213 Miles From Shea

The Mets spent the second half of June spiraling but things are looking a bit better after the first week of July. The Mets ripped off a four game winning streak, taking a series from the Brewers and the Yankees. Now the Mets head to Baltimore hoping to start another winning streak.

The Orioles have been one of the more disappointing teams in 2025. They have a lot of young hitting talent but the pitching has completely fallen apart for them. But things have started to look better for the Orioles more recently. They are on a three game winning streak, winning six of their last four games and are only nine games under .500 (at one point they were 16 games under). Will they continue to soar or can the Mets send them back to the nest?

Clay Holmes has pitched 93 1/3 innings over 17 starts with a 2.99 ERA, 4.37 FIP, 1.243 WHIP and a 127 ERA+. He’s coming off back to back solid starts allowing only three runs over 10 1/3 innings against the Braves and the Brewers. In his last five starts he has a 2.77 ERA and a 5.62 FIP. The discrepancy comes from 16 walks over 26 innings and four home runs allowed. Over seven games and 6 1/3 innings against the Orioles last year he allowed seven runs but only three earned from eight hits and two walks while striking out eight. The Orioles have the following career numbers against him:

• Colton Cowser 1-4, 2 K
• Gunnar Henderson 1-2, BB
• Jackson Holliday 2-3, K
• Alex Jackson 0-1, BB
• Ramon Laureano 0-2
• Coby Mayo 2-3, 2B
• Cedric Mullins 1-7, HR, K
• Tyler O’Neill 2-7, BB, K
• Jacob Stallings 1-9, 2B, K
• Ramón Urías 3-11, 3 K
• Luis Vazquez 0-4, K
• Jordan Westburg 0-6, 3 K

Brandon Young makes his fifth start for the Orioles this evening. Over his first four major league starts (16 2/3 innings) Young has a 7.02 ERA, 4.83 FIP, 1.980 WHIP and a 56 ERA+. Since rejoining the Orioles he has allowed seven runs over eight innings spread over two starts from 11 hits and three walks. Young is coming off of a successful 2024 minor league campaign where he had a 3.57 ERA over 111 innings, but has not seen that level of success yet in the majors.

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Starling Marte. Marte has been quietly putting together a solid season for the Mets. He’s on a three game hitting streak where he has at least two hits in each game (7-for-12, 2B, SB, 2 R). He already has a 0.7 bWAR matching his total from last season and a 115 OPS+, his best since 2022.
2. Pete Alonso and Camden Yards. Pete Alonso has played seven games in Baltimore hitting .296/.333/.852 with three doubles and four home runs. Now the Orioles have made a lot of changes to the outfield wall over the last couple of years. First they moved the left field walk, which was physically short (like a tall person could stand over it) back. Then they changed their mind and moved it forward a bit. That being said, Pete likes hitting in Baltimore as he currently chases the Mets franchise record for home runs (currently at 246, chasing Strawberry’s 252).
3. Get to the Orioles Bullpen. The Orioles had to use six relievers on Saturday and three pitchers on Sunday, including two pitchers on back-to-back days. Young has not gotten deep into a game this year and this is a great opportunity for the Mets to set the tone for the series and tire the Orioles out. The Orioles bullpen currently has a 4.50 ERA (25th in MLB).

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets go for the sweep this afternoon against the Yankees!

The Mets had a massive 12-6 victory on Saturday extending their current winning streak to four games. For a second straight game the Mets hit three home runs and the bullpen was able to hold the Yankees offense off just enough to lock down the game. Now the Mets will try to do the improbable, get the win against the Yankees ace while pitching a bullpen game.

Chris Devenski gets the start for the Mets this afternoon. Devenski pitched Saturday facing two batters, allowing a hit and getting a groundout while throwing only five pitches. Over 5 1/3 innings this season he has a 3.38 ERA, 1.78 FIP, 0.938 WHIP and a 121 ERA+.

