In his first spot start, subbing for Matt Harvey, back on August 23rd in Colorado, Logan Verrett pitched eight sparkling innings and allowed just one run on four hits as the Mets went on to win 5-1. He stepped up again last night by allowing just one run on three hits in five innings as the Mets beat the Miami Marlins 4-3, extending their winning streak to eight games and dropping their magic number down to 10.
“It felt really good just getting back out there,” Verrett said afterward. “Being at home, feeling the crowd here, especially being on such a great run. It felt really good. There definitely was a lot of adrenaline.”
Verrett, who was drafted in the third round by the Mets back in 2011, has made the skipping of starts dilemma a little less painful, and if nothing else, he has given the Mets a viable option to start games for them as they continue to rest guys like Harvey, deGrom, and Syndergaard down the stretch.
His second start comes just eight days after he allowed six earned runs in 5.1 IP in his last start in the Pacific Coast League. That game is now a distant memory for Verrett, who pitched well enough last night to give his teammates a chance to win the series opener, with one of their aces Jacob deGrom going tonight.
On the season Verrett has an ERA of 1.91 and 0.701 WHIP in 28.1 innings, and if it wasn’t for him getting taken out after 63 pitches, he may have picked up his second win last night. There is a good chance we will be seeing Verrett pitch again at some point in these last 18 games for the Mets.
