Sunday, July 9, 2017 • 2:15 p.m. (ET)
Busch Stadium • St. Louis, MO
LHP Steven Matz (2-1, 2.12) vs. RHP Lance Lynn (6-6, 3.87)
SNY • WOR 710 AM • 104.3 WAXQ-FM HD 2 • ESPN 1050 AM
Yesterday was a clunky game for the Mets. Zack Wheeler provided a solid start but the bullpen let the game expand enough that it felt like an unreachable deficit to tie the game. In the end, the Mets got limited offense and lost 4-1 so New York will look to take the rubber game this afternoon.
New York has lost four of its last five games. The Mets have won eight of their last 13. The Mets are 20-22 on the road and have won six of their last 10 away from Citi Field. The Mets are 9-15 in day games.
METS LINEUP
- Jose Reyes (S) SS
- Michael Conforto (L) CF
- Yoenis Cespedes (R) LF
- Jay Bruce (L) RF
- Wilmer Flores (R) 2B
- Lucas Duda (L) 1B
- Rene Rivera (R) C
- Matt Reynolds (R) 3B
- Steven Matz (R) P
CARDINALS LINEUP
- Matt Carpenter (L) 2B
- Tommy Pham (R) LF
- Dexter Fowler (S) CF
- Jedd Gyorko (R) 3B
- Yadier Molina (R) C
- Stephen Piscotty (R) RF
- Luke Voit (R) 1B
- Paul DeJong (R) SS
- Lance Lynn (L) P
Steven Matz is 2-1 over five games and 34.0 innings with a 2.12 ERA, 4.56 FIP and 1.029 WHIP. Matz is coming off back-to-back starts where he held teams scoreless over seven innings. In his last 14.0 innings, he has allowed only 10 hits and three walks. Matz has never faced the Cardinals and the only member has seen him in a game, Dexter Fowler, is 1-for-3.
Matz has tossed 17.0 consecutive scoreless innings dating to June 22. His career best is a 19.0-inning scoreless streak from May 20-31, 2016. Matz has thrown seven scoreless innings in each of his last two starts.
The last Mets hurler to pitch at least seven innings without allowing a run in three straight starts was R.A. Dickey, who did so from May 27-June 7, 2012. Matz has worked at least six innings in a career-best 10 consecutive starts dating to July 24, 2016. It’s the longest stretch by a Mets pitcher since Matt Harvey tossed at least six innings in 12 consecutive starts from August 7, 2013 to May 18, 2015.
The Mets bats will try to bounce back against Lance Lynn who is 6-6 over 17 games and 95 1/3 innings with a 3.87 ERA, 5.35 FIP and 1.175 WHIP. He is coming off Tommy John surgery which took him out of the 2016 season.He was doing great until mid-June where he allowed seven runs in back-to-back starts. Since then. he has tossed 11 1/3 innings with seven runs (five earned). In 2015, he allowed one run and three hits over seven innings. The Mets have the following numbers against Lance Lynn:
- Bruce 14-for-33, 2B, 3B, 3 HR, 3 BB, 1.310 OPS
- Duda 0-for-13, 3 BB
- Cespedes 2-for-6, 3B
- Granderson 1-for-2, HR, 4 BB
- R. Rivera 2-for-5, 2B
- Flores 0-for-5
- Reyes 1-for-2, 2 BB
NOTES:
The Mets are 5-3 in rubber games this year, including 3-0 on the road. New York has won three of its last four series.
The Mets have hit at least one home run in 37 of their 42 road games this year. The Mets have 79 home runs in 42 games on the road, the most in the majors. New York hit a franchise-record 106 home runs on the road last season. The Mets have hit 42 homers in their last 24 games. Overall, the Mets have 129 home runs, the second-most in the NL and the sixth-most in the majors.
Jay Bruce is tied for fourth in the NL with 23 homers. He has 59 RBI, which is 13th in the NL and is tied for eighth with 41 extra base hits. Bruce is second in the NL with 14 road homers.
Bruce has homered in three straight games. It’s the 11th time in his career, he gone deep in at least three consecutive games. The last time he had a longer stretch, he hit a home run in a career-best five straight games July 23-27, 2016.
Matz is 7-2 with a 1.46 ERA (11 earned runs/68.0 innings) in 10 career starts during the day. Today is his first start during the day this year
Curtis Granderson has homered in four of his last 10 games and he has six homers and 13 RBI in his last 14 games. Granderson ranks is 12th in the majors since May 1 with a .597 slugging percentage and is 10th in the in the NL in on-base percentage (.396) during that span (min. 200 plate appearances). Granderson has 12 home runs, 31 RBI and 36 runs scored since May 1. He has 45 career leadoff homers, the most among active players.
Addison Reed has allowed two runs over his 17.0 innings (1.06 ERA) dating to May 29 and surrendered six runs over his last 29.2 innings (1.82 ERA) since May 1. Reed is 15-for-17 in save chances and is tied for ninth in the NL in saves. He has saved nine straight chances.
Let’s Go Mets!
