Saturday, September 20, 2025 • 4:10 PM
Citi Field • Flushing, NY
RHP Cade Cavalli (3-1, 4.76) vs. RHP Nolan McLean (4-1, 1.19)
SNY • MLBN
Major League Baseball heads into the final week or so of games, and the Mets are still hanging on to the last wild-card spot. The Mets went down 4-1 early Friday night but had an explosive inning where they re-took the lead and then piled on runs for the rest of the night to win 12-6. The Padres, Mets, Diamondbacks, Reds, and Giants are all in the race for the final two wild-card spots, and the Mets will be the first team out of the bunch to play this afternoon.
Photo Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images
Mets Lineup
- Francisco Lindor – SS
- Juan Soto – RF
- Pete Alonso – 1B
- Brandon Nimmo – LF
- Starling Marte – DH
- Jeff McNeil – 2B
- Francisco Alvarez – C
- Brett Baty – 3B
- Cedric Mullins – CF
Nolan McLean has made six starts with the Mets, totaling 37 2/3 innings with a 1.19 ERA, 2.49 FIP, 0.982 WHIP, and a 342 ERA+. He’s coming off an excellent start against the Rangers, where he shut them out for six innings, scattering five hits and two walks while striking out seven. In his last three starts, he has walked seven batters (2-3 per start). It’s been the only blight on a sparkling start to his career, where he has allowed only one home run and has a K/9 above 9. Tonight will be his first of many career starts against the Washington Nationals.
Opposing Lineup
- James Wood – LF
- CJ Abrams – SS
- Josh Bell – 1B
- Daylen Lile – DH
- Robert Hassell III – CF
- Dylan Crews – RF
- Riley Adams – C
- Brady House – 3B
- Nasim Nuñez – 2B
Cade Cavalli has pitched 39 2/3 innings over eight starts with a 4.76 ERA, 4.84 FIP, 1.462 WHIP, and an 88 ERA+. Since returning from Tommy John surgery in August, Cavalli has had starts ranging from brilliant to dreadful. In his third start back, he held the Phillies scoreless over seven innings. In his fifth start, he allowed eight runs, seven earned, over 2 2/3 innings against the Yankees. He has a 4.20 ERA over three starts and 15 innings so far in September. No hitter currently on the Mets has faced Cavalli in a major league game.
Game Notes
- The Mets selected Richard Lovelady to the major league roster before Saturday’s matinee, while DFA’ing Wander Suero as a corresponding move.
- Jett Williams and Carson Benge both had strong performances Friday for Triple-A Syracuse. You can read about the Mets’ minor leaguers from Friday by clicking here.
- Juan Soto set a new career high in homers with his 42nd blast Friday night. Read about the milestone by clicking here.
Three Things To Watch For
- Francisco Lindor is heating up. Stretch run Lindor is back! Friday night, Lindor went 3-for-4 at the plate with a double and four runs scored. He now has a hit in eight straight games, going 11-for-30, slashing .367/.472/.533 with two doubles, a home run, and two stolen bases while scoring 12 runs. Lindor now has a 126 OPS+, his second-highest OPS+ as a Met. Bring us to October Lindor!
- Let’s Admire Soto’s Stats. Juan Soto went 2-for-3 Friday night with a home run, two walks, and a stolen base. Soto now has a career high for home runs (42), is only six stolen bases from a 40-40 season, and is five walks away from breaking the Mets franchise record for walks in a single season. He has 6.2 bWAR, the third highest in his career, and currently leads the league in walks (121) and OBP (.397).
- Wild Card Race: On Friday, the Reds won while the Diamondbacks and Giants both lost. The Reds are still two games behind the Mets for the third Wild Card spot, while the Diamondbacks fell to three back and the Giants four back. The Padres also lost, so now the Mets are three games behind them. Tonight, the Reds and Zack Littell take on Javier Assad and the Cubs, and the Padres take on the White Sox. The Phillies will try to get Aaron Nola (6.44 ERA) right against the Diamondbacks. At the end of the night, the Giants will try to beat Tyler Glasnow and the Dodgers. All the Mets need to do, though, is just keep winning.
Let’s go Mets!