Devenski will be followed by Brandon Waddell who is slated to be the bulk guy this afternoon. Over 17 2/3 innings spread over seven games Waddell has a 2.55 ERA, 4.05 FIP, 1.132 WHIP and a 153 ERA+. If Waddell gets into a groove, he can go deep into this game. Earlier this season he pitched five innings of relief against the White Sox tossing 94 pitches. He’s gone over 60 pitches several times and his last two outings were each three innings.

The Mets bats will close their series against the Yankees against an old foe in Max Fried. Fried is off to a career start with the Yankees pitching 114 innings over 18 starts with a 2.13 ERA, 3.02 FIP, 0.939 WHIP and a 188 ERA+. He’s coming off of a rough start against the Blue Jays who tagged him for four runs over six innings, including two home runs. He was solid against the Mets in May, holding the Mets to only two runs over six innings from three hits and two walks while striking out eight. The Mets have the following career stats against Fried:

• Pete Alonso 10-39, 2B, 2 HR, 6 BB, 14 K
• Brett Baty 2-6, 3 K
• Travis Jankowski 0-0, BB
• Francisco Lindor 3-31, HR, 6 K
• Starling Marte 5-23, 3 2B, BB, 6 K
• Jeff McNeil 11-32, 3 2B, 2 BB, 6 K
• Brandon Nimmo 3-29, 2 2B, 6 BB, 12 K
• Juan Soto 9-30, 2B, 5 BB, 11 K
• Tyrone Taylor 2-7, 2 K
• Mark Vientos 1-3

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Pete Alonso. Alonso had a massive day for the Mets on Saturday going 2-for-4 with three runs scored, five RBI’s and two home runs. Alonso was in a bit of a home run drought going 13 games without hitting one (.327 SLG over that stretch). He now has 20 on the season and 246 in his career as he continues his chase for the franchise record held by Strawberry (252). While we’ve been focusing on home runs for Pete Alonso, he already has 25 doubles this season which is the National League lead and only six less than he had in all of 2024. Before yesterday’s game where he hit two home runs, he already had a 2.9 bWAR, which is higher than his bWAR total for 2024 (2.6).
2. Brandon Nimmo. It doesn’t matter where Brandon Nimmo is hitting in the lineup right now. Saturday the Mets went with Marte in the lead off spot (which has worked now for two straight games) and Nimmo in the fifth spot. Nimmo responded with a 2-for-4 performance including a grand slam. It was his third home run in his last four games played and his second grand slam!
3. Managing the bullpen. Through injuries, a doubleheader last Wednesday and weird usage over the last couple of days, the Mets bullpen is tired. The Mets are going to relish the day off on Monday, which should also allow the Mets to push the pen a bit harder today. The Mets still needed four relievers on Saturday to get through the game, including Edwin Díaz who tossed 18 pitches. Díaz had to start warming up in the 8th because Stanek looked like he was about to collapse. There’s a good chance we’ll see Zach Pop who was signed before the start of Saturday’s game. Pop has allowed nine runs over 5 1/3 innings this season in the majors but had a 3.52 ERA over nine games (7 2/3 innings) in Tacoma.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets look to extend their winning streak to four games and win a second consecutive series this afternoon in Queens! The Mets beat the Yankees on Friday in an back-and-forth affair where the two New York teams put on their own fire work show hitting a combined seven home runs.

The pressure is on the Yankees right now who have aces pitching against the Mets for the rest of the weekend. Yesterday’s loss for the Yankees was their fifth in a row. The Blue Jays extended their winning streak and now have a two game lead in the AL East. Meanwhile the Phillies lost yesterday putting the Mets only a half a game back in the NL East.

