213 Miles From Shea

The Mets have a chance to take the series from the Dodgers tonight!

Friday night was a weird game that saw an odd tag up play, a 90 minute rain delay, and multiple scoreless innings of extra-inning baseball. There was a feeling early Saturday night that we were heading the same way. The Dodgers scored their second run when the umpires missed the ball being batted off of a hitters leg. Rather than letting snowball to a disaster, David Peterson settled in and delivered a masterful 7 2/3 inning performance, setting the Mets up for success tonight!

Kodai Senga has pitched 50 1/3 innings this season with a 1.43 ERA, 2.84 FIP, 1.192 WHIP and a 270 ERA+. His last start was one of the most important of the season. It was evident early on that he did not have his best stuff, but he battled through and was able to stop the bleeding at only three runs while giving the Mets six solid innings. Unfortunately, the Mets hitters took the night off and the Mets lost 3-1.

Senga will be looking to right the record after two relief outings against the Dodgers in 2024 where he allowed a total of six runs over three innings from five hits and four walks. The Dodgers have the following career numbers against Senga:

• Mookie Betts 4-4, 2B, HR, BB
• Michael Conforto 0-2, BB, K
• Tommy Edman 1-7, 2B, K
• Freddie Freeman 0-2, 2 BB, K
• Kiké Hernández 1-3
• Teoscar Hernández 1-3, 2B, BB, K
• Max Muncy 1-3, 2 BB, K
• Shohei Ohtani 2-3, 2B, 3 BB
• Andy Pages 0-1
• Miguel Rojas 0-2
• Will Smith 0-4, K

Landon Knack has pitched in six games including four starts this season totaling 23 1/3 innings. He has a 6.17 ERA, 5.18 FIP, 1.543 WHIP and a 64 ERA+. His last two outings have been particularly brutal allowing nine total runs from 13 hits, including four home runs, over 9 2/3 innings against the Athletics and the Diamondbacks. While the Diamondbacks lit him up (five runs over 4 2/3), he did strike out eight batters in that game.

The Mets got to Landon Knack in the 2024 NLCS scoring five times over two innings of relief from five hits and three walks. Four of the runs scored on a Mark Vientos grand slam! The Mets have the following career numbers against Knack:

• Pete Alonso 1-1
• Francisco Alvarez 0-2
• Francisco Lindor 0-0, BB
• Starling Marte 1-2
• Brandon Nimmo 0-1, K
• Juan Soto 0-2, K
• Tyrone Taylor 1-1, 2B, BB
• Mark Vientos 1-1, HR

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Brett Baty. It’s the third day in a row that we’re talking about Brett Baty. He recorded his third multi-hit game in a row Saturday night, going 3-for-3 at the plate with a double, a run scored, a walk and two RBI’s. In his last three games he has now gone 7-for-11 with six RBI’s.
2. Somehow, both bullpens are okay. The concern going into Saturday’s game was how tired the bullpens were from Friday’s marathon of a game. Thanks to David Peterson, the Mets only had to run Edwin Díaz to pitch on back-to-back days. The Dodgers recalled Bobby Miller who covered two innings of relief for the squad. Anthony Banda was their only pitcher who needed to go on back-to-back days.
3. Shohei Ohtani. When the Mets shut down Aaron Judge last weekend (0-for-5, 3 K), they won the game. Saturday night the Mets did the same thing to Ohtani. He went 0-for-4 on the night with three strikeouts. Shohei has had good at bats against Kodai throughout his career. If Kodai can reverse that tonight, the Mets will be in a good spot.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets will try to look past Friday night’s weird slog of a game and even the series against the Dodgers tonight at Citi Field.

The game Friday night took a bizarre turn in the 3rd inning when Juan Soto and Tyrone Taylor collided for a ball. Tyrone Taylor bobbled it and eventually some how caught it. Michael Conforto tagged up on the initial touch and then went. The whole baseball world then found out that according to MLB, that is how you are supposed to tag, so the inning ending double play never happened. At the same time, the skies opened up and the game got delayed with a 3-1 count with two outs and runners on 2nd and 3rd.

