213 Miles From Shea

The Mets look to keep the good times going in Chicago! The Mets are fresh off of a series win against the Padres and have won 11 of their last 15 games. They are now only 2.5 games back of the Nationals for fourth place in the division. The White Sox are sitting on top of the AL Central, five games above .500. They have gone .500 in their last 10 games. It’s a battle of the Seans tonight!

Sean Manaea has pitched in 26 games this season totaling 111 innings with a 4.22 ERA, 4.28 FIP, 1.315 WHIP and a 97 ERA+. He got hit a bit more in his last start, allowing four runs over 6 1/3 innings in a game the Mets won 5-4. In his last five starts he has pitched 31 2/3 innings with a 2.87 ERA, 4.14 FIP while striking out 32 batters. He also pitched at least six innings in each of those five starts. The White Sox have the following career stats against him:

• Andrew Benintendi 4-12, 2 BB, K
• Brenton Doyle 0-7, BB, 3 K
• Randal Grichuk 6-19, 2B, 3B, 2 BB, K
• Jake Rogers 0-3, 2 K
• Miguel Vargas 1-10, 3 K

Sean Burke has pitched in 25 games including 21 starts totaling 140 innings with a 3.15 ERA, 3.45 FIP, 1.107 WHIP and a 134 ERA+. He is also leading the league with 10 wild pitches. Similar to Manaea, Burke is coming off of a start where he allowed four runs over 4 1/3 innings. That bad start ended a streak of good starts where he had a 1.47 ERA (2.20 FIP) over seven games (43 innings). The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Bo Bichette 2-3, 2B
• Christopher Morel 0-2, 2 K
• Marcus Semien 0-2
• Eric Wagaman 1-1, 2B, BB

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Reunions Everywhere. Luis Robert Jr. returns to Rate Field for the first time since the trade that brought him to the Mets. He’s had a difficult year with the Mets, but since returning from the injured list he’s been showing some pop. Luisangel Acuña will face the Mets for the first time since that trade. Acuña is currently hitting .237/.269/.538 with a 53 OPS+. Huascar Brazobán had a 2.56 ERA over 52 2/3 innings with the Mets. Since being traded to the White Sox he has a 5.63 ERA over eight innings.
2. Contain Murakami. Munetaka Murakami has been hitting bombs this year for the White Sox. He has 29 home runs in 92 games. He’s slashing .227/.363/.530 with 69 walks, 132 K’s and a 149 OPS+. In his last two games he has gone 0-for-9 so he’s due to hit a homer.
3. Carson Benge. Benge is coming off of a game where he went 2-for-4 with his 15th home run of the season. He is only five home runs and two stolen bases away from a 20/20 season in his rookie season. Benge has been a true bright spot on this team and is just building a portfolio right now for a possible Rookie of the Year award.

Let’s Go Mets!

Fielding has been the story of this series. On Monday night Carson Benge tossed out two runners at the plate in the same inning. Later in the game A.J. Ewing nailed a runner out oat the plate. The Mets ended up winning 2-1. Tuesday night the Padres beat the Mets 5-2 with Fernando Tatís Jr. robbing Francisco Lindor of a grand slam. It’s been an exciting series so far and the Mets have a chance to take the series today!

Robert Stock makes his fourth start of the season today. Over his first three starts he has allowed 10 runs, nine earned, over 12 1/3 innings. His second start is skewing his season data. In that start he allowed eight runs over three innings against the Pirates. In his other two starts he allowed only one earned run over 9 1/3 innings. The only batter on the Padres who has faced Robert Stock before is Manny Machado (0-for-2).

