At this point, it’s clear Jason Vargas isn’t just pitching with a fork in him; he’s got the whole utensil drawer there. As such, it’s time to look for someone to replace him in the rotation. While Mets fans have been imploring the team to add Dallas Keuchel, it seems like the Mets would not be willing to add that much payroll.
Fortunately, the Mets still have some very interesting internal options:
Seth Lugo – definitively the Mets fifth best starter, but he arguably has more value in the bullpen.
Robert Gsellman – hasn’t had the success in the bullpen everyone imagined he be and may just be better suited to the rotation
Corey Oswalt – it’s hard to get a read on him with how the Mets have jerked him around, but he’s still had flashes of viability
Chris Flexen – he has a surgically repaired knee and is in terrific shape giving hope he can finally put that fastball/curve combo to good use.
Anthony Kay – Mets haven’t been shy rushing starters from Double-A to the majors, and Kay has excellent spin rates on his fastball and curve.
David Peterson – the Mets 2017 first round pick is off to a good start, which is more than you can say for Vargas.
Hector Santiago – he was an All-Star in 2015, and based on what we’ve seen having previously being an All-Star is all you need to get a rotation spot.
Drew Gagnon – in his one start last year, he at least managed to pitch into the fifth, which is much better than what we’ve seen this year.
P.J. Conlon – last year, Conlon showed he shouldn’t be trusted for more than 2-3 innings. It’d be nice to get a fifth starter who could provide that much length.
Walker Lockett – he’s in Extended Spring Training with an injury, and he had a 9.60 ERA in the majors last year, so all told, he’s an upgrade.
Mickey Jannis – there’s a better chance he turns into the next R.A. Dickey than Vargas has another quality start
Paul Sewald – Mets have never been worried about pushing Sewald too far, so certainly, you could see them randomly asking five from him, and those five would likely be better than any five Vargas throws this year.
Nelson Figueroa – if he was good enough for the Mets to lose Darren O’Day, he’s certainly good enough to pitch in Vargas’ stead.
Mickey Callaway – had a 6.27 career ERA and last pitched in the majors 15 years ago, which means his arm is probably fresh enough to hit the mid 80s.
Luis Guillorme – it’s not like they’re using him as the team’s backup middle infielder, and we know he’d at least be able to field his position well, which unlike Vargas, would be at least one thing Guillorme could do well as a pitcher.
Devin Mesoraco – since people want to claim he was the reason Jacob deGrom won a Cy Young, maybe he could take that expert knowledge and turn it into pitching effectively instead of sulking at home.
J.D. Davis – he has a career 3.38 ERA in limited appearances, which make sense considering he hits and fields his position like a pitcher.
Dominic Smith – Smith pitched well in high school, which is a higher level than Vargas can get out right now.
Pete Alonso – his being on the Opening Day roster was supposed to be the difference between the Mets making the postseason and not. With Vargas being terrible every fifth day, he’s apparently going to need to do more than hit.
And therein lies the problem. The Mets sold their fans they desperately needed 12 games from Alonso while simultaneously punting 32 starts from the fifth spot in the rotation. That’s an even bigger joke than anything said in this post.
For all the talk about every game counts, Jason Vargas entered the season as the unchallenged fifth starter. Somehow, he’s failed to clear the subterranean bar set for him this season with tonight being his worst performance.
Vargas lasted just one-third of an inning allowing four earned on two hits and three walks. Now, you may want to say two of those runs were scored after he left the game, but that would be wrong considering he needed 36 pitches to get just one out.
This put the game in Corey Oswalt‘s hands to salvage.
While Oswalt did get out of the inning, the Braves got to him as well scoring four runs off him in the second. To be fair to Oswalt, just like all of last year, the Mets once again put him in a position to fail.
Oswalt was called up earlier in the week to be prepared to make a relief appearance on just three days rest. Then, after the team didn’t pitch him, they had him trying to stay sharp on what was now extended rest. Finally, they asked a starter to hurry up and loosen up to enter a game with runners in scoring position. This is not how you handle or develop pitchers.
