213 Miles From Shea

After taking the first game of the series, the Mets have been crushed by the Cardinals in the last two games as they lost yesterday by the score of 9-0. Honestly, nothing was really working for the Mets yesterday, but they still have a chance to split the series this afternoon.

Jacob deGrom is 4-4 over 8 games and 47.2 innings of work with an ERA of 3.21. He is coming off of a strong start against the Brewers allowing 1 ER over 6.0 innings while striking out 6. His numbers overall in May are comparable to his season numbers going 2-1 over 18.0 innings with a 3.00 ERA while striking out 20 batters. His start against the Cardinals last year did not end well as he allowed 6 earned runs and 12 hits over 4.1 innings. The Cardinals have the following numbers against Jacob:

• Heyward 3-6
• Reynolds 0-6
• Adams 2-3, 3B
• Carpenter 0-3
• Holliday 2-3
• Peralta 2-3

The bats will try to remember how to hit against Jaime Garcia who is set to make his 2015 debut from the disabled list today. In an injury shortened season last year, he was 3-1 over 7 starts and 43.2 innings with a 4.12 ERA. 2013 was also a shortened season as he went 5-2 over 9 starts and 55.1 innings with a 3.58 ERA. His last “full” season was in 2012 where he made 20 starts over 121.2 innings where he went 7-7 with an ERA of 3.92. He hasn’t faced the Mets since 2012 where he allowed one unearned run over 7.1 innings of work. The Mets have the following numbers against Garcia:

• Mayberry 6-16, 4 2B
• Tejada 2-4
• Murphy 1-3

Let’s Go Mets!

After winning the first game of the series in 14 innings by one run, the Mets were squashed last night by the Cardinals 10-2 last night, thanks in large part to a 6 runs 6th inning. The Mets somehow got 2 runs off of Wacha which is pretty amazing when you combine how lights out he has been and how bad the Mets offense has been. The ultimate result was a loss and since the Nationals beat the Yankees in extras, there is now a tie on top of the division.

The Mets turn to Bartolo Colon to help turn this all around. He is 6-2 on the season over 8 starts with a 3.86 ERA over 51.1 innings of work. His last two starts have been pretty rough as he has allowed 10 runs, 9 earned over 11.0 innings. Last year he was 2-0 over 2 games and 15.0 innings against the Cardinals with a 1.20 ERA. The Cardinals have the following numbers against the Mets:

• Reynolds 6-17, 2 2B
• Heyward 2-12
• Holliday 3-10, 2B
• Peralta 2-12
• Carpenter 3-10, HR
• Adams 1-9
• Molina 1-7

Carlos Martinez is 3-2 on the season over 8 games, 7 starts with a 4.73 ERA in 40.0 innings of work. His last start was average allowing 2 ER over 5.0 innings. In his previous two starts he allowed a total of 14 earned runs over 9.0 innings. Before that he had an ERA of 1.73 over his first 5 starts. He had limited work against the Mets last year pitching in a total of 4.1 innings but allowed only one run, none earned. The Mets have the following numbers against Martinez:

• Duda 1-3, 2B
• Mayberry 0-2
• Murphy 0-2
• Cuddyer 1-2

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets got a great start from Harvey last night, but that didn’t matter as the offense was at a trickle and the game ended up going 14 innings with the Mets winning on a fielder’s choice via Mayberry. The story for both sides last night was the starting and relief pitching. The key for tonight’s starters will be to go deep to give the pens a break as they still have 3 more games in the series.

Jon Niese looks to rebound tonight from last start where he allowed 6 ER over 6.1 innings in a game the Mets eventually lost 6-5. Before that start, Jon pitched 14.0 innings allowing 3 runs, 1 earned. On the season as a whole he is 3-3 with a 2.49 ERA. His WHIP is still 1.385, which I think tells more of the story for Niese right now than his ERA. In two starts against the Cardinals last year he pitched 12.2 innings with a 2.84 ERA and a 1-1 record. The Cardinals have the following numbers against Niese:

• Heyward 9-28, 2 2B, 2 HR
• Molina 6-16, 2B, HR
• Holliday 3-15, 2B
• Reynolds 3-9, HR
• Bourjos 3-9
• Peralta 3-8, 2B
• Carpenter 4-7, 2 2B

You know an offense like the Mets need? They need to face Michael Wacha. (It is really difficult to convey sarcasm in print, they don’t need to face someone like Wacha). Wacha is 5-0 over 7 games and 43.2 innings with a 2.06 ERA. He has been even better in May with a 1-0 record over 17.2 innings and a 1.53 ERA. In two starts against the Mets last year he was 1-1 over 10.0 innings with a 2.70 ERA. The Mets have the following numbers against Wacha:

• Duda 1-5, 2B
• Murphy 2-8
• Granderson 2-6, 2B
• Tejada 0-4
• Recker 0-2

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets bats came back for a second straight game yesterday as the Mets were able to beat the Brewers and take the series by a score of 5-1. The game started off with a leadoff homer from Curtis Granderson and the team tacked on more runs as the day went on. Noah Syndergaard picked up his first win and really only struggled for one inning, the 6th again.

