213 Miles From Shea

It’s winter in New York (apparently), can the Mets use it to their advantage?

The Mets moved today and tomorrow’s game up three hours due to the cold weather moving through the area. They also opened up a swath of tickets in the upper deck for fans to claim for free, and today’s game is quite the one to see with Zac Gallen taking on Freddy Peralta.

Juan Soto was officially moved to the 10-day injured list yesterday, opening up a roster spot for Ronny Mauricio. It is so early in the season that it doesn’t make sense for Soto to play through a mild calf strain and turning it into something more serious. The Mets bats have stepped up in his absence, winning three games in a row. Two wins by rout and the last one was a comeback win in the 8th. Let’s stretch it to four today!

Freddy Peralta has pitched 10 1/3 innings this season over two starts with a 4.35 ERA, 3.56 FIP, 1.065 WHIP and a 95 ERA+. He struck out seven batters in both starts this season and his second start overall was much better than first (5 1/3 innings, one run vs 5 innings, four runs). He faced the Diamondbacks in mid-April last season holding them to two runs from four hits and four walks over 5 1/3 innings. The Diamondbacks have the following career numbers against Peralta:

• Nolan Arenado 11-39, 2B, 4 HR, 2 BB, 8 K
• Corbin Carroll 3-8, 2 2B, BB, 2 K
• Ketel Marte 3-7, 2B, 2 BB, 3 K
• James McCann 1-2, K
• Cabriel Moreno 0-1, K
• Geraldo Perdomo 1-4, 2B, 3 BB, K
• Carlos Santana 2-10, 2 2B, BB, 4 K
• Tim Tawa 1-2, 2B, K
• Alek Thomas 1-3, HR
• Ildemaro Vargas 0-1

Gallen has allowed four runs over 10 innings this season from nine hits and two walks. Similar to Peralta, his second start (six scoreless innings) was much better than his first (four runs over four innings). Last season he made 33 starts totaling 192 innings with a 4.83 ERA, 4.50 FIP, 1.260 WHIP and an 89 ERA+. Gallen faced the Mets in back-to-back starts last season and was great holding the Mets to only two runs on four hits and six walks over 13 innings while striking out 14. They were his only two good starts over a stretch of eight starts where he had a 5.96 ERA. The Mets have the following career numbers against Gallen:

• Francisco Alvarez 1-2, K
• Brett Baty 2-3, K
• Bo Bichette 0-3, K
• Francisco Lindor 3-15, 2B, 2 BB, 2 K
• Jorge Polanco 0-4, BB, K
• Marcus Semien 5-19, 2 2B, 2 BB, 4 K
• Tyrone Taylor 1-9, 2B, BB, 3 K
• Luis Torrens 1-4, 2B, BB
• Mark Vientos 2-9, HR, 3 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Hamate Storylines. Francisco Lindor, Corbin Carroll and Jackson Holliday all announced they had broken hamate bones within 36 hours of each other. Corbin Carrol has showed no signs of slowing down since returning to the lineup hitting .313/.410/.656 (195 OPS+) over 10 games this season. Lindor hasn’t been hitting as much, but it’s difficult to separate recovering from surgery to his typical slow start of the season (.135/.333/.243). Both Lindor and Carroll are tied for the season lead with two triples, something that Carroll will take over at some point as he has led the league in triples for four consecutive series. Lindor leads the league with 10 walks though!.
2. The banged up Mets. Juan Soto is on the injured list. Jorge Polanco is playing through something with his Achilles. Brett Baty jammed his left thumb over the weekend. The Mets are piling up small injuries right now and are going to play in some frigid weather on top of it. Over the weekend the Mets got big performances from Jared Young and Mark Vientos to buoy the team. Young went 3-for-3 on Sunday and has gone 5-for-13 on the season with two doubles and two walks. Vientos has a three-game multi-hit streak where he went 7-for-12 and scored four runs.
3. Peralta pitch selection. Through two games this season Peralta has used his four seamer 45.3% of the time, followed by his changeup 24.4%, slider 23.8% and curveball 6.4%. This is a departure from last year where he used his fastball 53.5%, changeup 21.2%, curveball 15.1% and slider 10.2% It’s still a bit early and he could still be feeling his curveball out, but so far that’s a pretty big change.

