Morning Briefing: Mets Get Day Off After Subway Series Losses

Credit: John Jones-USA TODAY Sports

Good morning, Mets fans!

Let’s start with a positive; today is a new day and the Mets are about to start a 10-game homestand and a stretch of baseball where the schedule gets a lot easier. The bad news? The Mets were swept by the Yankees on Tuesday night and they finished a tough road trip 4-6.

Taijuan Walker was near-perfect at Yankee Stadium until he was taken long by Aaron Judge in the bottom of the fourth inning, and the Mets ultimately punished themselves by leaving runners on base all night, including loading the bases in the ninth only to come up empty-handed.

The Mets have a much-needed and well-deserved off day today before they open up a four-game series against the Colorado Rockies at Citi Field on Thursday. Jacob deGrom (2-1, 2.31 ERA) will take the mound in the series opener, while the Rockies have yet to announce their starter. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10pm.

Latest Mets News

As mentioned above, deGrom will start against the Rockies on Thursday on full rest. As a result, that should put him in line to face the Dodgers at Citi Field next week.

Mark Vientos‘ red hot August continues. After hitting three homers with 10 RBI last week, earning International Player of the Week honors, the highly-regarded prospect was at it again on Tuesday as he blasted his 23rd home run of the year. Francisco Álvarez hit his 24th homer of the season in the same game.

Right-handed pitcher Joander Suarez and infielder D’Andre Smith – the Mets 5th round pick this year – were both added to the St. Lucie Mets roster.

Thinking of heading to Citi Field on Aug. 30 with the Dodgers in town? Well, there’s more reason to go now with the Mets designating this as their Knicks Night. Both current members of the Knicks and Knicks legends will be in attendance, with fans now able to purchase a package featuring a game ticket and a special Knicks/Mets co-branded t-shirt.

Chris Bassitt has been pretty damn good since the trade deadline. Just how good do you ask? Well, in the three weeks since the trade deadline, Bassitt ranks third in MLB in ERA (minimum 20 IP) with 0.69. The full list is:

Edward Cabrera – 0.00
Jordan Montgomery – 0.35
Chris Bassitt – 0.69
Julio Urías – 0.75
Justin Steele – 0.79
Zac Gallen – 1.00
Drew Smyly – 1.13
Cristian Javier – 1.50
Drew Rasmussen – 1.57
Jeffrey Springs – 1.66

This Saturday marks the long-awaited return of Old Timers Day to Citi Field, and managers Terry Collins and Willie Randolph completed the Old Timers Day Draft. See the results here.

Latest MLB News

Arguably the biggest news of the day to emerge from the baseball world was the report that Angels owner Art Moreno is exploring selling the team. Moreno is infamous for his hands-on approach and, given his team’s considerable struggles, this is a significant development and one that could impact a multitude of different things, including the future of superstar Shohei Ohtani.

Los Angeles Dodgers right-handed ace Walker Buehler underwent Tommy John Surgery on Tuesday. He’ll miss the rest of this year and all of the 2023 season. This is Buehler’s second Tommy John Surgery. He was pitching to a 4.02 ERA in 12 starts with a 6-3 record this year.

Team USA announced manager Mark DeRosa‘s coaching staff for the 2023 World Baseball Classic and there were some notable names included. Jerry Manuel was named the bench coach, Yankees great Andy Pettitte will be the pitching coach, Ken Griffey Jr. was announced as the hitting coach, Lou Collier is the first base coach, Dino Ebel was named the third base coach, and the bullpen coach will be Dave Righetti. Talk about a stacked coaching staff.

There was some happy news for former Met Steven Matz and his partner Taylor Cain Matz, who welcomed their first-born child, Stevie Jhett Matz, on Sunday. Congratulations to the Matz family!

Trea Turner is a fun ballplayer to watch and all baseball purists love a good slide. Well, combine the two and you get art. ESPN’s Jeff Passan did a deep dive on Turner’s ability to turn one of baseball’s most under-appreciated plays into an art form.

MLB Pipeline has updated its farm system rankings, with the Mets farm system coming in at No. 14. That is considerably lower than ESPN, who ranked the Mets No. 5.

While the Angels continue to implode, one thing remains consistent and that is Mike Trout‘s greatness. The centerfielder collected his 1,500 career hit on Tuesday night. And he did it in style with a home run.

RHP Garrett Richards cleared waivers on Tuesday and, per Ken Rosenthal, he is a potential option for the Mets given that Billy Eppler was his GM while with the Angels. Richards pitched to a 5.27 ERA while with the Texans this year.

Latest on MMO

Matt Lazzaro recaps the Mets’ Subway Series sweep at the hands of the Yankees.

Brian Wright takes a look at how Pete Alonso‘s 2022 season compares to some other amazing seasons in Mets history.

Mark Vientos has been mashing at insane levels in August, and Andrew Steele-Davis takes a look at whether that will be enough for a September call-up to the big leagues.