213 Miles From Shea

The Mets and Cubs get set to start an exciting series that pits the Mets power arms (deGrom, Syndergaard, Harvey) against the young, talented position players (Bryant, Russel, Rizzo). The Mets are coming off of a game where the bats finally broke out 14 hits, gaining some confidence as several players look to breakout slumps. They’ll get a tall order in game one as the Cubs send out Jon Lester.

Jacob deGrom is 3-3 on the season over 36.2 innings with a 2.95 ERA. He is coming off of a strong start against the Orioles where he pitched 7.0 innings allowing 6 hits and one earned run while walking 1 and striking out 9. Last year he didn’t have much luck against the Cubs allowing 4 earned runs and 5 hits over 5.0 innings one game. The Cubs have the following numbers against Jacob:

• Castro 0-2
• Rizzo 1-3
• Wood 1-2, HR

Jon Lester is 2-2 over 6 starts this season with a 4.04 ERA over 35.2 innings. April was rough for Lester as he ended the month with a 6.23 ERA. Since then he has allowed 4 runs, only 1 earned over 14.0 innings of work. He has made only one career start against the Mets allowing 2 ER over 4 hits and 5.0 innings. Only three current Mets have seen Lester in a game:

• Granderson 11-40, 2 2B, 3B, 2 HR
• Cuddyer 5-17, 2 2B
• Mayberry 2-3

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets play the rubber game of the series today as Bartolo Colon gets the start vs Chad Billingsley. the Mets got another strong start from Jon Niese last night and the offense was able to do just enough to beat the Phillies 3-2. In addition to the strong starting pitching, Juan Lagares hit a critical two run homer to break out of a 0-16 skid and Tejada/Herrera/Duda turned a critical double play with the bases loaded (ground ball courtesy of Buddy). Originally today was Gee’s day to pitch but a groin tear landed him on the DL and brought Colon to pitch on regular rest.

Colon is now 5-1 on the season over 6 starts with a 2.90 ERA over 40.1 innings after his win against the Orioles earlier this week. In that game he pitched 7.2 innings, allowing a solo homer late, and struck out 9 batters while walking none. He missed the Phillies when they came to town earlier this year and last year he was 3-1 with a 3.21 ERA over four games and 28.0 innings against them. The Phillies have the following numbers against Colon:

• Howard 3-14, 2 HR
• Revere 6-15
• Ruiz 5-15, 2B
• Sizemore 1-11
• Utley 4-11, 2B
• Asche 2-8, 2B
• Francoeur 1-5

The Mets bats will get a crack at Chad Billingsley who will be making his second start of the season. In his first start he allowed 6 runs, 5 earned over 5.0 innings of work. He missed all of 2014 only pitched in 2 games in 2013 with a 1-0 record and a 3.00 ERA over 12.0 innings. 2012 was his last mostly full season where he pitched to a 10-9 record, 3.55 ERA over 25 starts and 149.2 innings. The last time he faced the Mets was way back in 2009 where he allowed 3 ER over 6.1 innings of work. The only Mets who have faced Chad are Cuddyer who is 0-3 with 2 walks and Murphy who is 1-2 with a walk.

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets had a disappointing start to the series last night as the Mets bats could not string anything together behind Matt Harvey. Harvey wasn’t his typical Harvey self, but he still tossed a quality game (his fastball caught a lot of the plate). The Mets only had one true scoring chance in the 4th but didn’t do much with it.

Tonight Jon Niese will look to keep the Phillies in check. He is 2-2 on the season over 5 starts and 30.0 innings of work with a 2.40 ERA. In his last start he somehow threw 7.0 innings allowing only 1 ER. His line was good but he was getting hit all night (maybe it’s the cynical Mets fan in me but I’m not confident in Niese yet, even though the numbers suggest that I should be). His second start of the season was against the Phillies where he allowed 1 hit over 6.1 innings and 9 hits. The Phillies have the following numbers against Niese:

• Utley 3-32
• Ruiz 10-29, 2 2B, HR
• Howard 4-26, HR
• Revere 3-13
• Galvis 2-10, HR
• Asche 5-8, 2 2B
• Ruf 1-8, HR

