Strap yourself in Mets fans…this season is going to be a bumpy ride filled with twists and turns and starts and stops. If you’re going to stick your arms up and free fall, be careful. There have already been several injuries along the way too.
Tonight’s game was a perfect example of a rollercoaster ride that’s run off its track. Even Stephen Matz, who has been exemplary in pitching this season, fell apart in the top of the 6th with a four-run lead. The Chicago White Sox scored three runs to close the gap. Unfortunately, even with a surprise appearance by Noah “Thor” Syndergaard as a reliever, who pitched one inning and struck out two, the Mets still couldn’t hold on to cinch the victory. The White Sox added three more runs in the top of the 8th to evaporate the lead and take the win.
Now, after climbing up the tracks to first place again, the Mets are back 2 games behind the Washington Nationals, who beat the Philadelphia Phillies 5-1 in their game tonight as well.
Well, it’s to be expected in such a long season that there will be ups and downs along the way, bumps in the road and injuries, but the Mets are struggling. For the most part, they are relying on homeruns for their points on the board – see Neil Walker and his 2-run shot in the 3rd inning — and, although a run is a run, need to start producing more hits that drive in the men on base. They also left 14 men on base in this game and the White Sox pitching staff struck out 9.
Unfortunately, the crew is hurting a bit with Lucas Duda out for some time with an injured back and David Wright looking at some possible time off as well because of some pain in the neck troubles.
To substitute for Duda, the Mets acquired James Loney from the Padres on Saturday and he made his first start at first base tonight. However, he didn’t bring much to the plate, going 0-for-4 but he slammed one to the warning track and, except for one bobble, showed some good defensive plays at first.
In an interview Loney said, “You can tell they have something special going on here, and I’ve always wanted to be a part of something like that,” Loney said. “I’ve always wanted to be in a winning atmosphere. I’ve had that in my career in the past, and it feels great to go to the playoffs, but I’ve never won a World Series, so I’m looking forward to working toward that.”
In case you missed it, Eric Campbell was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas. Campbell was batting .159 (10-for-63) in 30 games with New York.
Heading into the rubber game of the series at 1pm on Tuesday, the Mets are 2-3 on their current homestand and 6-4 in their last 10 games. Maybe the fact that it’s a day game will help. New York is 12-4 in day games this year, including 7-2 at home.
After today’s game, the Mets will on a 10-game road trip starting Friday, their second-longest trip of the year. They will play 17 of their next 25 games away from Citi Field.
Jacob deGrom takes the mound against the Chicago White Sox — Todd Frazier and Jimmy Rollins. The duo has hit a combined 1-for-10 against the righty, who is coming off a sterling seven-inning outing against the Dodgers. He allowed one earned run and three hits. He is 13-7 with a 1.92 ERA (40 earned runs/187.2 innings) in 29 starts at Citi Field. His 1.92 home ERA is the third-lowest in the majors since 2014 among pitchers with at least 150.0 innings.
He faces Miguel Gonzalez (0-1, 4.50 ERA) will make his sixth start of the season and first in Interleague Play since July 11, 2015. In his last outing, he went 6 1/3 innings against Kansas City, giving up three earned runs in a no-decision.
The Mets have Thursday off and will play the Miami Marlins on Friday at 7:10 pm with Noah Syndergaard getting the start.
