Jose Butto, Photo by Richard Nelson

Sunday, August 21, 2022 • 1:35 P.M.
Citizens Bank Park • Philadelphia, PA
RHP Jose Butto (MLB Debut) vs. RHP Kyle Gibson (8-5, 4.30 ERA)
SNY • WCBS 880 AM

The Mets go for the series victory today in Philadelphia. New York won the first game of the doubleheader yesterday, but couldn’t get the offense going for the night cap. So, they settled for the split.

For the past week the Mets have known that the yesterday and today was going to be the rough patch in terms of starting pitching. Carlos Carrasco is out for the next month and Taijuan Walker, who was scheduled to pitch today, needs more time to come back from back spasms. So, the Mets relied on Trevor Williams and David Peterson yesterday to fill in the gaps, but that still left today to figure out.

Phillies Lineup

And for those reasons is why José Butto will be making his MLB debut this afternoon. The right-handed pitcher, who most recently was listed as the number 12 prospect in the Mets’ system by Mets Minors, will get a chance to show his stuff at the major-league level today.

Across 20 games with Binghamton (Double-A) and two games with Syracuse (Triple-A), Butto has pitched 98 1/3 innings with a 4.39 ERA and a 1.312 WHIP. While his walk rate at 3.4 per nine innings is the highest in his career, so his strikeout rate at 10.2 per nine. He has thrown up to 98 pitches as recently as July 30th, so if his stuff looks good today he can potentially go deep into the game.

Mets Lineup

The Mets’ bats will get another look at Kyle Gibson this afternoon. Over 23 games and 127 2/3 innings, Gibson has a 4.30 ERA, 4.27 FIP, 1.167 WHIP and a 95 ERA+. In his last four starts, he has allowed nine runs, eight earned, over 26 innings (2.77 ERA, 3.74 FIP).

Gibson threw back-to-back games against the Mets at the end of April and start of May. In the first game, he held the Mets to one unearned run over 4 1/3 innings. In the next start, he held the Mets to two earned runs over six innings via six hits. The Mets have the following numbers against him:

Games Notes

The New York Mets reportedly selected the contract of left-handed reliever Nate Fisher. Fisher owns an ERA of 3.38 across 72 innings pitched between Binghamton (Double-A) and Syracuse (Triple-A) this season.

The San Francisco Giants claimed Patrick Mazeika.

In addition to the Fisher selection, the Mets made the following roster moves:

– José Butto recalled

– Rob Zastryzny optioned

– Stephen Nogosek to the injured list (left oblique strain)

– Sam Clay designated for assignment

The Philadelphia Phillies are reportedly down a couple top arms in their bullpen. Corey Knebel was placed on the 60-day injured list. Additionally, Seranthony Dominguez appears to be headed to the injured list as well.