Monday, August 7, 2023 • 7:10 PM
Citi Field • Flushing, New York
LHP Drew Smyly (8-7, 4.71) vs. RHP Kodai Senga (7-6, 3.25)
SNY

The Mets and the Cubs are on two different trajectories for the rest of the 2023 season. The Mets saw the writing on the wall and traded away aging stars and expiring contracts at the trade deadline. Since then, the Mets have lost every game. The Cubs made a push in the standings at the deadline, held onto their stars (possibly increasing the Mets return in trades) and have continued to play well. They are only four games over five hundred, but currently are tied with the Reds for a Wild Card spot and only 1.5 games back from the division lead.

Can the Mets play spoilers this week? Will the Cubs use the Mets on their way to push for the division title?

Kodai Senga. Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Mets Lineup

The Mets to got a quality start yesterday from José Quintana, and Kodai Senga looks to keep that momentum going tonight.

Over 20 starts (110 2/3 innings), Senga has a 3.25 ERA, 3.70 FIP, 1.292 WHIP and a 127 ERA+. Since June 28, Senga has made six starts totaling 34 innings with a 2.65 ERA (2.73 FIP). At the start of the year he was struggling with homers and walks. During this current stretch, he has allowed only two homers (last one on July 15) and has walked only 11 batters (44 before this).

When he faced the Cubs earlier this year, he allowed three runs from six hits and five walks over five innings. The Cubs have the following career numbers against him:

Opposing Lineup

Drew Smyly has pitched 112 2/3 innings over 22 games (20 starts) this year with a 4.71 ERA, 4.93 FIP, 1.349 WHIP and a 97 ERA+.

He’s allowed at least four earned runs in four of his last five outings. Over that stretch, he has allowed a total of 20 runs—all but one earned—over 22 2/3 innings (7.54 ERA). Smyly had an average outing against the Mets back in May, when he allowed two runs over five innings, and he’ll gladly take an outing like that again tonight.

The Mets have the following career numbers against him:

Game Notes

Brett Baty was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse and Starling Marte was placed on the injured list with a groin strain ahead of Monday’s game. Abraham Almonte and Jonathan Arauz were called up on the active roster in their place.

Three Things To Watch For

  1. The Mets Offense? The Mets offense essentially disappeared against the Orioles and Royals. They’ve scored three runs in their last two games. Sunday was particularly frustrating, because even though the Mets only had four hits, they did work six walks but couldn’t do anything with that. Plus, they actually got a quality start from a starting pitcher. Hopefully the Mets can change this part of their story tonight against a struggling Drew Smyly.
  2. What’s the vibe at Citi Field? The Mets are returning home for the first time tonight since the trade deadline. It’s also a Monday night after a rainy day in New York. What are the vibes going to be like? Is it going to be mostly empty? Apathetic? How will the players feed off of the crowd?
  3. Kodai Senga: It’s been a stellar rookie season for Senga. He tossed between 111 and 148 innings over the last three season in the Japanese professional league, so it will be interesting to see how long the team lets Senga pitch this year. He’s at 110.2 innings before tonight’s start. They’ll want to keep him stretched out and ready for the 2024 season, but you also don’t want to risk potential injury.

Let’s go Mets!