The game delay would last over 90 minutes and the Dodgers immediately scored when the game resumed. Eventually the Mets came back sending the game into extra innings. The game would go through 13 innings, ending after 1 AM tiring everyone out. And now the Mets get to play again!

David Peterson looks to go as deep into todays game as possible to save the Mets tired arms. Over 50 1/3 innings this season he has a 2.86 ERA, 3.55 FIP, 1.331 WHIP and a 135 ERA+. He has pitched six innings in three consecutive starts including last weekend against the Yankees where he allowed two runs, only one earned, working around four walks.

Peterson’s first start in 2024 was against the Dodgers allowing three runs, two earned over five innings from seven hits and and one walk. In the playoffs he allowed five runs, four earned, over six innings spread across two games. The Dodgers have the following career numbers against him:

• Mookie Betts 3-11, 2 2B, BB, K
• Michael Conforto 1-3, K
• Tommy Edman 2-3, K
• Freddie Freeman 6-21, 2 HR, BB, 7 K
• Kiké Hernández 4-8, 2B, BB, 2 K
• Teoscar Hernández 2-7, HR, BB, K
• Max Muncy 2-7, HR, 2 K
• Shohei Ohtani 5-10, BB, K
• Andy Pages 3-4, HR
• Miguel Rojas 7-14, 3 2B, HR, K
• Will Smith 2-5, 2B, HR, BB

Tony Gonsolin has a 4.05 ERA, 4.63 FIP, 1.300 WHIP and a 98 ERA+ over 20 innings this season. His deepest outing was his first start of the season where he allowed three runs against the Marlins over six innings. He’s coming off of a start where the Angels tagged him for four runs over four innings including two home runs. While he only pitched four innings in that game, he did get to 97 pitches, by far the most he has this season. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Pete Alonso 1-4, 2 K
• Francisco Alvarez 0-2
• Brett Baty 0-1, K
• Francisco Lindor 0-1, BB
• Starling Marte 0-7
• Jeff McNeil 0-3, BB
• Brandon Nimmo 1-5, HR, K
• Juan Soto 4-12, 2B, 3B, 2 K
• Tyrone Taylor 2-4, 2 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Hangover from last night. Last night was a late night for both clubs. The worst thing the Mets hitters can do today is have quick at bats. Make Gonsolin have long battles, it led to him throwing nearly 100 pitches by the end of the fourth inning. Get into that tired bullpen, make them throw more pitches. Allow Friday’s game to impact the rest of the weekend. The opposite is true for the Mets. Push David Peterson deeper into the game, give the Mets bullpen a breather.
2. Brett Baty. Baty had his second multi-hit game in a row for the Mets Friday night. Over his last two games he has gone 4-for-8 at the plate with four RBI’s, a walk and a stolen base. The only downside for the Mets – despite getting on base so much Baty has only scored once (on his own home run). The hitters behind him need to get him home!
3. Grounders. Connected to the above, the Mets are third in the league in grounding into double plays, with 46 already this season (the Athletics and Pirates lead the league with 49). These rally killers have become a culprit in the Mets woes with hitting with runners in scoring position. Is this a statistical fluke or the sign of a deeper problem with team approaches at the plate?

Let’s Go Mets!

What a difficult week for the New York Metropolitans! The first place Yankees, followed by the second place Red Sox and now the first place Dodgers! Whew!

For the first time in a while the Mets will play a team tonight with a better record. This will also be the first time the two teams play each other since the 2024 NLCS. The Dodgers will face a Mets team trying to break out of a rut. The Mets offense in their last game finally got a hit with runners in scoring position on their way to beat the Red Sox 5-1. Can the Mets light up Clayton Kershaw tonight?

