213 Miles From Shea

Sometimes it only takes one game to get your swagger back.

The Mets, who had looked dreadful with runners in scoring position all weekend woke up on Monday scored six runs on nine hits during their make up game with the Cardinals. They still managed to go only 2-for-7 with RISP, but one of of those hits was a bases clearing double by Tyrone Taylor that broke the game open.

The National League wild card race has collapsed with the Mets on the outside looking in. The Braves, Diamondbacks and Padres are all “tied” for the first wild card spot (technically the Braves are in first by 0.001 winning percentage points). Meanwhile the Mets victory over the Cardinals on Monday pushed them to four games back, causing. It’s going to be a chaotic final seven weeks of the season!

Luis Severino has tossed 123 2/3 innings over 21 starts with a 3.93 ERA, 4.37 FIP, 1.237 WHIP and a 100 ERA+. Severino just did not have it in his last start against the Twins, allowing six runs from six hits, including two homers over three innings. Before that start Severino allowed only four runs over 17 1/3 innings in three starts while striking out 17 batters. Only two members of the current Rockies team have seen Severino in a game: Kris Bryant (0-for-3, 2 K) and Jake Cave (0-for-3, 2 K).

The Mets bats look to build off of Monday’s win as they take on Kyle Freeland this evening. Over 59 innings this season Freeland has a 5.64 ERA, 4.34 FIP, 1.508 WHIP and an 81 ERA+. Freeland is coming off of one of his strongest starts of the season where he held the Angels to one run over seven innings. Since June 23rd he has had a 2.91 ERA, 3.65 FIP. The Mets have the following career numbers against Freeland:

• Pete Alonso 1-2, K
• Harrison Bader 3-5, 2B, K
• Ben Gamel 2-7, BB, 3 K
• José Iglesias 0-2
• Francisco Lindor 2-7, 2B, BB, K
• J.D. Martinez 5-9, 2B, HR, 2 K
• Jeff McNeil 0-1, BB
• Brandon Nimmo 3-8, 2B, HR, 3 K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-9, 4 K
• Luis Torrens 0-1, K
• Jesse Winker 2-6, BB, 2 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Bottom of the Mets lineup coming through for the Mets. The Mets offense has been mired in a bit of a slump recently, especially with runners in scoring position. On Monday the 7th-9th hitters on the Mets (McNeil, Alvarez, Bader) combined to go 6-for-12 with four runs scored, two doubles, a homer and two RBI’s. When the Mets are hitting their stride, their entire lineup is a threat and it’s balanced. Let’s see if the back of the lineup can anchor the team again this evening.
2. Contain Brenton Doyle. The Rockies Brenton Doyle won the National League Player of the Month award for July. This season he is hitting .266/.327/.471 with a 115 OPS+. In the month of July he hit .333/.394/.800 with 11 home runs (for context, he has only 19 on the season). In the month of August so far he has gone 2-for-17, so a bit of a cool off.
3. Strikeouts are still too high. Despite the Mets offense clicking yesterday, the strikeouts are still too high. The Mets had 10 strikeouts as a team, including three from J.D. Martinez. On Sunday the Mets had 10 strikeouts as a team. Eight on Saturday. The high strikeouts is directly related to the low batting average with RISP. We are looking to see if the Mets can start to buck this trend tonight.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets head to St. Louis today for one afternoon only! After dropping a series to the Angels, the Mets find themselves 1.5 games out of the wild card race, but only 2.0 games out of the top wild card spot. The Cardinals, who lost a Sunday night game in Chicago on Sunday, are 1.5 games behind the Mets. It’s a tight race!

The Mets and Cardinals are making up a game from May 8th. The Mets won the first two games of the series, so if the Mets win today, they sweep the Cardinals! The Mets were 18-18 after their game on May 7th, about to enter a terrible spiral. The Cardinals were in last place in the NL Central at 15-21. A couple of months has made a huge difference for both clubs!

