Will it rain on the Mets parade?
The Mets finally won a series over the weekend, taking Sunday’s game against the Angels. Clay Holmes was excellent and Mark Vientos hit two home runs to give the Mets run support. Now the Mets heady into chilly Denver to take on the Rockies who swept the Mets last weekend.
It’s going to be a difficult weather series for the Mets who have already played a slew of cold April games at Citi Field. Today’s game had to be moved up several hours due to the threat of freezing rain in the evening. This puts the Mets at an additional disadvantage as they now have three less hours to acclimate to the elevation in Colorado. Hopefully the adrenaline from yesterday’s win still power the Mets through!
The Mets are going with an opener tonight and then will pass things off to David Peterson. Peterson started against the Nationals last week and it was rough, allowing seven runs from five hits and three walks over 3 2/3 innings. In the two games before that he was used as a reliever and looked like a different pitcher. He allowed only one run on seven hits over seven innings of work. The Mets are hoping to replicate that magic tonight. Peterson had one start against the Rockies last season where he allowed only one run on five hits over 5 2/3 innings, but it was in Queens, not Denver. The Rockies have the following career numbers agains thim:
- Jordan Beck 1-3
- Willi Castro 1-2, 2B
- Brenton Doyle 2-5, K
- Tyler Freeman 1-2
- Hunter Goodman 0-3, 2 BB
- Jake McCarthy 1-5, K
- Mickey Moniak 1-3, K
- Ezequiel Tovar 1-6, 4 K
Tomoyuki Sugano is off to a great start with the Rockies. Over six starts, 31 2/3 innings, Sugano has a 2.84 ERA, 4.73 FIP, 1.168 WHIP and a 169 ERA+. Over 30 starts, 157 innings, for Baltimore last season he had a 4.64 ERA, 5.36 FIP, 1.331 WHIP and an 88 ERA+. He led the league last year in allowing 33 home runs and he has only allowed five so far this season. That drops his HR/9 from 1.9 to 1.4. At the start of the season, it looked like he was going to struggle with the long ball again, allowing five homes in his first four starts. The Mets faced him last July, scoring three runs over six innings in a game the Mets lost 7-3. The Mets have the following career numbers against Sugano:
- Brett Baty 1-3
- Bo Bichette 3-4, 2B, BB
- MJ Melendez 1-2, K
- Marcus Semien 1-3, HR
- Juan Soto 0-1, 2 BB
- Mark Vientos 0-3, K
Three Things To Watch For:
- Huascar Brazobán. Brazobán will be the opener for the Mets this afternoon. He has been tremendous for the Mets, pitching 15 2/3 innings over 14 games with a 1.15 ERA, 2.89 FIP, 0.894 WHIP and a 358 ERA+. The Mets used him as an opener three times last season and he allowed no runs, no hits and walked three batters over four innings.
- Mark Vientos. Vientos carried the Mets offense yesterday with two home runs. He now has four on the season, which is tied with Francisco Alvarez for the team lead. His 12 RBI on the season is tied with Brett Baty for second on the team while his four doubles are tied with Baty and Soto for third. These stats simultaneously highlight how much the Mets have struggled as a whole at the plate, and how quickly Vientos can become one of the most dangerous hitters in the lineup.
- Mickey Moniak. Moniak is on a mini-tear right now, belting three home runs in his last two games (4-for-9). He is tied for the National League lead with 11 home runs this season, on pace to smash his career high of 24 home runs set last year. He is also leading the league slugging (.724) and OPS (1.098). The Mets will need to contain him and his 186 OPS+ if they want a shot at winning this game.
Let’s Go Mets!
