Philadelphia has been an albatross of sorts for Steven Matz as yet again the Phillies tortured the southpaw in the home stadium, Citizens Bank Park on Monday night.
His last start in Philadelphia was one to forget as he was unable to record an out, allowing eight runs prior to exiting in the first inning. Matz was able to record some outs in the team’s 13-7 loss though it was not pretty.
Matz, 28, lasted just 4.1 innings while allowing seven runs on ten hits. He walked three on the night and struck out just one as he was not fooling any of the opposition. The first inning again proved to be a struggle for Steven as he allowed home runs to both Rhys Hoskins and Jean Segura.
Steven spoke with the media after a night of struggles.
“I just kept the ball up in the zone today and they made me pay,” Matz said. “I just didn’t have my best stuff coming out of the gates and those are the days you have to grind and I just wasn’t able to get it done.” (NY Post)
Matz was coming off a poor start in Atlanta where he lasted just five innings while allowing five runs on six hits. After what was a hot stretch for Steven, things have cooled off considerably as inconsistent pitching continues to be a key negative for the 2019 Mets.
The southpaw spoke about the Phillies line-up, the importance of this series and the fight the offense showed in a disappointing loss after a circus of events occurred just hours before.
“It’s a tough lineup and they got me twice now here,” Matz said. “I have just got to be better. This is a big series and our lineup showed up today, they did a great job. I just didn’t get my job done and I just have to keep plugging away. That is all I can do.”
With the loss on Monday night, Steven’s record fell to 5-6 on the season with an inflated ERA of 4.85 and a WHIP of 1.46. It is beginning to become another disappointing season for the lefty whose FIP stands at 5.49 with a WAR of 0.1.