Sean Manaea has tossed 113 innings over 21 starts with a 3.50 ERA, 3.95 FIP, 1.204 WHIP and a 111 ERA+. Manaea is coming off of a phenomenal start against the Twins where he held them scoreless over seven innings while striking out 11 batters (season best). Thanks to the May 8th game being postponed, Manaea will pitch in this series for the second time. On May 6th he allowed three runs over six innings from sit hits and a walk in a game the Mets won 4-3. The Cardinals have the following career numbers against him:

• Nolan Arenado 3-9, HR, 3 K
• Alec Burleson 0-1
• Matt Carpenter 0-0, BB
• Willson Contreras 4-8, 2 2B, 3 K
• Brandon Crawford 5-16, 2 2B, BB, 3 K
• Brendan Donovan 1-3, 2B, K
• Paul Goldschmidt 1-5, 3B, BB
• Lars Nootbaar 0-3
• Tommy Pham 6-12, 2 2B, 2 HR, 2 K
• Masyn Winn 1-2, 2B

Andre Pallante has pitched in 19 games for the Cardinals in 2024 throwing 62 1/3 innings with a 4.04 ERA, 3.84 FIP, 1.364 WHIP and a 104 ERA+. As a starter only he has pitched 52 1/3 innings with a 3.61 FIP, 1.261 WHIP. Two of his last three starts haven’t been great, allowing seven runs over 11 1/3 innings. His other start was great, holding the Pirates to only one run over six innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against Pallante:

• Pete Alonso 1-2, BB
• José Iglesias 0-2
• Francisco Lindor 2-6, BB, K
• J.D. Martinez 0-3, 2 K
• Jeff McNeil 0-5, BB
• Brandon Nimmo 1-7, 2B, K
• Tyrone Taylor 2-5, K
• Jesse Winker 1-3

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Willson Contreras. The last time the Mets and Cardinals faced in May 7th, Willson Contreras fractured his arm during a catcher’s interference play while J.D. Martinez was batting. Contreras got through rehab quickly and came back at the minimum initial estimate rehab time (6-8 weeks). Since June 24th he has hit .242/.363/.424 with seven homers. It’s great to see that he’s back and will be able to finish out the series against the Mets.
2. Old Friend Tommy Pham. Tommy Pham was traded at the trade deadline for the second consecutive season. This time he went from the White Sox to the St. Louis Cardinals, his original club. Since joining the Cardinals he has hit .381/.409/.714 over six games with a 208 OPS+ including a grand slam in his first at bat back with the organization.
3. Hitting with runners in scoring position. The Mets are struggling hitting with runners in scoring position. In Sunday’s game they went 2-for-10. Since last Wednesday the team has gone 6-for-38, which incapsulates the overall frustration the Mets have experienced recently. Hopefully the offense clicks again tonight!

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets will try to bounce back this afternoon and take the series from the Angels. The Mets roared last night with a four-run seventh inning (J.D. Martinez grand slam) to take the lead, but the bullpen gave the lead right back in the bottom of the seventh. The Mets slipped out of the wild card by half a game due to the loss and now trail the Braves (+2), Padres (+1) and the Diamondbacks (+0.5). Like every game for the rest of the season, today is a big one for the Mets.

Jose Quintana over 113 1/3 innings has a 3.89 ERA, 4.92 FIP, 1.262 WHIP and a 101 ERA+. In his last two starts he has allowed only two runs from eight hits and six walks while striking out 11 batters over 11 innings. Since June 15th he has a 1.91 ERA (4.42 FIP) over 47 innings with only one terrible start. Quintana is hitting his stride when the Mets need him the most. The Angels have the following career numbers against him:

• Willie Calhoun 1-2
• Brandon Drury 1-6, HR, 3 K
• Luis Guillorme 0-2
• Kevin Pillar 6-20, 3 2B, BB, 5 K

