213 Miles From Shea

The Mets look to end the first half the season on a high note! The Mets have won two games in a row, taking the series from the last place Royals. Wednesday the Mets had a five run 8th inning. Yesterday afternoon the Mets had a no-stress, straight-forward win. Now they welcome the 4th place Red Sox to Queens.

Nolan McLean has made 18 starts this season totaling 101 1/3 innings with a 3.73 ERA, 3.52 FIP, 1.115 WHIP and a 111 ERA+. In his last two starts he has allowed three runs, two earned over 12 innings from 10 hits and three walks while striking out 12. He’s pitched at least six innings in four consecutive starts. He has also hit four batters over his last three starts, bringing him to 12 on the season, which leads the league. This will be McLean’s first start against the Red Sox and no one on the Red Sox has faced McLean in a Major League game.

Sonny Gray is having his best season since 2023. This year he has made 16 starts pitching 89 2/3 innings with a 2.61 ERA, 3.61 FIP, 1.104 WHIP and a 155 ERA+. He currently leads the league with 10 wins. For context, last season he made 32 starts with a 4.28 ERA, 3.39 FIP, 1.234 WHIP and a 95 ERA+. In his last three starts he has allowed only two runs from 11 hits over 20 1/3 innings while striking out 27 batters. The Mets have the following career numbers against Gray:

• Francisco Alvarez 0-2, K
• Brett Baty 0-3, BB
• Bo Bichette 3-7, 2 K
• Francisco Lindor 8-29, 3 HR, 5 BB, 9 K
• Jorge Polanco 1-7, K
• Juan Soto 6-13, 2B, HR, 4 BB, 3 K
• Tyrone Taylor 3-11, HR, K
• Luis Torrens 0-2
• Mark Vientos 1-2, K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Juan Soto. If you want to feel good about the Mets, just open up Juan Soto’s Baseball Reference page. Soto had another big day at the plate yesterday going 1-for-2 with two walks and a home run. He now has seven walks and three home runs in his last four games played. He has a 3.1 bWAR and is leading the league in OBP (.414), SLG (.579), OPS (.993), OPS+ (175) and rOBA (.418). He’s 13th in league with 54 walks despite missing two weeks.
2. Carson Benge Two-Hit Streak. Carson Benge comes into today’s game with a four game streak getting at least two hits per game. He’s also worked at least one walk per game! Overall in his last four games he has gone 8-for-13 with a double, a home run, five walks and stole two bases (.615/.722/.923). After weeks of the Mets offense flailing, it really has picked up in the last week and Benge is a major reason why!
3. Trade Targets. Unless a miracle occurs, the Mets will probably be selling at the deadline. Tyrone Taylor continues to rake since returning from the injure list. Yesterday he went 2-for-3 with a double and a home run. He now has three homers in his last five games, good for six on the season. Luke Weaver hasn’t pitched since last Monday and has put up All-Star numbers this season with a 1.89 ERA over 38 innings. He’s signed through 2027, so it will take a major package to get the Mets to trade him. Brooks Raley pitched on Wednesday where he allowed one hit but no runs against the Royals. Over 37 games this season he has a 2.16 ERA.

Let’s Go Mets!

Tuesday night was another low point for the Mets this season. They lost 16-12 against the Royals, a game they should have easily won. Last night the Mets had a come from behind win with a 5-run rally in the 8th inning. The Mets offense seems to be clicking and maybe there is hope starting to percolate through the surface! A win today would mean the Mets would win the series!

