The Mets, fresh off taking three of four from the defending National League champion St. Louis Cardinals, take on their division rival Miami Marlins beginning tonight at Citi Field.
Zack Wheeler (1-2, 4.63 ERA) opposes right-hander Henderson Alvarez (1-2, 2.66) in the 7:10 PM series opener.
Wheeler is throwing a first pitch strike 59.4% of the time in 2014, compared to 52.0% of the time in 2013. He is looking to earn his first home victory of the season against the Marlins tonight. He is 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA in two previous home starts this season.
After pitching 6.0 or more innings just twice in his first six major league starts, Zack Wheeler has tossed 6.0 or more innings in 11 of his last 15 starts. This year he has pitched 6.0 or more frames in three of his first four starts.
Second baseman Daniel Murphy has hit safely in nine of his past 10 games, batting .326 (14-for-43) with eight runs scored and just five strikeouts during the stretch. He ranks second on the Mets with a .291 batting average, 11 runs scored, three stolen bases, 25 hits and four doubles.
Eric Young Jr. has stolen 10 bases in 11 tries so far this season. Entering 2014, he had swiped just nine bags in 129 career plate appearances in April.
Mets starters have allowed three runs or fewer in 10 straight games and have a 1.84 ERA over 63.2 innings pitched in that span.
Starting Lineup
- Eric Young Jr., lf
- Curtis Granderson, rf
- David Wright, 3b
- Daniel Murphy, 2b
- Chris Young, cf
- Lucas Duda, 1b
- Travis d’Arnaud, c
- Ruben Tejada, ss
- Zack Wheeler, rhp
Game Preview
Only three games left on the 10 game homestand! The Mets played well and took 3 of 4 games from the Cardinals this week to go into the weekend two games above .500 and now the Marlins come to town. There are a few notable similarities between the two teams. First, as of late, the Mets and Marlins have been playing well. Second, the Mets struggle at home. The Marlins struggle on the road. Zack Wheeler looks to keep the streak going against the Marlins as he squares up against Henderson Alvarez.
Wheeler is 1-2 over 4 starts this season with a 4.63 ERA over 23.1 innings walking 8 and striking out 21 batters. In his last two starts here has tossed 12.1 innings with a 3.65 ERA, 6 walks and 9 strikeouts. Last year he faced the Marlins once where he pitched a no decision allowing 2 runs, 3 hits over 7.0 innings while walking 3 and striking out 5. The Marlins have the following numbers against Wheeler:
- Hechavarria 0-3
- Johnson 1-3, 2B
- Mathis 0-3
- Solano 1-3
- Stanton 0-2
- Yelich 0-3
Henderson Alvarez is 1-2 over 4 starts with 2.66 ERA and 23.2 innings of work while walking 7 and striking out 14. Alvarez is coming off of a gem complete game shutout where he walked no one, allowed 2 hits and walked 4. He was also great against the Mets where he was 2-0 over 1.26 ERA pitching 14.1 innings allowing 10 hits, 2 ER, 2 walks and 6 strikeouts. The Mets have the following numbers against him:
- Granderson 3-12, 2B
- Murphy 1-9
- E Young 1-6, 3B
- Duda 1-6
- Wright 2-6, 2B
- Abreu 1-3
- d’Arnaud 1-3
Lets Go Mets!
