Tuesday night was a weird game for the Mets. They fell behind early then rallied to cut the Guardians lead to one. Guardians scored more, Mets rallied again to cut the lead to one. Guardians scored more, Mets rallied again to cut the lead to one. Then the game was over.
It felt like the Mets had fight but also didn’t have fight. A weird game in midst of a bad few weeks for the Mets. In early April, when the Mets went on a winning streak, they got their swagger back and looked like they were having fun. This team desperately needs a winning streak.
Jose Quintana has pitched 46 2/3 innings over nine starts this season with a 5.21 ERA, 4.67 FIP, 1.457 WHIP and a 74 ERA+. He’s coming off of his first solid start in May where he held the Phillies to only two runs over 5 1/3 innings. It was also his first start all season where he walked zero batters. Quintana’s statcast numbers so far leave a lot to be desired. He has an xERA of 5.76 (8th percentile) and an xBA of .308 (4th percentile). There are only two members of the Guardians who have seen Quintana in a major league game: Austin Hedges (4-for-8, BB, 2 K) and José Ramírez (9-for-29, 3 2B, BB, 3 K).
Triston McKenzie is having a bounce back season after an injury mired 2023 campaign. Over nine starts, 47 1/3 innings, McKenzie has a 3.23 ERA, 4.88 FIP, 1.310 WHIP and a 119 ERA+. He does lead the league in walks at 28 (5.3 BB/9). Since April 19th he has pitched 34 1/3 innings with a 2.10 ERA with 16 BB and 35 K’s. Only a few Mets have faced McKenzie before:
- Harrison Bader 1-2
- Starling Marte 0-3, K
- J.D. Martinez 0-3
Three Things To Watch For:
- Power Burst? The Mets had a burst of power in Tuesday’s game with Vientos, McNeil and Marte all hitting homers. It ultimately wasn’t enough but it did contribute to Tuesday’s weird overall vibe. There were times where it felt like the Mets were just going through the motions, and then other times where they were smashing the ball. Let’s hope that’s momentum going into this afternoon’s game.
- Does Lindor build on his solid day at the plate? Lindor went 2-for-5 Tuesday night with an RBI. The number one thing the Mets need right now is for Lindor to get hot. He is the heart and soul of the team. We’ve seen in the past when he gets hot, good things follow for other hitters in the lineup and the Mets overall.
- Edwin Díaz. Díaz hasn’t pitched since Saturday, which means he has had three off-days in a row. With the Mets having an off-day tomorrow it feels like no matter what Díaz should get into today’s game. There was a moment Tuesday night where he started to go through the early warm-up process but as the game script changed, he sat back down. If he comes in today, here’s hoping he regains his confidence.
Let’s Go Mets!
