The fun train has arrived with Jefry Yan
The reliever was electric on his MLB debut to help the Mets win again in Cleveland
What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets clinched their series against the Guardians thanks to a 6-5 win in extra-innings on Wednesday night in Cleveland (box)
RHP Christian Scott started out strong but faded and blew a 3-0 lead, allowing three earned runs on six hits with two walks and seven strikeouts over five innings
RHP Dedniel Núñez made his long-awaited return to the mound but allowed both the tying and go-ahead runs to score, before RHP Chayce McDermott and RHP Daniel Duarte combined for three scoreless innings the rest of the way as the bullpen held firm - LHP Jefry Yan, making his MLB debut, impressed after escaping a bases-loaded jam in the sixth, striking out two while allowing just two hits
LF Brett Baty and DH Jorge Polanco hit back-to-back homers to get the Mets on the board in the top of the third inning, with Polanco hitting his first home run since April and breaking an 0-for-26 skid
Losing 5-4 in the ninth, OF A.J. Ewing scored on an error to make it a tied game, before 3B Bo Bichette delivered the winning run in the 10th with a clutch RBI single
OF Mike Tauchman exercised the out in his Mets contract and is now a free agent (NY Post)
Earlier this season, Ex-Mets RHP Freddy Peralta reportedly helped to initiate a sit down between SS Francisco Lindor and OF Juan Soto to help clear the air (ESPN)
The Mets and Francisco Lindor will both be evaluating the club’s off-season plan going forward, with Lindor’s future in the center of the conversations (Athlon Sports)
Injury Updates 🏥
RHP Devin Williams is dealing with arm fatigue and wasn’t available to pitch in Wednesday’s game, although he’s expected to be good to go for today’s series finale
RHP Austin Warren (forearm tightness) gave up two earned runs on three hits with no walks and two strikeouts in his latest rehab outing for Triple-A Syracuse on Wednesday
Play of the Game 🔥
I’m going for the obvious here.
Despite blowing a 3-0 lead and then letting Cleveland take a one-run lead into the ninth, the Mets were able to find a way to force the game to extra innings.
Then, in the top of the 10th, Bo Bichette came through at the plate with a clutch RBI single to score Francisco Lindor and give the Mets the lead for good. The bullpen was then able to shut it down in the bottom of the inning, securing a feel-good series win immediately after the Trade Deadline.
The Just Mets Podcast 🎙️
ICYMI: On the latest Just Mets Podcast, Andrew and Rich broke down the roster teardown ahead of the trade deadline, reacted to each move, and discussed the Mets retaining Luis Robert Jr.
SUBSCRIBE: YouTube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify
Down on the Farm 🌾
RHP R.J. Gordon (Double-A): 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 10 K, 1 HR
2B Yonatan Henriquez (High-A): 2-for-5, 1 R, 4 RBIs, 1 HR
SS Elian Peña (No. 4 prospect, Single-A): 2-for-4, 1 R, 2 RBIs, 1 2B
2B Vladi Gomez (Single-A): 4-for-5, 2 R, 2 RBIs, 3 2B, 1 SB
1B Julio Zayas (Single-A): 3-for-4, 2 R, 2 RBIs, 1 BB, 1 HR
BOX SCORES
Single-A SLU (GM 1 | GM 2) | High-A BRK | Double-A BNG | Triple-A SYR
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (49-66) at Guardians (57-58)
Where: Progressive Field - Cleveland, OH
Starters: RHP Nolan McLean (7-7, 3.29 ERA) vs. LHP Foster Griffin (12-3, 3.06 ERA)
When: 1:10 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY
Jefry Yan might be the fun distraction the Mets need ✍️
The Mets may have something in new reliever Jefry Yan.
Okay, sure, it is important not to get swept up by one electric outing. But, at the very least, we now have something really fun to get behind for the rest of a lost year.
On a night when the Mets clinched a series win against a playoff-chasing team and were actually fun to watch, another reason to stay invested over the final couple of months emerged from out of nowhere.
Finally making his MLB debut after a long, arduous journey, Yan delivered the perfect first impression by working his way out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth inning to keep his new team firmly in the game.
