213 Miles From Shea

Injuries are piling up for the Mets, but they were able to push the negative news and the two game slide aside with a 5-4 late night win against the Diamondbacks.

Before the game the Mets announced that it was the worst case scenario for AJ Minter who will be out for the season with a torn lat. Jesse Winker’s injury will keep him sidelined for up to two months. Tough news for two key players on the team.

The news didn’t slow down who at one point scored five unanswered runs and were able to stop a Diamondbacks rally late to hold onto the game 5-4. Now the Mets turn to David Peterson to win game two.

David Peterson has a 3.06 ERA, 2.95 FIP, 1.361 WHIP and a 127 ERA+ over 32 1/3 innings. His last start was against the Diamondbacks, holding them to one earned run, scattering five hits and no walks while striking out two over five innings. Peterson has pitched into the sixth inning in four of six starts this season and has finished the sixth inning twice. The Diamondbacks have the following career numbers against Peterson:

• Corbin Carroll 1-6, 2 K
• Randal Grichuk 5-12, HR, BB, K
• Lourdes Gurriel Jr. 2-7, HR
• Garrett Hampson 1-8, 3B
• Jose Herrera 1-4
• Ketel Marte 2-6, 2B, HR, 2 K
• Gabriel Moreno 1-2
• Geraldo Perdomo 2-6, 2B, 2 BB< K
• Pavin Smith 4-6, 2B, 2 BB, K
• Eugenio Suárez 1-6, BB, K
• Tim Tawa 0-2

The Mets bats will try to figure out Zac Gallen tonight. Gallen has a 4.93 ERA, 4.35 FIP, 1.304 WHIP and an 85 ERA+ over 38 1/3 innings (seven starts). Gallen was struggling, allowing 16 runs over four starts. He then faced the Mets last week and found his form again, holding the Mets to one run on two hits over six innings while striking out eight batters. The Mets have the following career stats against Gallen:

• Pete Alonso 5-17, 2B, 2 BB, 7 K
• José Azócar 1-4, 2B, K
• Brett Baty 2-3, K
• Francisco Lindor 3-13, 2B, BB, 2 K
• Starling Marte 0-2, 2 BB, K
• Jeff McNeil 3-18, 2B, 5 K
• Brandon Nimmo 1-9, 2B, BB, 2 K
• Juan Soto 5-24, 2B, 2 HR, 3 BB, 5 K
• Tyrone Taylor 1-7, 2B, BB, 2 K
• Luis Torrens 1-4, 2B, BB
• Mark Vientos 1-6, 2 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Brett Baty. Baty returns to the Mets! Baty was starting to get into a groove right before he was sent down to make room for Jeff McNeil. Over his last nine games in the majors he went 8-for-27 with two doubles, a triple and a home run slashing .296/.367/.556. He went to slash .300/.364/.500 over three games in Syracuse where Baty has missed a few games with a toe injury. It’s not fully clear how healthy Baty is yet, but we are glad he is back!
2. Tyrone Taylor. You know the player on a team who isn’t a star, but every time you look up at the TV, it seems like he’s doing something amazing or clutch? That’s Tyrone Taylor. In his last eight games he has gone 12-for-22 with three doubles, one triple, one home run, and six runs scored. With Lindor, Soto and Alonso hot at the top of the lineup, Taylor is becoming quite the table setter.
3. Francisco Lindor. Lindor was the hero of the night for the Mets last night. He hit a huge three-run home run and had a game saving tag in the bottom of the ninth. When Lindor is hot, he carries the team with him!

Let’s Go Mets!

Yesterday was a weird day in Mets land. The Mets lost both games by a total of two runs while leaving a whopping 22 runners on base. In addition to racking up base runners, it just felt like the Mets were getting unlucky with balls batted in play. For example, in the second game Juan Soto had a home run robbed that had an xBA of .890, later he would line out to left with an xBA of .690.

As we’ve seen for the Mets multiple times this season, the best solution to an unlucky or frustrating outcome? Win a baseball game. The Mets will head to Arizona tonight to try to take the series season against the Diamondbacks after dropping a three game series in Queens last week.