Let’s Go Mets!

It has been a long week and a half to start the season for the Mets. Since their off-day after Opening Day the Mets have been on, playing two more games at home then changed time zones with a series in St. Louis before heading out to San Francisco. The Mets finally have a day off to catch their breath tomorrow before starting their first real homestand of the season.

Standing between them and home is one more game against the Giants. The Mets struggled in the first game of the series and lost Juan Soto with a mild-calf strain in the second. But the Mets offense finally woke up in the second game of the series and that continued yesterday with a 9-0 drubbing. Can the Mets bats keep it going three games in a row?

Kodai Senga looked good last week. He allowed two runs from four hits and three walks while striking out nine batters over six innings. His fastball averaged at 97.4 mph, which was 2-3 mph faster than last season. His cutter was at 90.5 mph, about 1 mph higher than last season. He had a 37% Whiff%, which was 10% higher than 2025. Just all positive signs for Senga in his first start. The Giants have the following career numbers against him:

• Willy Adames 1-7, BB, 3 K
• Luis Arráez 3-5, BB
• Harrison Bader 1-2, K
• Patrick Bailey 0-2, K
• Matt Chapman 3-4, 2B, 2 HR, 3 BB, K
• Rafael Devers 1-9, 2B, 2 BB, 2 K
• Jung Hoo Lee 1-3, 2B, BB
• Heliot Ramos 0-5, BB
• Casey Schmitt 1-2, 2B

It’s been a tale of two starts for Logan Webb in 2026. In his first start he allowed seven runs, six earned, from nine hits and a walk against the Yankees. In his next start he allowed three runs from three hits and four walks over six innings against the Padres. Not great, but a lot better than his first start. He does have 12 strikeouts over 11 innings. The Mets were able to get to him in his one start against them last season, tagging him for six runs on eight hits and a walk over four innings. The Mets have the following career stats against Webb:

• Francisco Alvarez 1-2, K
• Brett Baty 1-9, 3 K
• Bo Bichette 2-7, K
• Francisco Lindor 5-17, 2B, HR, 6 K
• Luis Robert Jr. 4-9, 2 2B, 2 K
• Marcus Semien 4-15, BB, K
• Juan Soto 4-18, 2B, 3B, BB, 4 K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-6, BB, 2 K
• Luis Torrens 1-4

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Mark Vientos. For a second straight day, Vientos is the player to watch. In his last two games he has gone 5-for-8 with a double, two RBI’s, two walks and three runs scored. He now has eight hits over six games this season, a .526 OBP and a small-sample size 268 OPS+. With so many hitters on the Mets struggling after the Cardinals series, the Mets needed someone unexpected to step up and Vientos has definitely done that!
2. Francisco Alvarez. Alvarez was an offensive engine for the Mets Friday night, going 2-for-5 with two solo homers. He now has three on the season. Paired with a .375 OBP (219 OPS+), Alvarez is getting off to a hot start. If he keeps hitting like this the Mets may need to move him up the lineup!
3. Bullpen Management before the off-day. The Giants plowed through the Mets on Thursday. The Mets returned the favor Friday and Saturday. Due to game script, the Mets haven’t used Luke Weaver and Devin Williams since Wednesday (and didn’t use them the Tuesday before that). Regardless of the score today, both pitchers will probably see some work today. Over three games and three innings, Weaver has allowed a hit, two walks and no runs this season. Devin Williams has put up the same stats, except he has struck four batters out.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets offense finally clicked last night, erupting with 10 runs scored on 15 hits. Five Mets players had at least two hits with Bo Bichette and Marcus Semien each getting three hits. In addition to hit parade the Mets worked six walks and went 6-for-14 with runners in scoring position. Let’s keep that momentum going tonight!

