The New York Mets (68-78) have 16 games remaining on their schedule, all of which come against teams in the National League who are fighting for a spot in the postseason. They can play spoiler for the next two-plus weeks, starting this weekend. Next up for the Mets is the athletic Cincinnati Reds (76-72), who are coming off a series victory against the Detroit Tigers. Cincinnati has played some good baseball away from Great American Ball Park, owning a 40-33 record on the road.
New York will get their first chance to see Elly De La Cruz, Spencer Steer, Christian Encarnacion-Strand and the rest of the young talent on the Reds roster. It will be a great opportunity to see them battle it out against Ronny Mauricio, Mark Vientos and Francisco Álvarez, who are performing well as of late. Let’s take a look at some important notes for the three pitching matchups.
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The Reds don’t have a legitimate No. 1 in their starting rotation yet, but Hunter Greene is certainly building towards becoming their ace. He spent over two months on the injured list with a nagging hip injury, but he was able to return on Aug. 20 against the Toronto Blue Jays. Greene looked way off the pace in his first two outings, surrendering 13 earned runs in just 6 2/3 innings. But the young right-hander has won each of his last two starts, throwing 11 1/3 scoreless innings against the San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals. The 24-year-old will make his 12th road start of the year, going 3-2 with a 3.57 ERA in the previous 11.
David Peterson returned to the starting rotation on Aug. 4 against the Baltimore Orioles after a stretch in which he was utilized out of the bullpen. It took the left-hander a few weeks to build his workload up, but as of late, he has been able to provide much more length. Peterson has two quality starts since Aug. 27, including his last outing versus the Minnesota Twins on Sep. 9. The 28-year-old allowed three runs to score on eight hits in six innings of work. Peterson has performed much better since the All-Star break, going 1-1 with a 3.83 ERA across 40 innings. He is 2-2 with a 3.18 ERA in 12 appearances at Citi Field this season.
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Saturday, September 16, 2023: LHP Andrew Abbott (8-5, 3.64 ERA) vs. RHP Tylor Megill (8-7, 5.03 ERA)
Andrew Abbott is one of many young players within the Reds organization who has been given an extended opportunity to thrive at the big league level this season. The 2021 second-round draft pick was fantastic in his first seven starts, pitching to a remarkable 2.38 ERA in 41 2/3 innings. Opponents have made some adjustments against Abbott since the beginning of August, and as a result, the left-hander has experienced some growing pains. He has failed to make it past four innings in three of his last four outings, which is an issue that he did not face in June and July. Abbott is 5-2 with a 3.86 ERA in nine starts on the road.
Tylor Megill has looked sharp to begin the month of September, going 1-0 with a 2.61 ERA over the last 10 1/3 innings. He had one of his best starts of the season on Sep. 10 against the Twins, throwing five scoreless innings while giving up just two hits. Megill spent some time in Triple-A Syracuse earlier this year, but it appears that he has turned the corner since the All-Star break. His final two or three starts will serve as a tryout for a spot in the rotation to begin the 2024 season. If Megill performs to his best, the 28-year-old will be in good shape going into the off-season. He is 6-2 with a 3.43 ERA in 11 home starts across 60 1/3 innings.
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Sunday, September 17, 2023: LHP Brandon Williamson (4-4, 4.47 ERA) vs. LHP José Quintana (2-5, 3.05 ERA)
Brandon Williamson spent all of April and the beginning of May in the starting rotation with Triple-A Louisville. He made his major league debut on May 16 against the Colorado Rockies, and he has been in the mix ever since. Williamson is coming off a rough outing on Sep. 12 versus the Tigers, surrendering five runs on seven hits across four innings. The left-hander did have some good performances in the month of August, throwing two quality starts against the Miami Marlins and Arizona Diamondbacks. Williamson will be looking to bounce back in his 12th road start of the year, going 2-2 with a 4.70 ERA in the previous 11 outings.
José Quintana does not reflect how well he has pitched in his first 10 starts in a Mets uniform. The lineup has failed to help him out, averaging just 2.77 runs per game with the left-hander on the mound. Quintana has done a wonderful job after so much time on the injured list, as he has given up three runs or less in nine of his 10 starts. He tops out around 91-92 MPH with his fastball, so having control off three or four pitches is necessary for him to have success on the mound. Quintana will have a big part to play for the 2024 Mets, so a strong finish to the year would certainly be nice for the 34-year-old.
