213 Miles From Shea

The Mets took a weird path back to the win column but they finally did that on Monday evening in DC. The Mets went down early but clawed back and took a 3-2 lead. The Nationals came back sending the game to extra innings. The Mets exploded for six runs in the top of the tenth which ended up being critical as the Nationals scored four of their own before the Mets were finally able to close the door. Now the Mets look to make it two games in a row tonight!

Sean Manaea has made 15 starts totaling 76 1/3 innings this season with a 3.89 ERA, 3.81 FIP, 1.297 WHIP and a 99 ERA+. He is coming off of a strong start against against the Yankees where he held the Bronx Bombers to only two hits and no runs over five innings, despite walking five batters. It was his third straight start going at least five innings, a stretch where he has allowed four runs over 15 2/3 innings while striking out 16 batters.

In two games (8 1/3 innings) against the Nationals in 2023, Manaea allowed 12 runs, eight earned, from 14 hits. The Nationals have the following career numbers against him:

• CJ Abrams 1-6, K
• Luis García Jr. 2-5, 2 K
• Joey Meneses 1-7, BB
• Harold Ramirez 2-3
• Keibert Ruiz 2-3
• Lane Thomas 2-8, 2B, 3 K
• Ildemaro Vargas 1-6, 3B, K
• Jesse Winker 0-1, K

The Mets bats will get a look at rookie DJ Herz tonight. Over his first five major league games he has pitched 21 1/3 innings with a 5.48 ERA, 4.80 FIP, 1.500 WHIP and a 72 ERA+. He made his major league debut against the Mets on June 4th allowing four runs from seven hits and two walks over four innings. He would later have a tremendous start against the Marlins where he held them to only one hit and no runs while striking out 13 batters. Since that start he has allowed eight runs, seven earned, in seven innings of work. The Mets have the following numbers against Herz:

• Pete Alonso 1-3, K
• Harrison Bader 1-2, HR
• José Iglesias 1-2, 2B, K
• Francisco Lindor 2-3, 2B
• J.D. Martinez 0-2, K
• Brandon Nimmo 1-2, BB
• Mark Vientos 0-2

Three Things To Watch For:

1. A second start against the Mets. The Mets will be the first team in DJ Herz’s young MLB career that he faces twice. With the exception of two starts this season, Herz has struggled at the major league level. This time though he knows what the Mets hitters look like, will that change his approach? He’s also a known quantity now to the Mets, who did a good job against him the first time around, how will the Mets sharper their approach?
2. Brandon Nimmo. Nimmo had a health scare Monday at the hotel. He fell and passed out and spent a good amount of the day at the hospital. Before Monday’s game he indicated that he intends to play tonight. Nimmo twice tied the game on Sunday. He went 3-for-4 with a double, a homer and three RBI’s. Since June 14th Nimmo is hitting .382/.485/.782 with six home runs. Sunday was the first time over this stretch where Nimmo has homered and the Mets lost the game. Keep riding this hot streak Nimmo!
3. Martinez is back! J.D. Martinez spent most of the weekend in a slump, but broke out of it in a big way Monday night with a three run homer in the top of the tenth. After an extra-inning beat down on Sunday, it was nice for the Mets to be on the offensive side on Monday night. 

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets and Nationals last met near the start of June and the Mets swept the Nationals, really kicking off the tremendous month of June that the Mets had. At the the time, the Nationals were four games below .500 and sweep (plus an additional loss) pushed them to seven games below. The Nationals then channeled the Mets and won eight of nine games. Since that hot streak the Nationals have cooled off a bit and are now five games below .500.

This is a big two weeks for the Mets. They have had a tremendously difficult schedule for the first half of the season and now have a lighter two weeks. Does June magic spill into July?

David Peterson has made five starts this season tossing 27 innings with a 3.67 ERA, 5.01 FIP, 1.481 WHIP and a 106 ERA+. In his last two starts he has allowed only three runs over 10 1/3 innings from seven hits and eight walks while striking out 14 batters. His last two starts have featured season highs in both strikeouts and walks. On a positive note, he has tossed more than 100 pitches in his last two, after not getting to 90 in his first three. But 103 pitches his last time out only got 4 1/3 innings.