Frankie Montas is looking to bounce back this afternoon for the Mets. In two starts this season he has allowed six runs from 10 hits and four walks over nine innings. All six of those runs happened in his last start in Pittsburgh, his start before that he shut Atlanta out over five innings. Montas, a former Yankee, pitched against the Yankees last season holding them to two runs over five innings in Yankee stadium, both runs scoring on home runs. The Yankees have the following career numbers against Montas:

• Cody Bellinger 2-5, 2B, BB, 2 K
• Paul Goldschmidt 1-10, 2 BB, K
• Trent Grisham 1-3, 2B, BB, K
• Aaron Judge 2-10, 2B, 6 K
• DJ LeMahieu 0-4, 2 BB, K
• Ben Rice 1-3, HR, K
• Giancarlo Stanton 0-3, 2 K
• Anthony Volpe 0-2
• Austin Wells 1-2, HR

Carlos Rodón is having his best season with the Yankees and one of the better seasons of his career. Over 106 2/3 innings he has made 18 starts with a 2.95 ERA, 3.52 FIP, 1.003 WHIP and a 135 ERA+. In his last two starts he has allowed only two runs over 11 innings. Before that though he allowed 11 runs over 16 innings spread across three starts, including five home runs. The Mets have the following career numbers against Rodón:

• Pete Alonso 1-8, 4 K
• Francisco Lindor 10-38, 3 2B, 2 HR, 4 BB, 4 K
• Starling Marte 1-7, 2 K
• Jeff McNeil 0-2
• Brandon Nimmo 2-6, BB, 3 K
• Juan Soto 0-2, 4 BB
• Tyrone Taylor 2-4, HR
• Luis Torrens 1-3, HR, 2 K
• Mark Vientos 2-5, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. A battle of home runs. Rodón has allowed 13 home runs this season, putting him at about his career average for HR/9 innings. The Mets hit three home runs on Friday. The only damage Montas allowed in 2024 against the Yankees were two solo home runs, and the Yankees hit four home runs on Friday. This feels like another day for the ball to just fly out of the ballpark.
2. Juan Soto June is becoming Juan Soto July. Soto had a massive day at the plate on Friday going 3-for-4 with a double, a home run and two runs scored. It was his second consecutive game with at least two hits and fourth consecutive game getting on base at least two times (.529 OBP over four games in July). Soto has a 3.7 bWAR and is still leading the league with 71 walks this season.
3. Let’s Get Brett Going! Baty had a fantastic day at the plate on Friday going 2-for-4 including his ninth home run of the season. It broke a four game hitless streak for Brett who had three doubles in two games before that. His next home run will set a career high for him a season. He’s only five RBI”s and five doubles away from career highs in those categories too.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets won a series! The Mets won a series!

After losing 14 of 17 games, the Mets have now won two games in row and are building a bit of momentum heading into this weekend’s series against the Yankees. The Yankees are also in a bit of a slump. They just got swept by the Blue Jays who took over first place from the Yankees in the process.

The Mets rotation though is in shambles. The Mets announced Friday that Paul Blackburn was headed to the IL with a shoulder injury. Over the last few weeks Kodai Senga, Tylor Megill, Griffin Canning and Paul Blackburn have all landed on the injured list leaving the Mets in a bit of a pickle this weekend.

Recently recalled Justin Hagenman will get the bulk of the work today. He’s pitched two games for the Mets (April and June) totaling six innings allowing only one run from five hits while striking out five batters. The success in the majors has not been replicated consistently in Syracuse where he has a 6.21 ERA over 42 innings. Since his last outing in June with the Mets he has allowed six runs over 8 2/3 innings in Syracuse. When pushed, Hagenman can go 70-80 pitches.

The Mets will face off against former Met Marcus Stroman this afternoon. Stroman has made four starts this season totaling 14 1/3 innings with a 8.16 ERA, 6.58 FIP, 1.674 WHIP and a 50 ERA+. His season got off to a rough start, posting an 11.57 ERA over three starts from the end of March to mid-April. A knee injury sidelined him for a few months and he came back strong in his last start allowing only one run over five innings against the Athletics. The Mets have the following career numbers against Stroman:

• Pete Alonso 2-5, 2B
• Brett Baty 0-3
• Travis Jankowski 3-11, 2B, 5 K
• Francisco Lindor 6-27, 2B, 2 BB, 6 K
• Starling Marte 1-8, BB
• Jeff McNeil 0-5
• Brandon Nimmo 1-5, 3 BB, 2 K
• Juan Soto 3-10, 2B, HR, 4 BB, 2 K
• Tyrone Taylor 1-2, 2B

