213 Miles From Shea

The Mets would love to rewind the clock on last night’s game. Through the top of the second, the Mets had a 5-0 lead thanks to two Bo Bichette home runs. Then the wheels just fell off defensively and the Mets lost the game 9-6. Blunder after blunder. All of those mistakes though equal only one loss, and the Mets can put themselves in a position to win four game series against the Nationals with a win tonight.

It’s a day that ends in y so the Mets are calling up another top prospect to make their major league debut! Before the start of the season MLB Pipeline had Thornton’s ETA in 2027, but things change. Between Clay Holmes’ injury opening up a spot in the rotation and Thornton’s numbers this season earned Thornton the call. In five starts in Binghamton this year, Thornton has pitched 25 innings with a 3.60 ERA, 1.320 WHIP and 27 strikeouts. Then in two Syracuse starts he pitched 12 innings allowing only three runs while striking out 13 with a 0.917 WHIP. Welcome to the show!

Tonight’s game is a Zach vs Zack affair with the Mets bats facing off against Zack Littell. Littell has pitched in nine games, making six starts this season totaling 41 1/3 innings with a 6.10 ERA, 7.71 FIP, 1.500 WHIP and a 66 ERA+. This is a departure from the last two seasons where he had a 3.73 ERA, 4.42 FIP, 1.169 WHIP and a 111 ERA+ over 61 starts. He’s coming off of good start against the Orioles, holding them scoreless over five innings and in his last three outings he’s allowed only three earned runs over 12 2/3 innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against Littell:

• Brett Baty 2-4, BB, K
• Carson Benge 1-2
• Bo Bichette 6-14, 2B, HR, BB, 3 K
• MJ Melendez 3-5, 2B
• Marcus Semien 2-14, 3B, BB, 3 K
• Juan Soto 2-9, 2B, HR, 2 BB, K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-1
• Mark Vientos 0-1, BB, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Bo Bichette. It’s been a struggle for Bichette this season. He has found his bat in Washington and has gone 5-for-10 this series with a walk, a double, three home runs, four runs scored and has seven RBI’s. His OPS is finally above .600 for the season. Hopefully this is a sign of a hot month to come!
2. Juan Soto. Since the start of the Detroit series, Juan Soto has been on fire. In his last eight games he has gone 12-for-32 with three home runs, three stolen bases, nine runs scored. He’s walked five times and is slashing .375/.459/.656 and is average 2.6 total bases per game.
3. Devin Williams. Williams has found a groove recently. In his last nine games he has pitched 8 2/3 innings and has allowed only one hit. He’s walked only two batters while striking out 11 and most importantly he hasn’t allowed any runs. His ERA has dropped from a season high 10.29 down to 4.60. His FIP is now a paltry 1.84. As the Mets start to win more games, we’ll get to appreciate this a bit more!

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets try to extend their winning streak to four games tonight as they take on the Nationals in game two of their four game series.

Last night the Mets played a game unlike any they have ever played. The Mets and Nationals traded leads throughout the game with the Nationals tying the game late and sending it into extra innings. The Mets and Nationals both wasted a runner at third in the tenth, and both scored one run in the 11th. Then the Mets scored 10 runs in the 12th inning. The Nationals ended up having a position player finish off the inning.

Now the Mets, who are tired, will ride that momentum wave behind their ace tonight!

Nolan McLean has pitched 52 1/3 innings over nine starts with a 2.92 ERA, 2.68 FIP, 0.955 WHIP and a 136 ERA+. He allowed three runs in the first inning against the Tigers the last time out and he still went seven innings. McLean faced the Nationals once last year near the end of the season allowing three runs, one earned over five innings. The Nationals have the following numbers against McLean:

• CJ Abrams 0-3, K
• Brady House 1-2
• Daylen Lile 0-3
• Nasim Nuñez 0-2, K
• James Wood 0-1, 2 BB, K

Foster Griffin has pitched 51 innings over nine starts with a 3.53 ERA, 4.45 FIP, 1.137 WHIP and a 113 ERA+ in his first season back in the states after pitching three seasons in Japan. From April 26th to May 8th Griffin made three starts allowing five runs, only one earned, over 20 innings while striking out 20 batters. In his last start he allowed nine runs from seven hits over 4 1/3 innings against the Reds. No one on the Mets has faced Griffin in a major league game.