Clay Holmes allowed only two runs from four hits and three walks in his first start of the season over 5 2/3 innings. He’s coming off of his first season as a full-time starter where he had a 3.53 ERA, 4.11 FIP, 1.304 WHIP and a 114 ERA+ over 165 2/3 innings. He had a solid start against Giants last season where he allowed one run on six hits and a walk over five innings. The Giants have the following career stats against Holmes:

• Willy Adames 2-4, 2 2B, BB
• Luis Arráez 3-7, 3B, 2 BB, K
• Harrison Bader 3-5, 2 2B, K
• Patrick Bailey 1-2, K
• Matt Chapman 3-11, 2 BB, K
• Rafael Devers 3-10, 2B, HR, 2 BB, K
• Jung Hoo Lee 0-2
• Heliot Ramos 2-4, K
• Casey Schmitt 1-3

Landen Roupp had an excellent start to the season allowing no runs from two hits and two walks over six innings while striking out six batters. Last season he made 22 starts totaling 106 2/3 innings with a 3.80 ERA, 3.91 FIP, 1.481 WHIP and a 106 ERA+. Only a few members of the Mets have seen Roupp in a major league game:

• Brett Baty 0-0, BB
• Francisco Lindor 0-1
• Tyrone Taylor 1-1, 2B

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Bo Bichette. Bo wasn’t going to slump forever! Last night Bo broke out of his slump in a huge way going 3-for-5 at the plate with a double, an RBI and two runs scored. It was the second straight game that Bo had an extra-base hit and his fifth straight game getting on base. He has a .304 OBP in his last five games, which is much better than his .067 OBP in his first three games. Bo also has struck out only two times in his last five games, compared to eight times in his first three games.
2. Mark Vientos. Spring stats don’t count for a reason. Vientos had a terrible spring with only two hits. Over five games this season he is 5-for-12 with a double, a home run and a .500 OBP. His 0.4 bWAR is already greater than than his 2025 -0.2 bWAR. With Polanco dealing with an Achilles injury, we are going to need Vientos to keep his hot streak going.
3. Grounders. Clay Holmes had a 66.7% ground ball rate his first time out this season, which was good for the 91st percentile in the league. As the season goes on that rate will probably drop and get closer to his 55.9% rate that he had last season which was actually the 94th percentile in 2025. 

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets and I have something in common – we both went to sleep last night around 10 PM EST. The Mets opened up the night scoring a run in the first but then immediately allowed three runs in the next frame. Mark Vientos hit a solo home run at the top of the second and I went to sleep thinking this was going to be a back and forth affair.

Nope. The Giants took over from that point. Luckily for the Mets Sean Manaea was able to pitch over three innings in relief and gave the rest of the bullpen a night off to reset. The Mets will try to bounce back tonight and snap their three game losing streak behind Nolan McLean!

Tonight is Nolan McLean’s 10th major league start! In his first nine career starts he has a pitched 53 innings with a 2.21 ERA, 3.10 FIO, 1.057 WHIP and a 183 ERA+. Nolan McLean allowed two runs from four hits and two walks in his first start of the season while striking out eight batters. This will be his first major league start against the Giants and the only hitter on the Giants who has faced McLean before is Harrison Bader (3-for-6, K).

Tyler Mahle signed a one-year contract with the Giants this off-season after a couple of years in Texas. In his first start with the Giants he allowed two runs from five hits over four innings while striking out five. Last season he made 16 start with the Rangers totaling 86 2/3 innings with a 2.18 ERA, 3.37 FIP, 1.131 WHIP and a 168 ERA+. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Bo Bichette 0-2, K
• Francisco Lindor 1-7, 3 K
• Jorge Polanco 1-6, 2 K
• Luis Robert Jr. 1-4, K
• Mrcus Semien 0-2, BB
• Juan Soto 4-11, 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, 2 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Set the tone. The Mets have struggled the last several days to get hits, get hits with runners in scoring position, or both. In their last five games they have gone a combined 3-for-42 with runners in scoring position. They did score two runs in the first two innings last night, but the Giants scored three. Let’s get off to a good start tonight and shift the pressure off of the Mets hitters.
2. Francisco Lindor’s weird start. Lindor is off to a weird start this season. He only has three hits, but two of them are triples, which translates into a .130 batting average. Lindor has also worked nine walks, which means his OBP is a .394. He’s not going to walk at that pace the entire year but a .390 OBP is 50 points higher than his career number. He’s getting on base, at some point between how often Lindor and Soto are both getting on base, the runs are going to happen.
3. Devin Williams. Williams has pitched in three games so far this season and has looked real good. His Baseball Savant page looks good too! It’s way too early to make complete sense of it, as individual outings are still weighing heavily, but he’s getting hitters to Whiff, his xBA is a paltry .060 and his hard-hit percentage is low. The only flag so far is hitters are chasing his pitches only 29.6% of the time, down from 34.9%.