Peterson faced the Nationals back on June 4th and held them to two runs over 6 2/3 innings and the Mets would love another deep start like that one tonight. The Nationals have the following career numbers against him:

• CJ Abrams 2-9, K
• Luis García Jr. 3-12, 3 K
• Joey Meneses 3-8, 2 2B, 2 BB, K
• Eddie Rosario 1-2
• Keibert Ruiz 2-10, K
• Nick Senzel 4-9, 2B, HR, K
• Lane Thomas 2-9, 2B, 2 BB, K
• Ildemaro Vargas 4-9, 2 2B, K
• Jesse Winker 2-4, 2B, K
• Jacob Young 2-2, BB

MacKenzie Gore has made 16 starts pitching 85 innings this season with a 3.60 ERA, 3.14 FIP, 1.388 WHIP and a 109 ERA+. Gore’s June got off to a rough start thanks to the Mets who got him for six runs over four innings from seven hits and four walks. He then allowed four earned runs over 17 innings over his next three starts before ending the month with another rough start (five runs in five innings). The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Pete Alonso 1-10, HR, BB, K
• Francisco Alvarez 0-2, 2 BB, K
• Harrison Bader 1-3
• José Iglesias 3-4
• Francisco Lindor 1-9, BB
• J.D. Martinez 1-4, HR, BB, K
• Jeff McNeil 6-7, BB
• Brandon Nimmo 3-11, 2B, BB, K
• Tyrone Taylor 1-5, HR, K
• Luis Torrens 0-2, 2 K
• Mark Vientos 1-3, HR, 2 BB, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Brandon Nimmo. Nimmo twice tied the game on Sunday. He went 3-for-4 with a double, a homer and three RBI’s. Since June 14th Nimmo is hitting .382/.485/.782 with six home runs. Sunday was the first time over this stretch where Nimmo has homered and the Mets lost the game. Keep riding this hot streak Nimmo!
2. James Wood. The Nationals are welcoming the Mets to DC with James Wood’s Major League debut. MLB Pipeline has Wood as the Nationals #1 prospect and the #3 prospect overall in baseball. He found his way to the Nationals via the Juan Soto trade with the Padres a couple of season ago. The Nationals are hoping that James Wood can give their lineup the pop that it has been missing. Over 52 games in Rochester, Wood is hitting .353/.463/.595 with 10 homers. Overall he has 26 extra-base hits (out of 67 total hits) and 10 stolen bases.
3. MLB Deferment Day. Hopefully by now you have read Mike Mayer’s fantastic, annual thread on MLB Deferments. Remember, it’s not just Bobby Bonilla. If you’re watching the Nationals local broadcast or MLB Network’s national broadcast, you’ll probably hear more about the Mets and Bobby Bonilla than other teams. Today is also the day the Nationals pay Max Scherzer 15 million while he plays for another team!

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets look to comeback from Saturday’s disappointing loss this afternoon in Queens. The Mets had a huge second inning in Saturday’s game to go up 5-1 but the Astros were able to take advantage of Tylor Megill and then the Mets overtaxed bullpen to comeback and win the game 9-6. A win today gives the Mets a winning record again, another winning series against a good team and closes out a good month for the Mets.

Luis Severino has pitched 90 1/3 innings over 15 starts for the Mets with a 3.29 ERA, 3.92 FIP, 1.151 WHIP and a 117 ERA+. Severino is coming off of a strong start against the Cubs in his last start where held them scoreless over six innings and struck out a season-high 10 batters. In four of his last six starts he has allowed one run or less. It’s best that we don’t talk about the other two starts. The Astros have the following career numbers against Severino:

• José Altuve 9-33, 2B, HR, 7 K
• Yordan Alvarez 3-11, HR, 2 BB, 4 K
• Alex Bregman 5-25, 2 2B, HR, 2 BB, 5 K
• Trey Cabbage 1-2, 2B, K
• Yainer Diaz 2-4, 2 HR, K
• Mauricio Dubón 0-4
• Chas McCormick 1-5, BB, K
• Jake Meyers 1-6, 2B, 4 K
• Jeremy Pena 2-6, BB, K

