The Mets have another challenging weekend ahead of them as the Seattle Mariners, one of the hottest teams in baseball, roll into town. The Mariners have one of the best rotations in baseball, their bullpen closes the door and recently they’ve started to collectively hit.
On the other hand, it doesn’t matter who the Mets are facing right now as the team is just struggling on all fronts. If starting pitching is rolling or the bullpen is carrying the load, the bitters are scoring runs. If the bats are scoring runs and the bullpen is tight, the rotation is putting the team in a hole to start. If the bats make the comeback, the bullpen lets the lead slide. The vibes are bad right now, but as always winning a game is the first step to turning it all around.
The Mets are hoping Sean Manaea can help stabilize the rotation. Over six games this season Manaea has pitched 27 innings with a 4.33 ERA, 3.81 FIP, 1.111 WHIP and a 93 ERA+. July was great for Manaea. He had a 2.08 ERA over four games allowing exactly one run in each outing. In his two August starts he has allowed nine runs from 13 hits and two walks over 9 2/3 innings. The Mariners have the following career numbers against Manaea:
- Randy Arozarena 3-7, 2B, 2 BB, K
- J.P. Crawford 6-22, 2 BB, 7 K
- Mitch Garver 1-7, 2B, BB, 3 K
- Dylan Moore 3-11, 2B, BB, 5 K
- Josh Naylor 0-3
- Jorge Polanco 0-8, BB
- Cal Raleigh 0-4, 2 K
- Julio Rodriguez 2-4, HR
- Donovan Solano 3-10, BB, 5 K
- Eugenio Suarez 1-9, BB, 3 K
Luis Castillo has made 24 starts totaling 138 1/3 innings with a 3.19 ERA, 3.72 FIP, 1.186 WHIP and a 117 ERA+. In his last three starts he has pitched 18 1/3 innings with a 2.45 ERA and 4.31 FIP. The only blemish recently has been three home runs allowed over his last two starts (and home runs are a Mets specialty!). The Mets have the following career stats against Castillo:
- Pete Alonso 1-11, BB, 4 K
- Francisco Lindor 5-12, 3 2B, K
- Starling Marte 1-15, 2 BB, 5 K
- Ronny Mauricio 2-2
- Jeff McNeil 5-11, 2B, 2 HR, K
- Cedric Mullins 1-4, K
- Brandon Nimmo 1-8, 2B, 4 BB, K
- Juan Soto 2-10, HR, 6 BB, 5 K
- Tyrone Taylor 0-2, K
- Luis Torrens 2-5, K
- Mark Vientos 2-3, HR
Three Things To Watch For:
- Francisco Lindor. The Mets may have dropped their last two games but Francisco Lindor has started to awaken from his struggles at the plate. Over his last two starts going 5-for-7 at the plate with a double, home run, two walks and four runs scored. He’s now scored a run four consecutive games. His home run (22) and stolen base (19) Thursday night have revived hopes that a hot streak at the end of the season could mean another 30-30 season for Lindor. Look for Lindor to continue leading the lineup tonight.
- The back of the Mets lineup. The Mets have found new ways to frustrate. As one part of the team fixes itself, the part that was carrying the load starts to fall apart. For the first half of the season the Mets top four hitters were doing the work. When the rest of the lineup started to contribute, the top four collectively went into an awful slump. The top four are back now and the Mets 5-9 hitters collectively went 0-for-16 Thursday night with a walk.
- Juan Soto 20 Stolen Bases. Juan Soto steals bases now. Thursday night he went 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base. His next stolen base will give him first 20 stolen base season. He is one hot month of baseball away from 40 home runs (currently at 11, so unlikely but not impossible) and could put up a 40-20 season. It’s one of a couple of career and franchise milestones we’ll be watching Soto for as the season heads into it’s final six weeks.
Let’s Go Mets!