Partially because of the Mets being stubborn and plain stupid in trusting Vargas as the fifth starter and partially due to their mishandling of Oswalt, they’d lost what was a winnable game.
Like Vargas, Braves starter Sean Newcomb was bad. After escaping the first inning due to a questionable base running decision by Pete Alonso, he was bad and would not escape the second.
Travis d’Arnaud got the rally started with his first hit since coming off the IL. He and Keon Broxton would score on a Juan Lagares RBI double. Oswalt would help himself and tie the score with a sacrifice fly.
After the aforementioned bad top of the third for Oswalt, the Mets were chasing the Braves all night. The key difference between the Mets and Braves was while the Mets messed around with Oswalt, the Braves had Touki Touissaint. Touissaint was very good for the Braves stabilizing the game and saving their bullpen.
This meant even though Chad Sabodka was shaky in the final two innings, the Braves still had plenty of cushion in what would become an 11-7 Braves.
As if this were not enough, Ron Darling announced he needs to take a leave of absence to have surgery to remove a mass in his chest. More than anything that happened on the field, this was the absolute worst development of the day. Thoughts and prayers go to Darling for a speedy recovery.
Game Notes: Oswalt became the first Mets pitcher since John Maine in 2007 to have a sacrifice fly and a sacrifice bunt. Mickey Callaway was ejected in the first for arguing balls and strikes.
Yesterday, Dominic Smith received his second start of the season, and much like the rest of the season, he hit. In five plate appearances, he was 2-for-4 with a run and a walk.
With that performance, Smith is now hitting .438/.526/.500. Seeing those results, his age, and his previously being considered among the Top 100 prospects in the game, you’d believe the Mets would be doing everything they could do to get him into the lineup.
The problem is Smith plays first base, a position now occupied by Pete Alonso and with the way Alonso is playing, there’s no way you’re having him sit to create more playing time for anyone else on this roster.
Now, it should be noted Smith played left field last year. He wasn’t not good there at all. In 90.0 MLB innings, he had a -5 DRS and a -3.1 UZR. Part of the reason why was his poor speed.
Baseball Savant had Smith’s sprint speed at 26.3 ft/second. Coincidentally, that was the same foot speed as Rhys Hoskins, another first baseman poorly masquerading as a left fielder. With respect to Hoskins, the Phillies moving Carlos Santana was partially motivated by their wanting to get Hoskins out of left.
Absent any improvements, you’d be hard pressed to find a reason why Smith would post better numbers than Hoskins -24 DRS and -11.3 UZR in left. This may have been one of the reasons why the Mets abandoned the experiment heading into this season. The question now is whether the Mets should revisit this decision.
Seeing Smith this year, he’s been in better shape, and he’s been quicker than in years past. Part of that is his getting better sleep with his sleep apnea mask. Between his better conditioning, his having experience in left, and with his now hitting, the Mets have plenty of reasons to believe Smith could now succeed in left.
In fact, as Matt Ehalt of Yahoo reports, both Smith and his agent have approached the Mets about playing left field. The Mets outright rejected the idea. The end result is Smith has no real avenue to play.
While you understand why the Mets wouldn’t want to revisit the idea, it may be short-sighted. The team is already poor defensively in left with Jeff McNeil, and they have been poor defensively at third when J.D. Davis plays there. If you put McNeil at third, where he is better suited, and Smith in left, the Mets are still weak in left, but overall, they’re better defensively.
They would also be better offensively, especially with the way Smith is hitting.
Even if the Mets don’t want Smith in left everyday, there’s value in just getting him on the field more frequently. That value is an even better offense than what we have already seen. It’s also more versatility for a manager who seems intent on setting the major league record for double switches.
Mostly, this is about finding a way to maximize the talent on the Mets roster. Smith in left field could help them accomplish that.
