Mets prepare to honor all-time great Doc Gooden on Sunday
New York's comeback attempt falls short in their 11-7 loss to the Royals. Plus, a discussion on the up-and-down nature of the club's rotation.
What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets pitching staff had a rough day as they couldn’t keep up with the Royals in an 11-7 loss (box)
LHP Sean Manaea had his first rough start in a Mets uniform, allowing eight runs (six earned) on nine hits and three walks over 3.2 innings pitched
New York’s pitching staff has gone eight consecutive games without having a starting pitcher complete six innings
1B Pete Alonso had a huge day going 3-for-3 with two home runs (5, 6), three RBI and a walk
RF Staring Marte went 3-for-4 with a home run (2) and two runs scored, but committed a costly three-base error in the outfield
The Mets will retire Doc Gooden’s No. 16 on Sunday afternoon at Citi Field
Injury Updates 🏥
RHP Sean Reid-Foley will begin a rehab assignment today in Single-A Brooklyn
RHP Kodai Senga threw off of a mound recently but has not yet had a full bullpen session
Who’s Hot 🔥
Pete Alonso is 9-for-15 (.600) with 4 HR, 7 RBI, 3 BB and 6 runs scored over his last four games
Down on the Farm 🌾
C Kevin Parada (No. 9 prospect, Double-A): 1-for-2, HR (1), BB, 2 runs scored
SS Jesús Báez (No. 21 prospect, Single-A): 2-for-5, HR (1), 3 RBI, BB, 3 runs scored
Honoring the Doc 1️⃣6️⃣
RHP Doc Gooden spent 11 seasons with the Mets, winning the 1984 Rookie of the Year Award while setting an MLB rookie record with 276 strikeouts
Gooden was the youngest player to ever be named to the All-Star team at age 19
In 1985, Gooden became the youngest pitcher to ever win the Cy Young Award at age 20, while capturing the “Triple Crown” of pitching by leading the major leagues in wins (24), strikeouts (268) and ERA (1.53)
Gooden was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 2010
Good ranks second in franchise history in wins (157) and strikeouts (1,875) and third in innings (2,169.2), complete games (67), starts (303) and quality starts (209)
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (6-8) vs. Royals (10-5)
Where: Citi Field — Flushing, NY
Starters: RHP José Buttó (0-0, 1.50 ERA) vs. LHP Cole Ragans (0-1, 2.60 ERA)
When: 1:40 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY
Sean Manaea had his first “Mr. Hyde” moment on Saturday… ✍️
The starting rotation is going to be a unit that will likely be in a constant state of flux for the Mets this season. Despite leading the major leagues in starting pitcher ERA going into the weekend, we all know that this staff is going to experience its fair share of ups-and-downs this year.
In what is a transition year in terms of how they constructed their roster, the Mets built their rotation largely out of high variance, boom-or-bust arms. On a given day, any one of these five pitchers has the ability to hurl a gem, but that also means they’re always capable of throwing out a stinker, as well.
For this staff, especially while Kodai Senga remains on the shelf, every one of these pitchers is going to have a bit of a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde dichotomy. For those unfamiliar, that comes a classic story from the 1800s in which the outwardly good Dr. Jekyll battles with his struggle of transforming into the evil Mr. Hyde at night, thus essentially giving him two completely different personas.
We’ve seen these types of up-and-down performances for most of the Mets starters thus far: Luis Severino had a really bad debut and two solid starts since, Adrian Houser has showed flashes but has struggled a bit and José Quintana, while more good than not, has also been a mixed bag.
The only starting pitcher who’d really hadn’t succumbed to the rollercoaster ride yet had been Sean Manaea… until Saturday afternoon.
After two really impressive starts to begin his Mets career, Manaea finally had his Mr. Hyde moment vs the Royals yesterday, as he got shelled for eight runs (six earned) and was knocked out of the game after just 3.2 innings pitched. Manaea struggled with his command from the jump in this game, struggling to throw strikes and put batters away even when getting ahead in the count. Look no further than with two outs in the 2nd inning when Manaea got ahead of back-to-back batters with 0-2 counts but allowed a bases loaded walk and a two-run single.
And despite it still only being a one-run game after two fairly disastrous innings with over 60 pitches thrown in the process, Manaea was never able to settle down and give the Mets any sort of quality or length. The club went on to lose the game, 11-7.
Even with the eventual return of Senga and a call-up of top pitching prospect Christian Scott at some point this summer, this is likely always going to be in the cards for the pitchers in this Mets rotation. This is a front office that built their starting staff on the backs of risk/reward arms, and Saturday was an example of that risk.
It’s also worth noting that at some point, New York is going to need their starters to find a way to get deeper into games. As of Sunday, Mets starters have gone eight straight games without completing six innings, and have yet to throw a single pitch in the 7th inning all season.
Around the League 🚩
Benches cleared after an up-and-in pitch during the Dodgers 5-2 win over the Padres
Yankees RF Juan Soto powered the club to a doubleheader sweep over the Guardians
Braves RHP Spencer Strider will officially miss the remainder of the 2024 season after undergoing surgery on his torn UCL
LHP Shoto Imanaga is the first Cubs rookie since 1913 to start his career with three straight appearances (minimum 4 IP) without allowing an earned run