The Mets get a crack at Aaron Harang (who turns 37 today) and also pitches really well against the Mets. He is 3-2 on the season over 6 starts and 38.1 innings with a 2.35 ERA. Two starts ago he made his worst start of the season allowing 5 ER over 6.0, but rebounded in his last start allowing 1 ER over 6.0. His second start of the season was against the Mets where he allowed 1 ER over 6.0 innings. The Mets have the following numbers against Harang:

• Duda 2-19, HR
• Murphy 8-23, 5 2B, HR
• Tejada 6-16, 2 2B
• Granderson 1-14, 2B
• Cuddyer 2-9, 2B, 3B
• Lagares 2-8, 2B

Lets Go Mets!

For the first time this season the Mets will be going to the small, small confines in Philly. The Mets are off of sweeping a 2 game set from the Orioles where they continued to get strong pitching and they scored just enough runs to win.

Matt Harvey will get the start for the Amazin’s tonight. on the season he is 5-0 over 5 starts with a 2.41 ERA over 33.2 innings. He is coming off of a strong start where he shut out the Nationals over 7.0 innings and in his last two starts he has allowed only 2 ER over 15.2 innings. His second start of the season was against the Phillies where he allowed 3 ER over 6.0 innings while striking out 8. The Phillies have the following numbers against Matt:

• Utley 6-15, 2B, HR
• Howard 1-10
• Revere 1-7
• Ruiz 0-5
• Asche 1-3, HR
• Galvis 0-2
• Herrera 0-3
• Sizemore 0-3

The Mets will draw Cole Hamels in the series opener. Cole is 1-3 over 6 starts this year with a 4.14 ERA over 37.0 innings. Hamels is coming off of his worst start of the season where he allowe 6 ER over 6.0 innings. Overall on the season, Hamels has either been terrible or awesome. In his bad starts he has allowed either as many earned runs as innings pitched or one less run than innings pitched (3 such starts). In his awesome starts he has allowed 1 ER or less (3 such starts). He missed the Mets the first time around this season. Last year he was 1-1 over 5 starts against the Mets with a 2.41 ERA over 33.2 innings and 34 strikeouts. The Mets have the following numbers against Hamels:

• Murphy 17-54, 4 2B, HR
• Tejada 9-31, 3 2B
• Lagares 11-25, 4 2B
• Duda 2-16
• Cuddyer 1-15, 2B
• Granderson 5-11
• Flores 2-9

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets finish of their two game set with the Orioles tonight as Jacob deGrom takes on Ubaldo Jimenez. Last night the Mets finally stopped their slide behind Bratolo Colon who allowed only 1 earned run over 7.2 innings. The offense didn’t completely breakout, but they did score 3 runs and that was enough for the Mets to end up in the correct side of the ledger.

Jacob deGrom is 2-3 on the season over 5 starts with a 3.34 ERA. His last two starts have been very different than his first three starts. In the last two he has allowed 9 ER, 11 total, over 11.1 innings. In his first three starts he allowed only 2 ER over 19.1 innings. Since the Mets play the Orioles so infrequently, and deGrom is in his sophomore season, it isn’t too surprising that he hasn’t faced the birds yet. The only player he has ever faced on the Orioles roster is Travis Snider, who is 0-3.

Ubaldo Jimenez is off to a much better start than last year. Last year, his first with the Orioles, he posted a 4.81 ERA over 25 games and a 6-9 record. This year he is 2-1 over 4 starts with a 1.59 ERA. His third start of the season has been his only blight on season where he allowed 4 ER over 5.0 innings. It has been quite some time since Ubaldo faced the Mets. He allowed 5 ER over 3.2 innings way back in 2011. There are a few Mets with numbers against Niese:

• Granderson 2-11, 3B
• Cuddyer 0-8
• Murphy 1-6
• Recker 1-2
• Tejada 0-3

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets pitching staff was fantastic in the last three games. Unfortunately, the Mets bats were not. The Mets bats were shutout in both of the last games 1-0 as the Baltimore Orioles come to town in one of the oddest weeks of the Mets season. The Mets not only had an off day yesterday, but they have another one on Thursday. Anyway, Bartolo Colon looks to continue the pitching streak and maybe his bat is what this offense needs.