This was certainly a different Mets lineup. It was a mixture of overreacting to slow starts (Brandon Nimmo hitting eighth) and getting guys some rest (Dominic Smith over Pete Alonso) with the Mets in the midst of a playing 13 games over 14 days in four different cities.
Starting with a Nimmo homer in the top of the second, it quickly appeared Mickey Callaway made the right moves:
Love to see that smile. Love to see that result. ??? pic.twitter.com/cdZ5nlN0gZ
— New York Mets (@Mets) April 13, 2019
In the fourth, the Mets effectively put this game away. After Keon Broxton had a leadoff walk, Nimmo was bunting for don’t reason. Fortunately, he reached. Soon, the doubles started coming.
Jeff McNeil, Robinson Cano, and Michael Conforto‘s doubles off Kyle Wright increased the Mets lead to 6-1. Zack Wheeler and the Mets bullpen made sure this game was never in doubt.
Wheeler was getting his fastball up to triple digits on multiple occasions.
I’d say Zack Wheeler is a little amped up to pitch close to home. He hit 100 four times and topped out at 101 in the first inning.
Also threw a slider at 95.4 mph.
— Michael Mayer (@mikemayer22) April 12, 2019
Over six innings, Wheeler allowed two earned on six hits and three walks with eight strikeouts. So much for his slow start.
After Wheeler, Justin Wilson and Seth Lugo combined to shut down the Braves over the final three innings to make this as easy a win as you’ve seen the Mets have this season. It’s also a sign the Mets might be just that much better than these Braves.
Game Notes: Callaway indicated with the left-handed Sean Newcomb starting tomorrow, Cano would have his first day off with Luis Guillorme getting the start. Callaway also hinted there would be more changes.
As we are now well aware, the Mets bucked conventional wisdom by putting Pete Alonso on the Opening Day roster. The decision was apparently driven by the belief every game counts, and the Mets were not willing to miss out on October to gain an extra year of control over Alonso. Seeing what happened in 2007 and 2008, you could understand the decision.
However, given how this was a departure from conventional wisdom, this is a decision which should be scrutinized. Really, the only way to do that is to measure Alonso’s performance over the subject time frame:
Game 1
Score: Mets 2 – Nationals 0
Line: 1-4, 2 K
Impact: Alonso had a key two out single to continue an eighth inning rally which provided the Mets with an insurance run.
Quick Synopsis: Like some predicted, Alonso struggled against Max Scherzer and his slider, but then again, who doesn’t. His single moved Dominic Smith to second. Smith started the rally with a walk against Scherzer, and he stayed in the game for defense.
Game 2
Score: Mets 11 – Nationals 8
Line: 3-4, R, 2 2B, 2 RBI, BB, K
Impact: Alonso got things started with a single in the first setting up a three run inning. He helped expand the lead with an RBI double in the second. When the game had tightened, Alonso gave the Mets some breathing room with an RBI double making it 8-4.
Quick Synopsis: Alonso did not look remotely phased by Stephen Strasburg, and he would say after the game his facing Strasburg in Spring Training helped him for the game. Certainly, his being in the lineup was a difference maker in this game.
Game 3
Score: Nationals 6 – Mets 5
Line: 2-4, 2B, RBI, BB
Impact: Alonso was the one bat in the lineup who was working, and he would play a part in one of the two runs the Mets scored before their bats woke up in the eighth (he did not come up to bat). He would ground out leading off the ninth.
Quick Synopsis: Alonso was undaunted by Patrick Corbin reaching base all three times he faced him. With the game tied in the ninth, he would ground out against Sean Doolittle.
Game 4
Score: Mets 7 – Marlins 3
Line: 1-5, R, HR, 3 RBI, 2 K
Impact: Alonso struggled for most of the game, but he did put the game away with a massive three run homer capping off a four run top of the ninth.
