Mets took care of business against Miami, more injuries but help is on the way
Mets took care of business against Miami, more injuries but help is on the way
The Mets are now 20-4 following a loss in 2022. Plus, join us for our next live watch party tonight on Playback!
Just Mets on Playback 📺
Our next live watch-along will take place on Tuesday night as the Mets travel to Houston to play the Astros at 8:10 PM EST! Watch the game and interact with hosts Andrew Claudio and Rich MacLeod live on Playback!
Be sure to sign up for Playback (it’s free!) and join us here tonight:
getplayback.com/room/justmets 🍎
What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾
The Mets shutout the Marlins 6-0 at Citi Field on Monday to win their third straight series (box)
LHP David Peterson threw 5.1 IP of scoreless ball with seven strikeouts, although he had to dance around traffic the entire afternoon
The Mets got 3.2 IP of scoreless relief from Adam Ottavino, Drew Smith, and Yoan Lopez
Brandon Nimmo busted out of an 0-for-11 funk with a 3-for-5 day at the plate
Eduardo Escobar ended his 0-for-23 skid and drove in three runs - the Mets got RBI from both Pete Alonso and Mark Canha as well
Luis Guillorme converted two hits in place of Jeff McNeil - Guillorme is now hitting .331 on the year
Jeff McNeil left Monday’s game with a tight hamstring - he is day-to-day
JD Davis was hit by a pitch on his pinky - he is day-to-day
Max Scherzer (strained oblique) will begin his major league rehab assignment with Double-A Binghamton on Tuesday
James McCann (hand surgery) is expected to catch Scherzer in his rehab start on Tuesday
The Mets agreed to a minor league deal with OF Ender Inciarte (SNY)
The Mets are now 15-6 in the final game of a series, 20-4 following a loss, earned their 11th shutout of the year, are 13-2 in their last 15 home games and 24-10 overall at home in 2022
Roster Moves 📰
Dominic Smith recalled from Triple-A Syracuse
Seth Lugo placed on the paternity list
Who’s Hot 🔥
Jeff McNeil is enjoying an eight-game hitting streak and is hitting .458/.552/.708 during that span
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (45-24) vs Astros (41-25)
Where: Minute Maid Park — Houston, Texas
Starters: RHP Trevor Williams (1-3, 3.53 ERA) vs RHP José Urquidy (5-3, 4.99 ERA)
When: 8:10 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY
Thank you, Mets! 📣
Thank you to the New York Mets for donating four field level seats to a future game at Citi Field, which will be raffled off tonight at the Dobbs Ferry Youth Little League end-of-season picnic at Waterfront Park on the Hudson River! All proceeds will benefit the Memorial Park renovation project to offer the kids in our town a modern facility for both baseball and softball.
If you’re interested in contributing to the fund, you can via the league’s GoFundMe page.
Despite another bumpy road, the Mets took care of business against the Marlins 📝
Even the most mundane of wins can’t come without a bump in the road for the Mets.
Sure, the Mets coasted to a 6-0 win over the Marlins on a gorgeous Monday afternoon at Citi Field. But the Mets suffered two injuries in the process with the Mets on waiting for the bell to ring on David Peterson, who started for the Mets but was ready to depart the club at a moment’s notice with his wife expecting.
None the less, Peterson was able to separate church from state on Monday and gave the Mets 5.1 IP of shutout ball. Yes, he danced around traffic on the bases - the Marlins put four of the six leadoff hitters on-base but Peterson used his slider all afternoon perfectly on his glove side to help him along and get him out of those jams. He threw nearly as many sliders (32) as he did fastballs (35) during his outing and induced nine swings-and-misses on that pitch in the process.
Look - there’s no replacing Max Scherzer or Jacob deGrom. And Peterson must have his slider/change-up combination working for him to have any sort of footing. But for the most part, those two pitches have been there for him and he’s been a savior for the Mets in their rotation, even if it’s been in inconsistent spurts throughout the first three months of the season. He has been able to chew up valuable innings, produce a 126 ERA+ and is now 4-1 with a 3.18 ERA over 45.1 IP in 10 games, eight starts for the Mets. What’s more, he was able to get himself into the sixth inning yesterday, an encouraging sign as it’s just the second time in his eight starts he’s been able to do that this season.
As for the injuries, Jeff McNeil experienced tightness in his hamstring after trotting home on a wild pitch in the fourth inning. He appeared to pull up slightly while coming home and was walking gingerly to the dugout before immediately going down the tunnel to the trainer. He has dealt with quite a number of leg injuries over the last few years and the Mets can ill-afford an extended absence from their resurgent star utility player, so the Mets will have to carefully massage (perhaps literally) this injury.
Then of course there’s JD Davis, who was hit by a pitch in the eighth inning. Mets manager Buck Showalter was actually surprised Davis didn’t break his pinky during the incident. One of these days, the Mets luck has to run out with all of these clip jobs, right? They’ve been hit by 50 pitches in 69 games this season, which is far too many.
But as Kramer once said, despite the challenges on Monday, the Mets TCB’d during this series. Or, took care of business. They won a series they had to and were expected to win, especially after a difficult challenge against the Dodgers, Padres, Angels and Brewers, during which they went 7-6 (which is excellent considering that gauntlet in the schedule). They have another challenge both this week and next with a home-and-home matchup against the Astros starting tonight in Houston. But these are good tests for the Mets to see exactly how they measure up and to specifically identify their shortcomings ahead of the trade deadline in the process.
13 of the next 17 games for the Mets will be against the Marlins, Reds, and Rangers, all of which are below .500 and series the Mets have to soak up in the win column. Again, they need to take care of business against the second division ladder around the league which they’ve done in large measure so far this season as they’ve gone 20-9 against teams below .500 so far in 2022.
(Of note, they’re 25-15 against teams above .500 so far in 2022)
What’s more, the Mets could get one of their co-aces back by the end of the weekend - Max Scherzer will pitch for Double-A Binghamton today and throw to James McCann in the process. If all goes well, there’s a better than decent chance Scherzer could get the start against the Marlins in Miami on Sunday.
And wouldn’t he be a sight for sore eyes?
Down on the Farm 🌾
All Mets minor league affiliates were off on Monday.
Around the League 🚩
Yankees ace Gerrit Cole carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning as the Bombers won their 50th game of the season on Monday
The Braves walked off the Giants with a 2-1 win as they kept pace with the Mets in the NL East
With star OF Mookie Betts out with a broken rib, the Dodgers added outfield depth in a trade with the Tigers for Trayce Thompson
The Mariners designated veteran RHP Sergio Romo for assignment
Corbin Burnes edged Miles Mikolas in a pitchers duel as the Brewers shutout the Cardinals 2-0 in Milwaukee