Friday, April 18, 2025 • 7:10 PM
Citi Field • Flushing, NY
RHP Miles Mikolas (0-2, 9.00) vs. LHP David Peterson (1-1, 2.70)
SNY

Good teams bounce back, and that is exactly what the New York Mets did on Thursday night.

The Mets had a frustrating start of the week in Minnesota with two losses in a row. The best recipe to get out of a slide before it becomes a funk is to win. Mark Vientos started the scoring with his first home run of the season and the club scored a total of four runs in the second inning. That was all they needed as they proceeded to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 4-1.

Now, David Peterson looks to make it two wins in a row for the Amazins!

Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Mets Lineup

  1. Francisco Lindor – SS
  2. Juan Soto – RF
  3. Pete Alonso – 1B
  4. Jesse Winker – DH
  5. Mark Vientos – 3B
  6. Brandon Nimmo – LF
  7. Luis Torrens – C
  8. Brett Baty – 2B
  9. Tyrone Taylor – CF

Peterson has a 2.70 ERA, 4.14 FIP, 1.380 WHIP and a 141 ERA+ over 16 2/3 innings and three starts this season. He’s coming off a six-inning performance against the Athletics last Saturday, holding them to two runs on seven hits while striking out five. Going deep into games has been a challenge for Mets starters this season, but not Peterson. He has pitched six innings in two of his three outings this year. Going at least six innings tonight would make it two games in a row where the Mets got that sort of length from their starter.

The only Cardinal that has seen Peterson in a regular season game before is Willson Contreras (1-for-8, 3 K).

Opposing Lineup

  1. Victor Scott II – LF
  2. Luken Baker – DH
  3. Willson Contreras – 1B
  4. Nolan Arenado – 3B
  5. Brendan Donovan – 2B
  6. Jordan Walker – RF
  7. Thomas Saggese – SS
  8. Pedro Pagés – C
  9. Michael Siani – CF

The Mets bats draw the veteran right-hander Miles Mikolas tonight. Over three starts this season, he has pitched 13 innings and allowed 14 runs (13 earned) on 16 hits and five walks while striking out ten (9.00 ERA, 2.61 FIP, 1.615 WHIP and a 45 ERA+). His stats are skewed from his second start this season, where the Boston Red Sox scored nine runs in 2 2/3 innings. In his last outing, he kept the Philadelphia Phillies to three runs on only three hits and two walks over five innings.

Mikolas had two starts against the Mets in 2024 with differing results. At the end of April, he held the Mets to two runs over 5 2/3 innings, scattering seven hits. Two weeks later, he allowed six runs on nine hits over four frames.

The Mets have the following career stats against him:

  • Pete Alonso 3-18, 2B, BB, 4 K
  • José Azócar 0-2
  • Brett Baty 1-7, 2B, 3 K
  • Francisco Lindor 7-17, 2 2B, K
  • Starling Marte 10-44, 2 2B, 2 BB, 7 K
  • Brandon Nimmo 2-19, 2B, HR, 3 BB, 3 K
  • Juan Soto 7-21, 2B, HR, 5 K
  • Tyrone Taylor 3-10, 2B, HR, 3 K
  • Jesse Winker 6-16, 2B, 2 HR, BB, 6 K

Game Notes

  • Manager Carlos Mendoza mentioned that he’s been told Jeff McNeil’s looked “really good” in center field during his rehab assignment with Low-A St. Lucie and that he’ll be at Citi Field tonight before heading to Double-A Binghamton.
  • Starting tonight, Francisco Alvarez will catch back-to-back games in Binghamton. There remains a chance that he could make his way back to the major leagues during the Mets’ current homestead, which will conclude next Wednesday after a three-game series against the Phillies.

Three Things To Watch For

  1. Mark Vientos. Vientos has a five-game hitting streak going right now where he has gotten exactly one in each outing, going 5-for-20 with two doubles, a home run and four runs scored. He’s raised his season OPS from .393 to .511 over this stretch. Hopefully this is a sign that he’s breaking out of the slump he was in at the start of the year.
  2. Mets Bullpen. Griffin Canning did the Mets bullpen a solid on Thursday by pitching six innings. Wednesday was effectively a bullpen game for the Mets and they are in the midst of a long stretch without an off day. The only two pitchers who haven’t pitched in the last two contests, being Max Kranick and Danny Young, both had extended outings on Tuesday night. Edwin Díaz and A.J. Minter have each been used two days in a row, meaning the high leverage guys tonight will probably be Ryne Stanek and Wednesday’s opener in Huascar Brazobán. Hopefully Peterson can go deep in the game!
  3. Baty and Acuña. McNeil is knocking at the door as he works through his rehab assignment, during which he’s worked rather extensively in the outfield. This would potentially give more playing time to Luisangel Acuña or perhaps even Baty when McNeil returns depending on the corresponding move. Baty went 2-for-3 Thursday with a double, which was his second consecutive two-hit game. In his last four contests, he has gone 6-for-16 with a double and a triple, raising his OBP from .111 to .209. Acuña has gone 8-for-21 with two doubles, four stolen bases and six runs scored over his last six games with a plate appearance (he came in as a pinch runner and never got to the plate on Thursday).

Let’s go Mets!