213 Miles From Shea

It’s been a wild few days. Players we expected to be traded (David Robertson, Mark Canha, and Tommy Pham) were traded. Players we thought were unlikely but possible to be traded (Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, and Dominic Leone) were traded. Now the Mets turn an eye to 2024. For the rest of the season we are looking at how players on the roster fit into long-term plans. The Mets are also five games below .500 and six games out of the Wild Card. They also face a team this week in the Royals who are 32-75 with a -169 run differential (for comparison, the Mets are -10). Let’s see what happens!

Tonight’s starter is part of that 2024 plan. José Quintana makes his third start since returning from the injured list. He’s pitched a total of 11 innings, allowing five runs, four earned, while striking out eight (3.27 ERA, 2.64 FIP). Quintana also went from 77 pitches in his first start to 94 in his second, a positive sign. A not-so positive sign though was going from no walks his first time out to walking three batters. There are currently on three members of the Royals who have seen Quintana in a major league game. Two of them (Greinke and Lyles) are pitchers. Salvador Perez is 19-for-66 in his career against Quintana with four doubles, a triple, two homers and 14 strikeouts.

The Mets bats will get probably their final look at Zack Greinke as his stellar career starts to come to a close. Over 20 starts (101 2/3 innings) he has a 5.49 ERA, 5.06 FIP, 1.279 WHIP and an 80 ERA+. In the month of July he’s allowed 12 runs over 14 1/3 innings from 15 hits including five homers. Teams have just been racking up the hits against him this year and it shows as his xBA is in the 5th percentile. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Omar Narváez 2-6, K
• Francisco Lindor 1-3, 2B
• DJ Stewart 1-3
• Daniel Vogelbach 0-3, 2 K
• Pete Alonso 1-2, 2B
• Danny Mendick 0-2, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. How does the team readjust? About an hour or so before the trade deadline, Max Scherzer talked to The Athletic and stated that the Mets were focusing more on 2025. This reality will be a jolt to players like Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso, Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil. Ultimately though, the future of this team, and whether they compete or not in 2024 is dependent on what they do next. With the baby Mets, they are more than capable to make some magic happen.
2. Francisco Lindor has been on fire. On Sunday Lindor went 3-for-4 at the plat with a homerun, his second in two days. Since July 25th Lindor is 9-for-23 at the plate with two doubles and two homers while walking four times (.391/.482/.739). Lindor has the ability tonight to set the tone for this series in Kansas City.
3. How much playing time does Danny Mendick get? The Mets should be playing their young prospects a lot more in the coming weeks. Mendick is not part of that group, but can play all over the infield and went 2-for-3 with a double on Sunday. For context, he’s 3-for-17 on the season. The Mets should not prioritize playing Mendick, but it feels like a very Mets and plausible that he’ll see consistent playing time like he has over the last week.

Let’s Go Mets!

Yesterday was a wild one in Metsville. The Mets got routed by the Nationals 11-6, despite the Mets hitting four homers in the game, and that’s not even the most memorable part of the day! Before the game was scheduled to start, it was reported that Max Scherzer was being traded to the Rangers. Then there was a period of a couple of hours where the details and the reality of if the trade would happen. This coincided with a rain delay at Citi Field, so everyone’s attention could be on Scherzer and the anniversary of Wilmer Flores getting traded/not traded.

Now the Mets have to pivot from last night’s game to today’s matinee where they can still take the series from the Nationals with a win. Justin Verlander is starting for the Mets today and we already know there are trade rumors around him swirling. Let’s jump into another crazy day of Mets baseball.