Sean Manaea has pitched in 19 games this year totaling 68 innings with a 4.76 ERA, 4.02 FIP, 1.353 WHIP and an 87 ERA+. He allowed six runs, but only three earned in his last start of five innings against the Braves. Since returning to the rotation, Manaea has pitched 25 innings over five games with a 4.32 ERA and 4.04 FIP while striking out 23 batters. The Royals have the following career stats against him:

• Jac Caglione 0-1, K
• Isaac Collins 2-3, 2B, K
• Nick Loftin 3-4, BB, K
• Luke Maile 0-3, K, BB
• Starling Marte 0-2, K
• Salvador Perez 6-18, 3 HR, 4 K
• Josh Rojas 1-9, 2B, 3 K
• Lane Thomas 2-11, 2B, BB, 4 K
• Tyler Tolbert 1-1
• Bobby Whit Jr. 3-10, HR, BB, 4 K

The Mets bats will face off against one-time Met, Michael Wacha. Wacha pitched for the Mets in 2020 with a 6.62 ERA over 34 innings (eight games). This season Wacha has made 18 starts and is leading the league with 114 2/3 innings. He has a 3.45 ERA, 3.92 FIP, 1.160 WHIP and a 119 ERA+. He had a pair of good starts to end June allowing two runs over 14 2/3 innings. In his last start he allowed four runs from eight hits including three home runs against the Phillies. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 1-3
• Brett Baty 2-3, 2B
• Bo Bichette 7-16, 2B, HR, 2 BB
• Francisco Lindor 2-5, BB
• Jorge Polanco 3-12, HR BB, 4 K
• Juan Soto 4-10, 2B, BB, 3 K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-3
• Luis Torrens 3-6, K
• Mark Vientos 0-2, 2 K
• Eric Wagaman 0-2

Three Things To Watch For:

1. A.J. Ewing. Ewing has been crushing the ball out of the lead-off spot the last two games. He has gone 6-for-9 with five runs scored, a double and two home runs. He has multi-hit games in three of his last four. He has a 1.8 bWAR and 126 OPS+. The Mets have been scoring a lot lately and a lot of that has to do with Ewing.
2. Bringing Down the Hammer. After last night’s game, it was reported that Dan Hammer would be getting the call up to make his Major League debut. Hammer was originally drafted by the Orioles and stayed in their system from 2019 until 2025 when he joined the Rays. Between Syracuse and Binghamton this season Hammer has pitched 27 games totaling 33 1/3 innings with a 2.16 ERA. He has a high heater that can touch 98 mph.
3. Luke Weaver. Weaver hasn’t pitched since his back-to-back outings last Sunday and Monday. He’s had a tremendous season pitching 38 innings with a 1.89 ERA, 2.54 FIP, 0.842 WHIP and a 220 ERA+. Thsis season he’s getting hitters to chase him 35% of the time (90th percentile) and Whiff 31.3% of the time (88th percentile) He could be the best bet for the Mets to acquire a serious prospect at the trade deadline if they decide to trade him.

Let’s Go Mets!

Every game only counts as one win or one loss. The Mets wrapped up a four game series with the Braves where they split the series, but played way worse than two wins. Last night just picked up with that feeling as the Mets lost 16-12 against the Royals. It’s a game the Mets should have won. The Royals made three errors on a play early in the game that lead to a little league home run for Carson Benge. The Mets scored 12 runs, until last night they always win at Citi Field when scoring at least 11 runs. Every time the Mets bats took a commanding lead the Mets pitching immediately squandered it. Rather than starting the day with a three game winning the streak the Mets the Mets look to avoid a losing streak tonight. Every game counts as one win or one loss. A simple 5-3 win today counts as much as whatever has happened in the last week.

Christian Scott has made 11 starts for the Mets season totaling 49 innings with a 3.49 ERA, 4.36 FIP, 1.347 WHIP and a 119 ERA+. The Mets need some length from Scott tonight after the last couple of taxing games on the Mets bullpen. Last time out Scott allowed three runs over four innings. In his last three starts he has pitched 13 innings allowing nine runs from 12 hits and seven walks. Home runs have also become a problem recently. Scott went five starts without allowing a home run and now has allowed six in his last three starts. The only member of the Royals to see Scott in a major league game before is Lane Thomas (0-for-3).

