Wednesday, July 5, 2023 • 9:40 PM
Chase Field • Phoenix, Arizona
RHP Kodai Senga (6-5, 3.53) vs. LHP Tommy Henry (5-1, 4.08)
SNY

The Mets look to extend their winning streak to four games tonight against the Diamondbacks. A win tonight would clinch the Mets second-consecutive series win and make it less likely that the Mets will be sellers at the end of the month. Can the Mets keep the good times rolling?

Mets Lineup

Kodai Senga was originally scheduled to pitch yesterday, but was pushed back to today for one extra day of rest. Over 15 games and 81 2/3 innings this year, Senga has a 3.53 ERA, 4.02 FIP, 1.347 WHIP and a 117 ERA+. He is still leading the league in walks at 46, but is coming off of a start where he only walked two batters. In his last start, he allowed two runs over five innings while striking out eight. It was the third start in his last four that he has allowed two earned runs or fewer.

Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Diamondbacks Lineup

The Mets’ bats will get a look at Tommy Henry this evening. Henry has pitched in 13 games tossing 68 1/3 innings with a 4.08 ERA, 5.33 FIP, 1.346 WHIP and a 107 ERA+. He’s been on a roll lately with back to back starts allowing  only one run. In his last three starts he has a 1.96 ERA over 18 1/3 innings, despite allowing 18 hits and five walks. Before this stretch, Henry allowed 10 runs over nine innings in his first two starts of June. Teams have hit at least one homer off of him for five consecutive starts. The Mets have never seen him in an official major league game before.

Game Notes

The Mets are seeing what even a few wins in a row can do to their playoff chances. New York has made up three-and-a-half games in the standings during their three-game win streak and now sits only 6.5 games out of the postseason.

Francisco Álvarez has now homered in two out of his last three games, and is looking to rebound from a tough June. MMO’s Christian De Block examined how Álvarez was able to come through in a clutch moment on Tuesday evening.

Starling Marte also showed signs of life on Tuesday with a huge three-run homer. MMO’s Sam Neumann explored if Marte’s breakout could be a sign that he’s about to turn things around after struggling for much of this season.

The Mets delayed sending out their lineup on Wednesday as they were “waiting to see the physical status of one player” according to MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo. Buck Showalter failed to specify who the player in question was, and no Mets regular is missing from the lineup.

Three Things To Watch For

  1. There were a lot of homers yesterday. The Mets and the Diamondbacks hit three homers each on Tuesday, including a 467-foot bomb from Francisco Álvarez. Tommy Henry has allowed homers in five straight starts and has a 1.6 HR/9 rate this season. Kodai Senga hasn’t allowed a homer in two starts, but we’ve seen him fall into periods of time where teams tee off of him. He has a 1.0 HR/9 rate this season. Will the ball stay in the yard at Chase Field tonight?
  2. The Mets are leading the league in hit by pitches. For most of the season the Mets have been in the top three of being hit by pitches. Over the last couple of weeks they have been plunked at a consistent rate and are the standalone leaders. It’s happened 53 times now, four more than the Mariners. Keep in mind the Mets also lead the league in that stat in 2022.
  3. Double Steals? Francisco Lindor (on base because he got hit by a pitch) and Jeff McNeil completed a double a steal, that eventually turned into a critical insurance run on Tuesday. It was the second consecutive game the Mets have completed a double steal.

Let’s go Mets!