The Mets bats will close out the series against Griffin Canning who has tossed 116 2/3 innings over 22 starts with a 5.25 ERA, 5.33 FIP, 1.414 WHIP and an 82 ERA+. In his last three starts he has allowed 13 runs over 14 1/3 innings. He was effective in one of those starts, allowing only one run over five innings, the other two starts not so much. The Mets have the following career numbers against Canning:

• Pete Alonso 1-3, 2 K
• Francisco Alvarez 1-3, K
• Harrison Bader 1-5, K
• Francisco Lindor 0-3
• J.D. Martinez 3-4, 2B, HR, BB
• Jeff McNeil 1-3
• Brandon Nimmo 0-2, BB, K
• Mark Vientos 0-3, 2 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Watch out Djokovic. Because J.D. Martinez is collecting grand slams now! The Mets took the lead briefly last night thanks to a J.D. grand slam, his second grand slam in the last seven games. Over that stretch he’s gone 9-for-24 with 12 RBI’s slashing .375/.448/.667.
2. Hitting with runners in scoring position. This is becoming a sore spot for the Mets recently, going 1-for-7 with RISP Saturday in Anaheim. Friday the Mets went 3-for-18. Wednesday 0-for-3. Hopefully this is more of a blip than a collective slump for the Mets. Facing a starting pitcher with a WHIP north of 1.4 should help the Mets today.
3. Homer drought for Brandon Nimmo. Brandon Nimmo hit home runs in three games in a row between July 8th and July 10th. Since then he has played 18 games with no homers slashing .169/.294/.197. In his last four games though he has gone 5-for-15 hitting .333/.412/.400. Is he starting to shake off the slump?

Let’s Go Mets!

Good News: Not only did the Mets win on Friday night, the Cardinals and Pirates lost, dropping them to 2.5 and 3.0 games back in the Wild Card race. The Padres also lost, effectively putting them in a tie with the Mets, but since the Mets have played fewer games, the Mets get to hold on the third Wild Card spot.

Tough News: The Braves and Diamondbacks are each on a four game winning streak. The wild card race is staying tight with the Mets holding on while they tour the entire United States in the month of August. A win tonight guarantees a series win in Anaheim.

David Peterson looks to continue his best season since his rookie year tonight in Anaheim. Over 10 starts, 53 2/3 innings, Peterson has a 3.52 ERA, 4.81 FIP, 1.472 FIP and a 112 ERA+. He’s coming off his first rough start since June 12th. In his last start he allowed four runs from four hits over five innings against the Braves. Before that start he had a 2.53 ERA over 32 innings (six starts). The Angels have the following career numbers against Peterson:

• Jo Adell 1-1
• Brandon Drury 2-5, K
• Mickey Moniak 1-3, K
• Matt Moore 0-2, K
• Kevin Pillar 3-7, 2 2B
• Luis Rengifo 1-2, BB

José Soriano made his major league debut in 2023 as a reliever and has been moved into the rotation this season. Over 19 games he has tossed 97 2/3 innings with a 3.69 ERA, 4.06 FIP, 1.208 WHIP and a 117 ERA+. Like Peterson, Soriano is also coming off of a rough start. Soriano allowed six runs, three earned, over 2 2/3 innings in his last start against the Athletics. The Mets have the following numbers against him:

• Pete Alonso 0-0, HBP
• Harrison Bader 0-0, HBP
• Francisco Lindor 0-1
• J.D. Martinez 1-1
• Jeff McNeil 0-1
• Brandon Nimmo 0-1, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Pete Alonso is heating up! Pete Alonso hit his third home run in five games Friday night in Anaheim. This really is the best possible time for Alonso to get hot and carry the Mets. Alonso has been doing it this season with bat speed, he’s currently in the 91st percentile according to Baseball Savant.
2. Hitting is back! The off day before the series did the Mets some good as the team combined for 13 total hits on Friday night against the Angels. The only downside is the Mets still managed to go 3-for-18 with runners in scoring position and struck out 11 times. Let’s hope the hitting continues tonight and the Mets figure out a way to reduce the strikeouts.
3. Huascar Brazobán. Brazobán made his Mets debut on Wednesday against the Twins closing out the game striking out two batters, walking one in a scoreless inning. Zero pitches were hit hard during his inning of work. He hit 98 mph a few times in his inning of work. The Mets haven’t had a ton of power pitching out of the bullpen this season.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets start off a gauntlet of a month tonight in Anaheim. In August the Mets will have two West Coast road trips. This one features a series in Anaheim, a game in St. Louis, a series in Denver and then ends with a series in Seattle. There are no days off until after the series in Seattle.