The Royals have a bullpen game tonight behind Steven Cruz. Over seven games and 28 1/3 innings Cruz has a 5.08 ERA, 5.87 FIP, 1.447 WHIP and an 82 ERA+. He pitched as an opener back on June 26th holding the White Sox scoreless over 1 1/3 innings. A game where the Royals eventually lost 22-1. Cruz hasn’t allowed a run in his last outings, totaling 6 1/3 innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

• Brett Baty 0-1, K
• Francisco Lindor 0-0, BB
• Jorge Polanco 0-1
• Juan Soto 0-0, BB
• Tyrone Taylor 0-2
• Mark Vientos 0-1
• Eric Wagaman 0-1

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Cool down the Royals Bats. In the last two games the Royals have scored 31 runs off of 41 hits. They have done like a month’s worth of Mets run scoring. Last night the Royals never felt out of the game, despite fielding and pitching poorly allowing the Mets to score 12 runs from 13 hits and three errors. Christian Scott have to find ways today to cool everyone from potential AL MVP Bobby Witt Jr. to 9th in the lineup Tyler Tolbert down. If you missed it, Tyler Tolbert set a record near the end of the game yesterday recording a hit in 12 consecutive at bats.
2. A.J. Ewing up top! What a table setter for the Mets! A.J. Ewing on Monday night went a disappointing 0-for-4, but everyone behind him hit. Last night went 4-for-4 including his sixth home run of the season. Soto, Bichette and Benge behind him all hit and Ewing scored in four of the five times he was on base. That’s a recipe for success!
3. Juan Soto. Soto now has a five game hit streak going where he has gone 7-for-21 with three home runs and five walks. The two things he has done exceptionally well since he has joined the Mets is hit bombs and work walks. Going into yesterday’s game (Baseball Reference still hasn’t updated at the time of writing), Soto was leading the league with a .414 OBP, his fourth highest OBP in his career. He also was leading in SLG (.570), OPS (.984) and OPS+ (173).

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets have somehow won two games in a row! Sunday afternoon the Mets took a huge lead in the ninth inning but almost squandered it away in the bottom frame. Last night the Mets took the lead in the ninth inning only the for Braves to tie it in the ninth. The Mets scored two in the tenth and again where able to hold off another last frame Atlanta rally for the win.

The Royals come to town also in last place in their division but they are coming off two wins in a row against the Phillies. They beat the Phillies yesterday 15-1 racking up 22 hits. Here’s hoping they used up all of their offnese for the next few days!

The Mets blew through their bullpen yesterday with the game going into extra innings and Freddy Peralta only giving the Mets 4 2/3 innings. The Mets will need Kodai Senga to factor in a big way today to take some of the stress off of the bullpen. Over nine games this season Senga has pitched 35 1/3 innings with a 8.66 ERA, 6.91 FIP, 1.698 WHIP and a 48 ERA+. His last time out was his first since getting sent to the bullpen. He allowed one run over 2 2/3 innings off of a solo home run. Home runs have been a major issue for Senga this season allowing them in seven consecutive outings. The Royals have the following career numbers against him:

• Jac Caglianone 0-2, K
• Isaac Collins 0-1, BB, K
• Nick Loftin 0-2, K
• Michael Massey 1-3, 2B
• Salvador Perez 2-5, 2B, 3 K
• Josh Rojas 1-2, K
• Lane Thomas 1-4, BB, 2 K
• Bobby Witt Jr. 3-5. 2B

The Mets will face an old friend tonight – Seth Lugo. Over 17 starts Lugo has pitched 96 1/3 innings with a 4.20 ERA, 4.15 FIP, 1.381 WHIP and a 98 ERA+. In his last two starts he has allowed 10 runs from 16 hits and five home runs over 11 innings while striking out 10 batters. In the two starts before that he allowed only three runs, two earned, in 9 1/3 innings. The Mets have the following career numbers against Lugo:

• Bo Bichette 2-8, BB, K
• Juan Soto 5-19, HR, 6 BB, 5 K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-1, K
• Luis Torrens 0-0, BB