Griffin Canning has a 2.47 ERA, 3.86 FIP, 1.289 WHIP and a 157 ERA+ over 47 1/3 innings (nine starts) this season. In his last six starts he has a 1.67 ERA, 3.48 FIP over 32 1/3 innings while striking out 33 batters. Before his last start against the Yankees, the only game that series the Mets won, we talked about how there was a warning sign starting to blink for Canning – home runs. He allowed home runs in back-to-back starts in May. Well it happened again against the Yankees, bringing his total to four home runs over three starts. The Dodgers have the following career numbers against Canning:

• Mookie Betts 3-7, 2B, HR, BB, K
• Tommy Edman 1-4, BB, K
• Freddie Freeman 1-5, K
• Kiké Hernández 1-4, 2B, BB
• Teoscar Hernández 4-9, 2B, HR, 3 K
• Max Muncy 0-9, 2 BB, 5 K
• Shohei Ohtani 0-3, K
• Andy Pages 1-1
• Miguel Rojas 0-2, BB
• Will Smith 2-4, 2B, BB

Clayton Kershaw looks to bounce back from his first start this season. Last week he allowed five runs from five hits and three walks over four innings against the Angels. Last season he made seven starts totaling 30 innings with a 4.50 ERA, 3.53 FIP, 1.500 WHIP and an 88 ERA+. Kershaw has been limited by various injuries over the last couple of seasons and he’s still an absolute legend in baseball. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Pete Alonso 1-7, 2 BB, 2 K
• José Azócar 1-2, 2B, K
• Francisco Lindor 2-8, 3 K
• Starling Marte 4-22, BB, 9 K
• Jeff McNeil 1-8
• Brandon Nimmo 0-8, 3 K
• Juan Soto 3-14, HR, 2 BB, 4 K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-5, 3 K
• Luis Torrens 1-3, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. The home run battle. On Wednesday night the Mets hit their first home run in eight days (thank you Francisco Lindor!). The Mets schedule has been insane this month in regards to home runs. In the month of May the Mets have faced the Yankees, Dodgers, Cubs and Diamondbacks, all in the top five for home runs hit this season. Griffin Canning has started against all four teams. This is going to be another weekend where the Mets need their stars to blast some balls to the Van Wyck and Whitestone Expressways.
2. Francisco Lindor. Lindor had a rough week before Tuesday. Over six games he went 1-for-22 at the plate with a double and three walks. The Mets as a team went 2-4 over that stretch. In his last two games he has gone 3-for-8 with a double, home run and three stolen bases. Lindor has also been a much better hitter at home (.386/.429/.693) than away (.200/.291/.309) this season.
3. Brett Baty. Brett Baty saved the Mets on Wednesday night. He went 2-for-4 at the plate with three RBI’s. More importantly, he had the first Mets hit with RISP in what felt like 32 years. Baty now has 14 RBI’s on the season, good for 6th on the team, despite playing in only 32 games and having less than 100 AB’s so far.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets are officially in their first losing streak of the season, dropping three games in a row and five games of their last six. Their pitching the last couple of nights have kept them in games but the offense has fallen completely flat.

The Mets will have break this streak in the most difficult way possible. The bats will need to exorcise their demons against Garrett Crochet. Tylor Megill will need to figure out how to put his terrible month of May behind him as he faces one of the more potent offenses in baseball.

Tylor Megill has a 3.74 ERA, 3.13 FIP, 1.385 WHIP and a 104 ERA+ over 43 1/3 innings. If all of his starts were about the same, we would be pretty happy with this stat line from Megill – but he’s really had two different seasons so far. In his first five games he had a 1.09 ERA, 2.35 FIP. In his four starts since then he has a 7.23 ERA with a 4.32 FIP. His strikeouts are high, 26 in 18 2/3 innings during his tough streak, but teams are scoring on him. The Red Sox have the following career numbers against him:

• Wilyer Abreu 0-1, K
• Alex Bregman 2-5
• Rafael Devers 0-1
• Jarren Duran 1-2, 2B
• Nick Sogard 1-1
• Connor Wong 1-2, K

The Red Sox off-season was built around acquiring Garrett Crochet. He has delivered so fart his season with a 2.00 ERA, 2.80 FIP, 1.063 WHIP and a 207 ERA+ over a league leading 10 starts and league leading 63 innings. In half of his starts this season he has allowed zero runs or one run. Luckily for the Mets, he’s coming off of a start where he allowed two runs! (Over seven innings). Crochet faced the Mets last September when the White Sox were controlling his innings. The solo home run they hit off of him was the only run he allowed over 3 1/3 innings. Crochet struck out eight Mets hitters, representing 80% of the outs he recorded. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Pete Alonso 0-2, 2 K
• José Azócar 0-1, K
• Francisco Lindor 1-3, HR, K
• Starling Marte 0-3, K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-1, K
• Luis Torrens 0-2, K
• Mark Vientos 1-2, K