Griffin Canning gets things started for the Mets. Over six starts and 31 innings, Canning has a 2.61 ERA, 3.27 FIP, 1.387 WHIP and a 149 ERA+. He’s coming off of one of his best starts of the season where he allowed no runs from four hits and three walks over five innings. Like many Mets starters, the thing holding Canning back is how deep he can go in a game. He has entered the sixth inning in half of his starts and has finished the sixth only once. The Diamondbacks have the following career numbers against him:

• Corbin Carroll 0-3
• Randal Grichuk 1-6, K
• Lourdes Gurriel Jr. 2-8, HR, K
• Ketel Marte 1-5, 2B, BB, 2 K
• Gabriel Moreno 0-2
• Josh Naylor 2-6
• Geraldo Perdomo 0-2, BB
• Pavin Smith 1-2, K
• Eugenio Suárez 0-3, 2 K
• Alek Thomas 0-3, 2 K

Corbin Burnes was supposed to start the series against the Mets. He’s been experiencing should inflammation and the Diamondbacks are skipping his spot in the rotation, sending out Ryne Nelson instead. Nelson started 25 games in 2024 (28 games overall), pithing 150 2/3 innings with a 4.24 ERA, 3.74 FIP, 1.254 WHIP and a 99 ERA+. This season the Diamondbacks have been using him as a reliever, pitching 17 innings over seven games with with a 5.82 ERA, 2.19 FIP, 1.176 WHIP and a 73 ERA+. He last pitched against the Mets, holding the Mets scoreless and hitless over four innings in a game the Mets won 8-3. The Mets have the following career numbers against Nelson:

• Luisangel Acuña 0-2
• Pete Alonso 4-9, 3 HR, K
• Francisco Alvarez 1-6, HR, 3 K
• José Azócar 0-3, K
• Francisco Lindor 4-8, 2 3B, HR, 3 K
• Starling Marte 1-5, BB
• Jeff McNeil 3-7, 2 2B
• Brandon Nimmo 4-7, 2B, 3B, BB
• Juan Soto 3-12, 3B, 2 HR, 5 BB, 2 K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-2, K
• Luis Torrens 0-2
• Mark Vientos 1-4
• Jesse Winker 3-8, 2 HR, 2 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Hits with RISP. Here’s a positive outlook – the Mets had six hits with runners in scoring position on Sunday. They did however go a combined 6-for-26, which is just an insane stat, but that makes sense when you leave 22 runners on base over two games. The Mets did have some rallies yesterday, like the 8th inning in the first game. They just couldn’t get the hit to get them ahead late in the game.
2. Hitting Depth. Jesse Winker needed an MRI after the first game on Sunday after experiencing oblique pain. Mendoza told reporters that the MRI wasn’t clean and Winker needs to go back to New York. The Mets also pulled Marte out early in the second game, but Mendoza said that was a planned move. The Mets this season have been dealing with hitting depth issues for the vast majority of the season, like when McNeil and Alvarez started the season in the injured list.
3. Top of the lineup. It’s no secret that top of the Mets lineup is driving the team. Lindor, Soto and Alonso have an .814 OPS, .808 OPS and 1.124 OPS respectively (133, 133, 220 OPS+). These are numbers I would dream about a few seasons ago. After the top the Mets have room to grow. On the season Vientos has a .682 OPS, Nimmo has a .698 OPS. While both players have had huge days at the plate over the last two weeks, the Mets need both to become more consistent.

Let’s Go Mets!

Juan Uribe will be happy today, because there’s more baseball to watch! Hope you remembered to turn your TV dial from WPIX to SNY for game two of the split-doubleheader.

The extra time between the games this afternoon isn’t ideal for the Mets, who have a game tomorrow night in Arizona. It’s a better situation though than last year. Last year they had a three game series against the Angels in Anaheim then were supposed to fly to Colorado, have a day off to acclimate, and then play. But due to the Cardinals and Mets schedules, the Mets off-day was spent flying from Anaheim to St. Louis, playing a game, then flying to Colorado. Wild times.

Tylor Megill has a 1.74 ERA, 2.32 FIP, 1.129 WHIP and a 223 ERA+ over six starts and 31 innings this season. The pitching line in his last start (three runs over 6 1/3 innings, nine strikeouts) doesn’t tell the whole story. Megill was cruising through the first six innings and the Mets pushing him into the seventh for the first time. It already was the first time this season that he completed six innings. Things fell apart and he allowed two runs. The bullpen then collapsed behind him and the Mets fumbled a 7-1 lead. That being said, Megill has struck out 19 batters over his last 11 2/3 innings. The Cardinals have the following career numbers against him:

• Nolan Arenando 0-4, BB
• Willson Contreras 1-2, HR, K
• Brendan Donovan 1-3, K
• Nolan Gorman 0-3, 2 K
• Jordan Walker 1-2, 2B

