Sunday, July 12, 2026 • 1:40 PM
Citi Field • Flushing, NY
LHP Payton Tolle (5-6, 3.14) vs. LHP Zach Thornton (0-1, 4.35)
WPIX

The New York Mets look to salvage the series against the Red Sox Sunday afternoon before heading into a long, All-Star break. New York is continually struggling to score, as has been the case the last two days. A win Sunday would mean the Mets have gone 3-3 in their last six. A loss means New York enters the All-Star break 17 games below 500.

Mets Lineup

  1. A.J. Ewing – CF
  2. Juan Soto – DH
  3. Francisco Lindor – SS
  4. Eric Wagaman – 1B
  5. Carson Benge – RF
  6. Tyrone Taylor – LF
  7. Luis Torrens – C
  8. Brett Baty – 3B
  9. Zack Short – 2B

Starting Pitcher: Zach Thornton

Zach Thornton returns to the big leagues. In his first two starts he allowed five runs over 10 1/3 innings from nine hits and three walks while striking out 10 batters.

His second major league start was great holding the Phillies to one run over six innings while striking out seven batters. Since then he has pitched 7 2/3 innings over two outings in Syracuse (Triple-A) allowing three runs, two earned. He was pulled after two perfect innings in his last start a few days ago with five strikeouts, in preparation for Sunday’s big league start.

With Kodai Senfa back in the bullpen, and the potential departure of Freddy Peralta looming via trade, there is room for Thornton to stick around in the big leagues if he does well this afternoon.

Red Sox Lineup

  1. Anthony Siegler – 2B
  2. Ceddane Rafaela – CF
  3. Wilyer Abreu – RF
  4. Romy Gonzalez – 1B
  5. Caleb Durbin – 3B
  6. Andruw Monasterio – SS
  7. Jarren Duran – DH
  8. Nate Eaton – LF
  9. Connor Wong – C

Starting Pitcher: Payton Tolle

Payton Tolle has made 14 starts for the Red Sox totaling 80 1/3 innings with a 3.14 ERA, 3.39 FIP, 1.071 WHIP, and a 129 ERA+. Since the start of June, Tolle has made seven starts pitching 39 innings with a 3.69 ERA and 4.11 FIP.

In three of those starts he has allowed no runs over 19 innings, scattering 10 hits. In the other four starts he has allowed 16 runs over 20 innings. Which version of Tolle will the Mets see Sunday?

The only hitter on the Mets who has seen Payton Tolle is Zack Short (0-for-2, K).

Game Notes

Prior to Sunday’s game the Mets announced the following roster moves:

  • LHP Zach Thornton has been recalled from Triple-A Syracuse.
  • RHP Tobias Myers was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse following Saturday’s game.

The remainder of the MLB Draft begins Sunday at 11:00 am ET.

Three Things To Watch For

  1. Getting hits with runners in scoring position (RISP). On Friday, the Mets recorded 10 hits but went 0-for-8 with RISP leaving seven runners on base. Saturday, the Mets did it again, going 0-for-8 with RISP and leaving nine on base. The Mets worked seven walks as a team but only mustered three hits.
  2. Carson Benge stealing bases. Benge has stolen a bag in three consecutive games and four times in his last five games. His steal on July 7 was his first stolen base since June 18. Benge actually had only two stolen bases the entire month of June. More impressively, Benge hasn’t been caught stealing this month yet, a problem that has plagued the Mets this season.
  3. The trade block. It’s still a bit early in the month for the deluge of trades the Mets are heading towards. Relievers on the Mets should almost all be available. A.J. Minter pitched in back-to-back days, so he should be unavailable today. Brooks Raley pitched for the first time since Wednesday yesterday pitching a clean inning. We still haven’t seen Luke Weaver from the start of the week as he continues his strong season. Tyrone Taylor has gone hitless in his last three at-bats over two games, after homering three times in five games. There is a non-zero chance that someone here will not be a Met after the All-Star Break.