The Mets look to take the four game series this afternoon as they take on the Diamondbacks one last time in 2023. The Diamondbacks and Reds are now tied for the last Wild Card spot due to the Mets victory last night. The Giants and Marlins are now only half a game out of that last spot. The Mets are now agents of chaos!
Kodai Senga takes the mound for the Mets this afternoon. Over 149 1/3 innings Senga has a 3.07 ERA, 3.56 FIP, 1.232 WHIP and a 136 ERA+. Since July 5th Senga has made 11 starts (67 2/3 innings) with a 2.53 ERA and 3.05 FIP. In his last four starts (26 2/3 innings) he has a 2.03 ERA and 3.67 FIP (with 32 strikeouts). As the season has continued Senga has gotten better and better. One of his best starts this season was against the Diamondbacks where he held them to one run over eight innings while striking out 12 batters. The Diamondbacks have the following numbers against Senga:
- Jack McCarthy 1-3, 2 K
- Geraldo Perdomo 1-4, K
- Jace Peterson 0-3, 3 K
- Corbin Carroll 1-3, 2 K
- Lourdes Guriel Jr. 0-3, 2 K
- Alek Thomas 0-3
- Christian Walker 1-2, HR
- Evan Longoria 0-2, K
- Ketel Marte 0-1
The Diamondbacks have two solid starters in Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly. The Mets were able to knock out the former last night and go for Kelly tonight. Kelly has made 26 starts this season tossing 154 innings with a 3.16 ERA, 3.76 FIP, 1.188 WHIP and a 138 ERA+. On August 29th he allowed seven runs from 12 hits over five innings to the Dodgers. Since then he has allowed two runs from eight hits over 12 2/3 innings over two starts. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:
- Pete Alonso 4-13, 3 HR, K
- Daniel Vogelbach 2-8, BB
- Omar Narváez 2-5, BB
- Francisco Lindor 2-6, 2B, 2 K, BB
- Jeff McNeil 1-6, HR, K
- Rafael Ortega 1-5, K, BB
- Brandon Nimmo 0-2, 2 K
Three Things To Watch For:
- Is Brett Baty getting out of his slump? Before last night’s game Baty had gone 0-for-15 in five games only working two walks while striking out eight times. Last night he went 2-for-3 scoring both times and striking out in his other at bat. Baty is the only baby Met right now that hasn’t seen the September boost yet – could last night be the sign of things to come?
- Francisco Lindor OPS watch. The big season stat we are looking for with Lindor is a 30-30 season. He’s still sitting at 26 home runs and 26 stolen bases. Lindor had a huge night at the plate though going 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored, raising his OPS for the year to .794. Will he inch even closer to the .800 mark tonight?
- The Mets bullpen is doing okay. The last week or so the starting rotation has given the Mets bullpen a lot of space to breathe. Drew Smith is the only pitcher that has thrown over 30 pitches in the last three days, Trevor Gott has tossed 29. Brooks Raley hasn’t pitched since Monday and Jeff Brigham hasn’t pitched since Saturday. It’s amazing how getting consistent innings from starting pitchers has taken a load off of the bullpen.
Let’s Go Mets!