Michael King has made 25 starts totaling 142 1/3 innings this season with a 3.41 ERA, 4.26 FIP, 1.187 WHIP and a 119 ERA+. In his last four starts he has allowed 12 runs, 11 earned, over 23 innings (4.30 ERA, 5.56 FIP). The Mets tagged him for four runs over six innings with two home runs earlier this season. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 0-5, K
• Brett Baty 2-5, HR, K
• Carson Benge 0-3, K
• Bo Bichette 7-24, 2B, 3B, 2 BB, 8 K
• A.J. Ewing 0-3, K
• Francisco Lindor 3-8, 2 HR, 2 K
• Christopher Morel 0-1, BB, K
• Cristian Pache 0-1, BB
• Jorge Polanco 1-6, 2 K
• Luis Robert Jr. 1-3, 2B
• Marcus Semien 3-11, 2B, 2 BB, 3 K
• Luis Torrens 2-2, 2B, HR
• Jared Young 2-3, HR

Three Things To Watch For:

1. All or Nothing. Both of the runs the Mets scored last night came on solo home runs. The Mets ended up going 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position, leaving nine runners on base. The Padres scored five runs and went 1-for-4 with runners in scoring position leaving eight runners on base. They hit three home runs last night.
2. Bo Bichette. Bichette racked up two more hits Tuesday night. In his last 15 games he has gone 21-for-59 slashing .356/.415/.576. Earlier this week his OPS finally crossed over .700 and is now sitting at .704. In his last three games he has six hits and a walk. In that same stretch he hasn’t scored any runs and has only one RBI. The Mets offense, except for the long ball, has cooled a bit, squandering this recent Bichette hot streak.
3. Nate Lavender. Lavender pitched 2/3 of an inning in the first game of the series, facing two batters, recording two outs in only two pitches. Over six games this season he has pitched 5 1/3 innings allowing one hit and two walks while striking out six batters (0.00 ERA, 1.96 FIP). He has a 1.42 xERA with a .091 xBA and an astounding (small-sample size) 33.3% K rate.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets look to extend their winning streak to five games tonight! The Padres had four hits in the first inning on Monday night but didn’t score any runs thanks to Carson Benge’s arm. Benge tossed out two runners at the plate to prevent any runs from scoring. A.J. Ewing would join Benge later in the game and the Mets were able to squeak by with a score of 2-1.

The Mets have now won 10 of their 13 games. The Padres came into last night’s game winning eight of their last 10. It’s two teams on hot streaks, let’s go!

Zac Thornton has made eight starts so far this season totaling 45 1/3 innings with a 2.78 ERA, 3.88 FIP, 1.103 WHIP and a 147 ERA+. His numbers have returned to Earth a bit in his last four starts allowing 10 runs, nine earned over 22 innings with a 3.68 ERA, 4.85 FIP. He’s allowed exactly three earned runs in three of his last four starts. No one on the Padres roster has faced Thornton before in a Major League game.

Robbie Ray came over from the Giants at the trade deadline a few weeks ago. Overall this season Ray has pitched 131 2/3 innings with a 3.28 ERA, 4.55 FIP, 1.329 WHIP and a 122 ERA+. Since joining the Padres he has made two starts allowing six runs over nine innings from nine hits and eight walks. Ray last faced the Mets back in the first week of April where he allowed two runs over 5 1/3 innings from three hits and three walks. The Mets have the following career stats against Ray:

• Francisco Alvarez 2-4, K
• Brett Baty 1-3
• Bo Bichette 3-11, 3 2B, 4 K
• Francisco Lindor 1-9, HR, 3 BB, 3 K
• Cristian Pache 2-12, 2B, HR, 6 K
• Jorge Polanco 1-9, K, BB
• Luis Robert Jr. 1-11, HR, BB, 4 K
• Marcus Semien 2-13, 2B, 4 K
• Luis Torrens 3-14, 2B, 5 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Don’t run on the Mets! The Mets nailed out three Padres runners at home plate Monday night. Carson Benge’s arm strength is in the 98th percentile and A.J. Ewing is in the 92nd percentile according to Baseball Savant. It will be interesting to see tonight if the Padres remain aggressive on the base paths, or if they switch it up.
2. Christopher Morel. The Mets called up Christopher Morel before Monday night’s game, cutting Gabriel Arias. Morel signed with the Mets on July 1st after being released by the Marlins in June. Before being released, Morel was hitting .162/.219/.206. Morel has had three disappointing seasons from 2024 until now, putting up an 80, 89 and 22 OPS+. In his first two seasons with the Cubs he had a 104 and 122 OPS+. Morel has been tearing the cover off the ball in Syracuse, hitting .321/.382/.716 over the last month with hitting 12 homers in 31 games.
3. Kodai Senga and close games. The Mets have won three one-run games in a row, improving their season record to 14-20 in one-run games. Senga locked down the save on Sunday with a clean inning where he struck out two batters on a total of 11 batters. It was his second time pitching in three games, making him unavailable for the save situation last night. In Senga’s last five games he has allowed only one hit, two walks and has seven strikeouts over five scoreless innings.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets swept the Nationals and have won nine of their last 12 games! Since the All-Star break the Mets have won series against the Guardians and Pirates, who were both going for it at the deadline. The only series they lost was against the first place Braves. Now the Mets welcome the Padres to town, who are also surging, winning eight of their last ten. They now have the second wild card spot in a tightening race.

Nolan McLean has made 24 starts pitching 136 2/3 innings with a 3.42 ERA, 3.56 FIP, 1.134 WHIP and a 119 ERA+. He’s coming off of a strong start against the Braves where he allowed one run on a solo homer over six innings while striking out three. He has a 2.28 ERA, 3.36 FIP in his last eight starts (47 1/3 innings), and that includes a start against the Guardians where he allowed five runs over five innings. He faced the Padres back in June, holding them to one run over six innings. The Padres have the following stats against him:

• Xander Bogaerts 0-1, BB, K
• Freddy Fermin 0-1
• Ty France 0-2, BB
• Manny Machado 0-3, K
• Jackson Merrill 0-3, K
• Gavin Sheets 0-3, K
• Sung-Mun Song 1-1, BB
• Fernando Tatís Jr. 2-3, K

Walker Buehler has made 24 starts this season totaling 114 1/3 innings with a 4.88 ERA, 4.29 FIP, 1.426 WHIP and an 84 ERA+. He’s been on a roll in his last two starts allowing only two runs over 10 innings from nine hits and three walks while striking out eight. Notably he didn’t allow any home runs in his last two starts despite having a 1.1 HR/9. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 0-3, 3 K
• Gabriel Arias 1-3, 2B
• Brett Baty 0-1
• Bo Bichette 2-8, 3 K
• Francisco Lindor 1-4, HR, K
• Cristian Pache 0-2, 2 BB
• Jorge Polanco 2-3, 2B, BB
• Luis Robert Jr. 0-3, 2 K
• Marcus Semien 2-7, BB, K
• Luis Torrens 0-3, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Luis Torrens. The Mets need to find ways to get Torrens into the lineup while he’s on this heater. Since the trade deadline he has had 22 plate appearances spread over seven games. During this stretch he is slashing .444/.545/1.111 with eight hits and four home runs. Ten of this 30 RBI’s on the season have come in his last seven games!
2. Jared Young, hit machine. Young has at least two hits in four of this last six games. During this stretch eh has gone 11-for-25 at the plate with two doubles, a triple and a home run while slashing .440/.423/.720. Similar to Luis Torrens, Young has seven of his 29 RBI’s during this recent stretch.
3. Bo Bichette. Bichette finally reached a .700 OPS for the season. Bichette went 3-for-3 yesterday with a triple, pushing his OBP to .313 and SLG to .386. Since the start of July, Bichette has played a lot better slashing .306/.354/.403 with 44 hits over 37 games. It’s been a long journey for Bichette to get back to a .700 OPS. Here’s hoping he continues hitting like he has for the last six weeks for the next six weeks.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets go for the sweep this afternoon at Citi Field!

