The Mets look to avoid a three game losing streak tonight. Last night felt like a microcosm of the season for the Mets. They flashed real promise, like Carson Benge throwing a runner out at home on a 100-mph throw. The Mets hit two home runs. Sean Manaea had a great start. But the team also struggled to get runners on base, Juan Soto got injured and the Mets ultimately lost a close game.
Holding the Mets record aside, tonight’s game should be exciting. Two aces battling it out. Should be a fun one!
Nolan McLean has made 20 starts this season pitching 113 1/3 innings with a 3.34 ERA, 3.30 FIP, 1.094 WHIP and a 125 ERA+. He’s in a groove right now, allowing five runs, but only two earned, in his last four starts (24 innings) while striking out 29 batters (0.75 ERA, 1.81 FIP). Taking a farther step back, he has had a 2.08 ERA, 2.91 FIP over 52 innings in his last nine starts. He had a brilliant start against the Dodgers earlier this season holding them to one run over seven innings while striking out eight. The Dodgers have the following career numbers against him:
- Alex Freeland 0-2
- Freddie Freeman 0-3, 2 K
- Teoscar Hernández 0-3, 3 K
- Max Muncy 1-3
- Shohei Ohtani 0-3
- Andy Pages 0-3, 2 K
- Kyle Tucker 0-2, BB
Yoshinobu Yamamoto has made 18 starts this season totaling 119 2/3 innings with a 2.78 ERA, 3.33 FIP, 0.877 WHIP and a 150 ERA+. His FIP is the highest in his career (previous seasons at 2.61 and 2.94) and its probably due to slight uptick in home runs (0.7 HR/9 to 1.0 HR/9). On July 11th he had a rough start against the Diamondbacks where he allowed six runs over six innings. He then tossed a complete game against the Yankees, allowing only two runs. Yamamoto had a great start against the Mets back in April holding the Mets to one run, from a solo homer, over 7 2/3 innings. The Mets have the following career stats against him:
- Francisco Alvarez 1-4, BB
- Brett Baty 0-3, 2 K
- Carson Benge 1-3
- Bo Bichette 2-6, 2B, BB, K
- Francisco Lindor 3-10, HR, 3 K
- Jorge Polanco 0-3, K
- Luis Robert Jr. 0-3
- Marcus Semien 1-6, 2 K
- Juan Soto 1-3, HR
Three Things To Watch For:
- Luis Robert Jr. The Mets are hoping that Luis Robert Jr. goes on a massive hot streak over the next week to up his trade value. Since returning from injury he has played in four games, including three starts, going 2-for-13 with five strikeouts. Both hits have been solo home runs. The pop is there!
- Francisco Alvarez. In his six games he has gone 7-for-19 with three home runs with four walks (.368/.478/.842). There are not a lot of catchers available on the market, and he’s starting to generate some trade interest. How do the Mets see Alvarez? He’s only a couple of seasons removed from being one of the top prospects in baseball and when healthy, he flashes so much potential.
- Contain Freddie Freeman. Freddie Freeman feasted on Mets pitching last night going 3-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. Freeman is hitting .294/.377/.486 with a 138 OPS+ this season, which is not to far off of his career line of .299/.386/.510 and a 142 OPS+. Against the Mets he has hit .305/.391/.499. Somehow, it has felt a lot worse than that.
Let’s Go Mets!