Three Things To Watch For:

1. The Top of the Lineup. The Mets top of the lineup has struggled at points this season. Over the last week things have gotten better with Carson Benge in the leadoff spot and with Soto heating up. Bo Bichette’s struggles have held the top of the lineup back, until last night. Benge, Bichette and Soto combined to go 8-for-17 with six runs, 8 RBI’s and four walks. Bichette had his best night as a Met going 3-for-6 with two runs, three RBI’s and his third home run of the season. After a game like last night the big three at the top of the lineup teeing off early tonight will go a big way to set the tone.
2. Nolan McLean’s fastball vs breaking ball. McLean has thrown his sinker 36.6% and his four seamer 18.1% of the time this year. His sinker has a .169 BA, .205 xBA with a 9 Run Value according to statcast. His four seamer has a .185 BA, .270 xBA with a 2 run value. Taken together his fastball has a run value in the 98th percentile this year. His breaking ball though is in the 44th percentile of run value. Batters are hitting his sweeper at a .304 clip, despite a .238 xBA.
3. The Bullpen is tired. The Mets used everyone in the bullpen yesterday except Daniel Duarte, Sean Manaea and Devin Williams. Sean Manaea tossed 57 pitches on Sunday and Devin Williams pitched in back-to-back games over the weekend. Everyone the Mets used yesterday tossed at least 19 pitches and four pitches were used on Saturday. This feels like a recipe for Duarte to make his 2026 debut this evening. Duarte last pitched in the majors in 2024 allowing one run over four innings. In 2023 he had a 3.69 ERA, 5.84 FIP and a 127 ERA+ over 31 games. Duarte was having success in Syracuse with a 2.60 ERA, 1.269 WHIP over 17 1/3 innings.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets had a 91 game streak of trailing after eight innings, and losing. That streak finally ended Sunday afternoon! Tyrone Taylor hit a 3-run home run in the bottom of the ninth to send the Mets to extra innings. The Mets then walked it off in the 10th.

The win ended a 5-1 home stand that saw the Mets sweep the Tigers, lose one of their best pitches in a freak incident on Friday and then bounce back the last two days. Now the Mets have some momentum and have shown they can fight as they take on NL East opponents on the road this week.

Christian Scott has made four starts this season totaling 15 2/3 innings with a 3.45 ERA, 3.67 FIP, 1.404 WHIP and a 117 ERA+. The Tigers were able to rack up hits against him in his last start, getting seven over 4 2/3 innings but Scott was able to limit the damage to only two runs. The next hurdle for Scott is to go beyond five innings of work. The Nationals have the following career stats against Scott:

• CJ Abrams 0-3, K
• Luis García Jr. 1-2, HR, BB
• Keibert Ruiz 0-3
• James Wood 1-2, BB
• Jacob Young 0-2