Andre Pallante has pitched 32 2/3 innings over six starts with a 4.13 ERA, 5.32 FIP, 1.286 WHIP and a 101 ERA+. In his last three starts he has allowed 11 runs from 20 hits and five walks over 16 1/3 innings (6.06 ERA, 6.30 FIP). This includes a start against the Mets on April 17th where he allowed four runs from seven hits over six innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against Pallante:

• Pete Alonso 1-6, 2 BB, K
• Francisco Alvarez 1-2
• José Azócar 0-1
• Francisco Lindor 5-11, 2 BB, 2 K
• Starling Marte 3-5, 2B, BB, K
• Jeff McNeil 1-7, K
• Brandon Nimmo 1-13, 2B, K
• Juan Soto 0-6, 2 BB, K
• Tyrone Taylor 4-10, 2B, K
• Luis Torrens 0-2
• Mark Vientos 1-3, HR
• Jesse Winker 1-3

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Energy. Today is a long day for players and the umpires. The Mets have to get out to Arizona and the Cardinals start a series against the Pirates tomorrow. Tylor Megill has been cruising with 19 strikeouts in his last two starts, this feels like a recipe for Megill to rack up strikeouts tonight.
2. Pallante and home runs. Over the last three games Pallante has allowed four home runs, bringing him to six on the season. Last season he allowed only eight home runs through 121 1/3 innings. His HR/9 has jumped from his career low in 2024 of 0.6 HR/9 to a career high this year of 1.7 HR/9 (he had a 0.8 HR/9 in his first two major league seasons). Does he return to the mean tonight and keep the Mets in the park? Or is this a sign of something happening to Pallante this year?
3. Tylor Megill and Statcast pitches. We know that Statcast is not perfect in differentiating between pitches. In 2024, according to Statcast, Megill tossed eight different types of pitches, with the changeup being the least used with 20 tosses. This year he’s used five pitches. He’s using his fastball at pretty much the same rate (44.7% in 2025, 46.7% in 2024). He’s completely eliminated his cutter that he used 14.2% of the time in 2024 and instead he’s using his slider and sinker a lot more. He’s also already thrown his changeup more times this season (34) than in 2024.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets absolved their hitting woes Friday night and scored nine runs on 17 hits against the Cardinals. It was the second time in three games that the Mets left at least 10 runners on base, but that doesn’t matter when you score nine runs. Five hitters in the Mets lineup had multi-hit games including three-hit games from Brandon Nimmo and Francisco Alvarez. Hopefully the bats still have a few more hits left in them as they take on the Cardinals for game two and game three of the series.

Blade Tidwell makes his major league debut with the Mets this afternoon! The Mets always planned on using a spot starter today to give the starting rotation a bit more rest, so today was the best possible day for the Mets to have a doubleheader. He’s from Columbia, Tennessee so it’s awesome that so many of friends and family will be able to make his debut this afternoon. Tidwell has 27 innings over six starts with a 5.00 ERA, 3.21 FIP and 1.333 WHIP. This season, minor league batters have been whiffing 33.3% of the time leading a 12.3 K/9.

The Mets bats will get a look at former National Erick Fedde. Fedde played with the Nationals from 2017 until 2022. After a couple of poor seasons with the Nationals, he went to the KBO, re-established himself and came back to the White Sox as a strong pitcher. The Cardinals traded for him before the deadline last season.

This season Fedde has pitched 32 2/3 innings over six starts with a 4.68 ERA, 4.78 FIP, 1.347 WHIP and an 89 ERA+. The big change for Fedde has been his walk rate. His last season before the KBO it jumped to 4.1 BB/9, coming back from the KBP it was a 2.6 BB/9. This season it has jumped again to 4.4. His earned run stats this season are being heavily influenced by his last start where he allowed seven runs from 10 hits over 5 2/3 innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against Fedde:

• Pete Alonso 6-16, 2 2B, 6 BB, 2 K
• Francisco Alvarez 0-0, 2 BB
• Francisco Lindor 6-19, 2B, HR, BB, K
• Starling Marte 3-11, 2B, HR, 2 K
• Jeff McNeil 7-16, 2B, 2 BB, K
• Brandon Nimmo 6-25, 3 BB, 4 K
• Juan Soto 2-3, 2B
• Tyrone Taylor 0-4, K
• Luis Torrens 1-2
• Mark Vientos 1-2
• Jesse Winker 4-12, 2 HR, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Mets are creeping back up the home run charts. The 2024 Mets were sixth in the majors with 207 home runs (Yankees, first 237). The 2025 Mets are starting to climb back up the leader boards, tied the Orioles and Guardians right now for 10th in the league with 38, trailing the Red Sox who have 41. Over the last two games they have hit four home runs, all hit by players hitting in the 2-4 spots in the lineup (Soto, Alonso and Nimmo). Let’s see if they keep this up this afternoon.
2. Mets and triples. Did you know the Mets are second in the league in triples hit (8)? They trail the Cubs who have nine and are ahead of a slew of teams with six. Definitely a fun fact about the 2025 Mets.
3. The Bullpen is finally rested. Friday we talked about how Díaz essentially hasn’t pitched in a week. Thanks to Holmes, Buttó and Stanek, most of the bullpen got the night off on Friday. Kranick and Garrett each got a much needed day of rest and Brazobán hasn’t pitched for a couple of days now. Bullpen management is going to be key this afternoon but in addition to Tidwell, Dedniel Núñez is rejoining the club. Núñez was a critical piece of the 2024 bullpen, pitching 35 innings with a 2.31 ERA, 2.22 FIP, 0.914 WHIP and a 170 ERA+ before his injury. Over 10 1/3 innings in the minors this season he has a 3.48 ERA, 2.032 WHIP with a 11.3 K/9.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets absolved their hitting woes last night and scored nine runs on 17 hits against the Cardinals. It was the second time in three games that the Mets left at least 10 runners on base, but that doesn’t matter when you score nine runs. Five hitters in the Mets lineup had multi-hit games including three-hit games from Brandon Nimmo and Francisco Alvarez. Hopefully the bats still have a few more hits left in them as they take on the Cardinals for game two of the series.

Tylor Megill has a 1.74 ERA, 2.32 FIP, 1.129 WHIP and a 223 ERA+ over six starts and 31 innings this season. The pitching line in his last start (three runs over 6 1/3 innings, nine strikeouts) doesn’t tell the whole story. Megill was cruising through the first six innings and the Mets pushing him into the seventh for the first time. It already was the first time this season that he completed six innings. Things fell apart and he allowed two runs. The bullpen then collapsed behind him and the Mets fumbled a 7-1 lead. That being said, Megill has struck out 19 batters over his last 11 2/3 innings. The Cardinals have the following career numbers against him:

• Nolan Arenando 0-4, BB
• Willson Contreras 1-2, HR, K
• Brendan Donovan 1-3, K
• Nolan Gorman 0-3, 2 K
• Jordan Walker 1-2, 2B

The Mets bats will get a look at former National Erick Fedde. Fedde played with the Nationals from 2017 until 2022. After a couple of poor seasons with the Nationals, he went to the KBO, re-established himself and came back to the White Sox as a strong pitcher. The Cardinals traded for him before the deadline last season.

This season Fedde has pitched 32 2/3 innings over six starts with a 4.68 ERA, 4.78 FIP, 1.347 WHIP and an 89 ERA+. The big change for Fedde has been his walk rate. His last season before the KBO it jumped to 4.1 BB/9, coming back from the KBP it was a 2.6 BB/9. This season it has jumped again to 4.4. His earned run stats this season are being heavily influenced by his last start where he allowed seven runs from 10 hits over 5 2/3 innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against Fedde:

• Pete Alonso 6-16, 2 2B, 6 BB, 2 K
• Francisco Alvarez 0-0, 2 BB
• Francisco Lindor 6-19, 2B, HR, BB, K
• Starling Marte 3-11, 2B, HR, 2 K
• Jeff McNeil 7-16, 2B, 2 BB, K
• Brandon Nimmo 6-25, 3 BB, 4 K
• Juan Soto 2-3, 2B
• Tyrone Taylor 0-4, K
• Luis Torrens 1-2
• Mark Vientos 1-2
• Jesse Winker 4-12, 2 HR, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Mets are creeping back up the home run charts. The 2024 Mets were sixth in the majors with 207 home runs (Yankees, first 237). The 2025 Mets are starting to climb back up the leader boards, tied the Orioles right now for 10th in the league with 38, trailing the Red Sox who have 41. Over the last two games they have hit four home runs, all hit by players hitting in the 2-4 spots in the lineup (Soto, Alonso and Nimmo). Let’s see if they keep this up this afternoon.
2. Mets and triples. Did you know the Mets are second in the league in triples hit (8)? They trail the Cubs who have nine and are ahead of a slew of teams with six. Definitely a fun fact about the 2025 Mets.
3. The Bullpen is finally rested. Yesterday we talked about how Díaz essentially hasn’t pitched in a week. Thanks to Holmes, Buttó and Stanek, most of the bullpen got the night off on Friday. Kranick and Garrett each got a much needed ay of rest and Brazobán hasn’t pitched for a couple of days now. With Blade Tidwell pitching tomorrow, the Mets will be hoping for another day where they only need three innings from their pen this afternoon.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets have lost the last two games by a combined three runs. Hitters are getting on base but the offense just hasn’t been able to push them across the plate. With the frequency the Mets are getting on base they eventually have to score more runs and hopefully that starts tonight as they start a series in St. Louis against the Cardinals.