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Brandon Nimmo. From June 22nd to July 1st Nimmo played in nine games where he hit well (9-for-33, .273/.314/.303) but only had one extra base hit. In his last two games he has gone 3-for-9 with two home runs (including a grand slam Wednesday night). The offense right now overall is still struggling to score run. A Nimmo hot streak can go a long way to relieve this tired pitching staff.
2. Juan Soto. Luckily for Mets fans all three games this weekend against the Yankees are being broadcasted on SNY. During the nationally televised games during the last subway series, we got our fill of Juan Soto talk. During that series Soto went 2-for-10 with four walks (.357 OBP). Over his last 31 games Soto is hitting .320/.474/.699 with 12 home runs and 29 walks – earning player of the month honors for June!
3. Devin Williams. Williams last pitched on July 2nd where he allowed two runs and got tagged for the loss in an 11-9 games with the Blue Jays. Williams has had an up and down season so far but is coming off of a tremendous month of June where he allowed only one run over 9 2/3 innings while striking out 12. He pitched two scoreless innings against the Mets earlier this season, his first time facing the Mets since Pete Alonso hit a go-ahead home run against him.

Let’s Go Mets!

What a difference a few hours make! Everything felt bleak after the first game yesterday where the Brewers scored five runs in the sixth inning, putting the game out of reach for the Mets. It was the 14th loss in the last 17 games for the Mets. Pure free-fall.

In the nightcap, a bullpen game of all things, the Mets got out to an early lead. In the second inning, against an almost unhittable prospect, the Mets had a season saving rally (we are leaning into hyperbole today folks!). With two outs the Mets got a walk, walk, single. Brandon Nimmo smashed a grand slam and Francisco Lindor followed up with a solo shot. Pure elation!

Now the Mets look to win a series at Citi Field!

The Mets need a classic, solid outing from David Peterson tonight. Over 95 1/3 innings (16 starts), Peterson has a 3.30 ERA, 3.36 FIP, 1.280 WHIP and a 115 ERA+. June was not kind to Peterson who had a 4.55 ERA, 3.44 FIP over 31 2/3 innings. These numbers include his masterful complete game shutout. Things have fallen apart in each of his last two starts allowing a combined 10 runs from 13 hits over 8 2/3 innings. Peterson last faced the Brewers in relief in the postseason, recording a save in a scoreless inning of work. The Brewers have the following career numbers against Peterson:

• Jake Bauers 0-3, K
• Jackson Chourio 1-3, K
• Isaac Collins 0-3, 2 K
• William Contreras 2-7, BB, K
• Sal Frelick 1-1
• Eric Haase 0-3, 2 K
• Rhys Hoskins 7-16, 3 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, 4 K
• Andruw Monasterio 1-2
• Joey Ortiz 0-3, K
• Brice Turang 0-4, K
• Christian Yelich 1-8, 2 BB, 4 K

The Mets bats will face a friend tonight in Jose Quintana. In two seasons with the Mets, Quintana made 44 starts totaling 246 innings with a 3.70 ERA, 4.24 FIP, 1.268 WHIP and a 107 ERA+. He was on fire for the Mets down the stretch last season allowing two runs, one earned, over a five game stretch (32 innings) that propelled the Mets into the postseason. He’s off to a good start with the Brewers, posting a 3.30 ERA, 4.42 FIP, 1.417 WHIP and a 121 ERA+ over 60 innings. The Mets have the following career stats against Quintana:

• Pete Alonso 1-3, HR
• Travis Jankowski 1-2, K
• Francisco Lindor 3-22, 2B, 2 BB, 6 K
• Starling Marte 5-24, 2B, BB, 8 K
• Jeff McNeil 2-3, 2B
• Brandon Nimmo 1-3, 2B, 2 K
• Juan Soto 1-10, 2 BB, 2 K
• Tyrone Taylor 2-4, 2B, 2 K
• Luis Torrens 0-3, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Francisco Lindor. When Lindor is good, the Mets are good. When Lindor struggles, the Mets struggle. Lindor was named as an All-Star before Wednesday night’s game, his first All-Star game as a Met (which is wild). He also had a terrific game at the plate going 3-for-4 with a homerun a double and three RBI. Each RBI came in a different at bat, furthering the Mets lead.
2. How deep can David Peterson go? The Mets used nine different pitchers on Wednesday. Unless the Mets make a roster move, the only member of the Mets bullpen who didn’t pitch on Wednesday was José Buttó. Before his recent rough patch, Peterson was one of the more consistent pitchers on the Mets roster. He pitched at least six innings in seven of eight starts between May 6th and June 17th.
3. Jeff McNeil. Jeff McNeil had a solid day at the plate Wednesday night going 2-for-4. This was McNeil’s third game with two hits in his last six games played. His OBP is up to .343 which is the highest it has been since 2022 (when he led the league in batting average). He also has a 134 OPS+, which is the highest it has been since 2022 (140).

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets have a tough challenge in the nightcap game tonight facing Jacob Misiorowski. The top 100 prospect (#44 Baseball America, #65 Baseball Prospectus, #100 MLB Pipeline) has dominated opponents so far in his major league career. He will face a Mets lineup that already played a full game today. Across the diamond the Mets send will send out their own prospect in Blade Tidwell, hoping that he rebounds against a more tired Brewers roster. It’s more Mets baseball on Wednesday evening, and hopefully it’s better than what we saw earlier today!

Huascar Brazobán will open the game and will be followed by Blade Tidwell who is in line to do the bulk of the work today. Over 10 2/3 innings this season, he has allowed 12 runs from 18 hits and eight walks while striking out seven. His first start of the season was terrible, allowing six runs over 3 2/3 innings. He did better in his second start allowing only two runs over 3 2/3 innings. The numbers in his last outing are a bit skewed. He allowed four runs over 3 1/3 innings, but the Mets kept him in a game to save a bullpen after a bad start by David Peterson.

Jacob Misiorowski has allowed only two runs over his first three starts (16 innings) this season while striking out 19 batters. He’s coming off of a career high eight strikeouts against the Pirates over five innings, holding the Pirates to only two hits. The Cardinals didn’t score against Jacob, but showed that patience can pay off (four walks), something that will be tough for the Mets in the second game of a doubleheader. Jacob leans on a fastball over half of the time that sits right around 100 mph. He mixes in a slider that sits in the mid-90’s, a high 80’s curveball and a low-90’s changeup.

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Huascar Brazobán. Over Brazobán had a 1.30 ERA, 3.46 FIP over his first 26 games and 34 2/3 innings while striking out 34 batters this season. Since June 3rd he has pitched in eight games totaling 7 2/3 innings where he allowed 14 runs, 13 earned, from eight hits and 10 walks. He’s been particularly off in his last two games recording only two outs while allowing seven runs. Hopefully getting the start today gets him back on track.
2. The big, deflating inning. The Mets have now lost 14 of their last 17 games and a defining characteristic in many of these games is one inning where everything falls apart and makes a comeback seem impossible. Earlier this afternoon it was the sixth inning where the Mets allowed five runs. Reed Garrett came in and promptly gave up the tying run before falling apart and allowing a grand slam. There are a lot of problems with the offense right now, but they also need a chance.
3. In search of the big, run scoring inning. On the other side of the coin, the Mets bats still haven’t had a massive inning yet. A couple of crooked number innings will go a long way in taking off the need to perfect while pitching. A big inning will help everyone in slumps.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets started off June hot but finished spiraling, losing 12 of their last 15 games. The last three games have been particularly brutal, being clobbered by the Pirates three days in a row despite having tons of runners on base. Hopefully the Mets were able to use the off day to clear their heads and get back to work this afternoon against the Brewers.

Last night’s game got washed out – so the Mets and Brewers will play two games today! The Mets are extra rested right now, so they’re in a good position today to handle the extra load. This does cause some problems for the Mets rotation down the road this weekend that will have to be straightened out. A double win today can go a long way for the Mets to flip the momentum-laden script!