Jake Irvin has pitched 42 2/3 innings over nine starts with a 5.91 ERA, 4.64 ERA, 1.453 WHIP and a 68 ERA+. May has been rough for Irvin where he has allowed 14 runs, 12 earned over three starts and 13 innings (8.31 ERA, 5.94 FIP) raising his season ERA from 4.85 to 5.91. Irvin faced the Mets four times in 2025 with two great starts and two poor starts. Overall he allowed 13 runs on 24 hits over 23 2/3 innings while striking out 16 (4.94 ERA). The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Brett Baty 1-8, HR, BB
• Bo Bichette 1-3, K
• Vidal Bruján 2-5, 2B, K
• Marcus Semien 0-3, BB
• Juan Soto 3-9, 2B, HR, 5 BB, 3 K
• Tyrone Taylor1-9, 2 K
• Luis Torrens 1-7, 2B, 3 K
• Mark Vientos 2-17, HR, 3 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Juan Soto vs an old team. Juan Soto had a fantastic weekend against his former team and has another series against a former squad. The roster looks very different than when Soto was on the team, but there is still a connection between Soto and franchise. Last season Soto went 17-for-48 with five doubles, four home runs, three stolen bases and nine walks over 13 games against the Nationals (.354/.456/.708). In Soto’s last four games he has gone 6-for-16 with two home runs, three walks and three stolen bases.
2. Contain James Wood. James Wood is having a career year. he currently leads the league in runs scored (39), walks (39) and intentional walks (6). He’s hitting .242/.389/.511 with 12 home runs and a 157 OPS+. The Mets mostly did this at the end of April. In two games they held Wood hitless in six at bats. In the other game Wood went 2-for-5 with three runs scored.
3. Mark Vientos. Since April 17th Mark Vientos has played in 24 games and the Mets have gone 12-12 in those games. Over that stretch Vientos has had four doubles and five home runs with 17 RBI’s. On the season he has six double and six home runs. His OPS has gone from .596 to .703 over the last month. It feels like he’s shaken off whatever was holding him back at the start of the season.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets can win another series this afternoon! Friday was a disparaging night. The Mets offense looked flat. Clay Holmes suffered a fracture on his fibula on a comebacker sidelining him to at least August. Things looked bleak.

Last night was the reverse! The Mets scored six runs, including two on a wild pitch. Peterson had eight strikeouts in only four innings. They survived an error in the outfield and got out of a bases loaded, no-out jam in the 7th inning. Luke Weaver pitched two massive innings in relief and Devin Williams shut the door on his old team. A good night all around! Now the Mets look to keep the vibes going this afternoon!

Freddy Peralta has pitched 49 1/3 innings over nine starts with a 3.10 ERA, 3.66 FIP, 1.216 WHIP and a 128 ERA+. In his last three starts he has allowed five runs, only three earned, over 17 innings while striking out 14 (1.59 ERA). He hasn’t faced the Yankees since his first start in 2025 where he allowed two runs over five innings. The Yankees have the following career numbers against him:

• Cody Bellinger 6-14, 2B, HR, BB, 5 K
• Jazz Chisholm Jr. 2-10, 2B, HR, 2 BB, 4 K
• Paul Goldschmidt 9-35, 5 2B, 2 HR, 3 BB, 10 K
• Trent Grisham 1-5, 2B, 3 K
• Aaron Judge 0-3, 2 K
• Ryan McMahon 1-12, 3 BB, 3 K
• Ben Rice 1-2, K
• Amed Roasrio 1-4, BB, K
• Anthony Volpe 1-2, HR, K
• Austin Wells 1-2, HR, BB, K

Elmer Rodríguez will make his third major league start today. Over his first two starts he has allowed five runs from 10 hits over 8 2/3 innings (5.19 ERA, 84 ERA+). Both starts have been similar. In his major league debut at the end of April he allowed two runs on four hits and four walks over four innings. On May 5th he allowed three runs on six hits and four walks over 4 2/3 innings. He has been tearing up Triple A this season with a 1.38 ERA over five starts (26 innings). Over his first two starts he has used his mid-90’s sinker and four seamer about 2/3rds of the time. He mixes in a slider, changeup and curveball to round out his arsenal.