The Mets turn to Clay Holmes to continue his strong 2025. Over six starts and 30 2/3 innings Holmes has a 2.64 ERA, 2.18 FIP, 1.272 WHIP and a 147 ERA+. Holmes is coming off of a strong start where he held the Nationals scoreless over five innings. In his last three starts he has allowed only two runs over 16 innings from ten hits while striking out 16 batters. This includes a start against the Cardinals where he held them to one run over six innings. This will be the second time this season that Holmes will face a team for a second time. The second time he faced the Marlins he had a season high 10 strikeouts but also had a season high four runs scored. The Cardinals have the following career numbers against him:

• Nolan Arenado 2-4, BB
• Alec Burleson 1-3, K
• Willson Contreras 3-8, 2 K
• Brendan Donovan 1-3, 2B, K
• Nolan Gorman 0-3, K
• Lars Nootbaar 0-4, BB
• Pedro Pages 0-2, BB
• Victor Scott II 0-2, K
• Jordan Walker 0-4, 2 K

Sonny Gray has made six starts totaling 35 innings this season with a 3.60 ERA, 3.80 FIP, 1.000 WHIP and a 116 ERA+. He’s been the definition of quality in his last two starts, allowing six total runs over 12 innings from 13 hits and four walks while striking out 10. This includes a start against the Mets where he allowed three runs over six innings from six hits while striking out six batters. The Mets have the following career numbers against Gray:

• Luisangel Acuña 1-3
• Pete Alonso 2-8, HR, BB, K
• Francisco Lindor 7-27, 3 HR, 4 BB, 9 K
• Starling Marte 3-12, HR, 2 BB
• Jeff McNeil 2-6, 2B, K
• Brandon Nimmo 3-11, 4 K
• Juan Soto 5-10, HR, 4 BB, 2 K
• Tyrone Taylor 3-11, HR< K
• Luis Torrens 0-2
• Jesse Winker 3-10, 2B, 3 BB, 3 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Juan Soto. Was Thursday afternoon the Juan Soto breakout game? Juan Soto went 2-for-3 with two home runs and a walk, his first multi-home run game as a Met. His next home run will tie the total amount he had in the month of April. Soto has already getting on base at a healthy clip (.379) and now has a .822 OPS, 136 OPS+. Soto hitting bombs on top of that just opens things up for the Mets offense.
2. Edwin Díaz. It’s been a minute! Due to the nature of the Mets games over the last week, we haven’t seen Díaz since April 26th. At some point, even if game script doesn’t require it, we’ll see him. Between his two games on the 21st and 23rd he allowed two runs from two hits over 2 1/3 innings. In his last game he allowed no runs and no hits while walking one and striking out three.
3. Hitting with runners in scoring position. The Mets had an opportunity near the end of the game on Thursday to at least tie the game. Same thing happened on Wednesday night. Between the two games the Mets are 0-for-12 with runners in scoring position while leaving 20 batters on base. This just feels like a statistical aberration that has to return to the mean eventually.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets look to bounce back from a frustrating loss and take the series victory against the Diamondbacks this afternoon.

Last night’s game was always penciled in to be the tough game for the Mets game in the series, but it ended up being difficult for completely different reason. The Mets used Brandon Waddell as a bulk pitcher to give their starters an extra day of rest and he was tremendous – keeping the Diamondbacks scoreless over 4 1/3 innings. The Mets bats had to deal with Corbin Burnes and were able to make him work, but just couldn’t get runs. Last weekend we saw that every time the Mets fell, they picked themselves right back up, hopefully today is more of the same.

