Amidst a season rife with challenges, David Peterson has impressively held his own and sustained his own self-assuredness, a quality that the Mets are keen on nurturing as he prepares to take the mound for several pivotal starts for the final two months of the regular season.
On Sunday, against the Los Angeles Angels, Peterson showcased himself again on the mound, leading to a thrilling 3-2 walk-off triumph for the Mets. Although he didn’t secure the win and was handed a no-decision, the win and performance by Peterson stood as a symbolic victory for the team, itching to instill consistency amongst their starting pitchers.
Sunday’s outing might have been one of Peterson’s best performances since his recall. Holding down the Angels’ offense, he yielded only an earned run from a mere trio of hits during an impressive seven-inning display. Peterson had three walks along with eight strikeouts, aligning with his season-high performance. Importantly, this was the first time this season that the left-hander completed seven innings, and it was also the first time he pitched this far into a game at Citi Field.
Photo by Roberto Carlo
Peterson put it all out there, leaving nothing behind as he navigated the mound with precision, delivering 65 strikes out of his total 104 pitches. His mastery over his five pitches was evident, with each of them being utilized at least 12% of the time. Impressively, Peterson induced 12 swings and misses, just shy of his season-best mark, with seven of these generated by his four-seam fastballs.
Another notch for Peterson was his ability to counter Shohei Ohtani throughout all three plate appearances in which they faced each other. Ohtani, a strong contender for the AL MVP title, had posed a considerable challenge to the Mets over the weekend, successfully reaching base on eight occasions before Sunday afternoon’s game. However, Peterson managed to turn the tables, keeping Ohtani to an 0-for-3 afternoon marked by a strikeout.
David Peterson shares what he believes made him pitch so well against Shohei Ohtani:
"Mix it up, move it around, and try to keep him off balance. He's a good hitter and I think it was kind of just seeing where I can pitch him and let the game dictate it" pic.twitter.com/U6L0r9ig7j
— SNY (@SNYtv) August 27, 2023
Since his recent return on June 26, Peterson has exhibited praiseworthy form, excelling both in relief roles and as a starter, maximizing the opportunities he’s been granted. Over the span of 38 1/3 innings on the mound, Peterson has faced 167 batters, conceding 37 hits and allowing 14 runs, 13 of which were earned.
Impressively, he has limited home runs to just five, while issuing 24 walks and striking out 38 batters. This translates to a strikeouts-per-nine rate of 8.92 and a walks-per-nine rate of 5.63. The home run-per-nine rate stands at a 1.17, with a batting average on balls in play against him of .330,
Peterson has managed to strand 87.7% of runners on base, demonstrating an ability to induce ground balls 60.8% of the time, alongside a 25.0% home run-to-fly ball ratio. The velocity of batted balls against him averages at 91.1 mph. Notably, Peterson’s earned run average stands at an impressive 3.05 in that span since his return.
In essence, it’s evident that Peterson has undergone a transformation from the pitcher he was earlier this season. With the team parting ways with their top starters Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander in deadline deals, Peterson has seized the opportunity for consistent starts, gradually positioning himself as a contender for the 2024 rotation.
Alongside Kodai Senga and Jose Quintana, the path is open for Peterson to step up, and considering his showings since his return, he appears to be constructing a compelling argument for earning a role in 2024.
