Lindor is a finalist for the Marvin Miller Man of the Year award—the same award he won last year. The award is named after Marvin Miller, the MLBPA executive director from 1966 to 1982, and goes to the player “whose leadership most inspires others to higher levels of achievement.” Marcus Semien and Ian Happ are the two other finalists for the award.

Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Lindor’s leadership on the field and in the clubhouse is abundantly clear to anyone who pays attention to the Mets, but he serves as a leader away from the ballpark as well. In the past, Lindor has spent time working with organizations such as Make-a-Wish and the Boys & Girls Club, in addition to his own initiative Lindor Smiles, which gives those with physical or mental challenges an opportunity to play baseball. He also donated $1 million to his alma mater, Monteverde Academy, in Florida in 2021 and consistently serves as a role model for the youth in his home country of Puerto Rico.

Senga is a finalist for the National League Outstanding Rookie award, along with Corbin Carroll and Spencer Steer.

Senga had an historic first year in the big leagues with the Mets, becoming the ace of the pitching staff and finishing the year with a 12-7 record and a 2.98 ERA. Senga also became the second Met pitcher behind only Dwight Gooden to record 200 strikeouts in their rookie season. Additionally, his trademark ghost forkball had the highest whiff rate (59.5%) of any pitch in baseball this season.

Ballotting for these awards was conducted in person in clubhouses. The winners will be announced on Thursday, November 2 at 6:00 p.m. ET on ESPN.

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A solid outing from Senga was spoiled by the bullpen in a bizarre seventh inning, and it was the second straight game in which the bullpen blew a late lead following a productive outing from the starter. The inning began in a 2-2 tie, but that of course quickly got away from the Mets.

Sean Reid-Foley was the first man out of the Mets’ bullpen and he immediately found himself in trouble with two runners on and nobody out. The Twins then called a double steal on a pitch that got away from Francisco Álvarez, setting in motion a very peculiar sequence.

Álvarez gathered the ball and attempted to back-pick the runner at third base but he threw it into left field, prompting the runner to take off for home again. This time, he made it safely to give the Twins the lead. Back-to-back hits with two outs in the inning extended the Twins’ lead to 5-2 before the inning could finally be put to rest.

Although Senga left the game with only two runs allowed, it was clear from the beginning of the game that he wasn’t as sharp as he has been recently. He threw 27 pitches in the first inning alone in addition to allowing two walks. Royce Lewis took advantage of Senga’s shakiness by hitting an RBI double that scored Jorge Polanco, who reached via a walk, from first base to put the Twins ahead 1-0 early.

Senga settled down to pitch less eventful innings in the second and third, but he found himself in trouble again in the fourth inning. Carlos Correa, in his first game against the team that almost signed him this past offseason, led off the inning by hitting a rocket into left field that sailed into the seats for a home run.

Further damage in the inning was thwarted by Tim Locastro, who, with a runner on first and nobody out, made a fantastic diving catch in left field to rob Christian Vázquez of extra bases and potentially an RBI. Senga again worked in and out of trouble in the fifth inning, ending a two-on, nobody out threat by getting a double play and another ground ball out to escape the inning.

Senga stayed on for one more solid inning, finishing his outing with just the two earned runs given up over six innings, a really impressive outcome considering he wasn’t at the top of his game. He allowed four hits and four walks while striking out five as he lowered his already third-best National League ERA to 3.07 on the year.

Offensively, the Mets struggled early on, with Keuchel easing his way through the lineup. It wasn’t until two outs in the third inning that the Mets recorded their first baserunner, and the offense finally made some noise the following inning. After a leadoff walk and a double put runners at second and third with nobody out, Francisco Lindor went the other way for a two-run double.

That was all the Mets could muster for the rest of the game, though, as Keuchel threw one more scoreless inning before giving way to the bullpen which threw four scoreless innings. The Mets drop what was a lackluster game all around, falling to 64-76 on the year with just 32 games left to play on the season.

Senga’s Streak Continues

There aren’t many positives that can be taken away from this game, but one of them is that Kodai Senga’s streak of starts allowing three or fewer runs was extended to 13. Even on a day where he clearly wasn’t at his best, he held the Twins to two runs over six innings. His stellar pitching down the stretch has put him firmly in the National League Rookie of the Year and Cy Young Award conversations.

On Deck

The series between the Mets and Twins will continue Saturday afternoon, with first pitch scheduled for 2:10 p.m. ET. David Peterson (3-7, 5.40 ERA) will take the mound for the Mets coming off a short outing against the Mariners, while Kenta Maeda, who has also been unable to go deep into games lately, (3-7, 4.73 ERA) will be the starter for Minnesota. The game will be broadcast on SNY.

