Series Preview: Mets Return Home For Four Games With Rockies

The New York Mets (21-19, first place in the National League East) return home to Citi Field to play host to manager Bud Black‘s Colorado Rockies (18-29, fourth place in the National League West) for four games beginning Monday night.

The Mets are coming from a three-game series against the Marlins in which they lost two of three. The Mets posted a record of 3-6 on their recently completed road trip to Tampa Bay, Atlanta, and Miami. The Rockies completed a three-game sweep of the Diamondbacks in Colorado on Sunday, with the last game ending on a Trevor Story walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning.

The Mets’ story is well-known at this point. They have 16 players on the injured list, and have had to significantly dip into their Triple-A squad for replacements, bringing up players such as Wilfredo Tovar, Brandon Drury, Johneshwy Fargas, Khalil Lee, and Yennsy Diaz.

Those non-household names have been entertaining to watch, playing spirited baseball and helping the Mets win a couple of games in exciting fashion. However, the reality is the Mets are not fielding a competitive team at this point (through no fault of their own), and the return of most of their missing players is not imminent. Only Jacob deGrom is set to return this week, with J.D. Davis potentially returning this weekend (he had a setback on Sunday with a neck issue).

Between the remaining contingent of the “Bench Mob” and the current “Replace-Mets”, the guys in blue and orange will have to find a way to scrape and claw their way to some wins in this series. The good news for the Mets is that the Rockies are 2-17 away from Coors Field, averaging just 2.8 runs per game on the road versus six runs per game at home. The Rockies’ OPS at home is .795, as opposed to their OPS of .573 on the road.

The weather generally looks good for the series, with a chance of a thunderstorms Wednesday night, which might, though not likely, impact that game.

Let’s take a look at the projected pitching matchups for the series.

Monday , May 24, LHP Austin Gomber (2-4) COL vs LHP David Peterson (1-3) NYM, 7:10 pm

Gomber in 2021: GS: 9, ERA: 4.96, WHIP: 1.30,  IP: 45.1, H: 37, BB: 22, SO: 47,  ER: 25, HR: 6

Last 3 starts: May 7 vs. STL (L, 5.0IP, 5ER), May 12 vs. SDP (ND, 5.1IP, 0ER), May 18 vs. SDP (ND, 6.0IP, 1ER)

Peterson in 2021: GS: 8, ERA: 4.97, WHIP: 1.26, IP: 38.0, H: 34, BB: 14, SO: 46, ER: 21, HR: 6

Last 3 starts: May 7 vs. ARI (ND, 1.2, IP, 3ER), May 14 vs. TBR (ND, 7.1IP, 2ER), May 19 vs. ATL (ND, 4.2IP, 3ER)

Gomber is in his third season, with a career record of 9-7. Prior to this season, he had been used mostly in relief. He throws his fastball 49% of the time, his curve 22% of the time, and his slider 19% of the time.

Peterson, in his sophomore season, has been inconsistent. He was not good in his start on May 7 against the Diamondbacks, very good on May 14 against the Rays, and mediocre against the Braves on May 19.  That’s how his season has gone. With the Mets in a stretch of 17 games in 17 days, and with a bullpen that’s already been taxed, New York will need Peterson to go deep in this game.

The game can be seen locally on SNY, and heard locally on WCBS radio 880 am.

Tuesday , May 25, TBD COL vs RHP Jacob deGrom (3-2) NYM, 7:10 pm

DeGrom in 2021: GS: 6, ERA: 0.68, WHIP: 0.60,  IP:40.0, H 17: , BB: 7, SO: 65,  ER: 3, HR: 2

Last 3 starts: April 23 vs.WSH (W, 9.0IP, 0ER), April 28 vs. BOS (L, 6.0IP, 1ER), May 9 vs. ARZ (W, 5.0IP, 1ER)

Mets fans will be holding their breath when deGrom takes the mound Tuesday, as the ace is coming off a stint on the injured list with discomfort in his side. DeGrom performed well in his rehab start last week and declared himself good to go. His return not only provides the Mets with the best pitcher in the game, but also the mental edge of getting their first significant player back from injury.