Colon is 4-1 on the season with a 3.31 ERA over 5 starts and 32.2 innings. He is coming off of his worst start of the season where he allowed 9 hits and 4 ER over 6.2 innings. The last time he faced the Orioles was in 2013 where he allowed 5 ER over 9 hits and 6.0 innings. The Orioles have the following numbers against Colon:

• Jones 8-26, 2B
• C Davis 4-10, 2B, HR
• De Aza 2-9, 2B
• Snider 3-9
• D Young 4-8

Bud Norris is off to a rough start this season with a 1-2 record and a 12.18 ERA over 17.0 innings. There are trends in his starts though. His first start, terrible (8 ER over 3.0). Second start was below average (3 ER over 5.0). His third start, awful (9 ER over 2.1). His last start, slightly above average (3 ER over 6.2). The last time he faced the Mets was in 2012 where he posted 3 ER over 6.2 innings with a 4.05 ERA. Here are the Mets numbers against Norris:

• Murphy 2-9, HR
• Cuddyer 3-7, 2B
• Kirk 2-4
• Tejada 0-2
• Mayberry 0-2

Lets Go Mets!

Jon Niese somehow held the Nationals to one run last night, but that’s all the Nationals needed as the Mets bats just couldn’t push anyone across the plate. Today, the Mets will look to reverse that and split the four game set with the Nationals before the first of two off-days this week.

Dillon Gee gets the start for the Mets. In his first four starts he is 0-1 over 25.1 innings with a 4.26 ERA. That being said, in his last two starts he has allowed only 3 ER over 14.2 innings (compared to 9 ER in his first 10.2 innings). He deserved to get the win in both starts but the bats didn’t really help him out (the Mets have won all three of his last three starts). This is his first start of the year against the Nationals. Last year, the Nationals were not a team that treated him well as he went 1-1 over 4 starts with a 5.87 ERA over 23.0 innings. The Nationals have the following numbers against Dillon:

• Desmond 11-41, 3 HR
• Werth 11-37, 3 2B, HR
• Zimmerman 8-35, 2B
• Uggla 5-29, 2B, 3B
• Span -28, 2 2B, HR
• Ramos 5-22, 2B, HR
• Harper 7-19, 2 HR

The Mets draw Doug Fister in the series finale who is 1-1 over 4 starts with a 3.28 ERA over 24.2 innings this year. So far he is having a reverse Gee year. In his first two starts he allowed 1 ER over 13.0 innings. In his last two starts he has allowed 8 ER over 11.2 innings. Doug was very good against the Mets last year going 3-0 in as many starts posting a 0.89 ERA over 20.1 innings holding the Mets to only 2 ER. The Mets have the following numbers against Fister:

• Granderson 5-22, 2B, HR
• Lagares 5-11
• Murphy 2-12
• Cuddyer 3-11, HR
• Duda 3-8
• Flores 5-9, HR
• Mayberry 1-6, HR

Lets Go Mets!

The start of May was a good one for the Amazin’s as Matt Harvey lead the team to a 4-0 win over the Nationals and ending the current Mets slide. The game also featured the 2015 debut of Dilson Herrera, an amazing catch by Juan Lagares and the Mets bats capitalizing on misplayed ball by the Nationals.

Jon Niese is on the bump tonight.  So far he is 2-1 over 4 starts with a 2.74 ERA over 23.0 innings. His first three starts of the year he allowed exactly 1 ER but he was also hit hard in each of those starts catching a lot of the plate. This came to a head in his last start on Sunday Night where he allowed 6 runs, 4 earned over 5.0 against the Yankees. Last year was not a good year for him against the Nationals going 0-3 over three games and 17.0 innings with a 5.82 ERA. The Nationals have the following numbers against him:

• Uggla 10-33, 3 2B, 3B
• Werth 9-28, 2B
• Desmond 5-24, 2 2B
• Espinosa 7-18, 2B, HR
• Zimmerman 7-17, 2B
• Ramos 4-11, HR

