Tuesday, September 17, 2024 • 7:10 PM
Citi Field • Flushing, NY
LHP Mitchell Parker (7-9, 4.24) vs. RHP Tylor Megill (3-5, 4.48)
SNY

The Mets came back and won a critical game against the Nationals Monday night! The Mets got an amazing start from Sean Manaea, but the bats disappeared again. After scratching out a run in the eighth inning off the bat of Jose Iglesias, the Mets sent the game to extras, where Starling Marte had the walk-off hit.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers did the Mets a favor and beat the Braves again. The Diamondbacks lost. So the Mets enter play today as the sole holders of the third Wild Card spot and are only one behind the second.

Photo by Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Mets Lineup

  1. Jose Iglesias – 2B
  2. Starling Marte – RF
  3. Pete Alonso – 1B
  4. Mark Vientos – 3B
  5. Tyrone Taylor – LF
  6. J.D. Martinez – DH
  7. Francisco Alvarez – C
  8. Harrison Bader – CF
  9. Luisangel Acuña – SS

Tylor Megill looks to lead the Mets to victory again. Over the course of the season, Megill has a 4.48 ERA, 3.52 FIP, 1.316 WHIP and an 87 ERA+ over 62 1/3 innings. He is coming off of a fantastic start against the Blue Jays where he held them to one hit over six innings while striking out six batters. Since rejoining the Mets rotation, Megill has allowed four runs from 11 hits and four walks over 15 1/3 innings while striking out 18 batters (2.35 ERA, 1.80 FIP). The Nationals got the best of Megill back in June, scoring five runs (four earned) over five innings.

The Nationals have the following career numbers against him:

Opposing Lineup

  1. CJ Abrams – SS
  2. James Wood – LF
  3. José Tena – 3B
  4. Juan Yepez – DH
  5. Luis García Jr. – 2B
  6. Keibert Ruiz – C
  7. Dylan Crews – RF
  8. Joey Gallo – 1B
  9. Jacob Young – CF

Mitchell Parker is wrapping up a rookie season in which he started 27 games and has tossed 142 1/3 innings with a 4.24 ERA, 3.80 FIP, 1.272 WHIP and a 95 ERA+. He’s coming off of a good start, allowing two unearned runs over 6 1/3 innings against the Marlins. In his five starts before that, Parker struggled allowing 19 earned runs over 23 1/3 innings (7.33 ERA, 3.56 FIP). The Mets had a strong game against Parker back at the start of July, scoring five runs off of five hits, including three homers over six innings.

The Mets have the following career numbers against Parker:

Game Notes

Kodai Senga threw a bullpen session today and did fielding drills. He could still be activated before the end of the regular season.

It’s James Wood‘s birthday! He turns 22 today.

Three Things To Watch For

  1. José Iglesias. Iglesias has a 10-game hitting streak after last night’s 2-for-4 performance. Over the stretch, he has gone 14-for-36 with two doubles slashing .389/.436/.444. There’s no power there right now, but he’s getting on base. While Lindor is healing, it seems that Iglesias is going to get the leadoff spot. Iglesias has saved this team before, and he continues to come up big when the Mets need him most during this stretch run.
  2. Can J.D. Martinez break out of his slump? Over his five games J.D. has gone 0-for-18 at the plate with two walks and four strikeouts. Two of those four strikeouts came in Monday night’s game. There are 12 games left in the season—can Martinez turn it back on for the final couple of weeks?
  3. Inevitable. The Mets are at their best when they feel inevitable. The 2022 Mets felt inevitable—never out of it. The Grimace Mets were inevitable—they were going to win the game. The Mets during the hot streak recently felt like they always had a chance. Losing two games in a row in Philly after having the lead took a bite out of that feeling of inevitability, especially when paired with the Lindor injury. Monday night was a good step forward in getting that swagger back. Let’s look for that same feeling tonight with the Mets bats getting to work early.

Let’s go Mets!