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Chasing Whiffs. Seth Lugo was with the Mets from 2016 through 2023. In 2020 and 2021, Lugo became a whiff machine, with his whiff% spiking to 30.1 and 31.1% of the time. Things dropped back down to the low 20’s for Lugo his last wo years with the Mets. This year his whiff% has reached a career low of 18.2%.
2. Carson Benge. Benge had a huge day at the plate in the last game of the Blue Jays series going 2-for-4 with a double and a home run. He was super quiet in the first three games of the Braves series going a combined 2-for-13 with two strikeouts. Last night he hit behind Francisco Lindor and had a huge day, going 2-for-4 with a double, homerun, and a walk. If the Mets want to start playing competitive baseball, they’ll need Carson’s bat.
3. Luis Torrens. Torrens came in as a pinch hitter last night and hit a two-run double in the 10th inning. Over the last couple of days there have been reports by beat reporters that the Mets catching depth has been “catching” the eye of teams looking to make a playoff push. Luis Torrens may hold more value than we thought a couple of months ago in this market, but it would also leave the Mets in a tough position going forward. Whether Torrens starts or not, we’ve seen the Mets value his bat in high leverage situations, even though he has a .605 OPS.

Let’s Go Mets!

By the smallest of margins the Mets were able to hold on to a lead on Sunday and now have a chance to leave Atlanta with a series split. The Mets scored first but the Braves immediately responded with a three-run first inning. The Mets went on to score four runs in the second and neither team scored again until the ninth inning. The Mets opened the frame with a huge inning, scoring five runs, putting the game seemingly out of reach with a 10-3 lead. The Braves though would work the inning, hit a grand slam and continue to get runners on bases. At the end of the game, the Mets some how survived with a 10-9 win, stranding runners on second and third.

A win is a win though! And a win today means the Mets will win the series, even though it feels like the Braves have been in control.

Freddy Peralta has a shot at redemption tonight. Overall this season he has made 18 starts totaling 95 1/3 innings with a 4.81 ERA, 4.27 FIP, 1.416 WHIP and an 86 ERA+. This is his lowest ERA+ since 2019. Most of the season he was sitting around 110-113. Anyway in his last start Peralta allowed five runs over four innings from seven hits and three walks. Peralta did have a good start against the Braves earlier in the month holding them to one run over five innings. The Braves have the following career stats against him:

• Ozzie Albies 1-18, 2B, 3 BB, 4 K
• Drake Baldwin 2-3
• Joey Bart 1-2, HR, BB
• Mauricio Dubon 1-3
• Kyle Farmer 1-14, 2B, 6 K
• Michael Harris II 2-6, BB, 2 K
• Matt Olson 4-13, 2B, HR, 3 BB, 2 K
• Austin Riley 7-18, 2B, 2 HR, BB, 2 K
• Dominic Smith 2-6, 2 K
• Eli White 1-4, HR
• Mike Yastrzemski 1-11, 2B, 2 K

Reynaldo López has pitched in 20 games this season including seven starts totaling 51 2/3 innings with a 3.31 ERA, 4.17 FIP, 1.297 WHIP and a 126 ERA+. López had been working out of the bullpen since April 29th through June 26. Over that time he had a 3.24 ERA over 25 innings. He rejoined the rotation on July 1st and allowed only one run from two hits over five innings. López pitched one inning of relief against the Mets in June allowing no runs off of no hits and two walks. The Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Francisco Alvarez 0-2, 2 K
• Brett Baty 0-2, BB, K
• Bo Bichette 2-4, 2B, K
• A.J. Ewing 0-1
• Francisco Lindor 3-23, HR, 3 BB, K
• Juan Soto 1-2, BB
• Tyrone Taylor 1-3, 2B, 2 K
• Luis Torrens 0-2, K
• Mark Vientos 0-1, BB

