Mets right-hander Seth Lugo made and his first start since 2018 on Tuesday night against the Marlins, and he was perfect.
Lugo, starting for the first time since June 25, 2018, needed only 39 pitches to navigate three perfect innings with five strikeouts.
Manager Luis Rojas said before the game Lugo could go 50-60 pitches, but he went to the bullpen a little earlier and they failed him in the 3-0 loss.
“We felt that we didn’t want to go more than that…We felt it was enough stress for him”
Lugo final line: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K, 39 pitches/25 strikes
Of the 18 swings that Lugo induced, 10 of them where whiffs. His slider was extremely effective, he threw seven of them with six coming for strikes including four swings and misses.
The former 34th round pick now has a 2.03 ERA and 16 strikeouts on the season in 13 1/3 innings. He lowered his career ERA in 32 starts to 3.99 in 171 1/3 innings.
Lugo hasn’t been shy about wanting the opportunity to start, he finally got that on Wednesday and it paid early dividends for a team desperate for solid rotation work.
However, with Lugo now in the rotation and the Mets playing a bunch of games in a short period to close out the season, the bullpen needs to step up if they hope to make the playoffs.