Plus, after recording his first career strikeout in the bigs, we were all treated to one of Yan’s trademark celebrations that has been a staple in the minor leagues. The lefty jumped in the air, kicked his legs apart with an abundance of enthusiasm, and then landed with an even more emphatic arm pump. The celebration drew boos from the home fans, but no doubt delighted those Mets fans watching with fun having been in short supply so far in 2026.
It is hard not to root for Yan when you see his joyous celebration, coupled with his admirable backstory. The 29-year-old spent over four years out of baseball after being released by the Angels organization, during which time he piled up a myriad of odd jobs. He eventually returned to baseball and has been grinding away in the minor leagues ever since.
I mean, how can you not root for a guy who refused to give up on his dream and has found a way to still have fun despite experiencing a ton of crushing setbacks?
However, as electric as Yan’s post-strikeout antics are, his stuff is also electric and he flashed plenty of potential last night, albeit in a very small sample size.
For instance, Yan became not only the first Mets pitcher this season to throw a 100+ mph pitch this season, but he threw five of them, topping out at 101.1 mph. His fastball in particular is especially lethal, and it could be developed into a major weapon for this Mets bullpen.
Yan built a reputation down in the minors for his ability to throw strikes at a high rate, and while there is no guarantee that will carry over into the majors, Yan did strike out the first Major League hitter he faced, before recording another strikeout later on in his outing. While it is unlikely that he will carry over his 18.6% swinging-strike rate and absurd 43.5% strikeout rate from the minors into the bigs, we saw on Wednesday that Yan’s stuff can absolutely play at the highest level. He does tend to walk a lot of batters, and he will have to improve on that if he’s to stick and survive with the Mets. But, with a nice four-pitch mix, highlighted by a sinker and a slider and, of course, his electric four-seam fastball, Yan does appear to have plenty of talent to work with.
Arguably more impressive, though, was the fortitude shown by Yan last night. After striking out his first batter, Yan did run into some trouble after loading the bases with a walk and two singles. However, he didn’t allow himself to be overwhelmed by the moment or let self-doubt creep in. Instead, he strapped on his big boy pants, knuckled down, and recovered to get out of trouble in impressive fashion.
Look, it was one inning, and it would be foolish to get too carried away. With that said, the raw skillset is clearly there. Yan fanned 50.8 percent of the hitters he faced in Triple-A this year, and if he can work on cutting down his 15.9 percent walk rate, then maybe there will be a chance for the well-travelled reliever to win a permanent spot in this bullpen.
The whole point of the final two months of this car crash of a season is for the Mets to see what options they have in-house. And, with the bullpen needing to be completely revamped following the Trade Deadline sell-off, having a big flame-throwing lefty already in the organization would obviously be more than beneficial. Again, Yan will need to string together more than one great outing, but last night was a positive start.
Regardless, at the very least, Yan will be fun to watch the rest of the way between his ability to strike hitters out and his euphoric celebrations after sitting a batter down. And, given all the misery we’ve had to endure in 2026, we could all do with some light-hearted entertainment down the stretch.
Around the League 🚩
OF Aaron Judge declared that he will be back this year, while the Yankees lost 3-1 to the Cardinals
The Red Sox have now won seven straight after shutting out the White Sox 4-0 thanks to RHP Sonny Gray’s six scoreless innings
Dodgers DH Shohei Ohtani had his first multi-homer game of the year, but it wasn’t enough as fellow MVP candidate OF Pete Crow-Armstrong finished with two homers and four RBIs to lead the Cubs to victory and inflict a sixth-straight loss on LA
RHP Nick Martinez celebrated his birthday in style by tossing 5.2 scoreless innings as the Rays shutout the Rockies, 4-0
The Braves beat the Marlins 4-1 for their seventh straight win thanks to RHP Bryce Elder’s seven innings of one-run ball
"It is hard not to root for Yan when you see his joyous celebration."
No, it's quite easy not to root for a guy who celebrates a strikeout in a meaningless August contest like he just won Game 7 of the World Series. Fun? Pennant races are fun. Winning 90+ games, that's fun. Clowns are fun, too. But only at the circus, not on the mound.
Look, 20 or more years ago, his antics would not be well received and the Mets would have been retaliated against big time.
Times have changed. Sure there will be consequences when you do things like this and get lit up, but as long as he is more focused on the job (getting people out) and not on the celebration I’m ok with it.