It’s Harvey Day! Matt Harvey is 5-1 over 7 games and 46.2 innings with a 2.31 ERA. He is coming off of a strong start where he tossed 7 scoreless innings allowing only 3 hits and striking out 9 but the Mets were only able to score one run, and the bullpen allowed 2 in after him. In 2013 he made one start against the Cardinals allowing 1 run over 5 hits and 7.0 innings, the Cardinals have the following numbers against Harvey:

• Carpenter 1-4, 3B
• Heyward 2-6, HR
• Holliday 0-6
• Molina 1-4
• Kozma 2-3, 2B

John Lackey gets the start for the Cards tonight. He is 2-2 on the season over 7 starts and 44.2 innings with a 3.22 ERA. He’s coming off an average start allowing 2 ER over 5.1 innings. In the Month of May he has made three starts over 19.0 innings with a 1.89 ERA. He has only made two career starts against the Mets where he has a 2.70 ERA over 13.1 innings. The Mets have the following numbers on Lackey:

• Curtis Granderson 8-34, 2B, 2 3B, HR
• Cuddyer 8-25, 2B, 4 HR

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets find themselves in an important rubber game today. If they win, they can start working back on the losses they’ve accumulated over the last week. If they lose, the psyche of the fans will shift to yesterday being a fluke. I’m also being super melodramatic, truth be told, it’s a game against the Brewers in May, so not that serious.

Yesterday the Mets finally crushed the ball scoring 10 runs in one inning on their way to a 14-1 rout of the Brewers. The Mets had homers from Plawecki, Granderson and Flores (his being a grand slam) and 3-3 night at the plate Jacob deGrom who also turned out an amazing start on the mound.

Noah Syndergaard will get his second start of the season today. In his first start he allowed 3 ER over 5.1 innings over 6 hits while walking 4 and striking out 6. The box score doesn’t tell the complete story for Noah, he did quite well for the first 5 innings and it wasn’t until the 6th that the wheels came off. This being Noah’s second start, he has never faced the Brewers nor has anyone on the Brewers roster has faced him in a major league game.

The Mets bats will get a crack at Wily Peralta who is 1-4 over 7 games and 45.0 innings with a 3.80 ERA. May has been good for Wily who is 2-1 over 20.0 innings with a 2.25 ERA and 16 K’s. He was also quite good against the Mets last year putting up a 2.25 ERA over two games and 12.0 innings of work. The Mets have the following numbers against Wily:

• Murphy 3-9
• Duda 1-7
• Granderson 4-5, 2 2B, HR
• Tejada 0-6
• Cuddyer 2-3, 2B
• Flores 0-3
• Mayberry 2-3, 2B

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets are in a bad way right now, and they need this win tonight as they play game two with the BrewCrew. Last night the offense wasn’t around again, and this was coupled with poor defensive plays. But just like how negative this slide is right now, this team has shown before they can flip the script, so it’s time to do that.

Jacob deGrom will look to rebound from his last start. In Chicago he had a rough first inning but was pretty much fine from that point on. On the season he is 3-4 over 7 games with a 3.46 ERA over 41.2 innings with 37 strikeouts. At home this year he is 3-1 with a 1.40 ERA over 25.2 innings and 24 K’s. Last year he was 1-1 in two starts over 12.0 innings against the Brewers with a 2.25 ERA. The Brewers have the following numbers against Jacob:

• Braun 0-5
• Davis 2-5
• Gomez 2-6
• Gennett 2-3, 2B
• Peralta 0-3
• Ramirez 1-3, 2B

The Mets bats will draw Matt Garza today who is in his second season with the Brewers. So far in 2015 he is 2-4 over 7 games with a 4.04 ERA in 42.1 innings of work. Matt is coming off of his best start of the season where he held the Cubs to 1 earned run over 7.0 innings while striking out 9. Last year he made one start against the Mets and it was very good as he held the Mets to a run over 8.0 innings of work. The Mets have the following numbers against Garza:

• Granderson 7-27, 4 2B, HR
• Duda 2-7, 2B, HR
• Murphy 0-5
• Mayberry 0-4
• Tejada 1-4
• Flores 1-3
• Lagares 0-3

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets look to move beyond a disappointing four game set with the Cubs where the offense was in hibernation and the Amazin’s added 4 losses to the L column (and to be more accurate, the one day the offense was awake was also the first day in a while that the pitching was off, but that’s baseball).