Quick Synopsis: Alonso did not fare well against Marlins starter Caleb Smith striking out two and flying out in his other at-bat. To put it into perspective, the Mets as a team only recorded four hits and struck out eight times against Smith in his five innings of work.
Game 5
Score: Mets 6 – Marlins 5
Line: 0-1, K
Impact: Alonso made his first pinch hitting appearance with runners on second and third with two outs. He struck out against Marlins reliever Wei-Yin Chen on three pitches.
Quick Synopsis: With the Marlins starting Jose Urena, and Smith getting off to a terrific start as a pinch hitter/defensive replacement, the Mets opted to give him the start. Smith was 2-5 with run, RBI, and strikeout.
Game 6
Score: Mets 6 – Marlins 4
Line: 2-4, R, RBI, K
Impact: With Jacob deGrom starting, Alonso effectively put the game out of reach with an RBI double in the third which made the game 3-0 Mets at the time. He was also in the midst of a seventh inning rally with a single and eventually scoring what proved to be a much needed insurance run.
Quick Synopsis: After being 1-6 with three strikeouts to start the series, Alonso rebounded having a good game against Trevor Richards and the Marlins bullpen.
Game 7
Score: Nationals 4 – Mets 0
Line: 0-4, 2 K
Impact: Alonso only came up to the plate with a runner on base in the eighth. At the time, it was 2-0 Nationals, and it would stay that way as he would strike out against Nationals reliever Matt Grace.
Quick Synopsis: Like the rest of his teammates, Alonso struggled after the team flew out late from Miami and had to play a day game. While he had his first hitless start, he did reach base in the first after Strasburg made an error.
Game 8
Score: Mets 6 – Nationals 5
Line: 2-4, R, 2B, HR, RBI, 2 K
Impact: Alonso sparked the game winning rally hitting a homer to lead off the eighth inning.
Quick Synopsis: The Mets were staring down losing two in a row to start their first home stand of the season before Alonso sparked a rally. His homer was the springboard for a Mets offense which began hitting a series of homers in the ensuing games.
Game 9
Score: Nationals 12 – Mets 9
Line: 2-4, 2 R, 2B, HR, 3 RBI, BB, K
Impact: Alonso doubled and homered for the second straight game. His homer in the seventh helped charge a Mets offense trying to overcome an 11 run deficit, and his ninth inning walk set up another rally which would fall short.
Quick Synopsis: After having been dominated by Scherzer over his first few career plate appearances against him, including a double play and strikeout in this game, Alonso finally broke through with a double against Scherzer in the sixth.
Game 10
Score: Twins 14 – Mets 8
Line: 2-5, 2 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2 K
Impact: After failing to reach base in his first three at-bats, Alonso homered in the seventh to pull the Mets to within three. He’d then homer again in the ninth, but that would only pull the Mets to within eight. That is partially because his eighth inning error led to the Twins scoring three unearned runs against Robert Gsellman.
Quick Synopsis: Not too much emphasis should be placed on that error because Gsellman was bad otherwise, and balls were flying out of Citi Field. If there is anywhere to criticize him, it is his inability to deliver in an RBI opportunity in the fifth against a weakening Kyle Gibson, but that is probably going too far considering how well he has been playing.
Game 11
Score: Mets 9 – Twins 6
Line: 0-2, R, RBI, 2 BB
Impact: This would prove to be Alonso’s first hitless game in his professional career, but he did contribute by being one of the several Mets who walked in the six run fifth inning.
Quick Synopsis: For seemingly the first time all year, Alonso wasn’t one of the driving forces of the Mets offense, and yet despite that he still contributed to the win.
Game 12
Score: Mets 6 – Braves 3
Line: 2-4, R, HR, 2 RBI, BB, 2 K
Impact: On a night where it seemed Steven Matz and Amed Rosario were going to be the story, everyone was talking about Alonso and the monster home run he hit providing the Mets with additional insurance runs in their 6-1 win.