Justin Verlander has pitched 89 innings over 15 starts with a 3.24 ERA, 3.94 FIP, 1.146 WHIP and a 128 ERA+. He has been way more Scherzer like in his last six starts with a 1.46 ERA (3.37 FIP) from allowing eight runs, six earned, over 37 innings while striking out 32. In this stretch he has allowed only one homer, compared to eight homers in his previous nine starts. The Nationals have the following career numbers against him:

• Jeimer Candelario 1-7, HR, 4 K, BB
• Corey Dickerson 0-11, 2 K
• Dominic Smith 0-3, K
• Michael Chavis 0-3, 3 K
• Riley Adams 1-2, K
• Lane Thomas 0-2

The Mets bats face a familiar foe this afternoon in Trevor Williams. The former Met has started 21 games and pitched 104 2/3 innings this season for the Nationals putting up a 4.47 ERA, 5.45 FIP, 1.443 WHIP and a 94 ERA+. He’s coming off of a rough start against the Rockies where they were able to tag him for four runs from nine hits over six innings. He’s had some struggles in his last six starts allowing 17 runs over 28 2/3 innings (5.34 ERA), giving up seven homers in that stretch. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Tommy Pham 2-13, 2 2B, HR, 3 K, 2 BB
• Pete Alonso 2-11, 2B, HR, 2 K, BB
• Francisco Lindor 2-12, 2B, 2 K
• Jeff McNeil 3-11, 2B, 2 K, 2 BB
• Brandon Nimmo 1-8, 3 K
• Daniel Vogelbach 2-4, 2 K, BB
• Danny Mendick 2-3, HR, K
• Omar Narváez 2-5, 2B, K
• Brett Baty 3-4, HR, K
• Francisco Álvarez 1-2, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Is this Verlander’s last start as a Met? On Friday night we wrote the same thing about Scherzer. Between Scherzer’s up and down year and his player option for next year, it just felt very unlikely that the Mets would trade Scherzer. There was much more of a feeling they would end up trading Verlander. Who knows about Verlander today. He definitely fits into what the Mets are looking for in 2024 and he’s playing a lot more like the Verlander we thought we would get lately. At the same time, that could return an amazing prospect or two and we’ve seen with Scherzer that the Mets are not afraid to take on money to get the player they want. Everything is a possibility right now. Verlander could stay with the Mets. He could pitch regularly and be traded on Tuesday. He could be pulled from this start early. He could be a late scratch. Just wild times right now.
2. Checking in on our likely to be traded bats. Tommy Pham had a big night at the plate yesterday going 2-for-4 with a homer. Mark Canha went 2-for-3. Both scored a run. As of writing this (9:50 AM), the only notable bats that have been moved in the last week are Carlos Santana, Amed Rosario and Kiké Hernández. The market for bats has not been moving yet at the same speed as pitching. Both Canha and Pham remain on #HugWatch today and probably will get moved once the market gets going.
3. Daniel Vogelbach. Are any baseball organizations looking for a DH paying attention to Vogelbach? Since July 6th Vogelbach has had 33 plate appearances and is slashing .333/.394/.567 (.961). He has 10 hits, including a double and two homers while striking out eight times. It’s a small sample size but he’s quietly putting together a nice little run. He’s eligible for arbitration next year and will be a free agent in 2025.

Let’s Go Mets!

Here come the Mets!

The Mets go for their third win in a row tonight as they take on the Nationals. Vintage Max Scherzer started yesterday and Pete Alonso smacked two homers as the Mets beat the Nationals 5-1. The Mets are now five games below .500 and 6.5 games out of the Wild Card race.

Carlos Carrasco will look to reverse his last two starts as he takes the mound tonight. Over his last two starts he has allowed nine runs from 16 hits over seven innings of work. Before the All-Star break he pitched eight shutout innings against the Diamondbacks. He has shown moments of brilliance this year between periods of frustrating performance. Overall on the season he has pitched 68 innings with a 5.82 ERA, 5.88 FIP, 1.574 WHIP and a 71 ERA+. The Nationals have the following career numbers against him:

• Jeimer Candelario 4-13, 3 K, 2 BB
• Corey Dickerson 2-13, 4 K
• Lane Thomas 3-3, 2B, BB
• Luis García 3-7, 2B, K
• Riley Adams 4-7, 2 HR, K
• Joey Meneses 1-4, K
• Keibert Ruiz 1-4, 2 K
• CJ Abrams 0-3
• Ildemaro Vargas 1-4
• Michael Chavis 2-2, 2B