Three Things to Watch For:

1. Hitting with RISP / Hitting home runs. Neither team did a good job hitting with runners in scoring position Tuesday night. The Mets went 0-for-7 and the Red Sox went 0-for-4. The two teams combined left only 13 runners on base – there just wasn’t a lot of hitting. But the Red Sox got a two solo home runs that made all the difference. The Mets as a team haven’t hit a home run since May 13th. At some point this will just course correct. It’s just happening during the Mets toughest stretch of games in the season to date.
2. Francisco Lindor. Before Tuesday night’s game Lindor was mired in a 1-for-21 slump. He’s not out of it yet, but he had a positive night last night going 1-for-3 with a single that came off of his bat 107 mph. He also hit a scorching ground ball (98.6 mph) that unfortunately became a double play. He’s the only player on the Mets who has homered against tonight’s starter, Garrett Crochet.
3. Bullpens are in opposite places. The Red Sox effectively pitched a bullpen game Tuesday night with Buehler returning from the injured list limited to only two innings. Tonight they have the league leader in innings pitched, so they hoping to give most of the bullpen the night off (although several of their high leverage guys have now pitched in back-to-back games). The Mets are the opposite right now, only Kranick, Castillo and Buttó have pitched in the last two nights. With a day off tomorrow everyone else should be available tonight.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets look to snap their losing streak tonight. The bats have gone mostly silent for the Mets over the last week who have lost four of their last five games and are in their first collective rut of the season. The Mets had chances Monday night, but went 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position leaving six runners on base. Further, the Mets hit into three double plays Monday night, which easily erased their eight hits and 11 walks. The Mets bats seem a bit out of sync and hopefully tonight they can click back into gear.

Clay Holmes has pitched 48 2/3 innings (nine starts) this season with a 3.14 ERA, 3.10 FIP, 1.253 WHIP and a 124 ERA+. Holmes is coming off of a start where he allowed four runs over six innings, in a game where the Mets couldn’t score any runs. He has a three game streak of pitching exactly six innings, which was the big knock on his game at the start of the season. The only new concern is that he allowed three homeruns across his last two starts after allowing no home runs in his previous seven starts. The Red Sox have the following career numbers against Holmes:

• Wilyer Abreu 1-2, 2B, BB
• Alex Bregman 2-5
• Rafael Devers 1-5, BB
• Jarren Duran 0-4, 2 K
• David Hamilton 0-3, K
• Caddanne Rafaela 0-3, BB
• Rob Refsnyder 0-2, K
• Trevor Story 0-5
• Abraham Toro 0-1, K
• Connor Wong 1-3, 2B, K

The Red Sox expect Walker Buehler to return from the injured list tonight. Before his right shoulder injury, Buehler made six starts totaling 33 2/3 innings with a 4.28 ERA, 4.29 FIP, 1.218 WHIP and a 98 ERA+. The last time he faced the Mets was in the NLCS where he shutout them out over four innings, limited the Mets to only three hits while striking out six. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Pete Alonso 5-16, 4 HR, 2 K
• Francisco Alvarez 0-2, 2 K
• Francisco Lindor 1-4, HR, K
• Starling Marte 2-7, 2 2B, BB, 2 K
• Jeff McNeil 1-9, BB, 2 K
• Brandon Nimmo 3-12, 3B, 2 BB, K
• Juan Soto 4-17, 2 BB, 3 K
• Tyrone Taylor 1-3, 2B, BB
• Luis Torrens 0-3, K
• Mark Vientos 1-2, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Francisco Lindor. The Mets need their sparkplug back! Lindor has gone 1-for-22 at the plate in his last six games (.045/.154/.091) and the Mets as a team have won only two of those games. He is hitless in his last two games. Before this cold streak, Lindor went 11-for-23 over four games. Hopefully tonight is the start of another hot streak.
2. Bad Luck. Outside of a Soto single that would have been a home run at one other ball park, the batted balls for the Mets more or less fell as expected. Sunday night was another story for the Mets. The Mets hit five balls Sunday night that were outs with an expected batting average of .410 or better. This included a flyout from Pete Alonso that would have been a home run at three ball parks. These are the type of at bats that can prolong slumps, but also are the type of at bats that show the hitter is going to hit their way out of it.
3. Defense. Defense. Monday night was an adventure for Pete Alonso who had the yips early in the game and then made a terrific play later in the game. Part of Clay Holmes success this year has been ground balls. Batters are hitting grounders 52.9% of the time, good for the 85th percentile. The Mets fielding will need to be on point tonight for Holmes to have a successful night.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets are shipping up to Boston after a disappointing night in the Bronx. The Mets had the late Sunday night game and were in the game the whole night until the bottom of the 8th where the wheels fell off. We’ve seen this Mets team bounce back well from disappointing and weird losses – hopefully that happens again tonight!