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Juan Soto is heating up. Over his last three games, Soto has gone 5-for-10 at the plate with two home runs, three walks and four runs scored. He stole two bases in one inning last night. Soto is doing all the things things you expect Soto to do.
2. Carson Benge. Yes, Benge made a bad error in the outfield yesterday. He also had a tremendous day at the plate going 3-for-4 with two runs scored. In his last seven games he is hitting .367/.367/.400 and in his last 15 games he’s slashing .340/.386/.472. Let’s see how Benge bounces back in the field and if he can keep his incredibly hot streak at the plate going.
3. Bo Bichette. The Mets have to get Bo Bichette going. The good news is worked a walk last night and scored two runs. The bad news is he’s hitless in his last three games, going 0-for-11 at the plate with two walks. In his last seven games he has gone 2-for-25 with five walks, slashing .080/.233/.080. At the some point he has to return to his career numbers.

Let’s Go Mets!

The bad news just continues for the 2026 Mets. Clay Holmes, in the midst of a career year, fractured his fibula last night taking a comebacker from Spencer Jones. The Mets will have to file this under next week’s problems as they just need to get through this weekend first.

Today the Mets will try their mostly successful strategy again of using David Peterson behind Huascar Brazobán tonight. Here’s hoping Brazobán, Peterson and the bats give the Mets fans some positive news during these trying times!

David Peterson gets the bulk work tonight. Over nine games this season he has pitched 39 1/3 innings with a 5.49 ERA, 3.05 FIP, 1.500 WHIP and a 73 ERA+. He pitched five innings, the most he has done in a while last time out, allowing three unearned runs from four hits and no walks. As a reliever he has pitched 16 innings with a 1.69 ERA and 0.938 WHIP. Peterson faced the Yankees once last year holding them to two runs, one earned over six innings. The Yankees have the following career numbers against him:

• Cody Bellinger 1-5, 2B, 2 BB, K
• Jazz Chisholm Jr. 2-12, BB, 3 K
• Paul Goldschmidt 0-2, BB
• Trent Grisham 1-7, 2 K
• Aaron Judge 1-3, 2B, 2 BB
• Ryan McMahon 3-7, 2B, HR, BB, K
• Amed Rosario 1-3
• Max Schuemann 0-1, BB
• Anthony Volpe 1-6, 3 K
• Austin Wells 0-3, K

Carlos Rodón made his 2026 debut last week. He had surgery last October to remove loose bodies and to attend to a bone spur in his elbow. This spring he injured his hamstring, which delayed the start of the season. Last week he allowed three runs from two hits and five walks over 4 1/3 innings against the Brewers. His two starts against the Mets last year were quite different. In May he held the Mets to one run over five innings. In July he allowed seven runs, six earned, over five innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Bo Bichette 4-14, 2 2B, B, 3 K
• MJ Melendez 0-2
• Marcus Semien 5-28, 2B, HR, BB, 6 K
• Juan Soto 0-4, 4 BB, K
• Tyrone Taylor 2-6, HR, K
• Luis Torrens 1-5, HR, 2 K
• Mark Vientos 2-8, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Huascar Brazobán. Brazobán is coming off of an excellent relief outing where he allowed no runs over 2 1/3 innings in an extra-inning win against the Tigers. In 18 outings this season he has pitched 21 innings with a 2.14 ERA, 3.48 FIP, 0.952 WHIP and a 187 ERA+. Opposing hitters are struggling to make solid contact against him getting a hard-hit only 22.8% of the time (98th percentile). Balls are flying off bats with an 83.4 mph average exit velocity (98th percentile).
2. Juan Soto. Soto is starting to heat up! He homered in second consecutive game last night and has gone 5-for-16 in his last four games. If the Mets are going to dig out of this hole and fix the vibes, they need Soto to go on an MVP-esque run. He’s never had a hit off of Rodón, but he has worked four walks, good for a .500 career OBP.
3. Brett Baty. Baty has quietly put together a four game hitting streak this week going 6-for-17 with a home run and two walks. Since May 3rd he has gone 10-for-34 slashing .294/.400/.441 raising his season slash line from .207/.265/.304 to .230/.303/.341.

Let’s Go Mets!

What a time for the Mets offense to come alive!