Quick Synopsis: Like he has been more much of the season, Alonso struggled against the starter before feasting on the poor relief pitching thrown his way.
Through his first 12 games, Alonso is hitting .378/.452/1.037 with six doubles, six homers, and 17 RBI. With Alonso hitting second in the lineup, the Mets are 8-4, which is not only good enough for sole possession of an already tight National League East, but it is also good enough for the best record in the National League.
Clearly, Alonso was good enough to make an impact this early in the season, and so far, he has been a real difference maker. We can dicker over his level of impact, but he has played a role in all eight Mets wins this season. Also, while Smith has gotten off to a good start himself, it is not fair to either player to say the Mets would be better, worse, or the same.
Whether this is the right decision is still up for debate.
The main reason why it is still up for debate is the Mets theory behind putting Alonso on the Opening Day roster was they were going to carry their 25 best players, and they were selling their fans that every game counts. Right now, Jason Vargas is the fifth starter with little to no real depth behind him. If every game counts, the Mets need an answer for why they’re over-focusing on Alonso’s 12 games while punting on at least 30 games from your rotation.
As for Alonso, he’s been great, but there are warning signs. As noted by Mark Simon of Sports Info Solutions, Alonso is hitting just .233 with no homers and 14 strikeouts in 30 at-bats against starting pitching. There are more troubling signs like his striking out in 30.4% of his plate appearances, and even with how hard he is hitting the baseball, his .455 BABIP is going to eventually regress to the mean. Even if you still believe the talk was a bit overblown, we have also seen talk of his struggles against the slider were real.
On defense, he’s getting all the balls thrown to first, but we are seeing some cracks in his game. He’s already botched two groundballs. On one, it helped lead to a tough inning for his pitcher. On the other, he was bailed out by Robinson Cano and Noah Syndergaard.
Of course, the negative is not the full story. Simon also notes Alonso is killing relievers hitting .643 off of them with six homers. He’s also had the knack for the big moment going 9-14 with all six of his homers happening in the seventh inning or later.
If you look through all that has happened, you can see Alonso has largely been what scouts have said of him. He’s struggled against better pitching, and he has feasted on weaker pitching. He’s going to hit the ball hard, have good plate discipline, but he’s also going to strike out at a high clip. Defensively, he’s a liability who is not going to kill you because he can handle throws well.
What is unknowable at this point is whether some time in Syracuse would have benefited him in the long run or if he was better seeing Major League pitching and working with Chili Davis. Based upon his start, it’s very fair to say the latter is the much more stronger argument.
Overall, Alonso and the Mets have passed the first test. Alonso has been the best player on this team, Jacob deGrom included, and he has been a driving force in the Mets having the best record in the National League. From this 12 game snapshot, which is very relevant, the Mets ABSOLUTELY did the right thing.
However, going forward, the jury is still out. Ultimately, we will know if the Mets did the right thing if they back this up. They first have to back it up by addressing at least one of the rotation and bullpen. To that point, it must be noted Craig Kimbrel and Dallas Keuchel are still available. Also, since the Mets have willfully done away with a year of control over Alonso, they must back it up by doing the right thing when the time comes. Should that happen, it would be very difficult to argue against their decision.
Right now, we are seeing Pete Alonso do things which have not been done in Major League history. While he will have plenty of competition from the likes of Fernando Tatis Jr., Alonso has jumped out to an early lead in Rookie of the Year candidacy. If he does win, he will be the 14th first baseman to win the Rookie of the Year. Can you name them? Good luck!
Jackie Robinson Walt Dropo Orlando Cepeda Willie McCovey Chris Chambliss Mike Hargrove Alvin Davis Mark McGwire Jeff Bagwell Eric Karros Ryan Howard Jose Abreu Cody Bellinger
Before the season, it was expected the National League East would be extraordinarily tight, and so far it has proven to be true. Entering this series, the Mets, Braves, and Phillies had a 7-4 record, and the Nationals were 6-5.