Let’s Go Mets!

What a strange start to the Mets season. The Mets are 3-3 over six games, and have already played in three extra-inning games. On Opening Day the offense was humming, and has been largely absent since. The pitching had hiccups on Opening Day, and has been great since. The Mets need another game where they get a bunch of hits with runners in scoring position, and keep the line moving. Today is a great day to make that happen!

David Peterson started the season with a bang. In his first start he scattered six hits and two walks allowing no runs while striking out three over 5 1/3 innings. Peterson faced the Giants in back-to-back starts in 2025 holding them to only three runs over 12 innings from 12 hits and five walks while striking out eight. The Giants have the following career stats against Peterson:

• Willy Adames 3-13, 2B, 9 BB, 2 K
• Luis Arráez 2-8, 2 BB
• Harrison Bader 1-5, 2B, K
• Patrick Bailey 1-4, K
• Matt Chapman 1-5, BB, K
• Rafael Devers 5-16, 2B, 6 K
• Jerar Encarnacion 0-4, 2 K
• Jung Hoo Lee 2-5
• Heliot Ramos 3-8, 2B, 2 K
• Casey Schmitt 1-7, 2B, BB

Robbie Ray came back in 2025 in a big way. After being derailed from Tommy John surgery from 2023 to 2024, Ray made 32 starts last season totaling 182 1/3 innings with a 3.65 ERA, 3.93 FIP, 1.212 WHIP and a 110 ERA+. In his first start of the season he allowed two runs from five five hits including a home run over 5 1/3 innings while striking out four. Like Peterson, Ray faced the Mets twice in back-to-back starts last season. He picked up the loss in the first one, allowing two runs over 5 2/3 innings in a game the Mets eventually won 9-5. His next time out he held the Mets to only one run over 7 innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 1-2, 3B
• Brett Baty 1-3
• Bo Bichette 2-8, 2 2B, 3 K
• Francisco Lindor 1-8, HR, BB, 2 K
• Jorge Polanco 1-6, BB
• Luis Robert Jr. 1-10, HR, 4 K
• Marcus Semien 2-11, 2B, 4 K
• Juan Soto 1-10, BB, K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-4, 2 K
• Luis Torrens 3-14, 2B, 5 K
• Mark Vientos 2-6, 2B, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Triples. Francisco Lindor hit two triples in the first four games of the season, putting him in prime position to pass his single season record of five at some point this year. He’s not a triple hitter, and there is more that goes into hitting triples that is outside of a hitters control. We’re bringing the possibility of him breaking his record for a second time in a week only because the Mets are starting a series in San Francisco, one of the best parks to hit a triple. Over the last three seasons, statcast has Oracle Park with a 138 park factor for triples.
2. Walks. Robbie Ray lead the league in walks last year (73). It’s actually the second time in his career he’s led the league in walks (Covid-shortened 2020 season, 45). In his first start of the season he didn’t walk anyone. The first time he faced the Mets last year he walked three batters and had to leave before finishing the sixth inning. In his second start he didn’t walk any Mets, struck out six and pitched seven innings. The Mets are currently sixth in the league in walks (29) and could easily leapfrog the Astros (32) who are ins second.
3. Hits. 2-for-10. 1-for-14. 0-for-4. 0-for-11. That’s how the Mets have hit with runners in scoring position for the last four days. The Mets have lost three of those games by a combined total of five runs. At some point the pitching will start to break down with a prolonged increased pressure to be perfect. Let’s get some hits today!

Let’s Go Mets!

The first rubber game of the season! After taking the first game of the series 4-2, the Mets fell to the Cardinals 3-0 last night. The offense could not get much going against Pallante and the Cardinals bullpen. The Cardinals bullpen was dreadful against the Rays opening weekend but has been lights out against the Mets this week.

At the start of this series we found out that Jorge Polanco was playing through an Achilles issue, leading to more Brett Baty in the field. Last night was the first time the Mets played with a “B” roster, with Polanco, Baty and Alvarez all not starting. That should mean the Mets are all systems go for a getaway day this afternoon behind Freddy Peralta!