The Yankees head to Queens today to take on the Mets who just swept the Detroit Tigers. Yesterday five different Mets players hit a home run and only two players recorded a strikeout. It’s the best the Mets bats have looked in a long time.

The Yankees are 10 games over .500 but have lost six of their last ten. The Mets are seven games under .500 and have won seven of their last 10. Each team has a sub-2 ERA pitcher on the mound tonight!

Clay Holmes has pitched 48 1/3 innings over eight games with a 1.86 ERA, 3.44 FIP, 1.014 WHIP and a 214 ERA+. He already has 1.9 bWAR this season (last season he had 2.0 bWAR over 33 games). Holmes has also struck out exactly six batters in each of his last three games. Those 18 batters are a season high in any three game stretch this season. The Yankees have the following career numbers against Holmes:

• Cody Bellinger 1-4, 2B, BB, K
• Jazz Chisholm Jr. 0-2, BB, K
• Paul Goldschmidt 1-8, HR, 4 K
• Trent Grisham 0-0, 3 BB
• Ryan McMahon 1-6, HR, 2 BB
• Amed Rosario 2-8, 3 K
• Max Schuemann 0-1, K

The Mets bats face off tonight against one of the best pitchers in the American League. Cam Schlittler has tossed 53 1/3 innings over nine starts with a league leading 1.35 ERA, 1.65 FIP, 0.806 WHIP and a 312 ERA+. He also leads the league in in H/9 at 5.7. This will be the Mets first time facing Schlittler and the only player on the roster who has seen him is Bo Bichette (1-for-4, 2B, K).

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Recent Call-ups. What a first week for A.J. Ewing! In his first three major league games A.J. Ewing has gone 3-for-9 with a triple, home run, stolen base and three walks (.538) while scoring four runs. The Mets have won every game he’s played. The Yankees called up Spencer Jones last week and he has gone 1-for-12 over his first five games with three walks. Before getting his call-up, Jones had 11 home runs in 33 games in Triple A (.258/.366/.592). The story of today’s game are the two sub-2 ERA pitchers. The story of the weekend could be Ewing and Jones.
2. Home Runs. The Mets slugged five home runs yesterday bringing them to 36 on the season. They are now 25th in the majors. Going into play yesterday they were basically last, hanging out with the Brewers and the Giants. The Mets roster is constructed to get moderate pop from just about everyone. That’s tough to do without Lindor, Alvarez, Polanco, Mauricio and Roberts. Yesterday showed that the baby Mets (Vientos, Baty) and join the new Mets plus Juan Soto to put on a show.
3. Marcus Semien. Semien got off to a slow start this season. Through his first 19 games he slashed .194/.257/.269. In the 24 games since he is slashing .253/.309/.368 with five stolen bases and two home runs. He’s not lighting the world on fire but his last 24 games are much closer to what he has done in recent years (.230/.305/.364 in 2025, .237/.308/.391 in 2024).

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets have a chance to go for the sweep this afternoon! There were a lot of reasons to give up on last night’s game. The Tigers took an early 2-0 lead. The Mets struggled with runners in scoring position. Some weird calls went against the Mets (for example, an umpire claiming he saw Baty challenge a pitch). Juan Soto left the game after fouling a ball off his leg just below his guard. But the Mets rallied late, sending the game into extra innings. In the the bottom of the tenth Carson Benge drove home a speedy A.J. Ewing to win the game!

To keep those vibes going today the Mets will also have to battle the weather, which doesn’t look great today. With the Tigers leaving town, the Mets and Tigers will do everything they can to get todays game in.

