Good News: Not only did the Mets win on Friday night, the Cardinals and Pirates lost, dropping them to 2.5 and 3.0 games back in the Wild Card race. The Padres also lost, effectively putting them in a tie with the Mets, but since the Mets have played fewer games, the Mets get to hold on the third Wild Card spot.
Tough News: The Braves and Diamondbacks are each on a four game winning streak. The wild card race is staying tight with the Mets holding on while they tour the entire United States in the month of August. A win tonight guarantees a series win in Anaheim.
David Peterson looks to continue his best season since his rookie year tonight in Anaheim. Over 10 starts, 53 2/3 innings, Peterson has a 3.52 ERA, 4.81 FIP, 1.472 FIP and a 112 ERA+. He’s coming off his first rough start since June 12th. In his last start he allowed four runs from four hits over five innings against the Braves. Before that start he had a 2.53 ERA over 32 innings (six starts). The Angels have the following career numbers against Peterson:
- Jo Adell 1-1
- Brandon Drury 2-5, K
- Mickey Moniak 1-3, K
- Matt Moore 0-2, K
- Kevin Pillar 3-7, 2 2B
- Luis Rengifo 1-2, BB
José Soriano made his major league debut in 2023 as a reliever and has been moved into the rotation this season. Over 19 games he has tossed 97 2/3 innings with a 3.69 ERA, 4.06 FIP, 1.208 WHIP and a 117 ERA+. Like Peterson, Soriano is also coming off of a rough start. Soriano allowed six runs, three earned, over 2 2/3 innings in his last start against the Athletics. The Mets have the following numbers against him:
- Pete Alonso 0-0, HBP
- Harrison Bader 0-0, HBP
- Francisco Lindor 0-1
- J.D. Martinez 1-1
- Jeff McNeil 0-1
- Brandon Nimmo 0-1, K
Three Things To Watch For:
- Pete Alonso is heating up! Pete Alonso hit his third home run in five games Friday night in Anaheim. This really is the best possible time for Alonso to get hot and carry the Mets. Alonso has been doing it this season with bat speed, he’s currently in the 91st percentile according to Baseball Savant.
- Hitting is back! The off day before the series did the Mets some good as the team combined for 13 total hits on Friday night against the Angels. The only downside is the Mets still managed to go 3-for-18 with runners in scoring position and struck out 11 times. Let’s hope the hitting continues tonight and the Mets figure out a way to reduce the strikeouts.
- Huascar Brazobán. Brazobán made his Mets debut on Wednesday against the Twins closing out the game striking out two batters, walking one in a scoreless inning. Zero pitches were hit hard during his inning of work. He hit 98 mph a few times in his inning of work. The Mets haven’t had a ton of power pitching out of the bullpen this season.
Let’s Go Mets!