Kodai Senga looks to continue his tremendous season with his sixth start. Over five starts, 28 2/3 innings, Senga has a 1.26 ERA, 2.83 FIP, 1.047 WHIP and a 310 ERA+. He’s been so good that allowing two runs in his last start raised his seasonal ERA by almost half a run. Senga faced the Diamondbacks twice in 2023 and held them to only one run over 14 innings while striking out 22 batters. The Diamondbacks have the following career numbers against him:

• Corbin Carroll 1-6, 3 K
• Randal Grichuk 1-5, 2 K
• Lourdes Gurriel Jr. 0-5, 3 K
• Garrett Hampson 0-3, BB, 3 K
• Gabriel Moreno 0-2, K
• Geraldo Perdomo 1-6, K
• Eugenio Suárez 0-3, 3 K
• Alek Thomas 0-5, 2 K

Which Zac Gallen will the Mets see today? The long time ace of the Diamondbacks has made six starts totaling 32 1/3 innings with a 5.57 ERA, 4.41 FIP, 1.392 WHIP and a 75 ERA+. He has made one tremendous start this season, his second start of the season in the Bronx, keeping the Yankees scoreless over 6 2/3 innings while striking out 13 batters. Since then he has allowed 16 runs over 21 2/3 innings from 23 hits and 11 walks (6.65 ERA, 5.48 FIP). Last season Gallen only tossed six pitches against the Mets before leaving the game with hamstring strain. The Mets have the following career stats against Gallen:

• Pete Alonso 4-14, 2B, 2 BB, 6 K
• José Azócar 1-4, 2B, K
• Francisco Lindor 3-10, 2B, BB, K
• Starling Marte 0-2, 2 BB, K
• Jeff McNeil 3-16, 2B, 4 K
• Brandon Nimmo 1-7, 2B, BB, K
• Juan Soto 4-22, 2B, HR, 2 BB, 5 K
• Tyrone Taylor 1-5, 2B, BB, K
• Luis Torrens 1-3, 2B
• Mark Vientos 1-3, HR, K
• Jesse Winker 1-2, BB

Three Things To Watch For:

1. An old foe returns. The Mets struggled with runners in scoring position earlier in the season. That returned in a frustrating way last night with the Mets going 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position leaving 13 batters on base. There was a bit of bad luck (hard hit outs, an unreviewable play). The Mets have shown before that if they collect the hits and the walks, eventually they’ll score.
2. Tyrone Taylor. How important has Taylor been over the last couple of days for the Mets? On Monday he made the catch of the year and last night he opened the game with a tremendous catch. He went 3-for-4 at the plate last night including a stolen base and a solo homerun that started the rally in the 9th inning. In this series he has gone 5-for-8!
3. Juan Soto. There is one glaring difference on Juan Soto’s Baseball Savant page from last year to this year – Barrel%. Juan Soto is still in the top of the league in squaring up the ball, chasing, striking out, walking and average exit velocity. Last season he was in the 99th percentile for for Barrel% and in the middle of the league for launch angle sweet-spot (which was new for him, he’s usually in the bottom third there). This season he is in the 30th percentile for Barrel%. This will change at some point.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets look to win the series against the Diamondbacks tonight in Queens!

The series opener was a firework filled affair with the Mets launching three home runs (Lindor, Alonso and Marte) and the team making defensive play after defensive play in the field. They cruised to an 8-3 lead and were able to save the bullpen thanks to Kevin Herget working multiple innings to close the game.

Starting next week the Mets will have several weeks in a row with Thursday off, creating a nice rhythm for starters. Today they are inserting a “sixth starter” to create some rest for the team. Brandon Waddell will get the bulk of the work with the bullpen filling in the rest.

Brandon Waddell is the bulk guy this evening for the Mets. The last time Waddell pitched in the majors was 2021 where he pitched 9 1/3 innings over nine games for three different organizations, allowing eight runs, seven earned, from 14 hits. He spent the last two seasons in the KBO and the CPBL putting up some respectable numbers, including a 2.82 ERA over 175 2/3 innings across both leagues in 2023. He has a 1.54 ERA over 23 1/3 innings (five starts) in Syracuse this season. Waddell has thrown over 80 pitches twice this season so if he gets into a groove he can give the Mets a solid start this evening.