The Mets have to face their nemesis again – lefty starting pitching. Patrick Corbin has made 21 starts totaling 120 1/3 innings this year with a 5.01 ERA, 4.87 FIP, 1.554 WHIP and a 84 ERA+. He is currently leading the league for hits allowed (151), his third time in the last four seasons leading the league in that category. He’s allowed nine runs, eight earned, over his last two starts (11 2/3 innings) from 16 hits and three walks. Corbin had a solid start against the Mets back in May where he held the Mets to two runs over six innings, despite allowing eight hits. It was a part of seven consecutive starts for Corbin where he allowed three runs per less, which was notable given where he was last season. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Pete Alonso 14-40, 2 2B, 5 HR, 12 K, 8 BB
• Brandon Nimmo 8-32, 11 K, 2 BB
• Jeff McNeil 10-32, 2B, 4 K, 2 BB
• Francisco Lindor 8-32, 2 2B, 8 K
• Tommy Pham 6-14, 2B, K, 4 BB
• Mark Canha 6-18, HR, K, BB
• Daniel Vogelbach 0-2, BB
• Francisco Álvarez 0-1, BB

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Is this Carrasco’s last start as a Met? Carlos Carrasco is a free agent at the end of the season, which makes him more likely than anyone else in the rotation to get moved before Tuesday. Personally, I think if he didn’t get rocked in his last start he wouldn’t even be pitching tonight for the Mets tonight and probably would have already been moved. Carrasco has shown that he still can have dominating games, and for a team that is missing a starting pitcher, Carrasco is better option than a bullpen game once a week. There’s a solid chance that tonight is his last start with the Mets.
2. Hitters on #HugWatch. Mark Canha and Tommy Pham are the two bats that constantly come up in trade rumors about the Mets. Canha went 0-for-3 with a walk last night, but that hides the type of night he had. He had at least one hit stolen by a wonderful play and he made a wonderful play himself. Tommy Pham finally broke his hitless streak and went 1-for4 on the night. Until Tuesday’s deadline hits we are going to be watching this pair very closely.
3. Pete Alonso. One of the bright spots earlier this season was the historic homerun pace Pete Alonso was on. After he was hit by a pitch and came back to field in about half the time initially thought, he naturally fell off the pace. Last night he clobbered two homers, providing all of the Mets offense. He now has 30 on the season. He and Mike Piazza are the only players to do that four times in Mets history. He also has a chance now to finish with 50 homers again for the second time in his career.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets enter tonight’s game officially as sellers on the trade market. The Mets beat the Nationals last night 2-1, after a late rally that was interrupted by a weather delay. While this was all happening, Eppler was working out a trade involving the Mets closer, David Robertson.

For the Mets team, it’s definitely a reality moment. The only thing the Mets players can do at this point is keep playing the games. There are several other players who are expected to get traded this week, so every lineup and every in-game move the Mets make will get overly scrutinized.

Max Scherzer looks to rebound after his poor start his last time out in Boston. He allowed five runs on four homers in six innings. Homeruns have have been his downfall this year, allowing nine in his last four starts. Overall this season he has pitched 100 2/3 innings with a 4.20 ERA, 4.78 FIP, 1.192 WHIP and a 98 ERA+. Which Max shows up tonight? The one who allowed four homers in his last start or the wone who held the Dodgers to a hit and nothing else on July 16th?

