Saturday, August 15, 2026 • 4:10 PM
Citi Field • Flushing, NY
RHP Brad Lord (5-2, 3.79) vs. LHP Sean Manaea (4-5, 4.13)
SNY •FS1

The Mets look to build on their solid series opener Friday night as they take on the Nationals for game two this afternoon! Robert Stock kept the Mets in the game last night, allowing only one run over 4 1/3 innings. Lindor came through with a big home run in the sixth inning, and Kodai Senga pitched another scoreless inning in the ninth inning, earning his second save of the season. The Mets are now only 5.5 games behind the Nationals for fourth in the NL East. Let’s keep climbing out of the cellar!

Sean Manaea. Lucas Boland-Imagn Images

Mets Lineup

  1. A.J. Ewing – CF
  2. Francisco Lindor – SS
  3. Bo Bichette – 3B
  4. Carson Benge – RF
  5. Jared Young – 1B
  6. Marcus Semien – 2B
  7. Brett Baty – LF
  8. Jorge Polanco – DH
  9. Francisco Alvarez – C

Starting Pitcher: Sean Manaea

Sean Manaea has pitched in 25 games this season and has made 11 starts totaling 104 2/3 innings. He has a 4.13 ERA, 4.14 FIP, 1.318 WHIP and a 99 ERA+. He is coming off of a brilliant start where he allowed only one run over seven innings against the Pirates while striking out 11 batters. In his last four starts he has a 2.16 ERA and a 3.56 FIP over 25 innings. Manaea’s one outing against the Nationals this season was a doozy, allowing six runs from seven hits and two walks over 2 2/3 innings of relief. The Nationals have the following career stats against him:

Opposing Lineup

  1. Dylan Crews – RF
  2. Andres Chaparro – 1B
  3. Brady House – 3B
  4. CJ Abrams – SS
  5. Harry Ford – C
  6. Jacob Young – CF
  7. Daylen Lile – DH
  8. Nasim Nuñez – 2B
  9. Andrew Pinckney – LF

The Nationals are trying Brad Lord out in the rotation! Lord has pitched in 29 games this season, totaling 61 2/3 innings, including two starts. He has a 3.79 ERA, 4.05 FIP, 1.184 WHIP, and a 112 ERA+. He made a start back on July 1, holding the Red Sox scoreless over 2 1/3 innings. His second start came last week, when he held the Reds to one run over 2 2/3 innings. Lord has made two extended relief appearances against the Mets this year, allowing only one run off three hits over 5 1/3 innings. The Mets have the following career stats against Lord:

  • Francisco Alvarez 1-3, HR
  • Gabriel Arias 0-2
  • Brett Baty 1-5, HR
  • Carson Benge 2-2
  • Bo Bichette 0-3
  • A.J. Ewing 0-1, K
  • Francisco Lindor 3-4, BB
  • Marcus Semien 0-3
  • Luis Torrens 0-4

Game Notes

  • Since the All-Star break, the Mets pitching staff has pitched to a 3.46 ERA (88 ER/229.0 IP), which is the fifth-best mark in the majors and the second-best in the NL.
  • Sean Manaea is set to take the bump for the Mets today. He has tossed a quality start in each of his last four outings and five of his last six. Since moving back to the rotation full time, Manaea is 3-4 with a 3.50 ERA (24 ER/61.2 IP), 18 walks and 61 strikeouts.
  • Francisco Lindor has 291 career home runs. That is the seventh-most all-time by a Puerto Rican born player. He recently surpassed Bernie Williams (287). Ruben Sierra is next with 306, followed by Iván Rodríguez (311). His 291 home runs are 20th among active players.

Three Things To Watch For

  1. Carson Benge On-Base Streak. Benge went 1-for-4 Friday night, extending his on-base streak to 17 games. During this streak, Benge is hitting .354/.417/.523 with three doubles, a triple, two home runs and five walks. In 2024, Francisco reached base safely in 35 consecutive games in a single season. Jon Olerud has the franchise record, reaching base safely in 47 consecutive games between 1998 and 1999. Benge’s current streak at 17 is impressive, and also shows how amazing a feat Lindor and Olerud accomplished.
  2. Francisco Lindor. Lindor still has a real chance to reach 20 home runs this season. His homer last night was his second in four games and his sixth since 7/27, when he hit two in one game. Starting from his two homer game, Lindor is hitting .288/.382/.621 (1.003 OPS). His season OPS has gone from .686 to .768 over this stretch!
  3. Kodai Senga. Will Senga pitch in back-to-back games? The Mets are not in a playoff race right now, there’s no reason to push people past their limits. If the Mets though, are thinking about Senga as a high-leverage reliever in the future, we will need to see him go on back-to-back days eventually. His last two outings (2 IP, H, BB, 3 K) have been in save situations, separated by four days.

Let’s go Mets!