Saturday, July 25, 2020 • 4:10 p.m.
Citi Field • Flushing, NY
LHP Max Fried (2019: 17-6, 4.02) vs. LHP Steven Matz (2019: 11-10, 4.21)
SNY • WCBS 880 AM • WQBU 92.7 FM
If there is one day I’m not worried about Mets baseball, it’s Opening Day.
The Mets continued to build on their strong Opening Day record yesterday with a 1-0 win.
Jacob deGrom was fantastic over 5.0 innings, but the Mets didn’t score for him, keeping the tradition of teaching Mets fans that wins aren’t an important stat.
Yoenis Cespedes, playing his first baseball game in two years, hit a homer for the only run.
Edwin Diaz looked good. It was an all around great day in Queens!
Mets Lineup
- Jeff McNeil – 3B
- J.D. Davis – LF
- Pete Alonso – 1B
- Yoenis Cespedes – DH
- Robinson Cano – 2B
- Wilson Ramos – C
- Michael Conforto – RF
- Amed Rosario – SS
- Brandon Nimmo – CF
Braves Lineup
- Ronald Acuna Jr. – CF
- Ozzie Albies – 2B
- Freddie Freeman – 1B
- Marcell Ozuna – DH
- Adam Duvall – RF
- Dansby Swanson – SS
- Johan Camargo – 3B
- Austin Riley – LF
- Alex Jackson – CF
The Braves will already look different than yesterday’s team (or at least, a different look from when I wrote yesterday’s game preview).
About two hours before the first pitch of the season, they acquired Scott Schebler for cash from the Reds to give them another bat off the bench.
In the Game Preview yesterday, we didn’t discuss how the catching corps were completely depleted due to d’Arnaud and Flowers having Covid symptoms.
It’s an early reminder of the fluid nature of rosters this season
Remember that point during Spring Training when the Mets brass made it seem like Steven Matz and Michael Wacha were competing for the 5th rotation spot?
Welcome to the Mets current starting pitching situation with our #2 flamethrower – Matz!
Steven pitched in 32 games and made 30 starts last year totaling 160.1 innings with a 4.21 ERA, 4.60 FIP, 1.341 WHIP and 96 ERA+.
In his last 14 games (after his small stint in the bullpen), he pitched 79.1 innings with a 3.52 ERA. Within those 14 games, there is a 9 game stretch from the end of July to the middle of September where Matz had a 2.32 ERA over 54.1 innings.
Matz made more starts last year against the Braves than any other team, totaling 31.0 innings against them.
He allowed 11 runs (3.19 ERA) from 19 hits and 12 walks while striking out 31.
The Braves have the following numbers against Matz:
- Adam Duvall 3-7, 2B, 3B, BB, 2 K
- Austin Riley 1-3, 2B, BB
- Johan Camargo 3-9, HR, 2 K
- Ender Inciarte 3-9, 2B, BB, K
- Freddie Freeman 8-30, 2 2B, HR, 2 BB, 5 K
- Ronald Acuna Jr.3-12, 3B, BB, 3 K
- Marcell Ozuna 5-18, 2B, 2 BB, 4 K
- Dansby Swanson 3-12, 2B, 3 K
- Ozzie Albies 3-18, 3 K
- Matt Adams 0-3
Max Fried makes his 2020 debut for the Braves today following his first full season.
Last year he pitched in 33 games, 30 starts with a 4.02 ERA, 3.72 FIP, 1.334 WHIP and 113 ERA+ over 165.2 innings.
Five games and four starts came against the Mets where he allowed 11 runs over 25.2 innings (3.86 ERA) from 30 hits, 6 walks and 26 K’s.
The Mets have the following numbers against Fried:
- Jeff McNeil 5-11, 2 2B, 4 K
- Brandon Nimmo 2-6, 2B, 2 BB, 3 K
- Robinson Cano 2-4
- Wilson Ramos 3-8, BB, 2 K
- J.D. Davis 4-11, BB, 3 K
- Amed Rosario 5-15, 5 K
- Pete Alonso 1-10, HR, 3 BB, 4 K
- Michael Conforto 1-13, 2 BB, 6 K
Game Notes
The Mets improved to 39-20 all-time on Opening Day, the best record in major league history with a 1-0 win yesterday, New York has won 39 of their last 51 openers.
Yesterday marked the Mets’ first-ever 1-0 win on Opening Day in which the lone run came on a homer, just the eighth such Opening Day game since at least 1901.
Matz went 8-2 with a 2.31 ERA (23 earnde runs/89.2 innings) in 17 games (15 starts) at Citi Field last year, and his 2.31 home
ERA was the third-best in the majors, and is 6-2 with a 2.94 ERA (23 earned runs/70.1 innings) in his 13 career starts against the Braves.
Let’s Go Mets! Check 213 Miles From Shea!