To start the series the Mets will send out Paul Blackburn to make his first Mets start against Tyler Anderson, who could have been traded at the deadline but the Angels held on to him.

Paul Blackburn has made nine starts for the Athletics this season totaling 51 innings with a 4.41 ERA, 4.59 FIP, 1.157 WHIP and a 91 ERA+. His last start was his first since returning from the injured list with a stress fracture in his foot, it was also against the Angels in Anaheim. He allowed four runs from five hits over five innings including two homers. Blackburn is known for his large pitch repertoire with a 4-seam fastball, cutter, slider, changeup, curveball and sinker. The Angels have the following career numbers against Blackburn:

• Jo Adell 1-3, HR, BB
• Willie Calhoun 1-1, 2B
• Brandon Drury 0-5, K
• Mickey Moniak 0-6, 2 K
• Zach Neto 0-2
• Logan O’Hoppe 1-4, 2 K
• Kevin Pillar 0-2
• Luis Rengifo 4-12, 2B, K
• Nolan Schanuel 1-4, HR, BB, K
• Taylor Ward 3-8, 2B, 2 HR

Tyler Anderson has pitched 130 2/3 innings over 21 starts with a 2.96, ERA, 4.36 FIP, 1.140 WHIP and a 145 ERA+. He’s coming off of a solid start against the Athletics where he allowed three runs over seven innings while striking out 10. It was the second time this month he struck out 10 batters. The Mets have the following career numbers against Anderson:

• Pete Alonso 1-7
• Harrison Bader 1-3, 2B, K
• Ben Gamel 1-2, 2B
• José Iglesias 2-9, HR
• Francisco Lindor 2-9
• J.D. Martinez 1-4, HR, BB, K
• Jeff McNeil 1-6
• Brandon Nimmo 5-12, HR, 3 K
• Tyrone Taylor 1-3
• Luis Torrens 0-4

Three Things To Watch For:

1. The post-deadline Angels. The Angels could have gone full rebuild at the deadline. They instead traded two relievers who would be free agents at the end of the season (and the Mets will be thankful they won’t have to face this weekend). So Tyler Anderson remains to start against the Mets and Taylor Ward remains in the Angels lineup. They enter play today with a .431 win percentage, 13 games out of the wild card and without a direction. Do the play with a chip on their shoulders this weekend? Do they play like a team going through the motions?
2. Mark Vientos. Vientos was a bright spot on the Mets on Wednesday, their last game before heading west, going 1-for-3 with a home run. That was his second straight game with that identical batting line. Since July 10th he has gone 17-for-60 over 17 games, with five homers and six doubles (.283/.353/.633).
3. Surprisingly, we’ll see a lot of old friends. Former Mets Hunter Strickland, Brandon Drury, Luis Guillorme and Kevil Pillar all play for the Angels. Pillar has been in 53 games hitting .300/.345/.488 with a 129 OPS+, which is much better than he was with the White Sox this season where he slashed .160/.290/.360 with an 83 OPS+ over 17 games. Mets legend Luis Guillorme started the season hitting .150/.190/.250 (22 OPS+) over nine games with the Braves. Since coming over to the Angels he’s hitting .247/.315/.320 (78 OPS+). Drury has had a dreadful season over 56 games hitting .160/.234/.197 (23 OPS+). Strickland is having a solid year in the bullpen with a 3.35 ERA, 3.99 FIP over 51 innings.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets only scored two runs on Tuesday night, but two runs is all they needed as they went on to beat the Twins 2-0. Now the Mets look to sweep the Twins before getting out of town to the West Coast.

