by a pitch to lead off the third inning. He later scored on a stolen base and a throwing error by Alvarez.

After Neto reached base in the third, the Mets retired the remaining 21 hitters in order. The Angels struck out 14 times on the night, with center fielder Mike Trout, third baseman Yoán Moncada and right fielder Jo Adell each getting hat tricks.

“It almost looked like the pitcher, (Christian)Scott, settled in and executed pitches better,” Suzuki said. “It's hard to tell from the side, in and out, but he looked like he was attacking the strike zone, keeping us off balance, and you could see his confidence growing as the game went on for him.”

The Angels have now lost seven straight games and 11 of their last 12 games. Their seven-game losing streak has come against the 13-19 Kansas City Royals, the 15-17 Chicago White Sox and the 11-21 Mets.

The Angels’ record now sits at 12-21.

Through it all, the clubhouse remains intact and focused on the next day.

“There's no pointing fingers,” Suter said. “There's no blame. If there were, I wouldn't be mad at them. I totally understand it. A lot of these losses you can put right on the bullpen shoulders, and I'll be the first to wear that individually and as a group.

“But this clubhouse is a special group. We've got guys that are just absolute warriors and positive, come in every day ready to give it their all to win a game.”