Another glimpse of the bright future for the Mets
Plus, Kodai Senga makes his first rehab start for Port St. Lucie, and another baby Met is on the way
What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets opened up their series in Miami with a 2-1 loss to the Marlins on Friday night (box)
RHP Tobias Myers got the start as the opener and allowed one run on one hit and one walk over 1.1 innings
LHP Sean Manaea entered as the bulk reliever and touched 94 mph on his fastball, giving up just one run on four hits with no walks and three strikeouts across 3.2 innings
The star of the show was RHP Jonah Tong, who, in his season debut, gave the Mets three scoreless innings, not allowing a hit with one walk and two punchouts
DH Juan Soto hit a home run in the first inning and finished 2-for-3 with one run scored and one RBI. Soto’s solo homer was the longest of his career (449 feet). The rest of the Mets lineup combined for just one hit all night in yet another no-show from a streaky offense
Tong is reportedly set to stick around with the Mets, while the club are also planning to recall RHP Jonathan Pintaro from Triple-A (The Athletic)
Roster Moves 📰
RHP Jonah Tong recalled from Triple-A Syracuse
RHP Craig Kimbrel designated for assignment
Injury Updates 🏥
RHP Kodai Senga (lumbar spine inflammation) allowed two earned runs on four hits and one walk with two strikeouts over 3.1 innings in his first rehab outing for Single-A St. Lucie on Friday night
Play of the Game 🙃
The Mets offense did nothing outside of Juan Soto last night. However, it didn’t help that there was some bad luck involved.
After being robbed of what looked to be a sure-fire home run in the first inning, Carson Benge stepped to the plate in the sixth and looked to have made it a tied game.
However, as was the case in the first inning, Marlins outfielder Jakob Marsee made another clutch grab to deny Benge for the second time. That just about summed up the night for the offense, with nothing going right.
Just Mets Podcast 🎙️
In the latest edition of the Just Mets Patreon Pod, Rich and Mike have a conversation on the Mets number retirement process, who should be next and who they see as obvious candidates down the line.
To watch the full video, subscribe to the Patreon here.
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Who’s Hot? 🔥
Over his last seven games, OF Juan Soto is hitting .423/.516/.885/.1.401 with four home runs, eight runs scored, seven RBIs, four stolen bases, and five walks
Over his last seven games, OF A.J. Ewing is slashing .300/.417/.300/.717
Down on the Farm 🌾
2B Nick Lorusso (Double-A): 2-for-5, 2 R, 2 RBI, 1 HR, 1 SB
3B Yonatan Henriquez (High-A): 3-for-5, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 2B
RHP Jose Chirinos (Single-A): 5.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 10 K
C Chase Meggers (Single-A): 3-for-4, 3 R, 1 RBI, 2 2B, 1 HR
BOX SCORES
Single-A SLU | High-A BRK | Double-A BNG | Triple-A SYR
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (22-29) at Marlins (23-29)
Where: loanDepot Park - Miami, FL
Starters: RHP Freddy Peralta (3-3, 3.31 ERA) vs. RHP Max Meyer (2.85 ERA)
When: 4:10 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY
The future is now, and is getting brighter for the Mets! ✍🏻
Friday proved to be yet another frustrating night in the 2026 season for the New York Mets.
While the pitching delivered, including Sean Manaea enjoying his most promising outing of the year, the offense yet again proved why it can’t be relied upon.
Outside of Juan Soto’s two hits, including a mammoth, no-doubter home run in the first inning, the rest of the lineup combined for just one hit. That just isn’t good enough, especially against a really bad Marlins team that has been struggling greatly as of late.
At this point, this team, the lineup in particular, is what it is and probably won’t go very far in 2026.
However, on the flip side, at least we got another tantalizing glimpse of the future on Friday night, as Jonah Tong was recalled from Triple-A Syracuse to make his season debut. He didn’t disappoint.
Called out of the bullpen, Tong absolutely shined on the mound, tossing three scoreless innings without allowing a single hit. In other words, he was dominant.
His fastball looked sharp, his changeup was dangerous, and he more than delivered in his first taste of the majors this year.
Granted, it is a small sample size, but Tong flashed plenty of promise in the bigs last year, with the general consensus being that the young pitcher just needed a little bit more seasoning in the minors. And, while he has hardly set Triple-A alight this year - he owns a 5.68 ERA across nine starts - Tong sure did look more than ready on Friday night.
That’s especially encouraging given how much in flux the starting rotation is. If Tong can build on his outing and prove that he’s ready to pitch at a consistent level as a starter on the biggest stage, then that would give the Mets a substantial boost.
Looking beyond just this year, Tong gave us a welcome reminder of his high ceiling and the kind of special pitcher he could morph into. Given the hugely disappointing start to the season, it is at least somewhat comforting to know that there is plenty of help on the way, and Tong could be a key part of that.
Hey, we need to latch onto as many silver linings as we can right now.
On the subject of the future, we also got another glimpse at what the outfield could eventually look like.
Carson Benge, A.J. Ewing, and Nick Morabito made up an all-rookie outfield for the Mets, all starting together in the same outfield for the very first time.
While it was a poor night for the offense, Benge was incredibly unlucky not to come away with a pair of homers, Morabito made another highlight-reel play in the outfield, and Ewing tried to make something happen on the basepaths late in the game. At least he tried to add a spark.
Sure, we probably won’t see that outfield configuration a whole lot for the remainder of this year, especially when Luis Robert Jr. comes back, but it is crystal clear that this new wave has plenty to contribute, both now and for the foreseeable future.
First it was Benge. Then it was Ewing and Morabito. Then came Zach Thornton. Jonah Tong is back, and Jonathan Pintaro is reportedly on the way soon.
The youth movement is officially here, and while Friday was another stinking night at the office, we got another look at what could be an exciting and hopeful future for this ballclub.
The Mets needed changes. I’d say they’ve made those changes. There is, of course, more work to do, and they need their star shortstop back, which isn’t happening anytime soon, as we all know. But now, let’s see who among these top prospects can stick and be long-term difference makers.
Around the League 🚩
Making his season debut after Tommy John surgery, RHP Gerrit Cole dazzled, tossing six scoreless frames in the Yankees’ 4-2 loss to the Rays
The White Sox piled on nine runs, despite recording just five hits, in a 9-5 win over the Giants
C William Contreras hit a three-run homer as the Brewers beat the Dodgers, 5-1
LHP Christopher Sánchez extended his scoreless streak to 37 2/3 innings after tossing eight scoreless innings in the Phillies’ 1-0 loss to Cleveland
1B Pete Alonso had four RBIs and a home run to help propel the Orioles to a 7-4 win over the Tigers
You say "when" Luis Robert Jr. comes back. I say "if"? Is he destined to be our 2026 Jed Lowrie?
Forget the occasional tantalizing efforts from Vientos. Move on