Every team in the National League last night that is in the wild card race and has a winning record, won keeping the standings unchanged (Braves +.5, Mets, Padres, Diamondbacks -0.5, Pirates -2, Cardinals -2).

Luis Severino has a 3.58 ERA, 4.16 FIP, 1.202 WHIP and a 109 ERA+ over 120 2/3 innings. Over his last three starts he has allowed only four runs from 13 hits while striking out 17 batters over 17 1/3 innings (2.08 ERA, 3.10 FIP). The Twins have the following career numbers against Severino:

• Byron Buxton 0-2, 2 K
• Willi Castro 0-3, 2 K
• Max Kepler 2-5, 2B, BB
• Manuel Margot 0-3, K
• Carlos Santana 5-21, 2B, 2 HR, BB, 5 K
• Christian Vazquez 4-11, BB, 3 K

The Mets will face an old foe this afternoon in Pablo López. López made his major league debut with the Marlins back in 2018 and stayed with the Marlins through 2022. He was part of a blockbuster winter trade with Luis Arráez. This season López has a 4.73 ERA, 3.70 FIP, 1.144 WHIP and an 87 ERA+. In his last three starts he has allowed only five runs from 14 hits while striking out 19 batters over 19 innings (2.37 ERA, 3.16 FIP). The Mets have the following career numbers against López:

• Pete Alonso 5-24, 2B, HR, 3 BB, 5 K
• Francisco Alvarez 1-1
• Harrison Bader 0-5, K
• Ben Gamel 1-3, BB
• José Iglesias 1-7
• Francisco Lindor 7-22, 3 2B, HR, 5 K
• J.D. Martinez 0-2, K
• Jeff McNeil 10-22, 3 2B, HR, BB, 3 K
• Brandon Nimmo 9-29, 2B, HR, 3 BB, 4 K
• Mark Vientos 0-3, 2 K
• Jesse Winker 2-4, HR, 2 BB

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Roster moves before (or right after) the game. The Mets active roster is a little crowded right now. Matt Gage was recalled from Syracuse after Diekman was DFA’d. Gage allowed two runs and struck out eight batters over 6 2/3 innings with Houston in 2023. He has pitched 5 1/3 scoreless innings for Syracuse this season since coming over from the Dodgers system. After the trade deadline the Mets added Paul Blackburn, Huascar Brazobán and Tyler Zuber to the 40-man roster. This feels like the Mets will have to make a move or two either before the start of today’s game or before the team heads to the west coast after the game.
2. J.D. Martinez. For the first time since July 21st / July 22nd, Martinez recorded hits in back-to-back days. Martinez hasn’t been terrible in this stretch, as he has basically alternated days collecting multiple hits and no hits. In his last eight games he has gone 10-for-32 with two doubles, a homer and seven RBI’s.
3. Nobody Walks Anymore. Tuesday night’s game was fairly short, clocking in at two hours and 12 minutes. There were only two runs scored, seven hits recorded and three walks worked between both teams. The Mets went from walking seven times on Monday night to only one time Tuesday. The Mets will be facing a starting pitcher tonight who has been pretty good at not giving free passes with only 25 this season and a 1.9 BB/9 rate.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets lost their offense over the weekend against the Braves and found it Monday night against the Twins. The bats exploded for 15 runs from 17 hits with every hitter in the game recording at least one hit. The Mets just fired on all cylinders. Thanks to how the other games around them ended up, the Mets finished the evening tied for the second wild car spot with the Padres and only a half game back for the first wild card spot.

