To start off the week, the 2021 New York Mets faced off against the Chicago Cubs. The struggling southpaw David Peterson started against veteran Jake Arrieta. This was an important start for Peterson and he definitely delivered. In his six innings of work, he allowed just one hit, in easily his best start of the year. The Mets offense also came through, with James McCann and Kevin Pillar putting the first runs on the board in the bottom of the fourth. New York never lost the lead from there, and aside from a rough outing by Trevor May, it was nothing but positive vibes in Flushing. The final score was 5-2
Rest of the New York Mets Week: Tuesday
In the second game of the four-game series, Taijuan Walker took on Alec Mills. Walker’s lone mistake came early against Javier Baez, with Baez hitting a two-run homer in the top of the third. Walker would end up going seven innings, showing once again that he was the steal of the offseason. The Mets offense, particularly Pete Alonso, backed him up with a single in the bottom of the third and a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fifth to give the Mets the lead. Seth Lugo shut the door with two innings of relief. The final score was 3-2.
Wednesday
On Wednesday, the best pitcher in baseball faced off against Robert Stock. Jacob deGrom was perfect through his three innings of work, but it was obvious that something was bothering him. He was taken out of the game early for the second time this season. The good news is his MRI came back clean on his shoulder and he didn’t miss any time. Obviously, this was huge news that every Mets fan was waiting on. deGrom later said in a press conference that he is sick of the injury scares and hopes to pitch late into games for the rest of the season.
Moving on to the rest of the game, Sean Reid-Foley was asked to bail the Mets out in the hopes that they could salvage a win. He pitched two innings, giving up one run. Five more relievers were asked to do the same thing, and they did a good job as they have done all season. Only 3 runs were given up. The Mets hitting came through as well. Kevin Pillar and Jacob deGrom brought in a couple of runs in the bottom of the second, and Dominic Smith also helped throughout the night with a solo home run and a ground out to drive in a run. Edwin Diaz shut the door to finish the game with a 6-3 final score.
Thursday
Marcus Stroman took the mound for the final game of the series against Kyle Hendricks. The New York Mets offense was completely silent, getting just two hits against Hendricks in his six innings of work. These would be the only hits they got all night. Marcus Stroman was dominant in his seven innings of work, allowing just two runs and four hits with eight strikeouts. Jeurys Familia and Trevor May also pitched well in their two innings. This was all for naught though because as stated earlier, the Mets offense was nonexistent. They still won the series but finished it off on a sour note. The final score was 0-2.
New York Mets Weekend: Friday
The Mets started a four-game series against their division rival Wahington Nationals on Friday. Joey Lucchesi took-on Erick Fedde. Lucchesi was very good in his 5 1/3 innings of work, allowing just four hits and no runs. However, Lucchesi received some bad news in the days following this start. He tore his UCL and will need Tommy John surgery. Obviously, this was a huge blow to both Lucchesi and the Mets. He was on a streak of good starts and just starting to show his worth in the rotation.
Getting back to the game itself, it was almost a repeat of the game the night before. The hitting was once again nonexistent, and the pitching was nearly perfect. The only run they gave up came in the last inning on a walk-off home run. While the bench mob has played well for a while, it was obvious that the Mets needed their big bats back in the lineup.
Saturday
Game 1: David Peterson took the hill for game one of the doubleheader, looking to continue his dominance from his previous start. He faced off against Joe Ross. The Mets offense woke up, courtesy of Francisco Lindor. He brought in all five runs for the Mets, in what might prove to be his breakout game. As for Peterson, he didn’t disappoint. In his 4 2/3 innings of work, he gave up just one earned run. The bullpen also came through, only allowing two hits to finish off the seven-inning game. The final score was 5-1.
Game 2: Robert Gsellman took the hill for game two against Jon Lester, in what would end up essentially being a bullpen game for the Mets. Gsellman lasted just two innings, allowing an earned run on three hits. Sean Reid-Foley came in after him and had his worst appearance as a Met. He gave up five earned runs in just 1 2/3 innings. The only pitcher that looked good in game two was Yennsy Diaz, who was nearly perfect in his 2 1/3 innings. As far as hitting goes, there wasn’t much of it. Lester nearly had a complete game shutout, only giving up a home run in his final inning of work. The final score was 6-2.
Sunday
Taijuan Walker faced off against Patrick Corbin for the final game of the series. Walker struggled in his 6 1/3 innings of work, allowing four earned runs, most of which came off the bat of Kyle Schwarber who clobbered the New York Mets on Sunday. Patrick Corbin, on the other hand, mowed down the Mets lineup. Once again, the Mets just couldn’t put the bat on the ball. This would prove to be the factor that decided the game, as two home runs would be the only runs the team could come up with. The final score was 5-2.
New York Mets Wrap Up
This week was up and down for the 2021 New York Mets. On one hand, they nearly swept a series against a good team in the Chicago Cubs, but on the other, they looked horrible against the Nationals. One thing that has been consistent is the pitching, which took a hit this week with the injured Joey Lucchesi. The Mets have reinforcements on the way, though, with many of their starters nearly ready to come back. As always, be sure to check back next week for all you need to know about the 2021 New York Mets.
“Main Photo”
Embed from Getty Images
Players Mentioned:
David Peterson, Jake Arrieta, James McCann, Trevor May, Kevin Pillar, Taijuan Walker, Alec Mills, Javier Baez, Pete Alonso, Seth Lugo, Robert Stock, Sean Reid-Foley, Jacob deGrom, Dominic Smith, Edwin Diaz, Marcus Stroman, Kyle Hendricks, Jeurys Familia, Joey Lucchesi, Erick Fedde, Joe Ross, Francisco Lindor, Patrick Corbin, Kyle Schwarber, Yennsy Diaz, Robert Gsellman, Jon Lester, Yennsy Diaz,