The game can be seen locally on SNY, and heard locally on WCBS radio 880 am.

Wednesday , May 26, RHP German Marquez (3-4) COL vs RHP Marcus Stroman (3-4) NYM, 7:10 pm

Marquez in 2021: GS: 10, ERA: 4.82, WHIP: 1.59,  IP:52.1, H 53: , BB: 30, SO: 56,  ER: 28, HR: 5

Last 3 starts: May 9 vs.STL (L, 6.0IP, 1ER), May 14 vs. COL (W, 6.0IP, 4ER), May 21 vs. ARZ (W, 7.0IP, 0ER)

Stroman in 2021: GS: 10, ERA: 2.73, WHIP: 1.08,  IP:52.2, H: 46, BB: 11, SO: 43,  ER: 16, HR: 6

Last 3 starts: May 11 vs. BAL (ND, 6.1IP, 1ER), May 16 vs. TBR (L, 6.0IP, 5ER), May 21 vs. MIA (ND, 6.0IP, 2ER)

Marquez is in his sixth season and has a career record of 45-34 with 4.29 ERA. He predominantly features a fastball (57%) and a curveball (24%), while also mixing in a changeup and a slider.

Stroman has been up-and-down this season. He started brilliantly before having a couple of rough starts. He’s been solid in his last few appearances, with the exception of his effort in Tampa Bay when he uncharacteristically gave up three home runs. The Mets will look to Stroman for a quality start, with the uncertainty of Thursday’s pitching situation.

The game can be seen locally on SNY, and heard locally on WCBS radio 880 am.

Thursday , May 27, RHP Antonio Senzatela (1-4) COL vs TBD NYM, 12:10 pm

Senzatela in 2021: GS: 9, ERA: 5.01, WHIP: 1.46,  IP:46.2, H: 55 , BB: 13, SO: 28,  ER: 26, HR: 6

Last 3 starts: May 11 vs. SDP (L, 5.0IP, 4ER), May 16 vs. CIN (ND, 7.0IP, 1ER), May 22 vs. ARZ (ND, 7.0IP, 0ER)

Senzatela is in his fifth season and has a career record of 33-29 with a 5.00 ERA. He features a fastball (64%) and a slider (22%), along with mixing in a changeup and a curveball.

The Mets may use Joey Lucchesi, who pitched very well on Saturday in Miami (4.0 IP, 1 hit, 8 strikeouts). There’s also the option of a bullpen game, which the Mets have done a couple of times this season, generally with good success.

The game can be seen locally on SNY, and heard locally on WCBS radio 880 am.

Series Notes for Mets

Mets by the numbers, with MLB rankings:

BA .226 (27th)

OBP .309 (17th)

SLG .341 (30th)

OPS .650 (28h)

Team ERA 3.30 (4th)

Starters’ ERA 2.89 (4th)

Relievers’ ERA 3.80 (10th)

Mets OPS leaders (among players who are active) are Tomas Nido (.852), Jonathan Villar (.687), Dominic Smith (.620)

Francisco Lindor is slashing .194/.302/.285

Of the Mets’ 16 (soon to be 15) players on injured list:

Pete Alonso, Taijuan Walker, Jeff McNeil, Michael Conforto, Tommy Hunter, Luis Guillorme, Albert Almora Jr.

Series Notes for Rockies

Rockies by the numbers, with MLB rankings:

BA .243 (10th)

OBP .306 (22nd)

SLG .398 (15th)

OPS .704 (16th)

Team ERA 4.90 (27th)

Starters’ ERA 4.54 (21st)

Relievers’ ERA 5.62 (29th)

Active Rockies OPS leaders are Ryan McMahon (.806), Trevor Story (.770), Raimel Tapia (.745)

Matt Adams is on the ten-day injured list.

Under normal circumstances, the Mets would be at an advantage in this series. However, the Mets’ depleted roster may have a challenge against Colorado, despite the Rockies’ struggles so far this season. Tuesday night is clearly the game to watch, not only because it’s a deGrom start, but also to monitor the ace’s health as he works back from his time on the shelf.

After this series, the Mets welcome the Braves to Flushing for a Memorial Day weekend three-game set before heading west to Arizona and San Diego.