It’s a bullpen day for the Astros, starting with Shawn Dubin! Dubin has pitched 22 1/3 innings over 14 games this season with a 5.64 ERA, 2.52 FIP, 1.657 WHIP and a 71 ERA+. He has the rare combination of a 10+ H/9 and a 10+ K/9 inning. Dubin can give the Astros some length as he has pitched three innings once this season and 2 1/3 innings four times. The most pitches has has thrown in an outing is 42, so that’s probably about his maximum. Interesting to note, he has not allowed a home run this season. A few Mets have seen him in a major league game:

• Pete Alonso 1-1, 2B
• Francisco Alvarez 0-1, K
• Francisco Lindor 1-2, 2B, K
• Jeff McNeil 1-2
• Brandon Nimmo 0-2, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Ben Gamel’s first start. Ben Gamel will finally see significant playing time this afternoon since joining the Mets. Over nine major league seasons Gamel hit .252/.332/.384. He last saw regular playing time at the major league level in 2022 with the Pirates where he hit .232/.324/.369 with a 97 OPS+. Gamel was hitting well in Syracuse before getting called up (.314/.423/.539) with seven homers.
2. Bullpen Reinforcements. Tyler Jay was recalled to the major league squad before today’s game and Matt Festa was called up to possible make his Mets debut. Jay made his major league debut with the Mets earlier this season allowing one run from five hits and a walk over four innings of work. In Syracuse this season eh has a 2.00 ERA over 36 innings. Festa’s last full season was in 2022 with the Mariners where he had a 4.17 ERA, 4.26 FIP, 1.130 WHIP and an 89 ERA+ over 54 innings. Across multiple minor league organizations this season he has a 3.16 ERA, 1.245 WHIP over 31 1/3 innings.
3. Can Mendoza pick another three-hit second basemen? Jeff McNeil went 3-for-4 Friday night with a critical three-run home run that pulled the Mets far ahead of the Astros. He was passed over for the start yesterday for José Iglesias. Iglesias made Mendoza look like a genius and got three hits to start the game. McNeil is back in the lineup today, does he go off and make Mendoza look clairvoyant?

Let’s Go Mets!

The vibes are off the chart right now! The Mets beat the Astros in the series opener Friday night and are finally have the a winning record for the first time in a long time. José Iglesias sang his song on the diamond after the game and the rest of the team joined in. It’s a lot of fun to be a Mets player and a Mets fan right now! The Mets look to secure the series victory against the Astros this afternoon!

Over seven starts, 33 2/3 innings, Megill has a 4.81 ERA, 2.97 FIP, 1.426 WHIP and an 80 ERA+. He’s coming off of a rough start against the Cubs where he allowed six runs from five hits and three walks over three innings, blowing up his ERA from 3.52 to 4.81. Megill is looking to bounce back from his start against the Astros in 2023 where he allowed five runs, four earned over 2 1/3 innings from four hits and four walks. The Astros have the following career numbers against him:

• José Altuve 0-1, BB
• Alex Bregman 2-2
• Yainer Diaz 0-2, K
• Mauricio Dubon 1-2, 2B
• Chase McCormick 0-0, BB
• Jeremy Pena 0-0, BB