The Mets bats will have to work through Gio Gonzalez who is off to a rough start to 2015 posting a 5.01 ERA over 4 starts and a 1-2 record. After allowing 7 ER through the first two games, 12.1 innings of the season, he threw a good start against the Cards allowing no runs over 6.0 innings (but still allowing 8 hits and 4 walks). In his last start against Miami he allowed 6 ER over 5.0 innings. He was fairly average against the Mets last year going 2-3 over 5 starts posting a 4.08 ERA over 28.2 innings. The Mets bats have the following numbers on Gio:

• Granderson 3-24, 2B, HR
• Mayberry 4-19, 2 HR
• Cuddyer 6-14, 2B, HR
• Murphy 6-17, 3B
• Tejada 4-15
• Suda 2-14
• Lagares 6-16, 2 2B, 3B, HR
• Flores 0-10

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets are on a bit of a slide right now as they drop the opener of the 4 game set against the Nationals last night. They just didn’t look good at all. Anyway, the Mets look to put everything back on track tonight behind Matt Harvey. In addition to Matt Harvey, Dilson Herrera was called up. Earlier in the season, Mets officials said that if Herrera comes up, he’s not going to sit on the bench, so the feeling right now is Murphy will start to play 3rd until David Wright returns. Maybe Herrera will provide the spark the Mes need to get back on track.

Matt Harvey is 4-0 on hte season over 4 starts and a 3.04 ERA over 26.2 innings of work. Last Saturday he picked up the only win the Bronx pitching 8.2 innings allowing 2 runs and for the most part was really efficient when it came to using his pitches. His first start of the season was against the Nationals where he pitched 6.0 scoreless innings while striking out 9 batters. The Nationals have the following numbers against Harvey:

• Desmond 4-11, 2B, HR
• Werth 3-10
• Zimmerman 3-11, HR
• Span 2-11, 3B
• Harper 0-10, 5 K
• Uggla 2-5

The Mets bats will try to get back in groove in one of the most difficult ways possible by going against Max Scherzer. Max is 1-2 over 4 starts this season and has posted a 1.26 ERA over 28.2 innings of work this season while striking out 29 batters. His first start of the season was against the Mets on Opening Day where he allowed 3 runs, all due to defensive miscues so none earned, over 7.2 innings while striking out 8. His last start against the Cardinals was the first he allowed more than one earned run (he allowed 2) and the first time this season he didn’t strike out at least 8 batters. The Mets have the following numbers against him:

• Cuddyer 5-21, 2B, HR
• Granderson 4-17, HR
• Murphy 2-11
• Flores 0-5
• Lagares 0-5
• Duda 2-4

Lets Go Mets!

The Mets head back to New York after dropping their second straight series last night with a loss to the Marlins. The Mets and Marlins exchanged shots in the first inning, were tied again after exchanging one run innings but eventually the Marlins pulled ahead thanks to a big inning towards the end of the game. With the Nationals coming to town, the Mets will look to put it back together.

Jacob deGrom will be looking for redemption for two games in today’s start. First and foremost, he will be looking to rebound after allowing 6 runs and 8 hits over 5.0 innings in the Bronx. Second, he picked up a loss in his first start of the season against the Nationals where he gave up a two run homer in the first inning and nothing else, but the Mets bats stayed asleep. Anyway, despite his last start, he still has a 2.96 ERA over 24.1 innings in 2015. The Nationals have the following numbers against deGrom:

• Desmond 2-6, HR
• Harper 2-6
• Uggla 1-4, 2B
• Escobar 1-2
• Ramos 1-3, 2B
• Span 2-3
• Werth 0-3
• Zimmerman 1-3, HR

The Mets bats will get another crack at Stephen Strasburg who is 1-2 over 4 games and 24.0 innings with a 4.88 ERA. His third start of the season was by far his best where he allowed 1 ER over 7.1 innings while striking out 7. But he followed that up with a 4 ER over 6.0 innings outing against the Marlins a few days ago. His first start of the season was against the Mets where he allowed 6 runs, 3 earned over 5.1 innings. The Mets have the following numbers against Stephen:

• Murphy 4-13
• Tejada 2-13
• Cuddyer 4-12
• Duda 1-7, HR
• Granderson 1-7
• Lagares 1-9
• Mayberry 2-5, 2B, HR

Lets Go Mets!