Clay Holmes looks to help the Mets right the ship tonight. Over 16 starts and 88 innings Holmes has a 2.97 ERA, 4.19 FIP, 1.239 WHIP and a 128 ERA+. He’s coming off of a strong start against the Braves where he held them to one run over five innings, his third start in his last four where he has allowed only one run. The Brewers have the following career numbers against Holmes:

• William Contreras 0-4, 2 K
• Sal Frelick 0-1
• Rhys Hoskins 0-1
• Christian Yelich 3-5, 2 2B, 2 BB

The Mets bats will get a look at Freddy Peralta, who they haven’t seen since last October. Peralta started his 2024 season holding the Mets to only one run over six innings. In the postseason the Mets tagged Peralta for three runs over four innings and then Peralta pitched a clean inning of relief against the Mets. This season Peralta has pitched 93 innings over 17 games with a 2.90 ERA, 3.92 FIP, 1.13 WHIP and a 138 ERA+. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Pete Alonso 1-7, 2B, 2 BB, K
• Brett Baty 0-2, K
• Travis Jankowski 2-3
• Francisco Lindor 1-8, HR, 3 BB, 4 K
• Starling Marte 3-13, 3B, HR, K
• Jeff McNeil 0-6, 2 K
• Brandon Nimmo 0-10, BB, 4 K
• Juan Soto 1-10, HR, 4 BB, K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-2, K
• Mark Vientos 1-2, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Emotions. The Mets and Rhys Hoskins got into during the first series of the season back in 2024. The last time these two teams met, Pete Alonso hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the ninth inning to finally put the Mets ahead in a do-or-die game three and send the Mets to the next round of the postseason. On the other hand, the Mets right now are just fighting their own emotions, trying to stop the spiral they’ve been on. It’s possible the Brewers and Mets may be on two completely different wavelengths today in terms of emotions to each other and themselves.
2. Francisco Lindor. The Mets, now more than ever, need their leader right now. Lindor had a three game stretch last week where he went 6-for-13 with a double and two home runs. It seemed like he was started to break out of his funk. Since then he has gone 2-for-25 with a double a walk (.080/.111/.120). As Lindor goes, so do the Mets!
3. Mark Vientos. It’s been a tough return to the Mets for Mark Vientos who has gone 1-for-13 in his last three games with five strikeouts. Vientos has been much better at home than the road this season. On the road he is squeaking by slashing .200/.260/.287. At home he is hitting .247/.319/.459. Let’s hope the home version of Mark Vientos comes through today!

Let’s Go Mets!

The 2024 Mets went on quite the run after a closed door team meeting. Will history repeat itself?

After Saturday’s loss the Mets held a players only meeting. The team has spin spiraling of late, losing 12 of their last 15 games. Saturday’s loss featured two things that have become common during the losing streak: leaving tons of runners on base, and one big inning from the opposing team that puts the game out of reach. Hopefully they can get back on the right path today!

The Mets rotation has been remade over the last couple of weeks and they need Frankie Montas to build off of his successful Mets debut last week. In his first start against the Braves Montas tossed five scoreless innings allowing three hits and three walks while striking out five. You would think as a member of the Reds and Brewers last season, Montas would have faced the Pirates – but he didn’t! The Pirates have the following, limited, numbers against Montas:

• Adam Frazier 3-8, 2B
• Isiah Kiner-Falefa 4-13, BB, 2 K
• Andrew McCutchen 0-1, BB
• Tommy Pham 2-9, HR, 4 K

The Mets bats will get a look at Mike Burrows this afternoon. Over seven games, six starts (30 1/3 innings), Burrows has a 4.45 ERA, 4.76 FIP, 1.319 WHIP and a 96 ERA+. Burrows had a rough two starts to the season in late May, allowing nine runs over 8 1/3 innings. He’s been a lot more effective in May allowing seven runs over 22 innings while striking out 25 batters (2.86 ERA, 3.40 FIP). The only hitter on the Mets who has seen Burrows in a game is Juan Soto (0-1, BB).