The Mets ace gets the ball today! Nolan McLean has made eight starts totaling 45 1/3 innings with a 2.78 ERA, 2.38 FIP, 0.904 WHIP and a 143 ERA+. He has 57 strikeouts, which matches his exact total of strikeouts in eight starts in 2025 (48 innings). McLean is coming off of a strong start against the Diamondbacks, holding them to one run over six innings while striking out six. McLean faced the Tigers last September holding them to two runs over six innings. The Tigers have the following career numbers against McLean:

• Dillon Dingler 1-2, K
• Riley Greene 0-2, BB
• Colt Keith 0-3, K
• Zach McKinstry 0-1, BB
• Wenceel Perez 1-2, K
• Spencer Torkelson 1-2

Keider Montero has pitched 39 2/3 innings over seven starts this season with a 3.18 ERA, 3.23 FIP, 0.958 WHIP and a 134 ERA+. He’s been on a roll in May, allowing only two runs over 12 2/3 innings. The Mets have the following career stats against Keider Montero:

• Bo Bichette 1-3, 2B
• Marcus Semien 0-1, BB K
• Austin Slater 1-3, K
• Juan Soto 0-2, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Carson Benge. Last night’s hero has been heating up. He had a three-hit night and since moving to the leadoff spot he has gone 5-for-10 with a run, two RBI’s and a stolen base. In his last nine games he has gone 12-for-31 with seven runs scored, seven RBI’s, while slashing .378/.457/.581. The Mets needed someone to take lead the offense and its the rookie doing it!
2. Nolan McLean 100 innings? Nolan McLean is sitting at 93 1/3 innings. Weather depending, it possible today that he clears 100 career innings. In his first 93 1/3 innings with the Mets he has a 2.41 ERA, 2.68 FIP, 0.975 WHIP, 168 ERA+ and 114 K’s. If the Mets are going to dig out of this hole from their terrible April, it’s going to be because of Nolan McLean.
3. Hit hard, don’t expect walks. Keider Montero has walked only 5.2% of hitters this season, good for the 92nd percentile. His xBA is also solid at .230 (66th percentile). On the other side though, when hitters make contact, they are hitting Montero hard. Hitters are getting hard contact 43.2% of the time (29th percentile), barreling the ball 10.3% of the time (24th percentile) and the average exit velocity is 91.3 mph (12th percentile). The Mets are 7th in the majors with an average exit velocity of 89.7 mph and 15th in raw number of barrels.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets got the spark they were looking for! A.J. Ewing had a tremendous major league debut last night recording a triple and three walks in a 10-2 romp of the Tigers. For the first time in a while the vibes feel good! It went beyond Ewing as the Mets recorded 13 hits with Benge, Soto, Vientos and Baty all recording two hits each.

Now the Mets will try to keep those vibes going tonight as they take on Framber Valdez.

Christian Scott will make his fourth start of the year tonight. Over his first three starts he has tossed 11 innings with a 3.27 ERA, 4.02 FIP, 1.182 WHIP and a 125 ERA+. He’s coming off of a solid start in Colorado where he held the Rockies to only three hits and one run over 4 2/3 innings while striking out six. No one on the Tigers have faced Scott in a Major League game.

Framber Valdez signed a 70 million two year deal with Tigers this off season. The long time Astros ace will be returning from a five game suspension tonight. Over eight starts, 43 1/3 innings, Valdez has a 4.57 ERA, 4.32 FIP, 1.408 WHIP and a 94 ERA+. He has allowed 26 runs, 22 earned, this season, but the vast majority of that happened in tow starts. He allowed eight runs over five innings against the Twins on April 8th.

