Let's enjoy the ride in September, no matter the final outcome
Let's enjoy the ride in September, no matter the final outcome
The Mets take care of business in opening game of the series against the White Sox, with the final stretch run now in sight...
What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets opened up the last part of their road trip with a routine 5-1 win over the White Sox in Chicago on Friday night (box)
RHP Tylor Megill, in his first start since being recalled, recovered from a slow start to give the Mets a much-needed solid outing. He finished his night with one earned run allowed on one hit with one walk and six strikeouts in 5.1 innings of work
The bullpen did its job with RHP Adam Ottavino, RHP Reed Garrett and RHP Phil Maton combining for 2.2 scoreless and hitless innings, before RHP Edwin Díaz needed just 10 pitches to toss a 1-2-3 inning in the ninth to close the game out
OF Jesse Winker was the star of the show for the Mets offense, enjoying a 3-for-4 day at the plate with two runs scored, one RBI and a double
DH J.D. Martinez added on to the lead with a two-run homer in the third, scoring Winker in the process
3B Mark Vientos scored Francisco Lindor with a sac fly in the ninth to cap off the scoring and secure a comfortable win in the opening game of the series
The Mets went 2-for-7 with runners in scoring position and left eight runners stranded on base
OF Tyrone Taylor entered the game as a pinch-runner and made an immediate impact in the eighth, pulling off an insane leaping catch, using the netting to soften his fall into the seats (WATCH HERE)
The Mets are now 5-3 on the road trip with two games remaining before returning home to Queens
RHP Jonah Tong - the Mets’ No. 10 prospect - is being promoted to Double-A Binghamton after posting a 3.04 ERA across both levels of Class A (The Athletic)
Playoff Race 🏁
Despite taking care of business against the White Sox on Friday, the Mets are still three games behind Atlanta for the final Wild Card spot in the NL with the Braves beating the Phillies last night.
The Padres also won on Friday, although the Diamondbacks lost to the Dodgers.
There are 27 games remaining.
Per FanGraphs, the Mets have a 19.9% chance of making the postseason.
New York has the eighth hardest schedule in MLB the rest of the way.
Tiebreakers:
vs. ATL: 5-5
vs. ARI: 4-3 (finished)
vs. SD: 5-2 (finished)
vs. SF: 2-4 (finished)
vs. CHC: 4-3 (finished)
vs. STL 4-2 (finished)
Injury Updates 🏥
RHP Dedniel Núñez (right forearm tightness) may not need an MRI and will rest for 2-3 days before being evaluated again
RHP Christian Scott (right UCL sprain) threw fastballs and changeups off a mound in a bullpen session on Thursday
RHP Kodai Senga (calf strain) continues to “progress well” and is now playing catch out to up to 90 feet
Who’s Hot 🔥
Francisco Lindor hit his 36th double of the year on Friday, extending his hitting streak to 10 straight games and his on-base streak to 28 consecutive games. Lindor is hitting .307/.375/.556 with 115 hits, 21 homers, 28 doubles, 57 RBIs and 66 runs scored since moving to the leadoff spot on May 19
Over his last six games, Jesse Winker is hitting .385/.400/.539/.939 with two doubles, two RBIs and two runs scored
Over his last six games, JD Martínez is hitting .333/.360/.625/.985 with eight hits, five runs scored, one double, two home runs and four RBIs
Edwin Diaz’s fastball usage 🙇♂️
On Friday night against the White Sox, RHP Edwin Díaz made his third straight appearance.
On Thursday, he threw 18 pitches, 17 of which were fastballs - he got three swings-and-misses.
On Friday, he threw 10 pitches, 9 of which were fastballs - he got five swings-and-misses.
Overall, 26 of his last 28 pitches he’s thrown have been fastballs - he has retired all six batters he’s faced in his last two games with four strikeouts, eight swings-and-misses.
Down on the Farm 🌾
RHP Justin Jarvis (Triple-A): 3.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
SS Jett Williams (No. 2 prospect, Double-A): 1-for-5
SS William Lugo (High-A): 3-for-5, 4 R, 2 RBI, 1 2B, 1 HR
SS Marco Vargas (No. 13 prospect, Single-A): 1-for-2, 1 R, 2 BB, 1 2B
BOX SCORES
Single-A STL | High-A BRK | Double-A BNG | Triple-A SYR
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (71-64) vs. White Sox (31-105)
Where: Guaranteed Rate Field - Chicago, IL
Starters: LHP José Quintana (6-9, 4.36 ERA) vs. RHP Davis Martin (0-2, 2.96 ERA)
When: 7:10 PM EDT
Where to Watch: WPIX
It’s time to enjoy the Mets thrill ride in September - no matter what happens… ✍️
September is very nearly here and it is time to just sit back and enjoy the ride with the New York Mets.