Max has made one start against the Nationals this year where he held them to one run from two hits and two walks over five innings while striking out six. The Nationals have the following career numbers against him:

• Corey Dickerson 5-18, HR, 4 K
• Dominic Smith 0-17, 7 K, 3 BB
• Luis García 4-8, HR, K
• Lane Thomas 0-3, 2 K, BB
• Jeimer Candelario 1-6, 2 K, BB
• Keibert Ruiz 1-7, K
• Joney Meneses 0-4, 2 K
• CJ Abrams 2-4, 2B
• Ildemaro Vargas 0-3

MacKenzie Gore makes his 21st start of the season tonight. Over 101 innings Gore has a 4.37 ERA, 4.23 FIP, 1.436 WHIP and a 96 ERA+. He has fallen into a pattern recently where he allows one run or less in a start or five runs or more. This pattern alternates all the way back to June 10th. He’s coming off of a start where he allowed no runs over five innings to the Giants. The start before that he allowed five runs over 6 1/3 to the Cubs. Gore has faced the Mets tice this season allowing only one run from nine hits over 10 innings while striking out 13 batters. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Tommy Pham 2-9, 6 K, BB
• Brandon Nimmo 1-5, 2 K, BB
• Pete Alonso 0-4, K, BB
• Mark Canha 0-5, 3 K
• Jeff McNeil 4-4, BB
• Francisco Lindor 0-5
• Francisco Álvarez 0-2, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Is this Scherzer’s last start as a Met? Most likely, no. Scherzer will probably be a Met beyond the trade deadline because of his player option for next season. Even if Max isn’t a top tier ace next season, there are reasons to believe he can make adjustments in the off-season and become a #2 or #3 type pitcher for the Mets. In other words, he still fits in the 2024 plans. It’s not impossible though that someone tries to make a trade so there is still a chance that this is his last start as a Met.
2. Hitters likely to be traded. The most likely hitters on the Mets to be traded are Mark Canha and Tommy Pham. Canha was a significant part of the Mets offense last night going 2-for-3 at the plate and plating a critical RBI on a sacrifice fly. Tommy Pham didn’t play last night as he is still recovering from his groin injury. All eyes will be on both players for the next several days as we head straight into #HugWatch season.
3. The Mets are getting hit by a lot of pitches recently. Last night the Mets were hit by pitches three times. That puts them up to 72 on the season, far ahead of the Mariners at 66 and the Reds at 58. This is really dangerous! And notable! It didn’t feel like anything last night was on purpose, but that still doesn’t make it alight. It would be nice if the MLB / umpire crew came in and gave a warning to opposing pitchers that if they keep throwing inside, miss, and hit a Met that there will be consequences.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets open up a series against the Nationals tonight after a disappointing loss yesterday. The Mets, perpetually stuck in the mud, find themselves seven games below .500 and 7.5 games out of the Wild Card. In the last month they’ve barely moved in the race in either direction. With the Angels holding onto Ohtani and going for it with a Lucas Giolito trade – the trade deadline season is now fully open. The Mets plans right now are like the team – just stuck. A good weekend can make the Mets feel good about doing nothing at the deadline, a terrible weekend might set off a small fire sale. But what if the Mets and Nationals split? We have to play the games to see what happens!

Kodai Senga returns to the mound after a frustrating start in Boston. He was roughed up over the first two innings, then found his stride in the third. Then the skies opened up and Fenway flooded. Over 99 innings this season he has a 3.27 ERA, 3.81 FIP, 1.263 WHIP and a 126 ERA+. He pitched against the Nationals way back on April 26th allowing two runs from five hits and four walks over five innings of work while striking out 7. This was back when Senga was struggling with his command (he walked four batters in four consecutive starts). The Nationals have the following career numbers against Senga:

• Alex Call 0-2, 2 K, BB
• Keibert Ruiz 0-2, BB
• Luis García 0-2, BB
• Jeimer Candelario 0-3, 2 K
• Dominic Smith 1-2, 2B
• Lane Thomas 1-1, BB
• Joey Meneses 1-3
• CJ Abrams 2-2