His last time out he allowed 10 runs, seven earned, over three innings against the Red Sox. During this start he intentionally threw at Trevor Story after giving up back-to-back home runs to open the fourth inning. Valdez says that it wasn’t intentionally and that he lost his grip on his fastball, and he’s been working on that during his suspension. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 1-6, 2B, 2 K
• Bo Bichette 4-13, HR, K
• MJ Melendez 2-5, BB, 3 K
• Marcus Semien 12-41, 2B, 2 HR, 7 BB, 10 K
• Austin Slater 6-15, 4 K
• Juan Soto 3-7, 3 BB, 2 K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-5, BB
• Luis Torrens 3-14, 2B, 3 K
• Mark Vientos 1-6, HR, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Christian Scott. Scott has had a weird season so far. In his first start he struggled to get an out, in his second start he pitched a lot better than his line said (5 innings, 3 runs, 8 strikeouts). His xERA is 3.30 and xBA is .172. If he was a qualifying pitcher in Statcast, his xBA would somewhere in the 90th-ish percentile. This is true for his K% (31.3) and Hard-Hit% (29.2) as well. Despite the high K% he’s not generating a ton of chase (30.5%) and whiff’s (23%). As he makes more starts it will be interesting to see how some of these numbers start to settle.
2. A.J. Ewing. What does Ewing do tonight as an encore? The Mets have been struggling this season to get hits, score runs, steal bases and work walks. Ewing had a triple, scored two runs, worked three walks and stole a base all in his first start. He’s already 12th on the Mets for walks in 2026. What a start!
3. Carson Benge. Every player to watch tonight is part of the next generation of Mets players! Benge was moved to the leadoff spot last night and went 2-for-5 with a run scored. In his last eight games he has gone 9-for-26 with three doubles, a home runs, four walks and seven runs scored. That’s a .346/.433/.577 slash line. Since April 22nd he has raised his season slash line from .136/.219/.197 to .215/.280/.331.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets desperately need to shake things up after the offense has evaporated. The Mets have scored one run in each of their last two games and are now tied for the fewest runs scored in the Majors. They need a spark to get going!

Desperate times call for bold moves and the Mets are doing that calling up A.J. Ewing, the number two prospect behind Jonah Tong in the Mets system. It’s time for the next generation to take over!

Freddy Peralta has pitched 43 1/3 innings over eight starts with a 3.12 ERA, 3.72 FIP, 1.200 WHIP and a 128 ERA+. He’s coming off of a strong start against the Rockies where he held them scoreless over five innings. In his last three starts he has a 1.62 ERA over 16 2/3 innings (against the Rockies twice and the Nationals). The Tigers have the following career numbers against him:

• Riley Greene 1-4, BB
• Colt Keith 0-1
• Zach McKinstry 0-7, BB, K
• Jake Rogers 1-2
• Spencer Torkelson 0-2, K
• Matt Vierling 1-4, 2B, BB, 2 K

Jack Flaherty has tossed 34 innings over eight starts this season with a 5.56 ERA, 5.29 FIP, 1.647 WHIP and a 77 ERA+. In his last three starts he has allowed 14 runs, 12 earned over 10 2/3 innings with a 10.13 ERA. He has struck out 18 batters in that stretch, but he has also allowed four home runs. The Mets have the following numbers against Flaherty:

• Francisco Alvarez 2-4, 2B, K
• Bo Bichette 7-13, 2B, BB, 2 K
• Marcus Semien 3-10, HR, BB, 3 K
• Austin Slater 1-3, 2B, K
• Juan Soto 2-11, 2B, 8 BB, 3 K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-7, BB, 2 K
• Mark Vientos 0-6, 2 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. A.J. Ewing. Ewing was tearing up Binghamton earlier this season, slashing .349/.481/.571 over 18 games with nine extra base hits and 12 stolen bases. He got the quick promotion to Syracuse where he hit .326/.392/.435 with four extra base hits and five stolen bases over 12 games. Over his minor league career he hit .290/.395/.425 with 101 stolen bases over 251 games. The Mets have not been getting on base and have not been stealing bases – two things Ewing does well! Welcome to the big leagues!
2. Kevin McGonigle. McGonigle has turned a lot of heads in his rookie season hitting .293/.395/.435 with a 132 OPS+ and 2.2 bWAR through 39 games this season. He is a double hitting machine with 11 of them so far this year and has worked 23 walks. Shuting McGonigle down is critical for getting through this Tigers squad.
3. Bo Bichette. The Mets need Bichette to get through his current slump tonight. In his last four games Bichette has gone 0-for-13 with three walks. The Mets have gone 1-3 in those games. In the five games before that Bichette went 7-for-23 and the Mets went 4-1 in those games.