No matter where it takes us.
It has been a wildly up-and-down week for the Mets, who seemed dead and buried on Wednesday after imploding against the Diamondbacks in a crushing loss.
Their chances of making the postseason have plummeted, then risen slightly, then plummeted again, and then risen a little bit more over the last week alone.
But, after bouncing back with a gutsy win against Arizona on Thursday, before following that up with an easy-enough victory over the historically bad White Sox on Friday, the overall mood in Queens isn’t quite as grim anymore.
Still, with the relentless Braves refusing to quit, the Mets remain on the outside looking in with a month of the regular season remaining.
And, given how inconsistent this team has been since the All-Star break, it is anyone’s guess if they will be able to play the kind of consistently good baseball that will be required down the stretch in order to jump over the Braves and claim that final Wild Card spot.
However, to that end, maybe it is time to stop scoreboard watching and instead pay more attention to enjoying the ride a little bit more.
After all, most people had the Mets missing the playoffs when predictions were being made back in March, so the fact that they will be playing meaningful games in September should be seen as a nice added bonus.
There are going to be a slew of ups and downs in the final month of the regular season given the schedule. You’d like to think this team will take care of business against the White Sox, and there should be other opportunities to make up ground in September. On the flipside, do-or-die series against the Phillies and the Braves loom large.
Given how things have gone in the second-half of the year, you wouldn’t be at all surprised if the Mets go on another run, get red hot and catch the Braves at just the right time. Then again, you also wouldn’t be shocked if this team wins games they aren’t supposed to but drop games against teams they should be beating up on, before just missing out on the postseason in the final week of the season.
That’s been the order of things in Queens since the All-Star break.
One major reason to be hopeful is the resilience we’ve seen from this ballclub over the last week. They suffered two back-breaking losses - one each to the Padres and D-backs - yet bounced back each time. And, on Friday, while a loss to Chicago would have been stunning, the Mets did what they had to do in professional fashion. Tylor Megill - pitching for the first time since being recalled - recovered from a sluggish start and gave his team exactly what they needed over five-and-a-bit innings. Jesse Winker continued to contribute in a big way with a huge night at the plate, J.D. Martinez flashed his elite power and Francisco Lindor just kept playing like a true MVP contender.
It wasn’t flashy. It wasn’t sexy. But it was business-like and that’s what the Mets need down the stretch. They just need to get the job done by any means possible.
Whatever happens over the next month, though, it should be a fascinating thrill ride and one we should all enjoy for what it is.
This team has guaranteed a chance to play important games deep into the regular season and that’s something to celebrate.
Of course, playing into October is what really counts. But, the Mets have given themselves a chance to do just that and that’s all that really counts right now.
So, no matter what happens over the next month or so, no matter the end result, we should all sit back and really enjoy and relish every step of this final leg of the journey.
After all, enjoying the journey is just as important as reaching the final destination.
We should all keep that in mind as we get ready for what should be a thrilling, compelling and nerve-wracking final month of the 2024 regular season.
Around the League 🚩
Clayton Kershaw left the game early and Shohei Ohtani became the first member of the 43-43 club as the Dodgers edged out the Diamondbacks, 10-9
Jackson Holliday grew up at Coors Field and, in his first game there as a Major League player, he hit a ninth-inning triple to help the Orioles beat the Rockies, 5-3
Austin Wells launched his first career multi-homer game in the bigs with two jacks in the Yankees’ 6-3 win over the Cardinals in the Bronx
History was made on Friday when Angels LHP Samuel Aldegheri became the first pitcher born and raised in Italy to play in the Major Leagues
Framber Valdez tossed seven no-hit innings and Jose Altuve hit a walk-off double to help lead the Astros past the Royals in a dramatic 3-2 win
You just described what makes the baseball season unique of all other professional sports, 162 games. One thing about this team is we have seen veteran players take young players under their tutalidge and we have seen them come along. I would enjoy seeing them get to the post season but not sure how far they could go. Who knows as you said, let's enjoy the rest of the ride.
Did Carlos Mendoza explain why he used Diaz for a third day when the team was up for 4 and facing the White Sox? If anything, it was a good time to give someone else work.