The Mets will faces off against Josiah Gray, who is in the midst of a breakout season. Over 20 starts, 112 1/3 innings, he has a 3.45 ERA, 4.77 FIP, 1.442 WHIP and a 121 ERA+. For comparison, in his career he has a 4.59 ERA, 5.52 FIP, 1.387 WHIP and an 88 ERA+. After a couple of rough starts at the beginning of July where he allowed nine runs over 10 innings, he rebounded nicely his last time out holding the Giants to one run over seven innings. He faced the Mets earlier this season and held the Mets scoreless over six innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Francisco Lindor 0-8, 2 K, 2 BB
• Pete Alonso 3-9, 2B, HR, 4 K, BB
• Brandon Nimmo 4-8, 2B, 3B, 2 K, BB
• Jeff McNeil 4-9, 2B, HR
• Daniel Vogelbach 1-3, K, 2 BB
• Mark Canha 1-3, K, BB
• Brett Baty 1-2, 2B
• Tommy Pham 1-2, HR, K, BB
• Francisco Álvarez 1-2, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. A battle of All-Stars. The Mets and Nationals are fourth and fifth in the National League respectively but tonight is a battle of 2023 All-Stars as both Senga and Gray earned the honors a few weeks ago. Both Senga and Gray have looked dominate at periods of time this year. They also share a similar weakness – walks. Gray has had a BB/9 rate of at least 4.0 his entire career. The last time he faced the Mets he only walked one batter. If both pitchers are on it tonight, the game could potentially fly by. If both pitchers are struggling with command we will see a memorable total of walks.
2. Trade block position players. The most likely position players to be traded on the Mets are Tommy Pham and Mark Canha. Tommy Pham finally started a game yesterday, although at DH, and went 0-for-4. Mark Canha went 1-for-2 with a walk. As we head towards next Tuesday’s trade deadline there will be a lot of analyzing every lineup that does or does not have either player.
3. David Robertson. David Robertson is the most likely reliever to be traded as he is the best true rental the Mets have to offer. In the last five days he has only pitched on Tuesday where he tossed seven pitches to secure two outs and record a hold against the Yankees.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets got the job done last night and frankly looked like the team they were projected to be at the start of the season. Justin Verlander looked great and gave the Mets six strong innings. Pete Alonso hit two homers. The bullpen made things interesting but held it together. Even with the win the Mets are six games below .500 and still seven games out of the wild card.

The Mets got a big scare late in the game last night as Francisco Álvarez took a pitch to his hand. Buck Showalter said after the game there was “some concern” but X-rays came back negative. Álvarez later in the evening said there was no concern and basically said he was fine.

José Quintana looks to build on his positive Mets debut as the Mets look to sweep the two game series from the Yankees. In his first start he pitched five innings allowing two runs from six hits and no walks. He was able to toss 77 pitches, 53 of them for strikes. He held the Yankees to one run from six hits and no walks over five innings last season. The Yankees have the following career numbers against Quintana:

• Anthony Rizzo 3-12, 2 2B, 2 K
• DJ LeMahieu 1-9, BB
• Isaiah Kiner-Falefa 1-8, 2B, 2 K, BB
• Harrison Bader, 1-6, 2 K, BB
• Gleyber Torres 2-3, 2B
• Giancarlo Stanton 0-2, K
• Greg Allen 1-1, BB
• Jake Bauers 1-1

The Mets bats look to continue their offensive outbreak tonight against Carlos Rodón, who has had a tough start to his Yankee career. Over his first three starts as a Yankee, he’s allowed 12 earned runs over 14 2/3 innings leading to a 7.36 ERA, 7.17 FIP. The damage has come from hits (12), walks (9) and homers (4). Rodón had a solid start against the Mets last season where he held the Mets to three hits and no runs over five innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Francisco Lindor 10-34, 3 2B, 2 HR, 4 K, 2 BB
• Tommy Pham 1-4, 3 K, 2 BB
• Mark Canha 2-9, 2 HR, 2 K
• Daniel Vogelbach 0-2, BB
• Brandon Nimmo 1-2, K, BB
• Pete Alonso 1-2, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Tommy Pham. Originally Tommy Pham was supposed to get the start yesterday. That was announced plan on Sunday. But Pham didn’t feel fully ready to go yet before the game and wanted one more day to rest his groin. As we get closer to the trade deadline, Pham being out of the lineup starts to shift from “is he feeling ok?” to “is this a hug watch situation?”.
2. Pete Alonso. Alonso hit his 27th and 28th homer of the season last night. He had been in the midst of one of the deepest slumps of his career but has shown a lot of life in his last four games. He’s gone 8-for-15 in that stretch with two doubles, a triple and two homers. In his last four he’s hitting .533/.588/1.200. If the Mets are going to make a miracle run for the Wild Card, they’re going to need Pete Alonso.
3. Francisco Lindor. It’s going to take more than Pete Alonso on a hot streak to save the Mets. The Mets need Francisco Lindor to get hot too. Lindor went 3-for-5 last night with a double, scored three runs and stole two bases. He has now stolen four bases in his last four games and has a hit in his last three games.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets look to bounce back from a frustrating weekend in Boston against the Yankees in the Bronx. The Mets find themselves seven games out of the wild card right now and seven games below .500. Are they going to sell? Buy? Just keep the course? A lot of that could be determined in these next two days against the Yankees.