Let’s Go Mets!

Missing: The Mets Offense.

The Mets took a 1-0 lead early last night but then couldn’t do anything else as the fell 2-1 to the Diamondbacks. Today the Mets have a chance to win their third consecutive series and end this long, west coast road trip on a happy note. But to do that they’ll need to do something that has evaded them most of the year. They’ll need to score some runs.

The Mets will be using Huascar Brazobán as an opener with David Peterson set to take on the bulk of the work this afternoon. Over eight games and 34 1/3 innings, Peterson has a 6.29 ERA, 3.25 FIP, 1.602 WHIP and a 64 ERA+. In 11 innings as a reliever he has a 2.45 ERA and a 1.000 WHIP. His K/BB rate goes from 2.00 as a starter to 9.00 as a reliever. Peterson had a tough start against the Diamondbacks earlier this season allowing five runs over five innings from six hits and two walks. The Diamondbacks have the following career numbers against him:

• Nolan Arenado 2-6, 2 K
• Jorge Barrosa 1-3, 2B, BB, K
• Corbin Carroll 4-12, 2 2B, 3 K
• Jose Fernandez 1-2, K
• Lourdes Gurriel Jr. 4-10, 2B, 2 HR
• Ketel Maarte 3-13, 2B, HR, 5 K
• James McCann 0-0, BB
• Gabriel Moreno 1-4, 2 K
• Geraldo Perdomo 3-9, 2B, 4 BB, K
• Tim Tawa 0-2
• Ildermaro Vargas 5-14, 2 2B, K

Eduardo Rodríguez has made seven starts totaling 39 2/3 innings with a 2.50 ERA, 4.42 FIP, 1.286 WHIP and a 168 ERA+. In his last two starts he has allowed two runs from 7 hits over 11 2/3 innings while striking out 11 batters. He was solid against the Mets earlier this season holding the Mets to one run over six innings, scattering five hits and two walks. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 1-9, 2 K
• Brett Baty 1-3
• Bo Bichette 6-15, 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, 4 K
• Vidal Bruján 0-0, BB
• Andy Ibáñez 3-5, 2 2B, HR, K
• MJ Melendez 1-9, BB, 6 K
• Marcus Semien 7-28, 2B, 3 BB, 10 K
• Austin Slater 1-6, 2 K
• Juan Soto 0-4, 2 BB, 2 K
• Tyrone Taylor 3-4, 2 2B
• Luis Torrens 1-5, K
• Mark Vientos 0-8, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Huascar Brazobán. Brazobán pitched a scoreless first inning against the Rockies a few days ago opening up a game where David Peterson got the bulk of the work. Hitters are just not making solid contact right now against Brazobán who is in the 97th percentile for average exit velocity (84.8 mph). Hitters are barreling the ball 2.0% of the time (95th percentile), getting a hard-hit 26.5% (96th percentile) and grounding out 55.1% (90th percentile).
2. Score Runs. The 2026 Mets have scored 138 runs this season, good for 29th in the Majors. Their pitching is tied for 9th fewest runs allowed, at 165. The Mets don’t need a crazy bump in offense to turn things around, but they need something, anything to give them a spark.
3. Luis Torrens. Torrens may be the secret to David Peterson. In 26 2/3 innings throwing to Alvarez this season, Peterson has a 7.42 ERA. In 7 2/3 innings throwing to Torrens, Peterson has a 2.35 ERA. The numbers weren’t as stark last year, but the trend was there as well. Peterson had a 4.95 ERA with Alvarez catching compared to a 3.52 ERA with Torrens. Torrens has continued to excel at catching base runners, throwing out three already, putting him in the 98th percentile. He’s doing this as the backup catcher!

Let’s Go Mets!