Entering the season, the Mets were looking for something to separate themselves from the pack. One of those things is the possibility Steven Matz and/or Amed Rosario could break out. Tonight, against the Braves, we got a glimpse as to what that might look like.
In Matz’s last start, he appeared to figure something out. Aside from a pair of very hard hit balls, Matz carried that success into tonight.
Now, the Johan Camargo homer was going to be a homer regardless. However, you do expect Juan Lagares to bail him out on that Ronald Acuna, Jr. triple.
Solid start to the evening.#ChopOn pic.twitter.com/oOEjnMU8yD
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) April 11, 2019
That speaks to Lagares’ insane ability out there more than it does how catchable that ball was. Seriously, there are maybe three center fielders who could even be in position to make that play.
Those were but two of the four hits Matz allowed as he shut down the Braves. At one point, he would retire 13 in a row. Overall, he would pitch six innings allowing just those two runs while walking one and striking out eight.
He’d be in line for the win because Rosario was great tonight.
First, there was the no doubter three run homer off Kevin Gausman in the second inning:
.@Amed_Rosario pulled out the driver for this one. ? #Crushed pic.twitter.com/eZxbDnfICY
— New York Mets (@Mets) April 11, 2019
Rosario came up in the sixth with runners on the corners and two outs, and the Braves went to the bullpen to bring in Wes Parsons. Rosario would hit an opposite field RBI single to increase the Mets lead to 4-2.
Rosario accounted for the first four Mets runs. The next two came courtesy of a monster Pete Alonso homer:
Unmatched power. ? #Crushed pic.twitter.com/aAfTpX9zQK
— New York Mets (@Mets) April 12, 2019
Alonso 118.3
Cespedes 115.1 x2
Conforto 114.9 x2
Duda 114.8— Jacob Resnick (@Jacob_Resnick) April 12, 2019
For a moment, that 6-2 lead didn’t look like it’d be enough. All season long, the Mets bullpen has been suspect, and Robert Gsellman has been one of those frustrating relievers.
He’d load the bases with one out, and against expectations, Gsellman would get out of the jam. First, he’d strike out Ozzie Albies, and then he’d get Josh Donaldson to ground out to get out of the jam.
Luis Avilan wasn’t as lucky. After retiring Freddie Freeman to start the eighth, Acuna hit a bomb to make it 6-3. The Braves pinch hitting Charlie Culberson, the Mets went to Jeurys Familia for the final two outs of the inning.
Edwin Diaz then came on and recorded his fifth save in as many chances for the Mets. Although, it should be mentioned it wasn’t easy with Freeman coming up as the tying run (he struck out). This is definitely a Mets thing.
With the win, the Mets are ahead of the Braves in the standings for at least a day, and on this day, the difference makers were Matz and Rosario.
Game Notes: Justin Wilson hasn’t pitched since April 6th as he has been sick. Keon Broxton pinch ran for Alonso in the ninth and stole second.
The Mets finished their first homestand of the season going 2-3, and now they are embark on a brutal road trip taking them through Atlanta, Philadelphia, and St. Louis. Here are some observations before the Mets set off for that trip:
- Jacob deGrom just didn’t have it. It was bound to happen, but it was still startling to see.
- Anyone who even suggests deGrom’s struggles were related to Travis d’Arnaud behind the plate simply doesn’t know anything about baseball. It wasn’t d’Arnaud who caused the chilly weather, nor was it the weather which caused deGrom to miss his pitches by a foot.
- Baseball is funny sometimes. After thorough research shows Citi Field suppresses exit velocities, the ball was flying out of Citi Field. Of course, when you have power hitters like Pete Alonso and Michael Conforto that will happen anyway.
- In one series, Mitch Garver went from a nameless guy to the second coming of Mike Piazza.
- Jason Vargas was terrible, and it is simply inexcusable he was not so much as challenged for the fifth starter spot.