The schedule doesn’t get easier for the Mets who start a road trip to the second place Red Sox before heading across the country to play the first place Dodgers. The Red Sox are actually two games below .500 right now after going 4-6 in their last 10 games. They are sixth in the league in runs scored but have also allowed the 8th most runs to score.

Kodai Senga draws another tough offense tonight. He is off to a brilliant start, pitching 44 1/3 innings with a 1.02 ERA, 2.84 FIP, 1.173 WHIP and a 382 ERA+. Over this last three starts he has allowed only two runs, one earned, over 15 2/3 innings (0.57 ERA, 2.83 FIP) while striking out 17 batters. This includes holding the high octane Arizona Diamondbacks offense to only one run over two starts. The Red Sox have the following career numbers against Senga:

• Rafael Devers 0-2
• Jarren Duran 1-2
• Conor Wong 1-1

The Mets bats will get a look at rookie Hunter Dobbins tonight, making his sixth career start. Over his first five games (27 2/3 innings) he has a 3.90 ERA, 3.49 FIP, 1.301 WHIP and a 107 ERA+. His starts in May have been a bit wild. He’s either fantastic (no runs over six innings against the Royals), or not (nine runs over 10 2/3 innings against the Twins and the Tigers).

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Mets top three hitters. The Mets lineup as a whole struggled on Sunday, getting only three hits. The top three hitters (Lindor, Soto, Alonso) went a combined 0-for-12 with four strikeouts and no walks. Highly unusual for this group! The Mets are going to need their hitters to step up tonight in another ballpark with funky dimensions.
2. Let last night roll off. In addition to not hitting Sunday night, the Mets struggled with fielding. Vientos had an unfortunate error early that led to a run scoring inning. Alonso had errant throw late that led to a huge inning for the Yankees. These things happen. The Mets are at their best when they can let their mistakes stay in past and not spiral into future games.
3. Potential big round number for Lindor. Francisco Lindor is sitting at 798 career RBI’s. A good night at the plate or a good series at the plate and he could be at 800 before the flight to LA! For context, Lindor is tied at 522 on the RBI career leader board and getting to 800 would move Lindor up to 516. He’ll be in the top 500 by the end of this season.

Let’s Go Mets!

Talk about poetry and drama in the Subway Series!

Friday night Juan Soto recorded the last out. Saturday afternoon Aaron Judge recorded the last out. With the series on the line the Yankees turn to Max Fried, the pitcher they turned to after Juan Soto turned down their massive contract. If you love stories in baseball, this has been the series for you!