Three Things To Watch For:

1. How long can Burrows pitch? Burrows longest outing this season was 5 1/3 innings, which he has done twice this year. The most pitches he has tossed in a game is 88 and has only pitched above 80 pitches twice over seven games. He’s also off schedule. Burrows made a start on 6/20 and then had come in as long relief for Paul Skenes on 6/25. He ended up pitching 2 1/3 innings of shut-out ball, tossing 31 pitches. The Pirates ended up knocking Burrows back a day to get more rest. Hopefully the Mets can take advantage of Burrows being out of sync.
2. Frankie Montas pitch selection. Let’s go ahead and read too much into Montas’ first start last week. Montas used his four seamer 33.8% of the time, which was nearly identical to the 33% of the time he used it in 2024. Montas used his sinker 28.8% of the time in his debut, which was about 50% more than the 19.3% of the time he used it in 2024. The Brave also got two of their three hits against his sinker. As Montas gets more innings, let’s see if the Mets keep asking him to use his sinker more than last year.
3. Hitting with RISP. The Mets were doing well hitting with runners in scoring position in the two games they won against the Braves earlier in the week. It’s been a disaster in Pittsburgh though. Over the last two games the Mets have gone 2-for-17 leaving 18 runners on base. It’s been comically bad so far this series.

Let’s Go Mets!

Two steps forward, one step back for the Mets right now.

Going into Friday’s game, the Mets were coming off two consecutive wins against the Braves and getting Mark Vientos back from the injured list. Then the Mets struggled in just about everyway way Friday night. They only scored one run on a solo shot by Juan Soto while going 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position. David Peterson struggled for the first time in a long time, and Tidwell allowed too many runs behind him. The only silver lining was that Blade Tidwell pitched 3 1/3 innings, saving the bullpen for the rest of the weekend.

That was yesterday and today is a new day to get back in the win column!

The Mets need Paul Blackburn more than ever now with the news on Friday that Griffin Canning ruptured his achilles. Blackburn has pitched 17 2/3 innings with a 6.62 ERA, 4.44 FIP, 1.755 WHIP and a 58 ERA+. He allowed three runs from six hits and three walks over 4 2/3 innings in his last start. He seemed better, getting five strikeouts (a season high) and didn’t allow four runs (we have a different bar for Blackburn) and hopefully that gives him something to build on tonight. There are only two players on the Pirates who have seen Blackburn in a major league game:

• Adam Frazier 1-7, 2B, 2 K
• Isiah Kiner-Falefa 1-2

Bailey Falter has pitched 85 1/3 innings over 16 starts with a 3.59 ERA, 4.38 FIP, 1.184 WHIP and a 119 ERA+. Falter was dominant in May allowing only four runs over 35 2/3 innings (0.76 ERA), including four starts where he allowed no runs. June has been a different story. He’s allowed 11 runs over 19 1/3 innings from 21 hits and 9 walks (5.12 ERA, 5.46 FIP). He faced the Mets back in May. He held the Mets scoreless but allowed three hits and five walks in just 3 2/3 innings. The Mets have the following career stats against Falter:

• Pete Alonso 1-10, HR, 2 BB, 2 K
• Brett Baty 0-2
• Francisco Lindor 3-10, 5 BB, K
• Starling Marte 2-9, HR, BB, 2 K
• Jeff McNeil 1-8, 2 K
• Brandon Nimmo 6-14, HR, BB, 4 K
• Juan Soto 3-9
• Tyrone Taylor 3-9, 2B, 2 K
• Luis Torrens 2-5, K
• Mark Vientos 1-5, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Juan Soto. The Mets bats may be collectively struggling, but don’t blame Juan Soto. Over his last seven games he has gone 9-for-22 with six home runs, a stolen base and five walks (.409/.519/1.227). He is now on track to hit a similar amount of home runs as last year. He’s still leading the league in walks and he’s still on track to smash his career best for stolen bases (currently has 9, career best is 12).
2. Brett Baty. You know who has a five game hitting streak? Brett Baty. Over the last five games he has gone 8-for-18 at the plate with three games where he has collected two hits. Friday night Baty went 2-for-4 with two doubles. To put this in perspective, over the first 16 games in June, Baty only had six hits in 58 trips to the plate.
3. The Bullpen. Blade Tidwell saved the bullpen that had to cover 6 1/3 innings on Thursday after Canning’s injury. Reed Garrett and Huascar Brazobán haven’t pitched since Tuesday and will probably first up for the Mets this afternoon.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets head into Pittsburgh tonight battered, but on a two game winning streak. Griffin Canning was cruising Thursday night until he had what looked like purely from his reaction, a serious ankle injury. It is the third significant injury to a starting pitcher on the Mets in the last two weeks. The bullpen picked up the game for him and allowed two hits and nothing else over 6 1/3 innings to lock down a shutout victory against the Braves.