Sean Manaea has made 20 starts totaling 106 innings with a 3.74 ERA, 4.17 FIP, 1.255 WHIP and a 105 ERA+. His last three starts haven’t been the greatest, allowing 10 runs from 16 hits and six walks over 16 2/3 innings. Homers have hurt him, allowing five over his last three starts (he’s only allowed 12 this season). Before this stretch he pitched five games in a row with a 1.57 ERA, 3.40 FIP. The Twins have the following career numbers against Sean:

• Byron Buxton 2-9, 2B, 2 BB, 3 K
• Willi Castro 3-6, 2B, 2 K
• Max Kepler 1-7, HR, BB, K
• Manuel Margot 2-8, 2 K
• Jose Miranda 1-3, HR, K
• Carlos Santana 4-12, 2B, 4 BB, 3 K
• Christian Vazquez 3-7, BB, 2 K

David Festa will pitch in his fourth major league game this evening. So far this season he has tossed 14 1/3 innings with a 8.16 ERA, 6.23 FIP, 1.605 WHIP and a 52 ERA+. His last outing was by far his best of the season where he held the Phillies to one run over 4 1/3 innings while striking out seven. Before that he allowed 12 runs over 10 innings across two starts. Festa had a 4.39 ERA in AA Wichita over 80 innings and a 2.92 ERA over 12 1/3 innings in AAA St. Paul. No one on the Mets roster has faced Festa before in a major league game.

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Letting the Twins work their way into trouble. The Twins were doomed by a few crazy innings for the Mets, who worked seven walks Monday night. This caused the frustration to boil over for the Twins who had several long innings just hoping their pitchers can get it together. The Twins now have an over worked bullpen and will have two games in the next 24 hours against the Mets. So hopefully the Mets can just repeat what they did Monday night.
2. Hitting with runners in scoring position. When the Mets were terrible in May, they couldn’t buy a hit with runners in scoring position. When the Mets were dominating in June, they constantly kept the line moving. That’s what happened Monday night with the Mets going 8-for-17 with RISP after a terrible weekend.
3. Mets bullpen got the night off. As of writing, it is unknown if the Mets let Buttó go all three relief innings in Monday night’s game in order to stretch him out for a turn in the rotation. The short term impact is no one else had to do anything last night. Edwin Díaz and Phil Maton both haven’t pitched since Thursday, Danny Young hasn’t pitched since Saturday.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets welcome the Minnesota Twins to Citi Field for a three game set. The Twins are currently second in the AL Central and hold the second American League wild card spot. The Mets, after dropping two games in a row to the Braves, are the sole holders of the third National League Wild Card but only 1.5 games out of the first spot. Both teams could look different by the series conclusion on Wednesday due to Tuesday’s 4 PM trade deadline.

Jose Quintana has pitched 107 1/3 innings over 20 starts this season with a 4.02 ERA, 5.06 FIP, 1.276 WHIP and a 97 ERA+. He’s coming off of a strong start against the Yankees where he held the Bronx Bombers to one run over five innings. It was a bounce back start for Quintana who allowed five runs over 5 2/3 innings to the Rockies before the All-Star break. Even with that start against the Rockies, Quintana has a 1.98 ERA over his last seven starts (41 innings). The Twins have the following career numbers against him:

• Byron Buxton 3-18, 2 2 B, HR, BB, 2 K
• Willi Castro 1-3
• Max Kepler 5-16, 2B, 3B, 5 K
• Manuel Margot 6-13, 2 2B, BB, 2 K
• Carlos Santana 9-48, 2 2B, HR, 4 BB, 7 K

Simeon Woods Richardson was a top prospect for the Mets when he was traded to the Blue Jays at the 2019 deadline for Marcus Stroman. Two years later was involved in another deadline trade for a high leverage pitcher. The Blue Jays and Twins swapped Woods Richardson for José Berríos. Woods Richardson returns to Citi Field today in the midst of a breakout season.