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Tyrone Taylor. Taylor has played in six games since returning from the injured list going 5-for-14 with two home runs. He’ll look to make it three games in a row tonight. Tyrone Taylor is going to be a free agent at the end of the season and with the way the Mets are currently playing, he’ll almost certainly be traded at the deadline. This is the time for Tyrone Taylor to show that he can play for a contender, or turn the Mets into a contender. (Wishful thinking?)
2. Top of the lineup clicking. Lindor, Soto and Bichette hit 1-2-3 yesterday and combined to go 6-for-13 with two walks, five runs scored and six RBI’s. The Mets entered play yesterday at the bottom of the league in team OPS. Things will only get better for the Mets with their superstars performing like superstars.
3. Momentum? The Mets finally had a positive day hitting with runners in scoring position yesterday. They went 5-for-7 yesterday with RISP. In the previous week the Mets had six hits with RISP. On the other hand, the Mets almost let it all slip away in embarrassing fashion. Will that completely evaporate the good things the Mets did yesterday? Will the Braves come into the day pressing after almost completing a historic come back?

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets have scored three runs in each of their last four games. They have won one of those games by a shutout, lost one close game and have been blown out twice. Taking a larger step back, the Mets have now lost 12 of their last 14 games. They entered this series against an Atlanta team that had lost eight of their last ten games. The Mets still have a chance to split this series, but that requires winning this afternoon’s game.

Nolan McLean has made 17 starts this season totaling 95 1/3 innings with a 3.78 ERA, 3.58 FIP, 1.122 WHIP and a 110 ERA+. He’s coming off of a solid start where he held the Blue Jays scoreless over six innings, scattering five hits while striking out nine. It was his fifth solid start in his last six as he has been finding his groove again recently. In his last four starts he has struck out 31 batters over 23 innings. Earlier in June he allowed two runs over four innings against the Braves who have the following career stats against him:

• Ozzie Albies 1-4, BB
• Drake Baldwin 1-3
• Mauricio Dubon 0-2
• Michael Harris II 0-5
• Matt Olson 0-5, 4 K
• Austin Riley 0-0, 2 BB
• Dominic Smith 1-2
• Mike Yastrzemski 1-2, K

Martín Pérez has pitched in 17 games this season making 13 starts totaling 77 innings with a 3.27 ERA, 4.29 FIP, 1.156 WHIP and a 126 ERA+. In his last two starts he has allowed seven runs from seven hits, including three home runs, over nine innings of work. In the two starts before that he allowed only two runs over 11 1/3 innings, including 5 1/3 innings of one run ball against the Mets. The Mets have the following career numbers against Pérez:

• Francisco Alvarez 0-4, 2 BB, K
• Brett Baty 1-2
• Carson Benge 0-2, K
• Bo Bichette 5-10, 2 2B, BB, K
• Francisco Lindor 8-19, 2B, 5 BB, K
• Juan Soto 4-10, HR, BB
• Tyrone Taylor2-3, BB
• Luis Torrens 0-6, BB, 3 K
• Mark Vientos 1-6, K
• Eric Wagaman 0-2, 2 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Mets Moral. The last several weeks have been real rough for the Mets. The Mets played .500 baseball for the couple of weeks in June, not gaining ground but not really losing ground. Now they have entered another tailspin where they have lost 12 of 14 games and fired their manager. On top of that over the last couple of days the team has had to answer questions about the relationship between their two top stars during last year’s end of the season collapse. The only thing that can disrupt this is to win games. We have seen this team when times are tough allow things to pile on, turning into lifeless play on the field. Hopefully last night was rock bottom for the Mets and they can start to turn it around.
2. Another game, the same problem. The Mets have been struggling massively with runners in scoring position over the last week. Last night the Mets went 1-for-9 with RISP, leaving 11 runners on base. Overall the Mets had 10 hits and two walks but were only able to turn that into three runs. All three runs the Mets scored came on home runs, which matches a trend we have seen this past week.
3. Juan Soto. Before last night’s game, Juan Soto was named the National League’s All-Star starting roster. It is his first time being an All-Star with the Mets after getting snubbed last season, a season where he ended with 6.1 bWAR, leading the league in stolen bases, walks and OBP. Soto has been having another All-Star quality season entering yesterday’s games leading the league in OBP, OPS, and OPS+.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets and Braves played one of the more memorable games in baseball history on July4th in Atlanta back in 1985. The game went 19-innings and finished just before four in the morning. Hopefully the only history that repeats itself from that night is a Mets win as this current Mets team is not set up to endure a marathon like that. Happy Independence Day!

