Mets lineup vs. Brewers on Aug. 25 features Bichette at third, Semien at second

The Mets are running an unconventional lineup Tuesday night against the Milwaukee Brewers, per Anthony DiComo, the New York Mets beat reporter. Bichette is slotted at third base, Semien at second, and Wagaman at designated hitter — a configuration DiComo flagged as departing from the club's more familiar arrangements.

What happened

Per DiComo's lineup card for Game 132 of 162, the Mets will send the following nine against left-hander Kyle Harrison: Lindor at shortstop, Bichette at third base, Benge in right field, Robert in center, Wagaman at designated hitter, J. Young at first base, Semien at second base, Torrens at catcher, and Ewing in left field. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET at Citi Field.

Opposing them is Harrison, who carries a 10-3 record and a 2.84 ERA into the start. The Mets will counter with Zac Thornton, listed at 3-4 with a 3.04 ERA.

Why it matters

The positional shuffling is the story here. Bichette stationed at third base and Semien deployed at second is not the most intuitive arrangement on paper, and Wagaman drawing the designated hitter slot adds another layer of intrigue to a lineup card that reads a bit like a roster-construction puzzle someone left unfinished. None of that is a criticism — managers mix and match for reasons that don't always surface in a pregame tweet — but DiComo's note that the configuration is unconventional is worth taking at face value.

What the lineup does not tell us is why. Whether this reflects injury management, a platoon decision against a left-handed starter, or something else entirely is not addressed in DiComo's report, and the desk will not speculate where the material does not go.

The timing matters, too. At 64-78 and 20 games out of first place in the NL East, the Mets are deep into a season that has not gone according to plan. Game 132 is the kind of Tuesday night where experimentation carries little downside and the possibility of discovering something useful for the final month. Whether that is what is happening here is not stated, but the context is hard to ignore.

The numbers

Harrison arrives as the most statistically imposing figure on tonight's mound. A 10-3 record and a 2.84 ERA represent a strong case for the Brewers' starter, and the Mets' lineup construction — particularly the decision to deploy Wagaman at designated hitter rather than a more established bat — may or may not be a response to facing a left-hander of that caliber. Again, the material does not say, so neither will we.

Thornton, at 3-4 and 3.04, is not without his own credentials. An ERA just above three is a reasonable foundation for a Tuesday night start, even if the record suggests he has absorbed more losses than wins.

The Mets' season line sits at 64-78 (.451), placing them fifth in the NL East, 20 games back of the division lead. Their Wild Card position is ranked 10th, 10.5 games relative to the cut line. They enter Tuesday on a one-game losing streak.

Where the club stands

At 64-78, the Mets are in fifth place in the NL East, 20 games out of first. The Wild Card picture is no more hospitable: ranked 10th, 10.5 games from the cut line. Game 132 of 162 is, by any arithmetic, deep into a season that has not gone according to plan.

The Brewers series at Citi Field runs through Thursday. Wednesday's probable matchup is Robert Stock for the Mets against Dustin May for Milwaukee. Thursday closes the series with Sean Manaea opposing Jacob Misiorowski. Three games, a left-hander tonight, and a schedule that offers the Mets a chance to close out August with something to show for it — though what that something might mean in the standings is a question the numbers answer pretty plainly.

The one-game losing streak is the kind of detail that matters more in April than in late August, but it is the streak nonetheless. A win Tuesday would stop it at one. A loss would extend it to two and send the Mets into Wednesday's game with Stock on the mound and the same arithmetic staring back at them.

What we don't know yet

The reason for the unconventional configuration is not explained in DiComo's report. Whether the placement of Bichette at third base reflects a regular assignment, a temporary arrangement, or a matchup-driven decision against Harrison is unaddressed. The same applies to Semien at second and Wagaman in the designated hitter slot — the lineup is reported, not explained.

It is also worth noting that DiComo's post is a lineup card, not a club announcement. The configuration is what the Mets are reportedly sending out; any changes between now and first pitch would not be captured here.

The broader question is whether this is a one-night experiment or the beginning of a new infield arrangement for the final month. The material does not say, and the desk will not guess. The answer will come in the form of Wednesday's lineup card, or Thursday's, or the absence of this configuration in either.

What to watch

The most immediate question is whether the arrangement of Bichette at third and Semien at second becomes a recurring theme or is a one-night configuration. If it shows up again Wednesday or Thursday, that tells you something about how the club is thinking about its infield. If it doesn't, tonight may simply be a matchup-specific decision that the box score will quietly absorb.

Thornton's performance against a Brewers lineup is also worth monitoring. At 3-4 with a 3.04 ERA, he is capable of keeping the Mets in a game — and at 64-78, keeping games close is about the most the club can ask of any given Tuesday in late August.

Harrison, meanwhile, is the kind of starter who makes unconventional lineup decisions feel more consequential. A 10-3 record and a 2.84 ERA mean the Mets will need production from wherever they can find it, including from a designated hitter slot occupied by Wagaman and a third baseman who does not typically play third. Whether that production materializes is, as always, the part nobody knows until the final out.

The three-game series against Milwaukee is the immediate horizon. The Mets have 31 games remaining after tonight. The standings are what they are. The lineup card is what DiComo reported. The rest is baseball.