Over 17 starts pitching 88 innings, Woods Richardson has a 3.27 ERA, 3.56 FIP, 1.114 WHIP and a 125 ERA+. Over his last three starts he has pitched 16 1/3 innings with a 2.20 ERA and 1.92 FIP. The Twins generally keep him capped at around 90 pitches or so (high 97, last few starts have been upper 80’s), which generally keeps him in games between four and six innings. The only current Met to see him in a game is Jesse Winker who worked a walk in his only plate appearance.

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Scoring Runs. The Mets have not scored a lot of runs over the last two games. Pete Alonso hit an end of game two-run shot on Sunday to prevent back-to-back shutouts. The offense has generally carried the team so far and with the hits to the pitching staff over the last couple of days, the Mets are going to need their sluggers to start hitting again.
2. Jesse Winker. The Mets got Jesse Winker to help against right-handed pitching. Yesterday they didn’t use Winker until late in the game as a pinch hitter, and he struck out in his first Mets at bat. Before the trade, Jesse Winker was hitting .257/.374/.419 with a 130 OPS+ this season. Against righties he’s slashing .266/.390/.450.
3. The back of the bullpen is ready. With the Mets winning big against the Braves on Friday followed by back-to-back losses, some of the more reliable pitchers for the Mets haven’t pitched since Thursday. José Buttó , Edwin Díaz and Phil Maton each last pitched in the Mets extra-inning win Thursday night. That’s a solid group that can back up a solid Quintana start.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Braves snapped the Mets winning streak Saturday afternoon setting up a critical last game of the four game set. A Mets loss today splits the series, which isn’t disastrous, and honestly most of us would have been okay with that result before the series started. A win today takes the series and gets the momentum back on track heading into the trade deadline on Tuesday.

David Peterson has pitched 48 2/3 innings over nine starts with a 3.14 ERA, 4.79 FIP, 1.479 WHIP and a 125 ERA+. In his last six starts he has a 2.53 ERA and a 4.96 FIP. For Peterson he needs to keep the bases clear and pitch count low. He can get himself into trouble walking batters, as he has four starts already this year with at least three walks. The difference for Peterson in 2024 is he doesn’t snowball after that. The Braves have the following career numbers against him:

• Brian Anderson 2-7, 2 BB, 2 K
• Orlando Arcia 1-4, 2 BB, K
• Travis d’Arnaud 0-10, 2 BB, 5 K
• Adam Duvall 4-9, 2 2B, HR, BB, 3 K
• Sean Murphy 0-4, K
• Matt Olson 3-13, 3 HR, 3 BB, 6 K
• Marcell Ozuna 2-14, 2 HR, BB, 6 K
• Austin Riley 8-21, 3 2B, 2 BB, 6 K
• Eddie Rosario 1-2
• Luke Williams 1-6, 2 K

Reynaldo López is having a career season for the Braves. Over 101 2/3 innings he has has a 2.12 ERA, 3.17 FIP, 1.190 WHIP and a 195 ERA+ (career 4.03 ERA, 4.29 FIP, 1.286 WHIP, 107 ERA+). That being said, he has been a different pitcher his last two starts allowing seven runs over 12 innings from 18 hits, raising his season ERA from 1.71 to 2.12. His second start this season was against the Mets where he held the Mets scoreless over six innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Pete Alonso 2-5, 2B, 2 BB, K
• Francisco Alvarez 0-1, K
• Harrison Bader 1-2
• José Iglesias 2-13, BB
• Francisco Lindor 2-21, HR, 3 BB, K
• J.D. Martinez 5-11, 2 2B, HR, K
• Jeff MCNeil 0-5, BB, 2 K
• Brandon Nimmo 0-4, 3 K
• DJ Stewart 1-4, BB
• Tyrone Taylor 0-1, K
• Luis Torrens 0-1
• Mark Vientos 0-0, BB
• Jesse Winker 2-3

Three Things To Watch For:

