Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

The 2022 Carlos Carrasco Revenge Tour is in full swing for the Mets.

After seeing his 2021 ravaged by a string of injuries and beset by first inning difficulties, Carrasco has come out swinging in 2022 with two gems on the mound.

His latest came on Saturday as he delivered his best start in a Mets uniform against the Diamondbacks, flashing signs of the vintage Carrasco that dominated in Cleveland.

The dominance began with the very first pitch as the righty started Daulton Varsho with a four-seam fastball, but it was his changeup that secured the first strikeout of the game.

Carrasco’s lethal changeup became the main story of his afternoon as he relied on it to strike out Ketel Marte. He later got David Peralta to pop up to Eduardo Escobar to end a 1-2-3 inning. As the SNY broadcast pointed out, it was just his second 1-2-3 first inning in 14 starts with the Mets.

It was well documented that Carrasco struggled in the first innings of games in 2021, allowing nine home runs to see his ERA balloon to an ugly 13.15. His first inning in his first start of 2022 was better, but the fact that the veteran breezed through the first on Saturday should serve as a major note of encouragement for the Mets that their starter has begun to put those troubles firmly behind him.

He started the second inning by striking out Christian Walker with the changeup again. His first three strikeouts of the game came on his filthy changeup, a pitch he used 28% of the time with a remarkable 63% whiff rate. Carrasco then got Pavin Smith for his fourth strikeout in five batters faced before Carson Kelly flew out to Jeff McNeil to end the inning. Seth Beer–a thorn in the Mets’ side all day Sunday–reached first base in the inning with a two-out single.

Carrasco then completed his second 1-2-3 inning after breezing through the third with all three batters grounding out, including a superb play by Pete Alonso at first to get Varsho out.

The fourth inning, though, is where Carrasco may have been most impressive. After giving up a leadoff single to Marte, David Peralta doubled, but Carrasco combined his changeup and his 4-seam fastball to strike out the next two batters.

Beer was then intentionally walked to load the bases, but Carrasco got Kelly to bite on a 85 mph slider to fly out to McNeil to end the inning.

Carrasco’s ability to buckle down under pressure and lean on the two pitches he really had working for him to get out of a jam was the clearest sign yet that the righty may be free from the constraints that hindered him throughout 2021. Carrasco’s fastball and off-speed stuff were crucial all day in high-leverage situations.

His day was complete after finishing the fifth inning with a flourish with two more strikeouts, making it eight K’s for the day.

Carrasco completed his most dominant outing in a Mets uniform with five scoreless innings, allowing just three hits to go along with eight strikeouts and two walks. The eight strikeouts are the most he’s collected in a Mets uniform.

He now has a 0.84 ERA through 10 2/3 innings, allowing just one earned run with 13 strikeouts and two walks.

On a day where the Mets struggled offensively in a frustrating loss, the rotation continued to shine with Mets’ starters having now combined for a stellar 1.17 ERA through the first nine games of 2022.

Carrasco has played a significant role in the rotation not only surviving but thriving in Jacob deGrom‘s absence and, like the Mets fanbase, manager Buck Showalter has enjoyed watching peak Carrasco reintroduce himself to Queens.

“That was pretty good,” Showalter said. “It’s been a really good development for us early in the season. You can tell he feels good physically.

“What’s the old cliche, free and easy? He’s attacking hitters and pitching like Carlos can and has. That development bodes well for us. He was solid.”

Boasting a new elbow after the struggles of last year, Carrasco is clearly fully healthy and appears to be reaching the peak of his powers again, and he described his start on Sunday as his best one in a Mets uniform.

“Everything I did in my last start,” Carrasco said, “I was just bringing (on Saturday). Like I said before, my arm is getting better every start, every bullpen, so everything feels good.

“To be honest with you guys, last year was kind of a little bit of dealing with injury and all of that stuff, so coming to spring training and being able to pitch, to do everything, and pitch the way that I’ve been doing right now feels better.”

With the Mets off to a fast start at 6-3 and with the starting rotation all pitching to elite levels, Carrasco believes the best is yet to come.

“It’s gonna be like this all year,” Carrasco predicted. “We’re missing Jake but we’ve got (Tylor) Megill and all of those guys, so it’s good. It’s gonna be fine.”

There were clear and fair question marks over the backend of this rotation heading into 2022, especially with deGrom on the shelf. But Carrasco’s stunning comeback thus far has alleviated those fears. If he can maintain this revenge tour for the duration of the year, then the Mets should be in very good shape when it comes to trying to win a pennant.