David Peterson, Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports
The New York Mets have seen a drastic improvement from their starting rotation in recent days, and that continued with David Peterson‘s outing on Saturday night. After a three-run bottom of the third, the left-handed starter was able to keep the San Diego Padres’ lineup quiet. Peterson allowed three runs to score on five hits over 5 1/3 innings, lowering his ERA from 6.61 to 6.46 for this season. Despite all of that, the Padres defeated the Mets 3-1, snapping New York’s six-game winning streak.
Peterson has taken significant strides since his promotion from Triple-A Syracuse, but after his seventh loss of the year, he was not satisfied. “That one’s on me. The hitters grinded, they never gave up and their guy pitched well. Bullpen was great, defense was great, so it comes down to a couple of pitches that I made early and gave them a lead,” he said.
It was a difficult night for the Mets’ bats, as they were only able to manufacture one run on three hits against Blake Snell and the Padres’ bullpen. Yes, the team was unable to continue their winning streak, but optimism should remain, especially with Peterson. Many questioned to decision to bring him back to the big league roster over Joey Lucchesi, but that choice has paid off. The 27-year-old has allowed four runs 15 1/3 innings since June 27, playing a big part at the backend of the rotation.
With José Quintana set to return after the All-Star break, Peterson’s status with the big league ballclub will now be in question. Will he stay as New York goes to six-man rotation? Even if he does return to Triple-A sooner versus later, he has shown his worth in recent weeks. A big development for a Mets team trying to fight their way back into the playoff race.