Heading into play today the Mets are back in first place, let’s keep building momentum to close out the month of June!

David Peterson has pitched 90 2/3 innings over 15 starts for the Mets with a 2.98 ERA, 3.37 FIP, 1.235 WHIP and a 127 ERA+. He’s coming off of a rough start against the Phillies in Philly where he allowed five runs over four innings, his shortest start of the season. In his three previous starts he allowed only three runs over 23 innings, tossing at minimum seven innings per start. Peterson faced the Pirates earlier this season where he allowed two runs over six innings from five hits and three walks. The Pirates have the following career numbers against him:

• Joey Bart 1-7, 3 BB, 3 K
• Alexander Canario 0-3
• Oneil Cruz 1-3, HR, 2 K
• Henry Davis 0-4, K
• Nick Gonzalez 1-2, 2B
• Ke’Bryan Hayes 2-7, BB, K
• Spencer Horwitz 1-2, BB
• Isiah Kiner-Falefa 2-3, HR
• Andrew McCutchen 2-16, HR, 5 BB, 5 K
• Rommy Pham 0-2, K
• Bryan Reynolds 2-10, 3 K
• Jared Triolo 1-3, 2B

The Mets bats will get another look at Mitch Keller tonight. Keller has pitched 94 innings with a 4.02 ERA, 3.24 FIP, 1.223 WHIP and 104 ERA+ and somehow has managed to lose (thanks to the Pirates run scoring abilities) a league leading 10 games. He hasn’t been as sharp in his last five games allowing 17 runs, 16 earned over 30 innings (4.80 ERA, 3.44 FIP). Keller was great in his one start against the Mets this year where he allowed only two runs over seven innings while striking out eight. He took the loss in this game because the Pirates offense was only able to score one run. The Mets have the following career stats against Keller:

• Pete Alonso 0-12, 3 K
• Brett Baty 2-5, HR, BB
• Travis Jankowski 1-3, 2B
• Francisco Lindor 2-13, 5 BB, 6 K
• Starling Marte 0-2, K
• Jeff McNeil 2-15, HR, 2 K
• Brandon Nimmo 4-15, 2B, 4 K
• Juan Soto 4-10, 2B, 2 BB, K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-7, 2 K
• Luis Torrens 0-3, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Mark Vientos. Mark Vientos comes back to the Mets tonight! Vientos has been out since June 3rd with a hamstring injury. His first five rehab games were rough at the plate, going 2-for-17 with a double and no walks. In his last two games he has gone 2-for-6 at the plate with a double and three walks.
2. Ronny Mauricio. The Mets sent Jared Young down to make room for Mark Vientos, meaning that Brett Baty, Mark Vientos and Ronny Mauricio will all be on the Mets roster at the same time. Ronny currently has a three game hitting streak where he has gone 5-for-12 at the plate with a double and a home run. If he stays up with the Mets, he’s going to need consistent at bats so we’ll see how the Mets start to juggle all three infielders on the roster at the same time.
3. Pete Alonso. Pete Alonso is coming off of a big night where he went 3-for-4 with a double, it was his third consecutive game with at least one hit after going 0-for-8 in the two games before this streak. His numbers against Keller leave something to be desired (0-for-12, 3 K). The Mets offense earlier this season was running through Pete Alonso. Today would be an excellent day to finally hit against Mitch Keller and keep the momentum from the last couple of days going.

Let’s Go Mets!