The Mets face off against the big off season signing for the Diamondbacks – Corbin Burnes! Burnes has made five starts pitching 26 2/3 innings with a 4.05 ERA, 4.73 FIP, 1.350 WHIP and a 103 ERA+. He has been considerably better in his last two starts, allowing three runs, five earned, over 11 1/3 innings from nine hits, three walks while striking out eight. The Mets have the following career stats against Burnes:

• Pete Alonso 6-15, 2B, 3 HR, BB, 3 K
• Francisco LIndor 6-16, 2 2B, 3B, 8 K
• Starling Marte 3-7, 2B, 2 K
• Jeff McNeil 4-15, HR, K
• Brandon Nimmo 6-15, 2B, 2 3B, 3 K
• Juan Soto 2-5, 2B, BB, 2 K
• Jesse Winker 2-8, BB, 3 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Great Hitting vs Great Glove Work. Going into the play today the Diamondbacks are 4th in the majors in OPS (.772). The Diamondbacks got eight hits on Tuesday night, and ripped the ball all over the place. The Mets gloves though had a phenomenal game. From Lindor being Lindor, to Pete Alonso turning guaranteed hits into outs to Tyrone Taylor possibly making the catch of the year, the Mets put on a show. With a bulk pitcher tonight, the Mets are really going to need to keep that same energy.
2. Pete’s Back! Pete Alonso didn’t really go anywhere, but he had three games in a row where his hitting came back down to Earth, going 3-for-13 with a double and four walks (.444 OBP). Over the last two games Pete has gone 4-for-8 with a home run, two walks and five runs scored. His home run puts him at 233 for his career, 20 left to set a new franchise record. Alonso currently leads the league in doubles (11), SLG (.664), OPS (1.126) and OPS+ (219).
3. The Other Corbin. The Mets bats are dealing with Corbin Burnes tonight, but the pitchers are handling Corbin Carroll. Carroll is having a much more typical season, hitting .298/.365/.645 (174 OPS+) after hitting .231/.322/.428 (107 OPS+) last season. He currently leads the league with four triples and total bases (80). The Mets pitchers were able to contain him last night, keeping him hitless in four at bats.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets had a message for all of us on Monday. The Mets were coming off of a brutal loss on Sunday where they let a 7-1 lead slip away. Trying to force a series split, the Mets bats exploded for 19 runs on 21 hits. Monday’s game had one of craziest box scores in Mets history. The Mets are the only team in the league with 20 wins and they look to improve their record taking on the Diamondbacks tonight.

David Peterson has a 3.29 ERA, 3.07 FIP, 1.427 WHIP and a 117 ERA+ over five starts and 27 1/3 innings. Peterson is coming off of a solid start against the Phillies where he allowed two runs from eight hits over 5 1/3 innings. The base paths have been busy for Peterson all season. In his first two starts he allowed only eight hits, but allowed eight walks. In his last three starts he has allowed only one walk (which is fantastic) but has allowed at least seven hits in each start. Peterson had a solid start against the Diamondbacks last August holding them to two runs from seven hits over seven innings. The Diamondbacks have the following career numbers against him:

• Corbin Carroll 1-3, 2 K
• Randal Grichuk 5-10, HR, BB
• Lourdes Gurriel Jr. 2-5, HR
• Garrett Hampson 1-8, 3B
• José Herrera 1-4
• Geraldo Perdomo 0-3, 2 BB, K
• Pavin Smith 3-4, 2B, 2 BB, K
• Eugenio Suárez 1-4, BB, K

If you strolled through Central Park on Monday, you already know who is starting today for the Diamondbacks! Eduardo Rodríguez had a catch with a person just passing by in the park. No word on if that person then sent his scouting report on Rodríguez to the Mets.

Rodríguez has a 4.40 ERA, 2.79 FIP, 1.291 WHIP and a 94 ERA+ over five starts and 28 2/3 innings this season. He’s coming off of a rough start against Rays where he allowed four runs over 6 2/3 innings from six hits and a walk. In one start against the Mets last year he allowed five runs 5 1/3 innings from five hits and a walk while striking out five. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Pete Alonso 0-6, BB, 3 K
• Francisco Alvarez 1-4, K
• Francisco Lindor 4-19, 2B, BB, 2 K
• Starling Marte 2-8, BB, 3 K
• Jeff McNeil 0-3, K
• Brandon Nimmo 1-8, BB, 3 K
• Juan Soto 0-1, 2 BB, K
• Luis Torrens 1-3, K
• Mark Vientos 0-3, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Brandon Nimmo. Brandon Nimmo just changed his season stats in one game. Monday afternoon Nimmo went 4-for-6 at the plate with a double, two home runs and a franchise tying 9-RBI’s. Nine of his 19 RBI’s happened in one game! Hopefully this is the game Nimmo needed to breakout of the funk that he has been recently (0-for-4 in three of his last four games games before Monday).
2. Mark Vientos Season. Yes, Vientos had a three-run home run against Amed Rosario, which slightly skews things. That out of the way, Vientos is fully heating up. Since April 13th Vientos is hitting .326/.373/.630 (1.003 OPS) with three doubles, a triple and three home runs over 15 hits. He has 13 RBI’s and has scored 11 runs over those 12 games.
3. Eugenio Suárez. Suárez made waves through the baseball world over the weekend going 4-for-4 with four home runs in a game the Diamondbacks loss. This just feels like a Shohei Ohtani / Mike Trout on the Angels stat. He now leads the league with 10 home runs. Hopefully the Mets can keep him contained this week.

