Series Preview: Mets Return Home to Face Nationals

After splitting their four-game series with the San Francisco Giants, the New York Mets (14-9) are heading back home to take on the Washington Nationals (7-14). The series with the Giants marked the end of a commendable West Coast trip in which the Mets went 7-3 against the Oakland Athletics, Los Angeles Dodgers, and the aforementioned Giants. Similarly, the Nationals took care of business during their weekend in Minnesota as they won two out of their three games against the Twins. Because the Nationals will be entering this series with some momentum, the Mets will have to hope for the best from their depleted starting rotation to pull out a series win.

There are a number of things to be aware of as the Mets enter this series.

First, starting pitcher Max Scherzer is currently serving a 10-game suspension for illegal substance use, so he will not be pitching in this series against his former club. This suspension comes at a time in which the Mets are already plagued by the injuries of other starting pitchers. Luckily, relief pitcher Jeff Brigham has answered the call as he made his season debut against the Dodgers, and has logged seven strikeouts in four innings of work so far. Second, rookie catcher Francisco Álvarez finally smashed his first home run of the season in Sunday’s losing effort against the Giants. While the talented prospect has mainly struggled offensively, this home run is a positive sign for his production going forward. He has also excelled in pitch framing as he is ranked in the 83rd percentile in the 2023 Baseball Savant metric.

On the other side of things, there are some important notes regarding the Nationals. First, former Mets first baseman Dominic Smith will be making his return to Citi Field after a long tenure with the club. Smith, the Mets’ former first round selection, has batted .233/.325/.233 in a disappointing start to the season. Second, outfielder Stone Garrett is off to a scorching hot start this season as he is batting .393/.452/.607 in eight games. He will be an offensive threat to watch out for as the Mets try to navigate through the Nationals lineup.

Tuesday, April 25, 2023: TBD vs. RHP Josiah Gray (0-4, 3.74 ERA)

With all of the injuries and circumstances surrounding the Mets’ pitching staff, there is a vacant spot in the rotation for Tuesday’s contest against the Nationals. The club could go a few different routes for this game. First, they could use the pitchers on their roster to complete a “bullpen game,” in which their relief pitchers start and finish the game. The danger with this solution is depleting the bullpen for the upcoming games. Second, they could call upon José Butto again as he pitched well in his season debut against the Athletics. However, that would require the Mets putting a player on the injured list because Butto isn’t eligible to return to MLB before May 1 without an injury reason.

For the Nationals, Josiah Gray will be taking the mound in the first game of the series. He is coming off a solid start in which he pitched 5.1 innings while allowing only one run with three strikeouts. However, he allowed four walks, which is an indicator that he does not have a strong command of the strike zone. In his three career starts against the Mets, Gray has mightily struggled with an 0-2 record and a 12.00 ERA. He has allowed at least four runs in each of those starts.

Wednesday, April 26, 2023: RHP Kodai Senga (3-0, 4.29 ERA) vs. LHP MacKenzie Gore (2-1, 3.43 ERA)

In the second game, Kodai Senga will be pitching for the Mets. His previous start against the Giants came with mixed results as he allowed four earned runs in five innings of work while striking out four batters. Although he was dominant in the first four innings, he experienced difficulty in the fifth inning. This also occurred in the start prior as he pitched 4.2 innings while allowing four earned runs. If Senga can get over his fifth inning woes, he should see better results against the Nationals.

MacKenzie Gore is lined up to start in Wednesday’s game for the Nationals. He pitched exceptionally in his last start against the Orioles as he allowed three runs in six innings of work with seven strikeouts. Consequently, Gore has improved from his numbers from last season in the early part of this season. While he has yet to face the Mets in his career, it will be interesting to see if his success carries over to this upcoming start.

Thursday, April 27, 2023: LHP Joey Lucchesi (1-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Trevor Williams (1-1, 3.38 ERA)

Lucchesi was untouchable in his previous start, in which he pitched seven shutout innings while striking out nine batters against the San Francisco Giants. This was his first start since the 2021 season as he was sidelined for an extended period of time due to Tommy John Surgery. In his only start against the Nationals during his Mets career, Lucchesi pitched five and one-third shutout innings while striking out five. Consequently, it will be interesting to see if Lucchesi can build upon his stellar performance against the Giants, and establish an argument for himself to be a key contributor to the rotation when the injured members of the staff return.

On the other side of the ball, Trevor Williams will be making his return to Citi Field after leaving the Mets in free agency this past offseason. Williams was able to cash in on a solid 2022 season with the Mets when he signed a two-year, $13 million contract with the Nationals. In his last start, Williams was excellent in six innings pitched with two runs allowed. He posted similar numbers in a 2021 start against the Mets, in which he went five innings while allowing two runs and striking out six batters.