The Mets struck first on Saturday but the Nationals roared back, taking a 4-2 lead that held until the ninth inning. The Mets tied the game in the ninth and then took the lead on a Francisco Lindor single, getting Jefry Yan his first career win. So far in this series the Mets have been able to keep the Nationals high-powered offense mostly in check. Just do it one more time!

Christian Scott has made 17 starts totaling 78 1/3 innings with a 3.45 ERA, 3.72 FIP, 1.302 WHIP and a 118 ERA+. His last two starts have been a lot more human for Scott who has allowed seven runs over nine innings from 13 hits and three walks while striking out 13 batters. In his one start against the Nationals this season he allowed three runs from four hits and three walks over four innings. The Nationals have the following career stats against Scott:

• CJ Abrams 0-5, 3 K
• Brady House 1-2
• Daylen Lile 0-1, BB, K
• Keibert Ruiz 0-3
• Jose Tena 1-2, 2B
• Jorbit Vivas 0-1, BB
• Jacob Young 0-2

Jake Irvin has made 14 starts this season totaling 65 1/3 innings with a 5.79 ERA, 4.86 FIP, 1.316 WHIP and a 73 ERA+. Irvin led the league in earned runs (114) and home runs (38) last season with an identical ERA+. This season his WHIP, FIP and HR/9 have each taken a step back towards his career numbers. He’s made three starts over the last couple of weeks since returning from the injured list. In those starts he has allowed 12 earned runs from 10 hits, including four home runs, over 13 2/3 innings (7.90 ERA, 7.25 FIP). In his one start against the Mets this season he allowed three runs, two earned over four innings from six hits and a walk. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 2-14, 7 K
• Gabriel Arias 1-4, 2B, K
• Brett Baty 2-10, 2 HR, BB, K
• Carson Benge 1-2
• Bo Bichette 1-4, BB, K
• A.J. Ewing 0-2, 2 K
• Francisco Lindor 8-23, 3 2B, 2 HR, 6 K
• Marcus Semien 0-4, BB, K
• Luis Torrens 3-9, 2 2B, 3 K
• Jared Young 0-2, BB

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Carson Benge 18 game on-base streak! Benge extended his on-base streak to 18 games on Saturday going 1-for-2 with a home run and two walks! During the streak Carson Benge has slashed .358/.434/.567 with seven of his 24 hits going for extra bases. He has now pushed his OPS to 1.001 over this stretch and has raised his season OPS from .713 to .757 over the last few weeks. He now has a 2.5 bWAR and a 111 OPS+. This current stretch for Benge is starting to push his name into the Rookie of the Year conversation!
2. A tired Nationals Bullpen. The Nationals bullpen was set up to have a difficult weekend with Brad Lord starting on Saturday. His longest outings this season had mostly been between two and three innings. The Mets knocked him out before the end of the first inning yesterday, forcing Will Dion to to take on the bulk of the reliever work, and he did a solid job tossing more than four innings. But the Nationals had to use everyone in their bullpen except for Trevor Williams over the last couple of days. Jake Irvin has struggled recently and is still coming back from a significant injured that sidelined him for almost two months. The Mets bats successfully worked seven walks yesterday. Hopefully the Mets can be as patient today, make Jake work and then get to this tired bullpen.
3. Gabriel Arias. August has been rough for Arias. As a Met he has gone for 0-for-5 over two games and only one start. Overall in August he has gone 0-for-13 at the plate. In the final four games he played in July (7/24-7/29), Arias went 6-for-15 with a double and a walk. Unfortunately for Arias, he is on a roster with several players (Luis Robert Jr, Jorge Polanco) that the Mets need to give at bats to in an effort to get going.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets look to build on their solid series opener Friday night as they take on the Nationals for game two this afternoon! Robert Stock kept the Mets in the game last night allowing only one run over 4 1/3 innings. Lindor came through with a big home run in sixth inning and Kodai Senga pitched another scoreless inning in the ninth inning earning his second save of the season. The Mets are now only 5.5 games behind the Nationals for fourth in the NL East. Let’s keep climbing out of the cellar!