Let’s Go Mets!

Get the Mets out of DC!

The Mets have had two, tough losses so far this series. On Friday night, Jeff McNeil didn’t make a play on tough, low to the grounder that capped off a comeback for the Nationals. Earlier in the game, a Mets rallied was ended by a botch call on a lineup leading to a triple play. The Mets were cruising on Sunday afternoon with a 7-1 lead and then imploded, allowing the Nationals to score seven unanswered runs.

The best way to get over an ugly loss is to win the next game. The Mets did it on Saturday with a masterful pitching performance and key hitting by Francisco Alvarez. Let’s do that again today!

Griffin Canning has a 3.12 ERA, 3.32 FIP, 1.385 WHIP and a 124 ERA+ over 26 innings over five starts. In his last two starts he has allowed only two runs from 10 hits and three walks over 11 innings while striking out 13 batters. Canning has been a surprise in the Mets rotation this year. The Mets pushed Canning to rely more on his slider than his other pitches. In 2024 he used his four seamer 37.3% of the time and it had a 14.8 Whiff%, while his slider was used 24.1% of the time with a 33.1 Whiff%. This season he is using his slider 35.7% of the time and the Whiff% has gotten even better at 36.0%! The Nationals have the following career numbers against Canning:

• CJ Abrams 0-2, K
• Josh Bell 1-1, BB
• Alex Call 2-6
• Luis García Jr. 0-5
• Nathanial Lowe 3-13, 2 HR, 4 K
• Nasim Nunez 1-1
• Amed Rosario 2-3, 3B
• Keibert Ruiz 2-5
• José Tena 1-3
• James Wood 2-3, 2B, HR
• Jacob Young 1-2, 2B

The Mets bats will face off against a familiar face in Trevor Williams this afternoon. Williams has a 5.11 ERA, 3.78 FIP, 1.581 WHIP and a 78 ERA+ over five starts and 24 2/3 innings. Similar to Canning, he is also coming off of two strong starts where he allowed only two runs over 10 innings from nine hits and four walks while striking out 10. He’s looked more like his 2024 self (2.03 ERA) in those starts than his previous three starts where he allowed 12 runs over 14 2/3 innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Pete Alonso 3-13, 2B, HR, BB, 2 K
• Francisco Alvarez 1-2, BB, K
• Francisco Lindor 4-14, 2 2B, HR, BB, 2 K
• Starling Marte 0-3, BB
• Jeff McNeil 4-13, 2B, 3B, 3 BB, 2 K
• Brandon Nimmo 1-10, BB, 4 K
• Juan Soto 2-15, HR, 7 BB, 2 K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-2
• Jesse Winker 7-11, 2B, 2 BB, 3 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. José Ureña. The Mets called up Ureña before Sunday’s game to fill the roster spot for AJ Minter who landed on the injured list after Saturday’s game. The Mets bullpen needs a fresh arm after being overworked the last couple of days. It also feels like this roster spot will be a bit of a revolving door as the Mets need a sixth starter later in the week. Ureña pitched 109 innings last season over 33 games (nine starts) with the Rangers, posting a 3.80 ERA, 4.62 FIP, 1.321 WHIP and a 103 ERA+. He had a 2.89 ERA in Syracuse over 9 1/3 innings (three starts) this season.
2. How many times does Juan Soto walk today? Juan Soto was on base four times Sunday afternoon going 2-for-3 with two walks and two runs scored. His batting stats against Williams are, for a lack of a better word, funny? He only has two hits out of 15 at bats but has worked seven walks.
3. Survive the transition to the bullpen. The Mets pitching this season has carried this team. The pitching as a whole ranks towards the top of the league while the hitting is in the middle. When you look at the box scores for pitchers though, it’s that last time through the lineup, that is causing them trouble, which can then spell trouble for the team. It’s happened most frequently, like Sunday, with pitchers just trying to go one more inning. This is the next big area the Mets need to figure out in 2025.

Let’s Go Mets!