Freddy Peralta makes his second start of the season this afternoon and his second start against an NL Central team. In his first start he allowed four runs on six hits over five innings, including two home runs while striking out seven batters. Peralta made one start against the Cardinals in 2025, holding them to one run over six innings on four hits and a one walk while striking out six. The Cardinals have the following career numbers against Peralta:

• Alec Burleson 4-18, 2 2B, 2 BB, K
• Nolan Gorman 3-11, 2B, 3 BB, 2 K
• Ivan Herrera 3-6, 2 K
• Pedro Pages 2-4, 2 HR, 2 K
• Victor Scott II 2-4, 2B, K
• Ramón Urías 0-2, 2 K
• Jordan Walker 2-9, 3 K
• Masyn Winn 3-15, BB, 2 K

The Cardinals are hoping this season is the one that Matthew Liberatore becomes their ace. He had a great first start of the season, allowing only one run on seven hits and two walks over five innings. Last season was the first season he moved fully into the rotation. Over 29 starts he pitched 151 2/3 innings with a 4.21 ERA, 4.03 FIP, 1.305 WHIP and a 97 ERA+. He made one start against the Mets last season allowing two runs from six hits and a walk while striking out six over 6 2/3 innings. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 1-3
• Brett Baty 0-0, BB
• Bo Bichette 1-2, K
• Francisco Lindor 1-7, HR, K
• Jorge Polanco 0-4, BB
• Luis Robert Jr. 0-3
• Marcus Semien 3-5, 2B
• Juan Soto 3-5, 2B
• Tyrone Taylor 2-6, 2 2B, BB
• Luis Torrens 0-3, 2 K
• Mark Vientos 2-4, HR

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Where did the Mets bats go? The Mets scored 11 runs on Opening Day. Since then it has been a struggle to score runs, with a solid chunk of their runs scored in extra innings. Yesterday the Mets had only three hits and four walks and went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position. The Cardinals didn’t do that much better, going 2-for-11 with RISP. It would be nice to get the bats right before heading out to San Francisco.
2. Don’t blame Juan Soto though. Juan Soto went 2-for-4 yesterday including his second double of the season. He has gone 8-for-21 this season with two doubles and three walks (.458 OPS). He has four RBI’s, which is a sign of how well the bottom of the Mets order + Lindor have been getting on base but Soto himself has only scored once. That’s an indictment of what’s happening behind him.
3. Bullpen reset. Kodai Senga looked great last night pitching six innings while striking out eight. Richard Lovelady then pitched two innings. He gave up a run, making a two-run lead feel like an insurmountable three-run lead by the Cardinals, but at least he was able to give the rest of the bullpen the rest of the night off. Luis Garcia enters this afternoon’s game not pitching since last Saturday. Brazobán, Weaver and Manaea haven’t pitched since Sunday.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets look to take their second consecutive series tonight! Bo Bichette was the story after Sunday’s game, owning up to a rough first three games, and he came through last night going 1-for-5 with a sacrifice fly in the first inning and an RBI hit later in the game. Mendoza was able to lean on the three arms he didn’t use on Sunday (Myers, Raley and Williams) who combined to pitch 3 1/3 scoreless innings.

The Mets bats were on fire after the first game of the season and we haven’t really seen that since, hopefully tonight is the night the Mets bats get back on track.

Kodai Senga had a bizarre season last year. He made 22 starts, pitching 113 1/3 innings with a 3.02 ERA, 4.12 FIP, 1.315 WHIP and a 133 ERA+. Before his injury he made 13 starts with a 1.47 ERA. In his nine starts after his injury he had a 5.90 ERA and accepted a minor league assignment in September to figure out what was happening. This spring though Senga has looked fantastic, allowing only two runs over 9 2/3 innings while striking out 11 batters. He is routinely hitting 97 mph on the radar gun. The Cardinals have the following career stats against Senga:

• Alec Burleson 0-6, 2 BB, 2 K
• Nolan Gorman 0-5, 3 K
• Yohel Pozo 0-2
• Thomas Saggese 2-2, 2B
• Victor Scott II 0-2
• Jordan Walker 1-2, HR, BB, K
• Masyn Winn 0-2, K