Sean Manaea has pitched in 25 games this season and has made 11 starts totaling 104 2/3 innings. He has a 4.13 ERA, 4.14 FIP, 1.318 WHIP and a 99 ERA+. He is coming off of a brilliant start where he allowed only one run over seven innings against the Pirates while striking out 11 batters. In his last four starts he has a 2.16 ERA and a 3.56 FIP over 25 innings. Manaea’s one outing against the Nationals this season was a doozy, allowing six runs from seven hits and two walks over 2 2/3 innings of relief. The Nationals have the following career stats against him:

• CJ Abrams 5-14, 2B, 4 K
• Andres Chaparro 1-5, BB, 2 K
• Dylan Crews 0-7, 2 K
• Brady House 3-4, 2B, HR, BB
• Daylen Lile 1-5. 2 K
• Nasim Nuñez 2-3, HR< 2 BB
• Keibert Ruiz 4-11
• Jose Tena 1-3, K
• Jacob Young 2-8, 2B, BB, 4 K

The Nationals are trying Brad Lord out in the rotation! Lord has pitched in 29 games this season totaling 61 2/3 innings, including two starts. He has a 3.79 ERA, 4.05 FIP, 1.184 WHIP and a 112 ERA+. He made a start back on July 1, holding the Red Sox scoreless over 2 1/3 innings. His second start came last week where he held the Reds to one over 2 2/3 innings. Lord has made two extended relief appearances against the Mets this year allowing only one run off of three hits over 5 1/3 innings. The Mets have the following career stats against Lord:

• Francisco Alvarez 1-3, HR
• Gabriel Arias 0-2
• Brett Baty 1-5, HR
• Carson Benge 2-2
• Bo Bichette 0-3
• A.J. Ewing 0-1, K
• Francisco Lindor 3-4, BB
• Marcus Semien 0-3
• Luis Torrens 0-4

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Carson Benge On-Base Streak. Benge went 1-for-4 Friday night, extending his on-base streak to 17 games. During this streak Benge is hitting .354/.417/.523 with three doubles, a triple, two home runs and five walks. In 2024 Francisco reached base safely in 35 consecutive games in a single season. Jon Olerud has the franchise record, reaching base safely in 47 consecutive games between 1998 and 1999. Benge’s current streak at 17 is impressive, and also shows how amazing of a feat Lindor and Olerud accomplished.
2. Francisco Lindor. Lindor still has a real chance to reach 20 home runs this season. His homer last night was his second in four games and his sixth since 7/27 when he hit two in one game. Starting from his two homer game, Lindor is hitting .288/.382/.621 (1.003 OPS). His season OPS has gone from .686 to .768 over this stretch!
3. Kodai Senga. Will Senga pitch in back-to-back games? The Mets are not in a playoff race right now, there’s no reason to push people past their limits. If the Mets though are thinking about Senga as a high-leverage reliever in the future, we will need to see him go on back-to-back days eventually. His last two outings (2 IP, H, BB, 3 K) have been in save situations, separated by four days.

Let’s Go Mets!

Although the Mets lost the last series against the Braves, they come back home after a successful road trip where they swept the Guardians and won a series against the Pirates. The Mets are still in 5th place in the NL East and are 16 games below .500. Tonight they start a series against the 4th place Nationals who are only three games below .500. If the Mets want to climb out of the cellar by the end of the season, this series will be a critical one.

Robert Stock has had two very different starts with the Mets this season. In his first start against the Marlins he allowed only one run over five innings, scattering three hits and no walks while striking out four. In his last start he allowed eight run from nine hits and five walks while striking out four over three innings against the Pirates. In both starts the Mets bats did absolutely nothing for Stock, giving him zero run support. There is no one on the Nationals roster who have faced Robert Stock in a Major League game.