Sean Manaea has pitched in 18 games and made four starts this season totaling 63 innings with a 4.71 ERA, 3.65 FIP, 1.365 WHIP and an 88 ERA+. He’s coming off of a start where he allowed two runs over 5 2/3 innings from three hits and two walks while striking out four. Overall in June Manaea pitched 29 innings with a 3.72 ERA and 3.59 FIP, giving the Mets a bit more consistency in the rotation. This includes a start against the Braves where he held them to two runs over six innings. The Braves have the following career stats against Manaea:

• Ozzie Albies 1-6, 2B
• Joey Bart 1-6, 4 K
• Mauricio Dubon 2-9
• Michael Harris II 0-5, 3 K
• Ha-Seong Kim 1-12, BB, 2 K
• Jorge Mateo 0-4, K
• Matt Olson 3-8, HR, 3 K
• Austin Riley 3-6, HR, BB, 2 K
• Dominic Smith 2-4, BB
• Eli White 3-5, 2B, K
• Mike Yastrzemski 2-8, 3B, BB, 3 K

Chris Sale is still Chris Sale, even at age 37. Over 15 starts this season Sale has pitched 90 innings with a 2.10 ERA, 2.56 FIP, 1.078 WHIP with a 196 ERA+. In his last two starts he has allowed four runs but only one earned over 11 2/3 innings while striking out 17 batters. The Mets have the following career stats against Chris Sale:

• Francisco Alvarez 0-2
• Bo Bichette 0-3, 2 K
• Francisco Lindor 14-38, 2 2B, 2 HR, BB, 9 K
• Ronny Mauricio 0-3, K
• Juan Soto 1-11, HR
• Tyrone Taylor 1-4, BB
• Luis Torrens 0-3
• Mark Vientos 0-3 2 K

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Surprises for Sean Manaea. Over the last month or so Sean Manaea has looked a lot more like his 2024 self. His Baseball Savant page still has quite a bit of blue on it, but there are some positives starting to pop out. His average exit velocity is 87.9 mph, good for the 68th percentile. He’s also getting hitters to chase 32.3% of the time, good for the 70th percentile. Considering his fastball velocity (90.3 mph, 4th percentile), these are positive surprises that he’s figuring out this version of himself.
2. Tweaks in Sale’s Pitch Selection. Last season Sale used his slider and four seamer almost 90% of the time. This year he has decreased his slider usage by 10% and his four seamer a bit. Instead he is throwing his changeup and sinker more. He tossed his changeup more in 2023 and 2024, but this year’s sinker usage is the highest since 2022.
3. July 4th, 1985. It’s a real shame that the SNY crew doesn’t have tonight’s broadcast. On Independence Day, 1985, the Mets and Braves played a 19-inning game that ended at 3:55 AM. Keith Hernandez hit for the cycle. Rick Camp, a pitcher on the Braves, hit an 18th inning home run to send the game into the 19th inning. The Mets scored five runs in the top of the 19th to eventually win the game. The Braves still launched their 4th of July fireworks after the game, which functioned more like an alarm clock in Atlanta.

Let’s Go Mets!

The 2026 season has felt like series of one step forward, two steps backward moments. The Mets beat the Blue Jays 3-0 on Tuesday thanks to a pair of solo home runs and solid pitching. The next day the Mets completely imploded behind Freddy Peralta. Now they head to Atlanta for a four game set. Both the Mets and the Braves have each lost eight of their last ten games. The Mets are 15 games below 500 while the Braves are 15 games above, and are feeling the pressure from the Phillies right behind them. The Braves will be highly motivated to get a four game sweep of the Mets this weekend. The Mets are just trying to survive right now.