Andre Pallante had a strong 2024, pitching in 29 games including 20 starts, with a 3.78 ERA over 121 1/3 innings. He couldn’t repeat those numbers in 2025 when fully moved to the rotation. Over 31 starts, 162 2/3 innings. Pallante had a 5.31 ERA, 4.68 FIP, 1.445 WHIP and a 77 ERA+. The Mets tagged him for eight runs over 9 1/3 innings in two starts last season off 16 hits and four walks. The Mets have the following career numbers against Pallante:

• Francisco Alvarez 2-3, BB
• Brett Baty 1-2
• Bo Bichette 2-6, 2B, K
• Francisco Lindor 6-13, 3 BB, 2 K
• Marcus Semien 1-4, K
• Juan Soto 1-9, 2 BB, K
• Tyrone Taylor 6-12, 2B, K
• Luis Torrens 0-2
• Mark Vientos 2-4, HR, BB

Three Things to Watch For:

1. Francisco Lindor, triple hitter? Lindor already has two triples this season. Lindor had three triples from 2023-2025. The most Lindor has ever had in a season was five (2022). He is generally not a triple hitter, and for Lindor to get a triple some other things have to happen (bad reads on the ball, lucky bounces in the outfield, etc). When you get two triples in the first four games of the season, it does make it a lot more likely that you could reach five or more by the end of the season!
2. Get to the Cardinals bullpen. The Mets have had historical success against Andre Pallante. Behind Pallante is a bullpen that has been struggling, posting a 7.94 ERA off 26 hits and no home runs in the first four games of the season. The Rays did most of the damage to the Cardinals pen and the bullpen bounced back last night allowing no runs over four innings, scattering two hits and three walks. While the Cardinals bullpen was not going to spend an entire season being as bad as it was this past weekend, tonight is the time to stop them from building positive momentum.
3. Carson Benge. Benge had a huge first game of the season getting a walk and hitting his first home run. He’s been pretty quiet since. Last night he went 2-for-4, stole his second base of the season and didn’t strikeout. The radio broadcast noted that it felt like Benge and Alvarez were making sure Lindor and Soto had runners to drive in all night.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets face their old friends the Cardinals tonight in St. Louis. The Cardinals and Mets are two of the five teams on the east coast of Florida, and have already played each other a whole bunch over the last month. This will be the Mets second consecutive season against an NL Central team, and the Mets look to build off of what was a mostly successful opening series against the Pirates.

The Mets converted Clay Holmes to a starter last season and he delivered over 33 games (31 starts) pitching 165 2/3 innings with a 3.53 ERA, 4.11 FIP, 1.304 WHIP and a 114 ERA+. Like many pitchers on the Mets he was more effective in the first half of the season, posting a 3.31 ERA over his first 19 games compared a 3.90 in his last 14. Holmes faced the Cardinals twice last season holding them to one run over six innings the first time and then three runs over six the second time a couple weeks later. The Cardinals have the following career numbers against Holmes:

• Alec Burleson 2-6, K
• Nolan Gorman 0-6, K
• Pedro Pages 0-3, BB
• Thomas Saggese 0-3
• Victor Scott II 1-4, 2 K
• Ramón Urías 3-12, 2B, 5 K
• Jordan Walker 0-4, 2 K
• Masyn Winn 2-3

The Cardinals are hoping Kyle Leahy can make the same journey that Clay Holmes has. Last season he pitched in 62 games totaling 88 innings with a 3.07 ERA, 3.04 FIP, 1.227 WHIP and a 134 ERA+. The Cardinals have stretched him out over spring training, with him tossing over 70 pitches in each of his last two starts. Spring starts don’t mean anything, but he did have a start against the Mets where he allowed no runs and no hits against the Mets over four innings back on March 7th. He pitched against the Mets in two games last season totaling 3 1/3 innings allowing only one run on one hit. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Brett Baty 0-2
• Francisco Lindor 0-2
• Jorge Polanco 0-1
• Luis Robert Jr. 1-3, HR, K
• Marcus Semien 0-2, BB
• Juan Soto 0-1, K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-1
• Luis Torrens 0-1
• Mark Vientos 1-2, HR