David Peterson has pitched 44 1/3 innings over eight starts this year with a 3.05 ERA, 3.55 FIP, 1.353 WHIP and a 128 ERA+. He has allowed two earned runs or less in four consecutive starts and has pitched six innings in back-to-back starts. There have been two concerns of late though. First, he’s allowed seven walks in his last two starts. He walked only nine batters in the six starts before that. He’s also allowed a home run in each of his last two starts, after going five straight starts without allowing any home runs. The Yankees have the following career numbers against Peterson:

• Cody Bellinger 0-4, K
• Trent Grisham 1-4, K
• Aaron Judge 0-1, BB
• DJ LeMahieu 0-1, BB
• Anthony Volpe 1-3, 2 K

Max Fried is living up to his massive eight year, $218 million deal. Over 56 2/3 innings (nine starts), he has a 1.11 ERA (league leading), 2.85 FIP, 0.935 WHIP and a 356 ERA+ (league leading). From late April to early May he went three consecutive starts without allowing a run. The good news for the Mets is he has allowed runs in back-to-back starts (two runs in 12 innings, 13 strikeouts). Fried held the Mets scoreless and hitless over seven innings in his only start against them in 2024, but this was also during the Mets free falling month of May. The Mets have the following career numbers against Fried:

• Pete Alonso 10-36, 2B, 2 HR, 6 BB, 12 K
• Francisco Alvarez 1-4
• José Azócar 2-4
• Brett Baty 2-6, 3 K
• Francisco Lindor 3-28, HR, 6 K
• Starling Marte 4-21, 2 2B, BB, 5 K
• Jeff McNeil 10-31, 3 2B, BB, 6 K
• Brandon Nimmo 3-27, 2 2B, 5 BB, 11 K
• Juan Soto 9-27, 2B, 5 BB, 9 K
• Tyrone Taylor 2-7, 2 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Pete Alonso. Pete Alonso, the best hitter on the Mets by OPS, is the key player for tonight’s game. Friday night he went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. Saturday he went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI. When he hits well the Mets win ball games because the people in front of him are getting on base. Alonso also has terrific career numbers against Fried who has been cruising through lineups this season.
2. Aaron Judge. Judge feasted on the Mets Friday, but Saturday was a different story. Judge went 0-for-5 at the plate with three strikeouts lowering in his batting average to .402 (which is insane to type out). The Mets just need to keep him contained for one more game.
3. Who is available in the Mets pen? The Mets needed to use three high leverage relievers yesterday (Garrett, Brazobán, and Díaz), all throwing between 17 and 23 pitches. All three pitchers had at least three days of rest before yesterday’s game, so they may having something in the tank for today. Ryne Stanek hasn’t pitched since Tuesday and it feels likely we’ll see him at some point tonight.

Let’s go Mets!

For the first time since 2023, the Yankees beat the Mets Friday night.

Tylor Megill had a poor outing, and Max Kranick behind him allowed the game to get out of reach. The Mets bats just couldn’t get runs in and a rally fell short in the ninth inning. Some of the same problems that have been plaguing the Mets all season appeared again, mainly hitting with runners in scoring position. The Mets went 2-for-11 Friday night and left nine batters on base. At the end of the day though, it’s only one game and the Mets have another shot this afternoon to get a win against their cross-town rivals.

Griffin Canning makes his ninth start of the season tonight. Over 42 innings he has a 2.36 ERA, 3.48 FIP, 1.262 WHIP and a 165 ERA+. In his last five starts he has allowed only four runs over 27 innings (1.33 ERA, 2.80 FIP) while striking out 29 batters. In his last two starts he has allowed only two runs, both on solo home runs, over 11 innings against the high powered Diamondbacks and Cubs offenses. The Yankees have the following career numbers against Canning:

• Cody Bellinger 2-6, K
• Paul Goldschmidt 2-7, HR, 2 BB, 3 K
• Trent Grisham 0-1, 2 BB, K
• Aaron Judge 2-5, HR, BB, K
• DJ LeMahieu 0-3, BB
• Oswald Peraza 1-1, 2 BB
• Pablo Reyes 0-2, BB, K
• Anthony Volpe 4-8, BB, 3 K
• Austin Wells 1-3, 2B, K

Over five starts (26 2/3 innings) Clark Schmidt has a 4.73 ERA, 5.01 FIP, 1.275 WHIP and an 86 ERA+. In only 16 starts in 2024, Schmidt had a 142 ERA+. The big difference this season has been his home run rate. He was allowing only 0.8 HR/9 in 2024, but this season that has ballooned to a career high of 1.7 HR/9. His last two starts have been solid, allowing a total of five runs over 12 innings, but also allowed two home runs. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Pete Alonso 1-4
• Brett Baty 1-2
• Francisco Lindor 1-2, HR, 2 BB
• Starling Marte 0-2, BB
• Jeff McNeil 2-4, 2B
• Brandon Nimmo 1-2
• Tyrone Taylor 0-1