1. New Mets! The Mets look a little different. A couple of days ago the Mets traded for Ryne Stanek from the Mariners who has been struggling of late, four runs in his last three games. Before that he had a 3.55 ERA, 3.49 FIP over 43 games this season and was a pitcher the Mets were looking at in the off season. Overnight the Mets acquired frenemy Jesse Winker who is hitting .257/.374/.419 with a 130 OPS+ this season. Against righties he’s slashing .266/.390/.450.
2. Strikeouts. The Mets batters had a rough day in the office Saturday collecting only four hits while batters struck out 14 times. This includes four K’s for J.D. Martinez who had a grand slam the previous day and three K’s for Vientos who had a homer on Friday. For J.D., he’s been locked in a pattern the last six games where he has a multi-hit day followed by a terrible day. The pattern is locked in for a good one today!
3. Don’t let the Braves get momentum. After two losses against the Mets, the Braves hit three home runs against the Mets yesterday (Ozuna, Olson, Rosario). That was three of their six hits. Peterson and crew need to build off Danny Young’s bullpen performance yesterday where he recorded five strikeouts over two innings.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets scored seven runs in one inning Friday night on their way to beating the Braves 8-4. At one point this season the Mets trailed the Braves by 10 games. Now the Mets find themselves half a game above the Braves. With the win on Friday the Mets have guaranteed that they will at least split the series against the Braves and now they have an opportunity to create some distance.

Tylor Megill returns to the Mets rotation this afternoon to fill in for injured pitcher Christian Scott. With the injury to Kodai Senga on Friday night, Megill will probably be sticking around for at least a few starts. Over 39 innings in the majors this season, Megill has a 5.08 ERA, 3.32 FIP, 1.436 WHIP and a 77 ERA+. In the minors this season he has made seven starts, totaling 27 1/3 innings with a 2.30 ERA. The Braves have the following career numbers against him:

• Orlando Arcia 1-7, 2B, BB, K
• Travis d’Arnaud 2-9, 2B, K
• Adam Duvall 1-2
• Whit Merrifield 0-3
• Sean Murphy 2-2, BB
• Matt Olson 2-11, 2 BB, 2 K
• Marcell Ozuna 5-9, 2B, HR, 2 K
• Austin Riley 5-21, 2B, HR, 8 K
• Eddie Rosario 6-12, 2 2B, HR, 2 BB, 2 K
• Luke Williams 0-2, K

The Mets bats will get a look at Atlanta rookie Spencer Schwellenbach this afternoon. Over his first nine major league starts he has pitched 50 2/3 innings with a 4.62 ERA, 3.83 FIP, 1.164 WHIP and a 90 ERA+. He’s coming off of a rough start against the Cardinals where he allowed four runs from seven hits (three home runs) over six innings. Before that he allowed one run in back to back starts against the Phillies and the Padres. This will be his first major league start against the Mets.

Three Things To Watch For:

1. J.D. Martinez is heating up! J.D. had the big bat in Friday night’s game, going 3-for-4 and hitting a grand slam. It was his third multi-hit game in his last five, a stretch where he has gone 7-for-21 slashing .333/.364/.524. So far Martinez has a multi-hit day, followed by a day with no hits. Can he break that pattern today?
2. Mark Vientos. Vientos has been in a pretty solid groove over the last five games going 6-for-19 with a double and two homers (.316/.333/.684). He has five RBI’s over this stretch and is part of the reason why the team’s batting lineup feels so deep right now. His strikeouts have been high though, eight over his last five games and 12 in his last nine played.
3. Mets bullpen. The Mets bullpen has to put in a bit of extra work over the last couple of games (literally on Thursday). Most likely Buttó, Diekman and Ottavino are out for today’s game. Alex and Danny Young put a lot of work in on Wednesday but should be good for today’s game. Questions for today’s game – how deep can Houser go if Megill has an early exit? Ryne Stanek, just acquired in a trade Friday hasn’t pitched since Monday, will he be ready to go today?

Let’s Go Mets!