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Top Outfield Prospects. Both the Cardinals and the Mets broke camp with top outfield prospects. Carson Benge’s first hit on Opening Day was a home run. Besides that he has been pretty quite with two walks, a stolen base and five strikeouts. JJ Weatherholt already has four hits including an Opening Day home run of his own.
2. Brett Baty. What a start to the season for Brett Baty. He got the Mets on the scoreboard on Opening Day with a bases clearing triple. He already has four hits, two runs scored and a stolen base while splitting time at DH and first base. Carlos Mendoza said before yesterday’s game that Baty could see time in right field on days when Luis Robert Jr. gets the day off (Benge would slide into center). It’s only been a few games, but Baty looks way more confident this season as he steps into the super-utility role.
3. Cardinals are hitting. All rate stats are a little silly after three games, because it’s been only three games. Now that we got that out of the way, the Cardinals are fourth in the majors with a .813 OPS (Brewers, Angels and Nationals have the lead). Last year the Yankees led the league with a .787 OPS and the Cardinals were 24th with a .693 OPS.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets go for the sweep this afternoon in Queens!

On Thursday the Mets took the first game of the season in pesky fashion, working nine walks, scoring 11 runs and making the Pirates toss over 190 pitches. Yesterday neither team could buy a hit with runners in scoring position, but the Pirates were able to take the lead against the Mets twice in extra innings. The Mets tied the game after the 10th, squandering a bases loaded with no outs situation, but then came back in the 11th to win with thunder on a Luis Robert Jr. walk-off home run.

Let’s head off to San Francisco on a winning streak!

Nolan McLean tried to save the Mets season in 2025. He made eight starts across the final two months of the season getting five wins. He pitched 48 innings with a 2.06 ERA, 2.97 FIP, 1.042 WHIP and a 196 ERA+. McLean spent a good chunk of spring training with Team USA, starting the championship game allowing two runs over 4 2/3 innings from four hits and a walk while striking out four. After an unusual March, his next step is to get back into a routine for the long, regular season. The only player on the Pirates who has seen McLean in a Major League game is Marcell Ozuna (0-for-3, K).

The Pirates rotation is full of homegrown players, and the Mets will face another this afternoon – Carson Mlodzinski. Last season Mlodzinski split time between the bullpen and the rotation, totaling 34 games (12 starts) pitching 99 innings with a 3.55 ERA, 3.33 FIP, 1.303 WHIP and a 121 ERA+. He was way more effective as a reliever, posting a 2.15 ERA once being moved to the bullpen than his 4.99 ERA as a starter. Mlodzinski made one extended relief appearance against the Mets last season holding the Mets two hits and no runs over 3 2/3 innings while striking out two. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 1-1, 2B
• Brett Baty 0-2, K
• Bo Bichette 0-1, BB
• Francisco Lindor 0-1
• Jorge Polanco 0-1
• Luis Robert Jr. 0-2, 2 BB
• Marcus Semien 0-0, BB
• Juan Soto 0-2, K
• Tyrone Taylor 1-2, 2B
• Luis Torrens 1-1
• Mark Vientos 0-3, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Pirates heavy bullpen use. Mlodzinski started last season as a starter and would normally go somewhere between 65 and 75 pitches with a season high of 99. The rest of season as a bulk reliever, the highest he would go was the 40’s. He did get stretched out in spring training, last pitching in an official game on March 14th totaling 64 pitches over five innings against the Orioles. The Pirates are going need him to go deep in this afternoon’s game. Justin Lawrence, Dennis Santana and Gregory Soto have all pitched in consecutive games. The three pitchers who had the last two days off, Mason Montgomery, Yohan Ramirez and Isaac Mattson, all pitched at least 36 pitches on Thursday.
2. Sean Manaea? We know the Mets plan on Manaea into a game at some point during the first turn through the rotation. Yesterday’s extra inning game means the Mets have used every reliever in their bullpen through the first two games of the season, with every except Tobias Myers, who did long relief on Thursday, pitching in yesterday’s game. Depending on game script, today feels like a possibility for three inning outing for Manaea, even if it makes more sense for him to pitch after Holmes or Senga. If Manaea gets into today’s game his velocity will be the story. His velocity has has been 3-4 mph below his career numbers, topping out around 89 mph all spring.
3. Brett Baty at first. Sunday lineups can get funky, but the Mets are keeping things the same this afternoon except with Luis Torrens getting the start at catcher. There is a defensive switch though with Brett Baty getting the start at first base and Polanco starting as the DH. Baty got a bit of time at first base this spring and it looks like the Mets feel that he is ready to go on day three of the season.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets look to take their first series of the season this afternoon as they take on the Pirates! The Mets took game one of the season in pesky fashion, making the Pirates through 192 pitches. They knocked out Paul Skenes before the end of the first inning and forced the Pirates bullpen to use six pitchers to finish off the game. The day off yesterday probably means that higher leverage relievers like Dennis Santana and Gregory Soto would be available today. It was a tone setting day for the Mets and hopefully it continues today!