Christian Scott has made 10 starts this season, totaling 45 innings with a 3.20 ERA, 3.93 FIP, 1.333 WHIP and a 130 ERA+. His last start was his first since returning from the injured list and he allowed two runs from three hits over 4 1/3 innings while striking out six. It was his second consecutive start striking out at least six batters, but also his second consecutive start allowing at least one home run. The Braves have the following career stats against Scott:

• Ozzie Albies 0-3
• Joey Bart 0-2, K
• Michael Harris II 3-3
• Matt Olson 0-3, 3 K
• Austin Riley 0-2, BB, K
• Mike Yastrzemski 0-2, K

Grant Holmes has pitched in 16 games this season totaling 77 1/3 innings with a 3.96 ERA, 5.19 FIP, 1.358 WHIP and a 104 ERA+. In his last two starts he has allowed one run over 8 2/3 innings from four hits and five walks while striking out eight. In his two starts before that he allowed six runs from eight hits and five walks over 5 2/3 innings while striking out four. The Mets have the following career stats against Holmes:

• Brett Baty 1-1, BB
• Bo Bichette 0-3, 2 K
• Francisco Lindor 1-3, K
• Ronny Mauricio 1-2, K
• Juan Soto 0-3, BB
• Tyrone Taylor 0-3, 2 K
• Luis Torrens 0-3, 2 K
• Eric Wagaman 1-3, 2B

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Carson Benge. Benge is coming off of a 2-for-4 afternoon with a solo home run, his 10th of the season. He now has a 1.5 bWAR with a 100 OPS+ for the season to go with 11 stolen stole bases. The power has really started to come out the last month of the season. Since June 2nd he has slashed .281/.328/.491 with two doubles, two triples and six home runs. His xwOBA has been above the league average for his last 100 PA’s. Things are bleak for the Mets right now, but it’s not because of Carson Benge.
2. Hitting with RISP. The Mets really struggled across the board on Wednesday. They only had one at bat with RISP and went 0-for-1. In their last four games they’ve now gone 2-for-33 with RISP. The power is there for the Mets, who have hit four home runs in their last two games, they’re just not doing it with a lot of runners on base.
3. Michael Harris II Fan Club. English football fans invaded Truist Park earlier this week and adopted Michael Harris II as their favorite player. Maybe the Braves fans will have learned a few things from the English fans? Listen for chants like “There’s only one Michael Harris” which is quite funny considering he’s Michael Harris II and his son is Michael “Trip” Harris III.

Let’s Go Mets!

Happy Canada Day! The Mets look to take the series from the Blue Jays this afternoon in Toronto! The Mets had lost four of their last five games going into last night’s bout with the Blue Jays. Each loss was by exactly one run. Last night the Mets offense hit two solo homers and scratched out a late insurance run to beat the Blue Jays 3-0. Hopefully it’s enough momentum to carry the team to a series victory today!

Every Peralta start from here on is important. Either the Mets are going to go on a legendary run, or the Mets are going to have a fire sale. A fire sale would be centered around Freddy Peralta. Peralta has made 17 starts totaling 91 1/3 innings with a 4.53 ERA, 4.17 FIP, 1.369 WHIP and a 91 ERA+. He allowed three runs, all unearned, in his last start totaling 5 2/3 innings while striking out five batters. It was a nice bounce back from his previous start where he allowed 10 runs from 10 hits in 2 2/3 innings. The Blue Jays have the following career stats against Peralta:

• Andrés Giménez 0-5, K
• Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 0-6, K
• Alejandro Kirk 1-2, 2B
• Nathan Lukes 0-2
• Myles Straw 0-2, K
• Luis Urias 0-2, 2 K
• Daulton Varsho 1-6, BB, 2 K

Braydon Fisher has pitched in 41 games already this season totaling 44 innings with five starts. He has a 3.48 ERA, 4.47 FIP, 1.136 WHIP and a 130 ERA+. He has pitched 5 2/3 innings over his five starts as an opener allowing no runs on three hits and four walks while striking out seven. In his last two outings he has pitched three innings allowing four runs, three earned on two homers. No one on the Mets has faced Fisher in a Major League game before.