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Juan Soto and Pete Alonso. The boos rained down on Soto Friday night. He went 0-for-2 with three walks and a stolen base. It’s a shame that he got on base three times last night and only scored once, which speaks to what was happening behind him in the lineup. Pete Alonso went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts, Mark Vientos went 1-for-4 with one strikeout. If the Yankees are able to keep getting Alonso out, they won’t feel a need to engage seriously with Soto.
2. José Castillo. The Mets acquired a lefty arm on Thursday and plan on activating him before today’s game. Over 6 1/3 innings this season for the Diamondbacks he allowed eight runs from 10 hits and three walks while striking out three. In Reno (AAA ball) he has allowed only one run from four hits over 5 1/3 innings. In limited major league time this season, Castillo has had a 52% ground ball rate, he’s just struggling to get hitters to swing and miss at his pitches.
3. Getting through the heart of the Yankees lineup. The Yankees second through fourth hitters went a combined 7-for-13 in Friday night’s game. The rest of their lineup went 1-for-18. The Yankees left just as many runners on base last night, just the lineup core was able to rack up runs early. The Mets just have to stop an Aaron Judge hitting .414 on May 17th. Easy right?

Let’s Go Mets!

There’s nothing like New York when both the Mets and the Yankees are playing well.

Tonight the first play New York Mets will travel to the Bronx to take on the first place New York Yankees. The city has been blessed with successful seasons from both clubs over the last few seasons. Several prominent Yankees came over to the Mets before the 2024 season (Carlos Mendoza, Luis Severino, Harrison Bader) adding to the the rivalry between the two teams.

Then Juan Soto, a key piece of the 2024 Yankees, signed a 15-year contract with the Mets. Tonight the Mets and Yankees will start a new chapter in their storied rivalry, fueled by a superstar who chose to play in Queens.

Tylor Megill has pitched 40 2/3 innings over eight starts with a 3.10 ERA, 2.97 FIP, 1.254 WHIP and a 126 ERA+. Megill has hit a rough patch, allowing 11 runs over his last three starts (6.19 ERA, 4.09 FIP). He’s still striking out players at a high rate, 22 batters over 16 innings, but he’s allowed three home runs. The spike in his home run rate is coming at a bad time for a start in Yankee Stadium. The Yankees have the following career numbers against Megill:

• Cody Bellinger 1-2, 2 BB, K
• Paul Goldschmidt 1-5, 2B
• Trent Grisham 0-2, BB
• Aaron Judge 0-3, K
• DJ LeMahieu 0-2, BB, K

Carlos Rodón is making his major league leading 10th start tonight. Over 54 2/3 innings he has a 3.29 ERA, 3.64 FIP, 0.970 WHIP and a 122 ERA+. Rodón is having a very Rodón season – he’s either brilliant or he’s not, with very few starts that are just average. He’s allowed four runs or more in four of ten starts this season, including his last one. He’s also allowed eight home runs so far this season, good for a 1.3 HR/9 rate which is actually his best HR/9 as a member of the Yankees. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Pete Alonso 1-5, 2 K
• Francisco Alvarez 1-2
• José Azócar 1-6
• Francisco Lindor 10-35, 3 2B, 2 HR, 4 BB, 4 K
• Starling Marte 1-5, K
• Jeff McNeil 0-2
• Brandon Nimmo 1-4, BB, 2 K
• Juan Soto 0-2, BB
• Tyrone Taylor 2-2, HR
• Luis Torrens 1-3, HR, 2 K
• Mark Vientos 1-3, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Juan Soto. This is the Juan Soto series. How do Yankee fans react when Soto comes up in the top of the first? How does Soto react? Players often come in amped when facing their old squad. Soto is such a big star though that he will bring out that behavior in the Yankee players too.
2. Do the Mets take advantage of Yankee Stadium? The Mets are coming off of a 4-2 homestand where they didn’t have too much offense the last three days against the Pirates. A short Yankee Stadium porch can fix all power woes – will the Mets big sluggers tee off tonight against Rodón and crew?
3. Containing Trent Grisham. Grisham is having a breakout year in his seventh major league season. He is slashing .283/.367/.628 with a 177 OPS+, his first OPS+ above 100 since 2021. The big difference this season for Grisham is the power, he’s hit 12 home runs this season including four home runs over his last eight games.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets go for the series sweep tonight against the Pirates! It’s been a close series so far with the Mets winning first game 4-3 and the second game 2-1. The key to victory Tuesday night was getting out of jams. The Pirates had runners on the bases all night but ultimately went 0-for-13 with runners in scoring position leading 12 runners out there. The Mets pitchers were able to get big strikeouts and were even able to overcome a weird scenario with a ball going through a gap in Mark Vientos glove.