David Peterson, the longest tenured Met, starts his seventh season this afternoon. Peterson made 30 starts last season and pitched 168 2/3 innings (both career highs) with a 4.22 ERA, 3.48 FIP, 1.370 WHIP and a 95 ERA+. In the first half of the season he tossed 109 innings over 18 starts with a 3.06 ERA, earning an All-Star game spot. He was different pitcher in the second half with a 6.34 ERA over 12 starts (59 2/3 innings). Both of Peterson’s starts against the Pirates happened in the first half of the season. In Queens he held the Pirates to only two runs over six innings. In Pittsburgh he allowed five runs over 4 2/3 innings. The Pirates have the following career numbers against Peterson:

• Joey Bart 1-9, 4 BB, 5 K
• Oneil Cruz 1-3, HR, 2 K
• Henry Davis 0-4, K
• Nick Gonzalez 1-4, 2B, BB
• Spencer Horwitz 1-2, BB
• Ryan O’Hearn 0-1, K
• Marcell Ozuna 4-22, 2 HR, 4 BB, 7 K
• Bryan Reynolds 3-13, 2B, 3 K
• Jared Triolo 2-5, 2B, 2 BB, 3 K

Today is a battle of long tenured pitchers as Mitch Keller starts his 8th season with the Pirates. Over 32 starts and 176 1/3 innings last season, Keller had a 4.19 ERA, 1.259 WHIP, 4.02 FIP, and a 102 ERA+. Keller has been consistent force in the Pirates rotation over the last four seasons with four consecutive seasons with at least 31 game appearances, at least 159 innings, and an ERA+ between 98 and 106. Keller was effective against the Mets in 2025 holding the Mets to only three runs over 12 1/3 innings, scattering 10 hits. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 2-10, 4 K
• Brett Baty 3-7, 2B, HR, BB
• Bo Bichette 0-4, BB, K
• Francisco LIndor 2-16, 5 BB, 8 K
• Jorge Polanco 1-2, BB, K
• Luis Robert Jr. 1-1, BB
• Marcus Semien 0-5, 3 K
• Juan Soto 5-12, 2B, HR, 3 BB, K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-7, 2 K
• Luis Torrens 0-3, K
• Mark Vientos 2-10, 3 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. The longest tenured Met. There is a significant chance that David Peterson becomes a top-20 Met pitcher, depending on the metric, by the end of this season. It won’t be by bWAR. Peterson has 6.8 bWAR, good for 35th and would have to reach John Franco’s 11.2 by the end of the season to get into the top 20. He’s tied with Rick Aguilera at 37 wins, which is 34th in the franchise. He would need to get 47 this season to enter the top 20. He’s made 115 starts (#22), and he needs to get to 121 to pass Gary Gentry to enter the top 20. Nothing crazy here, but still noteworthy for a pitcher who has only made 30 starts in a season once, and had two key years bounced between the rotation and the bullpen.
2. Walk this way. The Mets worked nine walks in their first game of the season. This continues on the Mets propensity to draw walks from 2025 where the Mets finished with 563, good for fifth in baseball. About 20% of the walks in 2025 were from Juan Soto who didn’t walk at all on Thursday. The Mets went 5-for-15 with runners in scoring position, taking advantage of the free passes.
3. It’s cold. March and April baseball in Queens is not for the faint of heart. The high today is 45 and there’s a windchill that will dip below 30. It’s going to be a very different day than Opening Day which felt like a summer tease. Normally days like today favor the pitchers. The Mets bats got off to a hot start, hopefully that can warm them up today.

Let’s Go Mets!