51s waste stellar effort from surprise starter, fall to Isotopes

It didn’t take long for the Mets to pick up the phone, call down to the farm and dip into the 51s’ rotation.

Twice.

First, the Mets announced Zack Wheeler would start Wednesday night in Miami. He was scheduled to start for the 51s in Albuquerque.

Then, Tuesday, the Mets called up Corey Oswalt, last year’s Mets’ Minor League Pitcher of the Year. Oswalt was supposed Tuesday against the 51s.

The domino effect resulted in Drew Gagnon being called up from Double-A Binghamton to start Tuesday night in place of Oswalt. Gagnon was remarkable, holding the Isotopes in check for five innings before Kyle Regnault was battered around in the 51s’ 7-3 loss to at Isotopes Park.

Las Vegas, a night after getting shutout 14-0, came out early with three runs in the first inning thanks to an RBI double from Phillip Evans and Zach Borenstein’s first home run of the year, an opposite-field two-run blast.

“We got on the board early — three runs in the first inning,” manager Tony DeFrancesco said. “It looked like it was going to be our day.”

Gagnon, in his first start for the 51s (1-5), gave up a run in the third and a run in the fifth. He struck out six in his outing and left the game with a 3-2 lead.

“Gagnon (was) outstanding,” DeFrancesco said. “Came in there, threw strikes, pounded the zone, made some pitches. It was a breath of fresh air watching him pitch.”

But after he exited, the Isotopes jumped all over Regnault in the sixth.

Regnault gave up singles to Jordan Patterson and Noel Cuevas to lead off the inning before a Derrik Gibson home run gave the Isotopes (3-3) their first lead of the night.

Later in the inning, after Regnault gave up two more singles, pinch-hitter Tom Murphy doubled to center, bringing home both runs.

“He left a lot of pitches up over the plate,” DeFrancesco said. “Offspeed was inconsistent and he battled to get through the inning. Once he gives up the three-run homer on a breaking ball, he’s still fighting to get through the inning.”

The 51s’ bullpen has given up 22 runs in the team’s first six games, a trouble spot in the early going.

“We’ve got eight guys down there that have to step up into a role where they can have success,” DeFrancesco said of the bullpen.

The 51s, who dropped their fourth straight game Tuesday, are also searching for more offensive production early on, finishing the night with just six hits and not scoring after the first inning.

“Everybody’s going to get a chance to play, see what they can do but we need the middle of the order to start swinging the bat. (Dominic) Smith, (Bryce) Brentz, Borenstein, that’s a big part of our middle of the lineup,” DeFrancesco said. “Evans, who had a successful year last year and the young kids, (David) Thompson and (Luis) Guillorme are going to have to go through the battle of the early stages of Triple-A baseball.”

Contact Betsy Helfand at bhelfand@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BetsyHelfand on Twitter.