The Mets bats look to keep the good vibes going against Framber Valdez. Valdez has pitched 80 2/3 innings over 13 games with a 3.68 ERA, 3.87 FIP, 1.202 WHIP and a 108 ERA+. He’s coming off of two good starts where he allowed three runs over 13 innings from eight hits and seven walks while striking out 12. Overall in June he has allowed two runs or less in four of five starts and has played a huge role in the Astros resurgence this month. He had a strong start against the Mets last season where he held the Mets to only two runs over eight innings from four hits and a walk while striking out nine. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Pete Alonso 1-6, 2 K
• Francisco Alvarez 1-3, 2B, 2 K
• Harrison Bader 1-3, K
• Ben Gamel 0-1, BB
• Francisco Lindor 0-5, 2 BB
• J.D. Martinez 2-8, 2 BB, 2 K
• Jeff McNeil 1-6, 2 K
• Brandon Nimmo 1-7, 3 K
• Luis Torrens 2-12, 3 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Can the Mets get a long outing from Tylor Megill? Jose Quintana had a short outing Friday night for the Mets, so the bullpen had to put a lot of work in. Megill pitched seven scoreless innings against the Dodgers on May 28th. That was the only outing he lasted longer than five innings. His xERA is 4.46, so his outcomes have been a bit worse than his overall mechanics suggest. He also has highest BABIP in his career this season (.345 vs a career .316).
2. Jeff McNeil. Jeff had a huge night on Friday going 3-for-4 at the plate with a three run home run that broke the game open for the Mets. Whether McNeil leans more as a starter or more as a bench player, the Mets are way better when he looks more like vintage Jeff McNeil. I’m curious to see how Mendoza uses him after a night like Friday night.
3. Containing the Astros top of the lineup. Altuve, Alvarez and Diaz combined to go 8-for-14 last night with three doubles and a homer. The Mets were able to contain all of that production into only two runs. Part of that was keeping Alex Bregman hitless over five at bats and the Astros overall to 2-for-14 with runners in scoring position. The Mets afternoon will be a lot less stressful if they can keep Altuve and crew off the base paths.

Let’s Go Mets!

Two of the hottest teams in baseball meet for a weekend clash in Queens!

The Mets have won 15 of their last 19 games and back at .500 for the first time since mid-May. Going into play today they are only one game out of the last wild card spot. The Houston Astros were similarly cast off at the beginning of June have won their last seven games in a row, returning to .500 and are 3.5 games out of the last American League wild card spot. Both teams need to win this weekend. Both teams were not expecting the other team to be hot going into this weekend. It’s Grimace vs whatever the Whataburger mascot is!

Jose Quintana has made 15 starts totaling 78 2/3 innings with a 4.58 ERA, 4.89 FIP, 1.322 WHIP and an 84 ERA+. In his last two starts though he has allowed only two runs, one earned, over 12 1/3 innings from six hits and three walks while striking out 14. Before June 15th the most amount of batters he struck out in one game was four. In his last two games he has struck out six then eight (that’s the Francisco Alvarez effect!). In his first 13 starts of the season opponents had a .811 OPS against him, in his last two starts it has been .479. The Astros have the following career numbers against Quintana:

• José Altuve 5-27, 8 K
• Yordan Alvarez 1-4, 2B
• Alex Bregman 1-2, K
• Jon Singleton 1-2, K

Ronel Blanco has been a massive bright spot for the Astros this season, even during their toughest days. Over 14 starts he has pitched 84 2/3 innings with a 2.34 ERA, 4.07 FIP, 0.969 WHIP and a 169 ERA+. In his last three starts he has allowed only two runs from seven hits and seven walks over 20 innings while striking out 20. Blanco’s two weaknesses this year have been walks (3.6 BB/9) and homers (1.1 HR/9) the reason that hasn’t hurt him though is he’s leading the league with a 5.1 H/9. The only player on the Mets who has faced Ronel in an official game is J.D. Martinez (0-for-2, BB).