- The Mets have gotten away with calling up Alonso saying every game matters while carrying Vargas as the fifth starter and having Tim Peterson in the bullpen. Why do fans just let the Mets get away with pushing narratives like this?
- The booing of Brandon Nimmo and d’Arnaud was embarrassing. Mets fans should be better than that.
- And just like that, in his last three games, Nimmo is 4-for-10, with two doubles, a homer, three RBI, a walk, and a HBP.
- What the Mets did to Corey Oswalt is inexcusable. He effectively lost a year getting jerked around by the team, and the first chance this new regime gets, they call him up on three days rest to sit in the bullpen.
- Oswalt should be making Vargas’ start this Saturday, and if he doesn’t the Mets cannot pitch Oswalt until then because they may need him to piggyback that start.
- These two games were miserable creating difficult pitching situations. It led to deGrom’s struggles, and it likely led to Jeurys Familia‘s, but that’s now two bad outings from him. Too soon to overreact, but not too soon to take notice.
- After J.D. Davis‘ two home run game, he’s back to being Davis. He his 42.9% of his balls on the ground, and he has hit 45.8% on the ground this year. His inability to make a play at third led to Familia getting in trouble, and he almost botched a double play only to be saved by Luis Guillorme making an amazing turn.
- With Todd Frazier getting a rehab start at SS, it would seem Guillorme will be the odd man out, which is a shame because he’s doing everything he could do to stay. It’s at the point where he’s having to wear batting gloves because he has blisters from all his extra batting practice. He’s also been really good in the field.
- When you have players fighting this hard to stay in the majors, you will get the best results not just from them, but also from the players they are pushing. We are seeing some of that with this team.
- Robinson Cano has a knack for the moment with two big home runs already and a walk yesterday. That said, his overall body of work has not been good. He may be a slow starter, but he has never been this slow. It’s something worth monitoring with his age, PED suspension, and the Mets history on this front (Roberto Alomar).
- Mets are going to regret waking up the Nationals. They went from a team in trouble to a team who took consecutive road series from the red hot Mets and Phillies.
- There may be some holes and warning signs with Alonso here and there, including his having difficulty on two grounders this series, but pointing them out would be being a killjoy. So far, Alonso has been great, and the only things people should point out is how great he has been.
- We should not care what his final stat line said. Noah Syndergaard was dominant yesterday, and when you consider how everyone else pitched, he looked all the more so. Really, if not for some poor defense, he gets through the eighth unscathed.
- Good for Jay Bruce hitting seven homers so far this season and helping the Mariners to a 12-2 start. He gave the Mets everything he had, and it was not his fault it was a poor fit.
- In waht was promised to be a tight NL East, we have the Mets, Braves, and Phillies tied atop the division with a 7-4 record with the Nationals right behind them at 6-5.
Through the first four innings, the Mets could not buy a hit against Jake Odorizzi. Then after a Jeff McNeil one out single in the fifth, the Twins could not get a batter out.
- Amed Rosario – BB
- J.D. Davis – BB
- Noah Syndergaard– BB
- Brandon Nimmo – HBP
- Pete Alonso – BB
- Robinson Cano – BB
- Michael Conforto – BB
- Wilson Ramos – 1B
The Twins went through three pitchers, and they allowed six runs on two hits. It could have been worse for them if not fog McNeil having the TOOBLAN of TOOBLANs.
Odorizzi threw a pitch to the backstop while Syndergaard was at the plate. With it being a fastball, it sprung right back to Mitch Garver. With Garver getting to it quickly, McNeil froze directly between third and home. He stood there as Garver got it to Odorizzi making it easy for the Twins to get the out when McNeil opted to go back to third.
Fortunately, with the Twins being incapable of throwing a strike, the rally would not die there.
That five run lead was more than enough for Syndergaard, who was dominant until the top of eighth. By that time, the Mets were already going to their bench with Keon Broxton and Luis Guillorme entering into the game in the seventh as pinch runners. Both would score in a three run inning giving the Mets a 9-1 lead.
