Mets by the Numbers: DeGrom Ties Matlack

In this weekly feature for MMO, I’m going to look back at the previous week’s games and share some interesting data and information that I’ve collected through various websites such as Baseball-Reference, FanGraphs, and Baseball Savant. It’ll be a mixture of facts, stats, and analytics.

Let’s get into the seven days between September 4 and September 10.

Sunday, September 4, 2022

Nationals vs. Mets

Tommy Hunter tossed two scoreless innings in relief in the Mets’ 7-1 loss to the Washington Nationals in the rubber game of the series. In 18 games with the club since 2021, Hunter has posted a 1.38 ERA. That’s the 11th-lowest ERA by a Mets pitcher in his first 18 appearances with the club in franchise history.

Tuesday, September 6, 2022

Mets vs. Pirates

Oneil Cruz went 3-for-5 with a double, home run, and two RBI in the Pirates’ win. All three of his hits had an exit velocity of at least 110.9 mph. He’s the first player in the Statcast era (since 2015) to record three hits that each had an exit velocity of 110+ mph against the Mets.

Wednesday, September 7, 2022

Mets vs. Pirates (Game 1)

Chris Bassitt tossed seven innings of one-run ball in the Mets’ 5-1 win over the Pirates in the first game of a doubleheader. In 26 starts in 2022, Bassitt owns a 3.24 ERA over 161.1 innings pitched. Bassitt is just the fifth Mets pitcher since 2010 to toss 160+ innings and post a sub-3.25 ERA in his first 26 games with the club. R.A. Dickey, 2010; Matt Harvey, 2012-2013; Jacob deGrom, 2014-2015; and Noah Syndergaard, 2015-2016 are the others.

Eduardo Escobar hit his 15th home run of the season with a solo shot in the fourth inning. That was career home run number 153 for Escobar, which tied Pablo Sandoval for the 17th-most homers hit by a Venezuelan-born player.

Pirates’ hitters recorded 10 swings and misses against Chris Bassitt’s cutter. That’s the most whiffs Bassitt has recorded on his cutter in a start for his major league career. His previous high was 8 on April 15, 2022.

Pete Alonso went 2-for-5 with a double. The double was Alonso’s 230th career extra-base hit, which tied Dave Kingman for the 18th-most extra-base hits in Mets history.

Mets vs. Pirates (Game 2)

Jacob deGrom tossed seven scoreless innings in the Mets’ 10-0 win in the second game of the doubleheader. It was deGrom’s 38th consecutive start of allowing no more than three earned runs. Since the ER became official in both leagues in 1913, only two other pitchers have recorded at least 38 consecutive games of <=3 ER (excluding openers): Jim Scott (39 games, 1913-1914) and Ray Washburn (38 games, 1968-1970).

Jacob deGrom picked up his 82nd career win. He tied Jon Matlack for the seventh-most victories in Mets history.

Through his first seven starts of the season, Jacob deGrom has struck out 63 batters while walking only four. Only three other pitchers in major league history have struck out 60+ batters while walking fewer than five in their first seven starts of a season: Clayton Kershaw (2016), Gerrit Cole (2021), and Corbin Burnes (2021).

Jeff McNeil went 3-for-5 with a double, walk, and two RBI. It was the 150th multi-hit game of McNeil’s career. That tied him with Steve Henderson for the 27th-most multi-hit games in Mets history.

Adam Ottavino tossed a scoreless eighth inning and lowered his season ERA to 2.10 in 56 games. Ottavino has the third-lowest single-season ERA by a Mets pitcher in his first 56 games with the club. Aaron Loup (1.13, 2021) and Braden Looper (2.00, 2004) are ahead.

Friday, September 9, 2022

Mets vs. Marlins

Pete Alonso went 1-for-4 with a home run and two RBI in the Mets’ 6-3 loss to the Marlins. Alonso recorded his 357th career RBI in the loss, tying Jerry Grote for the 19th-most RBI in franchise history.

Alonso’s 2-run home run in the sixth had an exit velocity of 115.6 mph. That’s his hardest-hit home run this season, and fifth-hardest for his major league career.

Saturday, September 10, 2022

Mets vs. Marlins

Mark Canha went 1-for-3 with a grand slam, two walks, and four RBI in the Mets’ 11-3 win over the Marlins. It was Canha’s first career grand slam.

Bryce Montes de Oca struck out three batters in the seventh inning. He threw a pitch that was recorded at 102.4 mph, which is the third-hardest pitch thrown by a Mets pitcher in the Statcast era.

Carlos Carrasco tossed six innings of one-run ball for his 14th win of the season. It was career win number 103 for Carrasco, which moved him past Wilson Álvarez for the sixth-most wins among Venezuelan-born pitchers.

With the Mets’ win on Saturday night, the club clinched a winning record both at home and on the road for the first time since 2016.