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Francisco Alvarez. Alvarez has been tremendous for pitchers this season, with most, if not all of them performing better with him behind the dish. Quintana’s numbers spike with Francisco calling the game. Further he’s just having a tremendous year with the bat. On Wednesday he went 3-for-3 with a double and a homer. In his last five games he has gone 8-for-14 with three doubles, three homers and is slashing .571/.714/.1.429 (2.143 OPS). Extend him already!
2. Francisco Lindor – Leadoff Double Machine. Lindor had a leadoff double again on Wednesday, and then followed that up with another double later in the game. Throughout the Mets hot streak, Lindor has been getting himself on base, and the Mets have followed through and brough him home to score. Lindor has now put himself in a position to eclipse his season high in doubles (44, currently has 23) and score more than 100 runs for a second straight season.
3. Harrison Bader is getting streaky again! Harrison Bader has two hits in three consecutive games now. Overall he has gone 6-for-12 with three doubles and two homers. With Marte injured and the Mets playing 17 games on consecutive days starting tonight, the Mets need Bader to ride this hot streak as long as he can.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets enter play today only one game under .500 and only 1.5 games back in the Wild Card chase. Tuesday night’s game was a bit more of an adventure than we would have wanted. The Mets had a lead early but David Peterson couldn’t go tremendously deep into the game. Multiple relievers struggled and the Mets found themselves to be in a similar place to mid-May when they were without Edwin Díaz. But these Mets are the Grimace Mets and were able to hold onto the win. Now the Mets look to sweep the two-game series against the Yankees.

Sean Manaea has started 14 games for the Mets totaling 71 1/3 innings this season with a 4.16 ERA, 3.73 FIP, 1.290 WHIP and a 92 ERA+. Over his last two starts he has allowed four runs from six hits and four walks over 10 2/3 innings, which is a dramatic improvement from the two starts before that where he allowed 12 runs over 9 1/3 innings. The Yankees have the following career numbers against Manaea:

• J.D. Davis 2-6, HR, BB, 2 K
• Trent Grisham 3-7, K
• Aaron Judge 5-12, 2 HR, 2 BB, 5 K
• DJ LeMahieu 3-8, 2B, K
• Juan Soto 0-4, 3 BB, 2 K
• Gleyber Torres 0-4, 2 K
• Jose Trevino 1-6, 2B
• Alex Verdugo 1-4

Luis Gil has stepped up in a major way for the Yankees this season making 15 starts (81 1/3 innings) with a 2.77 ERA, 3.31 FIP, 1.082 WHIP and a 148 ERA+. The Mets are catching him though coming off of his worst start of the season. The Orioles tagged him for seven runs from eight hits over 1 1/3 innings last week. The last time he had a poor start was on April 26th and Gil bounced back with 6 1/3 scoreless innings his next time out. Only two Mets have seen him in a game before:

• J.D. Martinez 1-2
• DJ Stewart 0-2

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Mark Vientos. Vientos had a breakout game last night going 2-for-4 at the plate with two solo homers. He now has nine on the season, which tied his career high he set last season and is hitting .297/.349/.576 with a 165 OPS+. Since June 17th he has gone 9-for-27 at the plate with four homers hitting .333/.333/.815. Vientos is currently tied with J.D. Martinez for 4th on the Mets in homers, despite only playing in 34 games (everyone above him has played between 51 and 77 games). Young hitters got to Gil last week, can Vientos lead the charge tonight?
2. Brandon Nimmo. Nimmo hit another homerun last night! It was his second straight game with one and he now has 12 on the season. Since June 17th (are you sensing a theme here?) Nimmo has gone 10-for-28 at the plate with five homers, hitting .357/.438/.929. We are fully in a Nimmo hot streak right now!
3. The sky. As of writing there is a 70% chance of showers and thunderstorms right now. The Mets blew through a significant part of their bullpen last night and need Sean Manaea to go deep in today’s game in order to reset the bullpen. A lengthy rain delay could interrupt that. Further, if the game gets pushed to tomorrow, the Mets would haven have 18 straight games without a day off, a tough stretch for a team that is already down a pitcher.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets come into the first subway series of the year hot. The Mets have won eight of their last ten games and have been soaring since Grimace tossed out the first pitch. They are tied with the Diamondbacks and Nationals at 1.5 games out of the Wild Card and are only two games below .500.

The Yankees have hit a bit of a rough patch recently only winning three of their last 10 games but they still lead the American League with 52 wins this season. They are fourth in Major League baseball with a +109 run differential trailing only the Phillies, Dodgers and Orioles.

Both teams need these two games, lets go!