The Yankees are in an odd position in wild AL East. They are tied for last place, nine games behind the Orioles. They are also 2.5 games out of the Wild Card. Further, they are six games above .500. The Yankees also have the worst run differential in their division at +15 (the Mets are at -17).

Justin Verlander’s start this evening could be an audition for other teams if the Mets decide to sell by the deadline. Over 14 starts (83 innings) he has a 3.47 ERA, 3.98 FIP, 1.157 WHIP and a 119 ERA+. Verlander is coming off of a fantastic start against the White Sox where he held them to one run over eight innings. Over his last five starts he has tossed 31 innings with a 1.74 ERA, 3.38 FIP and allowed only one homer. The Yankees have the following career stats against him:

• Gleyber Torres 4-24, 2B, 6 K
• DJ LeMahieu 8-25, 2B, 2 HR, 2 K, BB
• Giancarlo Stanton 3-20, 2B, 2 HR, 10 K, BB
• Jake Bauers 2-10, 3 K, BB
• Isiah Kiner-Falefa 3-13, HR, 5 K
• Anthony Rizzo 0-5, K, 2 BB
• Billy McKinney 1-5, 2B, 2 K
• Kyle Higashioka 0-3, K
• Anthony Volpe 0-2
• Harrison Bader 1-2, HR, K
• Greg Allen 1-2

The Mets bats draw Domingo Germán for the Subway Series opener. Over 18 starts (97 2/3 innings) Germán has a 4.52 ERA, 4.62 FIP, 1.075 WHIP and a 94 ERA+. He’s been frustrating for Yankee fans this year having starts that range from wonderful to terrible, and not much in-between. For example, his last time out he allowed five runs over six innings, before that, one earned run over six innings. In late June he had back to back starts where he allowed 10 total runs over 3 1/3 innings and a complete game shutout. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Francisco Lindor 2-12, 4 K, 3 BB
• Mark Canha 7-13, 2B, HR, 2 K, BB
• Tommy Pham 0-10, 4 K
• Brandon Nimmo 2-8, 3B, 2 K, BB
• DJ Stewart 0-5, 2 K, BB
• Jeff McNeil 1-7, HR
• Pete Alonso 2-8 2B, HR, K
• Daniel Vogelbach 2-4, 3B, BB
• Brett Baty 0-2
• Omar Narváez 1-1, 2B

Three Things To Watch For:

1. More playing time for Pham. Tommy Pham injured his groin last week and rested most of the weekend. He took a pinch hit on Sunday night and looks to get more playing time tonight. He’s one of the more likely Mets to be traded this week and has already been linked to a few teams that are monitoring him (and possibly Mark Canha).
2. Brandon Nimmo is coming around again. After starting cold after the All-Star break, Nimmo has had at least two hits in two of the last three games. In his last five games three of his six hits have been for extra bases (two doubles and homer). He’s also worked three walks in his last six games. He’s not quite at the normal Brandon Nimmo level we know and love, but he’s showing signs of returning soon.
3. Mets Bullpen Hug Watch: David Robertson is the most likely to be moved reliever, even though he indicated this week that he likes being a member of the Mets and doesn’t want to be traded. There’s a chance Adam Ottavino is traded but he does have a 2024 player option. Ottavino just pitched a scoreless inning on Sunday (his third such outing in a row). Robertson had a clean inning in the first game on Saturday.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets and Red Sox play a rubber game tonight after splitting the doubleheader yesterday. The Mets won the first game of the afternoon 5-4, a game that they were leading 4-3 before the rain suspended the game in the fourth inning. The nightcap was a much messier affair for the Mets as Scherzer allowed five runs and the bullpen immediately allowed three runs. The Mets were able to make it close, but couldn’t complete the comeback and lost 6-4.

Carlos Carrasco has pitched 65 2/3 innings this season with a 5.35 ERA, 5.95 FIP, 1.447 WHIP and a 77 ERA+. He’s coming off of a rougher start where he allowed four runs over 4 2/3 innings, in a game where the Mets eventually won 11-10. Before that he pitched an absolute gem, allowing no runs from three hits over eight innings in Arizona. The Red Sox have the following career numbers against him:

• Jorge Alfaro 2-10, 2B, 3 K, BB
• Adam Duvall 2-8, 2B, K
• Justin Turner 1-4, HR, 2 BB
• Rafael Devers 0-3, 2 BB, 4 BB
• Rob Rafsnyder 1-5, K

Alex Cora put the Red Sox in a interesting position yesterday. Today was always going to be a bullpen day for the Red Sox, probably featuring an opener with Pivetta doing the blk of the work after. Pivetta only pitched an inning yesterday, but that’s enough to mean the bullpen is going to need to do a lot more today.

Brennan Bernardino starts things off for the Red Sox. Over 28 games, including three starts, he has pitched 32 2/3 innings with a 2.48 ERA, 2.86 FIP, 1.041 WHIP and a 189 ERA+. As a starter he has pitched 5 1/3 innings allowing only one run from three hits while striking out seven. Two innings is the most he has tossed in any game this season and the most amount of pitches he’s tossed is 36. On “Friday night” (really Saturday) against the Mets he allowed two hits and a run over an inning of work. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Francisco Álvarez 0-1, K
• Mark Canha 0-1
• Mark Vientos 0-2, K
• Brett Baty 1-1
• Pete Alonso 1-1, 2B

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Mark Vientos! Mark Vientos finally played! Vientos pinch hit and then stayed in the game afterwards in the first game yesterday, going 1-for-2 at the plate with a strikeout. Then he got to start in the nightcap going 2-for-4 with a run scored. Vientos struggled when he was initially called this season because the Mets did not give him consistent playing time. Collecting three hits yesterday should be enough warrant more playing time but it’s the Mets so who knows.
2. Pete Alonso! Alonso needed a good weekend at the plate in the absolute worst way, and he got it. He went 2-for-4 in both games, collecting a double and a triple int he nightcap. If the Mets are going to make a run, they absolutely need Alonso’s bat to heat up.
3. The Red Sox Bullpen. The Red Sox used four pitchers in the first game yesterday (Jacques, Bernardino, Bleier, and Martin) and four pitchers in the second game (Winckowski, Pivetta, Garza, and Jansen). The Mets need to take advantage of a tired bullpen this evening.

Let’s Go Mets!

Do you like Mets baseball? Do you like days where plans change? Then I have some exciting news for you. The Mets and Red Sox play their regularly scheduled 4:10 game at 7:10 tonight, thanks to the suspended game from yesterday. Thankfully the Mets have the Sunday night game, so we don’t have a situation where the Mets are playing three baseball games in 27ish hours.