Syndergaard’s final line would not prove to be as impressive as his outing. With the Twins starting the eighth with five straight hits off him and Jeurys Familia, he would allow four runs on five hits with no walks and seven strikeouts in seven plus innings.
That eighth inning was getting out of hand with Familia loading the bases before getting a ground ball from Willians Astudillo. Even with the Davis bobble, the Mets were able to turn two because of Guillorme’s lightning quick turn at second.
With Guillorme helping limit the damage, the Mets escaped the top of the eighth with a 9-5 lead.
That doesn’t mean the Mets bullpen was out of trouble. In the ninth, Edwin Diaz allowed his first run as a Met when Garver homered off of him. Diaz would then get out of the inning securing the Mets 9-6 win.
The Mets ended their first homestead of the season 2-3, and they now head on a tough road trip taking them through Atlanta, Philadelphia, and St. Louis. At least they’re starting that trip coming off a win.
Game Notes: Alonso had his first hitless start, but he still reached base with two walks.
Since Jacob deGrom burst onto the scene in 2014, he has emerged as easily one of the five best pitchers in Mets history, and he is arguably third behind just Tom Seaver and Dwight Gooden (although Jerry Koosman would like a word here). Going through his career, there are a number of signature performances from deGrom, but as we sort through them all, there are two games which should stand as his signature performances.
The first is Game 1 of the 2015 NLDS. In that game, deGrom out-pitched Clayton Kershaw. In his seven shutout innings, he allowed just one walk and five hits while striking out 13 batters. It was as dominant a postseason performance any Mets pitcher has ever had.
That game set the Mets on a path which had them winning the pennant that year. Of course, they do not win the pennant if deGrom does not survive and get the Mets in position to win Game 5 of that series.
It seemed deGrom was in trouble all six of the innings he pitched that night. What’s insane to think about is deGrom did not have a 1-2-3 inning that game until the sixth. Worse yet, in each of the first five innings, the Dodgers had a runner in scoring position with less than two outs.
Despite all of that, deGrom somehow managed to keep the game tied going into the seventh inning setting the stage for Daniel Murphy‘s homer, Noah Syndergaard coming out of the bullpen throwing 100 MPH, and Jeurys Familia with the six out save.
While deGrom had an all-time Cy Young winning season last year, arguably, the 2015 NLDS was deGrom at his best. One night he went out there, and he just dominated the Dodgers. The next, he used guile to get through that lineup to pick up the win. That series was everything you think of when you think of deGrom, and it happened in the postseason.
His catcher in that series? Travis d’Arnaud.
It’s easy to forget, but d’Arnaud has caught deGrom, and he has caught him well. It was d’Arnaud behind the plate when deGrom emerged from seemingly out of nowhere to win the 2014 Rookie of the Year. It was d’Arnaud behind the plate in the 2015 postseason. It was d’Arnaud behind the plate when deGrom was coming back from ulnar transposition surgery.
There are many reasons why d’Arnaud has caught deGrom well. First and foremost, deGrom is a great pitcher. As we have seen this season, deGrom can pitch great to Wilson Ramos and to Tomas Nido. Second, d’Arnaud has proven himself to be an excellent pitch framer, which allows an already lethal pitcher like deGrom ramp up his game to an unfair level.
Overall, d’Arnaud is a very good receiver who has a rapport with these Mets pitchers. If he didn’t, the Mets would have non-tendered him and kept the much cheaper Kevin Plawecki this past offseason, or they would have stuck with Devin Mesoraco. That goes double considering d’Arnaud was coming off Tommy John surgery.
Overall, the point is deGrom is great because he is great, and as we have seen time and time again, he’s even better with a catcher behind the plate who can steal those extra strikes for him. Ultimately, this is why we have seen deGrom at his best with d’Arnaud behind the plate.