David Peterson has made four starts for the Mets totaling 22 2/3 innings with a 3.97 ERA, 4.56 FIP, 1.412 WHIP and a 98 ERA+. In three of his four starts this season he has allowed two earned runs. Peterson had a season high in strikeouts his last time out with six and season high pitch count at 100. The Yankees have the following career numbers against Peterson:

• Trent Grisham 1-4, K
• Juan Soto 1-11, 2B, 4 BB, 5 K
• Gleyber Torres 1-1, HR
• Alex Verdugo 0-1, K

The Mets bats draw Gerrit Cole for his second of the season. In his first start he allowed two runs off three hits and a walk over four innings while striking out five, tossing 62 pitches. Aaron Boone declined to directly state after Cole’s last start how much he would pitch today, only to indicate that he would pitch more than 65 pitches. In one start against the Mets last season he allowed only one run from four hits over six innings while striking out eight. The Mets have the following career numbers against Cole:

• Pete Alonso 0-2, K
• Francisco Alvarez 0-2, K
• Harrison Bader 0-1, K
• José Iglesias 3-24, 2 2B, 2 BB, 5 K
• Francisco Lindor 3-20, 2B, HR, 2 BB, 3 K
• J.D. Martinez 8-43, 3 2B, 2 HR, 7 BB, 18 K
• Jeff McNeil 2-5, 2 K
• Brandon Nimmo 2-6, 2 K
• DJ Stewart 1-11, HR, BB, 7 K
• Tyrone Taylor 2-4, 2B, HR, K
• Luis Torrens 0-4
• Mark Vientos 1-2

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Closer by committee, again. Edwin Díaz received a 10-game suspension for sticky stuff on Sunday night, before throwing a pitch. We aren’t going to get into that suspension here. The Mets have two games against the Yankees, an off day, and then 17 straight games going to the All Star break. The Mets were already trying to figure out a way to work in a six-man rotation and now need to do it with a roster spot tied up in an suspension. We’ll be watching to see Mendoza handles the late innings tonight. Mendoza already did this for two weeks when Díaz was injured, but that also coincided with the Mets just falling apart at the seams.
2. Can Brandon Nimmo set a season high for homers? Brandon Nimmo has hit four homers in his last six games (9-for-24, .375/.444/.917). Before this streak it looked like Nimmo was not going to hit his power numbers from his ridiculous 2023 campaign. Now he’s at 11 on the season and if he puts up similar numbers for the second half of the season, he’ll be right around the career high he set last season of 24 homers. For the Mets as a team, his four homers mixed in with his nine total hits has translated to 8 RBI’s.
3. Francisco Lindor should be an All-Star. Lindor got snubbed for the 2023 All-Star game. He ended the year with 31 homers, 31 stolen bases and a 122 OPS+. This year he has a 115 OPS+ and on Sunday he stole his 13th base of the year and hit his 13th homer of the year. He’s heading towards at least as 25-25 season and if he continues his June, he could possibly get a second straight 30-30 season.

Let’s Go Mets!

Friday and Saturday have been inverses of each other for the Mets. On Friday afternoon the Mets bats could not be stopped and the pitching sliced through the Cubs lineup. Saturday afternoon, the Cubs returned the favor cruising to a victory against the Mets. The series comes down to tonight’s rubber game!

Luis Severino has pitched 84 1/3 innings for the Mets this season over 14 starts with a 3.52 ERA, 4.18 FIP, 1.198 WHIP and a 109 ERA+. He’s coming off of a rough start against the Rangers where he allowed six runs over 6 1/3 innings from eight hits, a game the Mets eventually won 7-6. In his two starts before that one he allowed only two runs from 14 hits over 14 innings. One of his best starts this season came against the Cubs where he pitched eight innings of one-hit baseball. The Cubs have the following career numbers against Severino:

• Michael Busch 0-2, BB, K
• Pete Crow-Armstrong 0-3
• Ian Happ 1-5, BB, 2 K
• Nico Hoerner 0-6, K
• Christopher Morel 1-6, K
• Dansby Swanson 1-3, K
• Patrick Wisdom 0-2, BB, 2 K