Max Scherzer was vintage Max Scherzer in his last start. He allowed one hit, no runs over seven innings against the Dodgers. This season he has made 17 starts (94 2/3 innings) with a 3.99 ERA, 4.41 FIP, 1.183 WHIP and a 103 ERA+. The Mets need vintage Max again tonight, to give the bullpen a break, to give the team a chance to make the playoffs, or to become an even more valuable player to trade. The Red Sox have the following career numbers against Max Scherzer:

• Jorge Alfaro 4-23, HR, 12 K, BB
• Justin Turner 6-15, 4 HR, K
• Adam Duvall 2-11, HR, 7 K
• Rafael Devers 1-6, 2B, 3 K
• Alex Verdugo 3-6, 2B
• Enrique Kiké Hernández 0-3, 2 K
• Christian Arroyo 0-2, K

James Paxton is looking for a bounce back start tonight. His last time out in Chicago he allowed six runs from three hits and three walks over three innings. This season he has made 11 starts (59 innings) with a 3.51 ERA, 3.93 FIP, 1.034 WHIP and a 133 ERA+. The Mets have the following career numbers against James:

• Francisco Lindor 2-11, 2B, 4 K, BB
• Tommy Pham 3-9, 2 2B, 3 K
• Mark Canha 3-9, HR, 2 K
• Pete Alonso 1-3, HR, K, 2 K
• Jeff McNeil 3-5, 2B
• Daniel Vogelbach 0-1, K BB

Three Things to Watch For:

1. Mark Vientos? After Friday’s game was suspended due to rain, Buck Showalter joked that maybe he would have Mark Vientos go wake up Scherzer to pitch in the 2:10 game. The punchline here being that no one wants to be the person to wake Max up. It would be incredibly nice to Vientos get some consistent playing time, starting in this game.
2. Paxton hasn’t faced the Mets in a long time. Paxton first faced the Mets in 2017 as a member of the Mariners during the final weekend of baseball before the trade deadline. He held the Mets to six hits and no runs over six innings. He then had two very different starts against the Mets as a member of the Yankees in 2019. In one start he allowed six runs from seven hits over 2 2/3 innings. Then in the next start he allowed only one run over six innings.
3. Reminiscing about the last Mets weather related suspension. Earlier this season the Mets and Nationals had a game suspended due to rain. Last night’s delay was about two hours before the Red Sox called it and announced a split-admission doubleheader. In May, the Nationals made the fans and players wait for four hours, before scrambling everyone’s Mother’s Day with a split doubleheader. After the Nationals game, Gary Cohen said “That is unprecedented to have the completion of a suspended game part of a split doubleheader”. Looks like the Red Sox saw what the Nationals did and decided that was a good idea!

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets and Red Sox had to do a little reshuffling of their schedule today after last night’s torrential rain. With one out and a 1-2 count in the bottom of the fourth inning the rain was just too much to play through. Throughout the multi-hour rain delay we saw how the warning track and parts of Fenway just absolutely flooded.

This afternoon’s 4:10 start has been pushed back to 7:10 so last night’s game can be finished at 2:10.

Momentum was heading in the Mets direction before the game got suspended. Senga had a rough two innings to start the game, allowing three runs. The Mets bats behind Brandon Nimmo and Daniel Vogelbach bailed Senga out with homers in the top of the third and top of the fourth. Senga was getting into a groove when the game was called but at least now he won’t be on the hook. Can the Mets bullpen hold out for the win?

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Mark Vientos? With Marte and Pham both out, and Vientos called up to replace Vientos on the roster, naturally Vientos would be in the starting lineup, right? Nope. Vientos was benched in his first game back in the dugout. Maybe we see a before the game substitution or during the game pinch hit today.
2. Mark Canha. Mark Canha, a trade candidate going into this last week of play before the deadline is 0-for-1 so far in today’s game. The Mariners have already been linked to Canha as teams are starting to call about the outfielder’s availability. Can he raise his value during this game?
3. Mets bullpen. David Robertson, Brooks Raley and Grant Hartwig each have three days of rest going into today’s game. David Peterson, the Mets most likely long-arm, lasted pitched on Thursday where he tossed 15 pitches. Before that you have to go all the way back to last weekend to see any Peterson action.

Let’s Go Mets!