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Still searching for hits with RISP. Despite the Mets win yesterday, they still haven’t found any recent success with runners in scoring position. On Sunday the Mets went 2-for-16 with RISP leaving 14 runners on base. Monday the Mets went 0-for-9 with RISP leaving seven on base. Last night the Mets went 0-for-7 with RISP leaving seven again on base. All together in their last three games the Mets have gone 2-for-32 with RISP leaving 28 runners on base.
2. Mets are slowing flashing more power. Luis Torrens and Francisco Alvarez each hit solo homers last night. Francisco Lindor hit his third home run of the season on Monday night. Slowly the Mets are starting to show more signs of power returning to their lineup. They currently have 96 home runs as a team and sit 17th in the majors. In 2025 the Mets were 5th in the league and 2024 they were 6th.
3. Juan Soto is quietly putting together another Juan Soto season. Juan Soto picked up two more walks yesterday brining him to 45 on the season and ten walks in his last eight games played. He has a league leading .971 OPS and 170 OPS+. It seems like over the last week or so teams are pitching around Soto, betting (correctly) that the hitters behind him won’t bring him home.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets have lost four of their last five games. Each of those losses were by one run. Things look more bleak if you take a step back. The Mets have lost nine of their last ten games. Two of those games featured eight unearned runs. In last night’s game they allowed a little league home run. The Mets enter play today with 50 losses on the season and are 15 games below 500.

On the positive side, today is Nolan McLean day!

Nolan McLean has made 16 starts this year totaling 89 1/3 innings with a 4.03 ERA, 3.69 FIP, 1.119 WHIP and a 103 ERA+. He has a 10.7 K/9, striking out 106 batters this season and this rate matches his K/9 from last year. He’s just walking batters a bit more and hitters are hitting more home runs against him. McLean is coming off of a start against the Cubs where he allowed six runs over six innings from two home runs while striking out nine batters. His start before that was brilliant, going seven innings allowing only one, unearned run while striking out nine. This will be Nolan’s first start against the Blue Jays and no one on the Blue Jays has faced McLean in a Major League.

The Mets batters will try to find themselves tonight against Kevin Gausman. Gausman has made 17 starts this season totaling 95 innings with a 4.36 ERA, 3.78 FIP, 1.189 WHIP and a 103 ERA+. In his last two starts he has allowed 13 runs over eight innings. Overall in the month of June he has a 7.62 ERA, 6.18 FIP over five starts. One start was great (one run over seven) and everything else has been forgettable. The Mets have the following career numbers against Gausman:

• Francisco Lindor 4-11, 2B, HR, 2 BB, 2 K
• Juan Soto 8-17, 2 2B, HR, 12 BB, 2 K
• Tyrone Taylor 0-2, K
• Luis Torrens 0-2
• Mark Vientos 0-2
• Eric Wagaman 2-3, HR

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Please get a hit with RISP. On Sunday the Mets lost 5-4 against the Phillies and went 2-for-16 with runners in scoring position, leaving 14 runners on. Last night the Mets went 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position leaving seven runners on including two in the ninth inning. In this current era of the Mets losing streak (four of the last five games) the Mets are always just one hit away from a completely different result.
2. Soto working walks. Soto’s baseball savant page is full of red, like it always is. He’s in the 100th percentile for xwOBA, xBA, xSLG and the 99th percentile for squared-up percentage. He’s in the 96th percentile for his walk rate, sitting at 15.3%, and it has been ticking up recently. Soto has walked eight times in the last seven games. For context, he has 35 walks on the season and has played in 66 games. He has 12 career walks against Kevin Gausman with a .690 OBP.
3. Ewing giveth. Ewing taketh. Before yesterday’s game we talked about the hot streak the Ewing had been on for his last five games (8-for-16). If we take a larger step back, he’s been crushing it for his last 12 games slashing .351/.455/.595 with three doubles, two home runs and 10 RBI’s. He’s also been caught stealing three times in that 12 game stretch, bringing him to six on the year. He also added a fielding error last night to boot.

Let’s Go Mets!