In addition to the Pirates, the Mets are also battling the weather tonight. It’s either been raining all day or there has been a chance of rain, and that continues throughout the night.

Clay Holmes has pitched 42 2/3 innings (eight starts) with a 2.74 ERA, 2.61 FIP, 1.242 WHIP and a 142 ERA+. He bounced back in his last start allowing one run over six innings from three hits and three walks. Over his last five starts (28 innings) he has a 1.93 ERA, 2.71 FIP. He’s also completed six innings in back-to-back starts, and three times in his last four starts. The Pirates have the following career numbers against him:

• Oneil Cruz 0-2, K
• Adam Frazier 0-3
• Ke’Bryan Hayes 0-1
• Isiah Kiner-Falefa 1-4, 2B, K
• Andrew McCutchen 1-2, HR, 2 BB
• Tommy Pham 2-7, BB, 3 K
• Bryan Reynolds 0-1

Bailey Falter has a 4.36 ERA, 4.44 FIP, 1.131 WHIP and a 98 ERA+ over 43 1/3 innings (eight starts) this season. He has been a much better pitcher in the month of May, allowing only one run over 13 innings from four hits and four walks while striking out nine batters. Falter made two starts against the Mets in 2024. He was effective in his first start holding to the Mets to two runs over five innings. In his second start the Mets scored three runs from five hits and two walks over two innings. The Mets have the following career stats against Falter:

• Pete Alonso 1-9, HR, BB, 2 K
• Francisco Alvarez 2-4
• Brett Baty 0-2
• Francisco Lindor 3-9, 4 BB, K
• Starling Marte 2-8, HR, 2 K
• Jeff McNeil 1-8, 2 K
• Brandon Nimmo 5-12, HR, BB, 4 K
• Juan Soto 3-9
• Tyrone Taylor 3-7, 2B, K
• Luis Torrens 1-3
• Mark Vientos 0-3, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. The Brett Baty Homestand. Over the first five games of the Mets current homestand, Brett Baty has gone 6-for-13 at the plate with four home runs and only two strikeouts. He has seven RBI’s. Five of those RBI’s were the only runs the Mets scored in their 6-5 loss against the Cubs on Saturday. Tuesday night his late go-ahead home run was the difference and the reason why the Mets didn’t have to play the bottom of the ninth or extra innings. His hits have also come in bunches, in the three games he has hits, they’ve come in pairs. Before this homestand Baty only had two multi-hit games this season.
2. He’s walking here! Almost every day! Juan Soto added two more walks to his stat sheet Tuesday night, getting to 802 for his career. SNY announced he was the youngest player to reach the 800 mark. He also now has a chance to break the Mets single season record this season. He has 33 walks in 2025, which is good for third in the league. Extrapolated out to a whole season, it would be 124 walks. John Olerud set the Mets record with 125 walks in 1999. The least amount of walks Soto has had in his last four seasons was 129.
3. Mets are still a double hitting machine. The Mets didn’t have a ton of offense on Tuesday night, but one of their five hits was a Brandon Nimmo double. As a team the Mets have 77 doubles, good for fifth in the league. The 2024 Mets were sixth in the league with 279 doubles. The Mets offense is humming when they keep the line moving, and if they keep hitting doubles eventually the hitting with RISP woes will start to evaporate.

Let’s Go Mets!