Andrew Alvarez has pitched in 17 games including nine starts totaling 69 1/3 innings this season with a 3.76 ERA, 3.10 FIP, 1.399 WHIP and a 113 ERA+. In his last three outings he has allowed only four runs over 16 innings (2.25 ERA, 3.33 FIP). This includes his longest outing of the year where he pitched 6 1/3 innings against the Phillies. Alvarez faced the Mets earlier this season and pitched four innings of relief allowing two runs. The Mets have the following career stats against Alvarez:

• Francisco Alvarez 1-2, 2B
• Brett Baty 0-1, BB
• Carson Benge 0-1
• Bo Bichette 1-1
• A.J. Ewing 0-1, K
• Francisco Lindor 1-1, BB
• Marcus Semien 0-2
• Luis Torrens 0-1

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Hitting Dingers. The Washington Nationals currently lead the league with 177 home runs this season, eight homers ahead of the Yankees in second place. The Mets are now 11th in the league in home runs with 148, as they continue to hit the ball a lot better over the last couple of weeks. It’s very possible that the Mets, who hit three home runs on Wednesday, can finish fairly solidly in the top ten by the end of the season. Andrew Alvarez hasn’t allowed a home run since June 3rd though, so it won’t be easy for the Mets tonight.
2. Bo Bichette & Slugging. At the start of July, Bo Bichette started hitting again. From the 3rd to the 27th he slashed .315/.358/.342 with 23 hits but only two two doubles and nothing else. From July 30 to now he is slashing .308/.368/.500 with 16 hits including four doubles and two home runs.
3. Carson Benge On Base Streak. Benge has reached base safely in 16 consecutive games, slashing .361/.426/.541 in the process. On Wednesday he went 2-for-4 with a double, it was fifth time in the last six games that Benge recorded at least two hits (.458/.519/.583).

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets will try again to win the series against the Braves. The Mets pitching was ready to go Tuesday night but the bats were not as the Mets lost 4-0 against the Braves. The Mets recorded only four hits and only had two at bats with runners in scoring position. If the Mets can win today it will lock in their third consecutive series win!

Zac Thornton has made seven starts this season totaling 39 1/3 innings with a 2.52 ERA, 3.69 FIP, 1.068 WHIP and a 163 ERA+. He’s coming off of a strong start against the Pirates where he kept them scoreless over five innings. It was the third time in his career shutting out his opponents and a nice bounce back after allowing three earned runs in two consecutive starts. One of those starts was against the Braves where he allowed three runs over 6 1/3 innings from six hits including a home run while striking out five. The Braves have the following career stats against Zac:

• Ronald Acuña Jr. 1-3, K
• Ozzie Albies 2-3, HR
• Drake Baldwin 1-3
• Mauricio Dubon 0-2
• Michael Harris II 1-3, K
• Jim Jarvis 0-2
• Matt Olson 0-2, BB, K
• Austin Riley 0-2, K

Tyler Mahle will make his second start with the Braves tonight. Mahle has pitched 19 games (100 2/3 innings) this season with a 4.83 ERA, 4.16 FIP, 1.361 WHIP and an 83 ERA+. He was traded to the Braves at the deadline and had a great Braves debut, allowing no runs over six innings. The Mets faced Mahle way back in the first week of April where they scored five runs off of eight hits and two walks over five innings. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 1-2, HR
• Brett Baty 0-3, 2 K
• Carson Benge 0-2, K
• Bo Bichette 2-5, K
• Francisco Lindor 2-10, 4 K
• Jorge Polanco 1-6, 2 K
• Luis Robert Jr. 1-6, BB, K
• Marcus Semien 2-4, HR< BB

Three Things To Watch For:

1. You again? Tonight will be the first time in Zac Thornton’s career that he will face a team for a second time. The Mets bats came out in a huge way for Thornton the first time he faced the Braves. Twice in that start the Braves were able to claw back against the Mets, eventually making the score 3-3 until the Mets just exploded for a 14-3 win. Tonight we’ll be watching to see how batters approach Thornton after seeing him a couple of weeks ago.
2. Carson Benge. Benge had two hits in a game Tuesday night. It was the fourth time in five games that Benge had at least two hits. Benge has reached base safely in 15 games in a row. Over that stretch he’s slashing .351/.422/.526 with two doubles, a triple, two home runs. The Mets are 9-6 over this streak!
3. Jorge Polanco. On August 5th Jorge Polanco went 2-for-4 with a double and a home run after taking 300 swings during batting practice. Since then, over four games, he has gone 1-for-13 with a walk.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets look to win their third consecutive series since the trade deadline! Since trading away like half the pitching staff, the Mets have swept the Guardians, won the series against the Pirates and held on for an 8-5 win against the Braves Monday night. Before the game the Mets announced that Devin Williams was landing on the injured list. Kodai Senga came in to pitch a scoreless ninth inning with two strikeouts to get the save. It’s the care-free Mets era!

Nolan McLean has made 23 starts this season totaling 130 2/3 innings with a 3.51 ERA, 3.50 FIP, 1.163 WHIP and a 116 ERA+. McLean’s last start was a bit rough, allowing five runs from eight hits and three walks over five innings. Before that he had a 1.49 ERA, 2.92 FIP over 36 1/3 innings in six starts. He’s allowed five runs, four earned, over 10 innings in two starts against the Braves this season. The Braves have the following career stats against McLean:

• Ronald Acuña Jr. 1-3, HR, K
• Ozzie Albies 2-7, 2B, BB, K
• Drake Baldwin 2-5
• Mauricio Dubon 1-5
• Michael Harris II 1-8, 4 K
• Jim Jarvis 0-2
• Ha-Seong Kim 0-1, BB
• Matt Olson 0-8, 5 K
• Austin Riley 1-3, 2 BB, K
• Dominic Smith 1-5, K
• Mike Yastrzemski 1-3, BB, K

Martín Pérez has pitched in 22 games this season including 18 starts with 100 1/3 innings pitched. He has a 3.14 ERA, 4.22 FIP, 1.146 WHIP and a 134 ERA+. His August has been weird but quiet effective. He started off August with seven shutout innings against the Nationals. The Braves then needed him to make a spot start on short rest a few days later, so Pérez pitched three hitless innings against the Marlins. The Only team that has given Pérez trouble recently are the Mets. In two starts against the Mets in July he has allowed eight runs, seven earned over 9 1/3 innings. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 1-6, 3 BB, K
• Gabriel Arias 1-4, 2B, BB
• Brett Baty 2-4, 2B
• Carson Benge 0-4, BB
• Bo Bichette 7-15, 2 2B, BB, K
• A.J. Ewing 3-5, HR, 2 K
• Francisco Lindor 11-25, 2B, 3B, HR, 5 BB, K
• Crisitian Pache 2-9, 2 K
• Jorge Polanco 4-14, 2B, HR, 2 BB, K
• Luis Robert Jr. 5-13, 2B, BB, K
• Marcus Semien 11-41, 2 2B, 3B, HR, 8 K
• Luis Torrens 0-9, 2 BB, 3 K
• Jared Young 0-3, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Francisco Lindor. Lindor is coming off a terrific game where he went 3-for-5 with a double and his 11th home run on the season. Over his last 21 games Lindor is hitting .313/.406/.602 with four doubles, a triple, and six home runs. If Lindor keeps this pace up for the rest of the season, there is a real chance that he could still reach 20 home runs. More importantly, the Mets are 12-9 stretch during this time. It’s a modest winning record, but some of the better baseball the Mets have played in the last calendar year.
2. Bo Bichette. Bichette reached base at least three times in a second consecutive game Monday night. On Sunday Bichette went 5-for-5 with two doubles and a walk. Last night Bichette went 1-for-3 with two walks. He now has a .310 and is his OPS+ has inched up to a 92.
3. Kodai Senga. Senga had a huge smile on his face as he closed out the game for his first career save. It was the first time in a while we’ve seen joy from Senga. It’s not clear what the Mets are going to do for closer while Williams is out however the next natural step for Senga as a reliever would be for the Mets to use him on consecutive days. There’s also no real reason to force Senga to pitch on consecutive days right now.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets roll into Atlanta winning five of their last six. It was an odd weekend for the Mets who won the series by a combined score of 17 to 14. Friday night they scored six runs before the Pirates scored four. Saturday the Mets got crushed 9-0. Sunday the Mets returned the favor winning 11-1. Hopefully the pendulum for the Mets offense doesn’t swing back the other way!