Javier Assad is having a great season for the Cubs. Over 78 2/3 innings (15 starts), the 26-year old has a 2.75 ER, 3.79 FIP, 1.246 WHIP and a 151 ERA+. Similar to Saturday’s starter, Jameson Taillon, he had a rough stretch in mid-May to early June. During that stretch he had a 5.66 ERA, 5.81 FIP over 20 2/3 innings. Since then he has allowed three runs over 9 2/3 innings. He had a solid, if not a bit short, start against the Mets in April where he allowed one run from five hits over five innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Pete Alonso 0-4
• Harrison Bader 0-1
• Francisco Lindor 2-5, BB
• J.D. Martinez 1-4, K
• Jeff McNeil 1-4, BB
• Brandon Nimmo 1-6, 2 K
• DJ Stewart 0-2, K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-3

Three Things To Watch For:

1. How do the Mets batters handle Javier’s arsenal? According to Baseball Savant, Javier Assad has been mixing in six different pitches to hitters this year. He uses a low-90’s sinker 36% of the time. His next two most frequent pitches are a high-80’s cutter (20%) and a low-90’s 4-seam (19%). Finally he mixes in a curveball, slider and changeup.
2. Strikeouts. The Mets batters has 14 strikeouts on Saturday with Francisco Lindor and DJ Stewart striking out three times each. Here’s hoping that the Mets change their approach at the plate today, work counts and wait for their pitches.
3. J.D. Martinez goes for three games in a row. Saturday J.D. went 2-for-4 at the plate, the second straight game where he collected two hits. On Friday he went 2-for-4 with a massive home run.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets look to secure another series victory this afternoon as they take on the Cubs for game two of their series. The Mets trounced the Cubs on Friday afternoon 11-1 powered by home runs from J.D. Martinez, Francisco Alvarez and Brandon Nimmo. This lopsided Mets win has shifted their run differential on the season to +3, making them one of four teams in the chasing the last two wild card spots with a positive run differential (out of nine teams total).

With the Padres, Diamondbacks, Cardinals, Nationals, Mets and Reds all winning yesterday, the Mets remain one game out of both the second and third Wild Card spots. The Cubs now fall to two games out. There’s a lot of competition in a very tight field. Right now teams are evaluating whether they are buyers or sellers – should be a fun couple of weeks!

Tylor Megill has tossed 30 2/3 innings over six starts this season with a 3.52 ERA, 2.62 FIP, 1.304 WHIP and a 110 ERA+. He’s coming off of a good start against the Padres where he held them to two runs over five innings from five hits and two walks. Despite the low FIP, his xERA is a bit higher than his actual ERA, sitting at 4.12. The Cubs have the following career numbers against him:

• Cody Bellinger 1-2, K
• Ian Happ 0-2, K
• Nico Hoerner 1-3
• Christopher Morel 0-1, BB
• Seiya Suzuki 1-1, HR, BB
• Dansby Swanson 2-10, BB, 5 K
• Patrick Wisdom 0-2, 2 K

Jameson Taillon has made 11 starts (61 1/3 innings) in 2024 with a 3.08 ERA, 4.01 FIP, 1.321 WHIP and a 135 ERA+. He had a more average stretch of games from mid-May to early-June where he posted a 5.91 ERA over 21 1/2 innings. Since then he has allowed two runs over 12 innings while striking out eight. Against the Mets in April, he held the Mets to one run from four hits over 7 1/3 innings in a game the Cubs won 3-1. The Mets have the following career numbers against Jameson:

• Pete Alonso 1-6, HR
• Harrison Bader 2-15, BB, 3 K
• José Iglesias 6-8, 2 2B, HR
• Francisco Lindor 2-10, 2 K
• Starling Marte 0-2, K
• J.D. Martinez 5-21, 2B, HR, BB, 6 K
• Jeff McNeil 2-6, K
• Brandon Nimmo 1-5, HR, BB
• DJ Stewart 0-2, BB, K
• Tyrone Taylor 1-8, 2B, 2 K
• Mark Vientos 0-5, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. OMG, José Iglesias. Iglesias went 4-for-5 at the plate yesterday recording six RBI’s. He hasn’t recorded an RBI since June 5th where he had three in his first five games as a Met. He’s been cruising as a Met hitting a smooth .438/.486/.500 over 12 games with a 190 OPS+. Against Taillon he is 6-for-8 lifetime, is he going to do something else today that makes the Mets players sing Oh My God?
2. The bullpen is rested. Between the off-day and a couple of good starting pitching performances, the Mets bullpen is fairly rested. Ottavino tossed 44 pitches Friday working into and out of trouble and Drew Smith worked for a second straight game to get positive momentum after his performance on Wednesday. The result is that Diekman, Díaz and Garrett all haven’t pitched in the last three calendar days. Adrian Houser and Reid-Foley tossed 13 and 18 pitches respectively on Wednesday.
3. Does the top of the Mets lineup deliver again? Success for the Mets yesterday came early with Francisco Lindor, Brandon Nimmo and J.D. Martinez setting the table. All together they went 7-for-13 with seven runs scored, six RBI’s a walk, a double and two home runs. Video game numbers really.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets winning streak came to an end Wednesday night in Arlington. After a phenomenal seven game winning streak the New York Mets have gone 13-5 in their last 18 games played and now to head to Chicago to take on the Cubs.

The Cubs have won their last two games and are 5-5 over their last ten games. They have played two more games than the Mets have at this point in the season and essentially have the same winning percentage (.480 compared to the Mets .479). Both teams are one game out of the last wild car spot. This weekend is a huge weekend for the Mets to make some separation between teams in a crowded wild card scene.

Jose Quintana gets the start to open the series for the Mets. Over 14 starts and 72 1/3 innings, Quintana has a 4.98 ERA, 5.16 FIP, 1.369 WHIP and a 77 ERA+. He’s coming off of a strong start against the Padres where he allowed only one run on two hits and two walks over six innings while striking out six batters. The Cubs have the following career numbers against Quintana:

• Cody Bellinger 4-18, 2 2B, HR, BB, 8 K
• Ian Happ 2-5, K
• Nico Hoerner 3-8, K
• Christopher Morel 1-6, 2 K
• Seiya Suzuki 1-6, HR, K
• Dansby Swanson 3-8, 2 2B, 2 K
• Jameson Taillon 0-2, 2 K
• Patrick Wisdom 2-7, HR, 2 BB, 4 K

Shōta Imanaga has had a phenomenal start to his major league career. Over 13 starts, 76 innings, he has a 1.89 ERA, 2.76 FIP, 0.987 WHIP and a 216 ERA+. The Cubs have a losing record as a team but have won 11 of Imanaga’s 13 starts. At the end of May Imanaga started to come down to Earth a bit. He allowed seven runs over 4 1/3 innings against the Brewers. In his next start he allowed five runs, only one earned, over 4 1/2 innings against the White Sox. Since then he has allowed only three runs over 13 2/3 innings while striking out 13.

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Tomás Nido. Nido signed a contract with the Cubs earlier in the week and will probably make his Cubs debut at some point this weekend. There is something poetic about Nido who has spent parts of eight major league seasons playing for the Mets will play against the team that drafted him. There is also a question about how much knowledge he brings about the Mets to the Cubs and how much that matters in a day and age where analytics knows so much.
2. Battle of the bullpens. The Cubs in general have had good starting pitching this season, it’s their bullpen that has caused them problems. By Fan Graphs’ WAR, the Cubs bullpen is #27 in MLB with a -0.5 WAR. The Mets are actually #9 with a 1.9 WAR (which is amazing considering how the bullpen problems fueled that rough stretch in May). For the Mets, they need to get Imanaga’s pitch count up early, out of the game early and into that Cubs bullpen. This will be tough as Imanaga has a league leading 1.3 BB/9.
3. Mets strikeouts. Part of the issue for the Mets on Wednesday night was strikeouts. The team struck out 12 times with Martinez, Marte, Vientos and Alvarez each striking out two times. It’s hard to get any rallies going when batters are striking out. Imanaga has a K/9 rate of 9.2.

Let’s Go Mets!