Bartolo Colon looks to play stopper for the Mets. He has a league leading 6 wins over 7 games logging 46.1 innings with a 3.30 ERA while striking out 40 batters. His last start in Philly wasn’t pretty on the stat line, but he got the win. The last time he faced the Brewers was back in 2013 as he held the BrewCrew to 1 earned run over 7.0 innings. The Brewers have the following numbers against Colon:

• Lind 5-16, HR
• Gomez 1-6, 3B
• Ramirez 2-6
• Segura 1-4
• Gennett 0-2

The Mets draw Kyle Lohse tonight who is 2-4 over 7 starts and 39.2 innings this year with a 7.03 ERA. In his last four starts he is 2-1 over 24.0 innings with a 4.88 ERA, so don’t get too excited with that above 7 ERA. Last year he was fantastic against the Mets holding them to 4 hits and an unearned run over 8.0 innings of work. The Mets have the following numbers against Kyle:

• Granderson 8-17, 2B, 3B, 2 HR
• Murphy 1-11
• Duda 2-7, HR
• Cuddyer 3-7, 2B
• Flores 0-3
• Kirk 0-3
• Recker 0-3

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets offense is in a real bad way. Harvey had a spectacular start and the bullpen blew a save and all together the Mets pitching allowed 2 runs. In that scenario, the Mets should win, but the offense only scored 1 run, again. Hopefully the Mets can get it straight today behind Jon Niese.

Somehow, Jon Niese is 3-2 on the season with a 1.95 ERA over 37.0 innings, 6 starts with a 1.432 WHIP. In his last two starts he has allowed 3 runs, 1 earned over 14.0 innings of work while striking out 11. Niese is getting it done on the mound but I’m still concerned about how high his WHIP is vs his ERA. One of the two has to give at some point, either the WHIP falling or the ERA rising. Last year he made one start against the Cubs where he picked up the win allowing 3 earned runs over 6.0 innings. The Cubs have the following numbers against the Niese:

• Castro 5-19, 3B, HR
• Ross 6-18, 2B, 3B, HR
• Coghlan 2-13, 2B
• Rizzo 1-11, 2B
• Fowler 2-11

Travis Wood is 2-2 on the season over 6 starts with a 4.96 ERA over 32.2 innings. May has been awful for Wood as he has allowed 12 ER over 9.0 innings. At the end of April, for comparison, he had an ERA of 3.04. He faced the Mets twice last year going 0-1 over 10.1 innings with a ERA of 4.35. The Mets have the following numbers against Wood:

• Tejada 2-13
• Duda 2-11, HR
• Granderson 0-7
• Mayberry 2-7, 2B
• Murphy 1-6
• Flores 2-5, 2B
• Lagares 3-5, 2B, HR

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets will try to do something tonight to get back on the winning path. Syndergaard was amazing the first four innings of his debut, human from that point on. The bullpen pitchers each allowed a run after he left the game. The real problem was the offense that besides Sunday’s game has just been missing for the last couple of weeks. Tonight Matt Harvey will have to help look for the offense as the bats take on Jason Hammel.

Harvey is 5-1 on the season over 6 games and 39.2 innings with a 2.72 ERA. He was average in his last start against Philly allowing 3 ER over 6.0 innings. His only start against the Cubs back in 2013 was good as he allowed 2 ER over 7.1 innings. The Cubs have the following numbers against Harvey:

• Coghlan 3-5, 2B
• Fowler 1-6
• Montero 2-3, 2B
• Castillo 0-3
• Castr0 2-3
• Rizzo 1-3, 2B

The Mets bats will try again tonight against Jason Hammel. He’s 3-1 on the season over 6 starts and 38.1 innings with a 3.52 ERA. His two starts in May so far have been pretty comparable to the average of his starts in April. It has been a long time since Jason faced the Mets. Back in 2011 he faced the Mets twice allowing 8 runs, 6 earned over 13.1 innings. The Mets have limited numbers against Hammel:

• Granderson 7-20, 2 2B, 2 HR
• Murphy 4-8, 2B
• Cuddyer 0-3
• Tejada 0-2

Lets Go Mets!

Last night was a rough one for the Mets last night. Jacob deGrom struggled early, allowing 3 runs in the first inning (and it didn’t help that even when he started to pitch to get outs, the defense started to fall apart). The Mets would eventually lose the game 4-3, so the first inning ended up being the inning that sank them.

However the real story of the series comes tonight as Noah Syndergaard is set to make his major league debut. Coming into the season, he is the #11 prospect in Baseball America, #10 prospect according to MLB.com and #9 prospect in Baseball Prospectus. Syndergaard came to the Mets organization as part of the R.A. Dickey deal (but you all already know that). This season he has really turned it on in the PCL, a league notorious for being tough on pitchers, pitching to a 3-0 record over 5 games with a 1.82 ERA over 29.2 innings. He is also coming off of a game where he had three hits with his bat including a double and homer that both went over 400 feet.

The Mets bats will get a crack at Jake Arrieta. Jake is 3-3 on the season over 6 games with a 3.41 ERA over 37.0 innings. May has been rough for Jake where he has allowed 8 ER over 10.1 innings over 2 starts. Prior to May, Arrieta had a 2.02 ERA in 4 starts in April. Last year he was very good against the Mets allowing only 1 ER over 11.2 innings of work. The Mets have the following numbers against Jake:

• Granderson 9-25, 2B, 3B, 3 HR
• Duda 3-6
• Cuddyer 2-6
• Murphy 1-6
• Lagares 0-3
• Flores 1-2

Lets Go Mets!