Christian Scott has made 16 starts this season totaling 74 1/3 innings with a 3.15 ERA, 3.37 FIP, 1.265 WHIP and a 130 ERA+. Scott had an average start his last time out allowing three runs over five innings from six hits and two walks. In his last five games he has pitched 25 1/3 innings with a 2.49 ERA and a 1.51 FIP. In his one start against the Braves this season he allowed three runs from two hits, both home runs, over four innings while striking out seven. The Braves have the following career stats against him:

• Ronald Acuña Jr. 0-6, 3 K
• Ozzie Albies 2-7, HR, BB, K
• Drake Baldwin 2-5
• Mauricio Dubon 0-3, 2 BB
• Michael Harris II 4-8, HR, K
• Jim Jarvis 1-2, 2B
• Matt Olson 1-7, BB, 5 K
• Austin Riley 0-4, 2 BB, 4 K
• Dominic Smith 0-2, K
• Lane Thomas 0-5, K
• Mike Yastrzemski 0-6, 5 K

Bryce Elder has made 22 starts this season totaling 126 2/3 innings with a 3.69 ERA, 4.44 FIP, 1.200 WHIP and a 113 ERA+. Elder has been on a roll recently allowing exactly one earned run in his last three consecutive starts. Over that stretch he has pitched 18 innings scattering nine hits and nine walks while striking out 14 batters (1.50 ERA, 4.48 FIP). Elder started against the Mets in mid-June allowing six runs on 10 hits including two home runs over four innings. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 0-2
• Brett Baty 3-11, BB, 4 K
• Carson Benge 1-2, BB
• Bo Bichette 2-6, K
• A.J. Ewing 3-3, 2B, HR
• Francisco Lindor 6-13, 2 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, K
• Luis Robert Jr. 1-3, 2B
• Marcus Semien 1-7, HR, K
• Luis Torrens 1-6
• Jared Young 1-3

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Bo Bichette. Bichette went 5-for-5 on Sunday with two doubles and a walk. In his last 20 games he has gone 27-for-84 with five doubles and a home run, slashing .321/.356/.417. Since the All-Star break Bichette has been getting on base at healthy clip but he hasn’t flashed a ton of power. His two doubles Sunday represent one third of his extra-base hits since the All-Star Break. Hopefully Sunday was the breakout game Bichette needed!
2. Homers. Elder has allowed 17 home runs in his 15 starts. He’s allowed two home runs during his current hot streak. For a third consecutive season he has a 1.4 HR/9. The New York Mets are currently ranked 12th in the league with 143 homers and the offense has been on a bit of a hot streak recently with more players cranking them out of the park.
3. Jared Young. From June 12 to July 4, Jared Young played 19 games where he slashed .132/.193/.245. He sunk his batting average from .288 to .223. In the 27 game since Young has slashed .316/.407/.481. In his last seven games Young has gone 8-for-24 with two doubles, two triples and two stolen bases (albeit one of those triples took a bit of luck).

Let’s Go Mets!