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According to Jeff Passan of ESPN, the pitch-clock rules that have been in effect for the 2023 regular season will remain the same for the playoffs. Passan reports that MLB’s owner-led executive council told the league’s competition committee that they would not propose any changes prior to the postseason despite players expressing hope for more time between pitches. By all measures, the pitch-clock rules in year one have been a massive success, with the average time of games down and no significant changes to the game itself. The postseason will now officially use the same rules.

Latest Mets News

The Mets defeated the Mariners 2-1 on Friday night. Kodai Senga had another phenomenal outing, going seven innings and striking out 12 while allowing just one run. Ronny Mauricio impressed in his major league debut with two hits including a 117.3 miles-per-hour double, and Daniel Vogelbach recorded the go-ahead RBI.

2023 third-round draft pick and two-way player Nolan McLean made his pro pitching debut on Friday for the St. Lucie Mets. McLean pitched 1 1/3 innings and allowed a run, with his fastball topping out at 98 miles per hour and his breaking ball reaching 3151 revolutions per minute.

Scott Engel of The Game Day spoke to several former and current Mets players and coaches about the tradition of fantasy football within the franchise.

The Mets were named the winner of the 2023 USA Today 10 Best Readers’ Choice Travel award contest for Best Stadium Food.

The Mets invited the Mariners to visit the Engine 301/Ladder 150 firehouse in Queens in honor of the 22nd anniversary of 9/11. The teams toured the firehouse, provided lunch, and donated tickets to Friday night’s game.

Latest MLB News

Alden González of ESPN wrote about Ronald Acuña Jr.‘s rushed wedding ceremony in Los Angeles the day he became the first 30-home run, 60-stolen base player in MLB history.

JJ Cooper of Baseball America wrote about the tweaks MLB is making to the automated strike zone being used in Triple-A.

Yankees’ prospect Jasson Domínguez hit a home run in his first big league at-bat against Justin Verlander on Friday night. Austin Wells, another top Yankee prospect who was called up along with Domínguez, recorded his first big league hit in his first at-bat as well.

Latest on MMO

In the latest Mets Minors Recap, Sean Kenny highlights strong performances in Binghamton from Drew Gilbert and Joander Suarez.

Michael Mayer wrote about the report from The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal that the Mets might be a landing spot for Craig Counsell this offseason.

Colby Morris profiled the newly called up Ronny Mauricio.

On the latest MMO Weekly, Michael Mayer and Sal Manzo talked about Mauricio, the Mets’ front office shakeup, and more.

Jack Markowski projects the Mets’ lineup for the rest of the 2023 season.

On This Date in Mets History

1965: The Mets retired Casey Stengel‘s number 37 just days after he retired as manager, making his number the first retired in the history of the New York Mets.

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Mauricio made an emphatic statement in his first plate appearance as a major leaguer. Leading off the bottom of the third inning, he smoked a ball into right field at 117.3 miles-per-hour which resulted in a standup double. He wound up advancing to third base but was unable to score as Logan Gilbert set down the Mets’ 1-2-3 hitters in order. Mauricio recorded another hit later in the game, a ground ball up the middle, giving him two hits in what was an impressive debut.

Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports

The Mets’ starter for the game was Kodai Senga, who had the tough task of pitching against a Mariners team that just set a franchise record for most wins in a month (21 wins in August). However, Senga made the hottest team in baseball look anything but. Outside of allowing a J.P. Crawford solo home run in the fourth inning, Senga looked very comfortable, even in high-pressure situations. With two on and nobody out in the sixth inning, he managed to strike out the next three batters to get out of the inning.

Senga stayed on for the seventh inning but the Mariners threatened to put themselves ahead after Teoscar Hernández led off the inning with a double. Senga worked around it though, striking out two more Mariners batters to keep the game tied. That finished his outing, and it was a brilliant one. Over seven innings and 104 pitches, Senga allowed just five hits, two walks, one run, and struck out 12. He lowered his season ERA from 3.17 to 3.08, putting him right behind Blake Snell and Justin Steele for the third-best ERA in the National League.

For the bulk of the game, it appeared as though another phenomenal start by Senga would be wasted with his opposite number, Gilbert, pitching a shutout through five innings. Brandon Nimmo finally put the Mets on the board, though, as he led off the sixth inning with a solo homer, his 20th of the season, to put the Mets even with the Mariners at one apiece.

Both starters exited the game with the game still tied, pinning the rest of the game on the bullpens. Phil Bickford did his job by throwing a scoreless eighth inning, giving the Mets a chance to take a late lead with flamethrower Andrés Muñoz on the mound for Seattle in the bottom of the inning. That’s exactly what happened, with smart baserunning by Francisco Lindor paving the way.

Lindor led off the inning with a single before stealing a base, his 25th of the year which ties a career-high. Lindor then advanced to third base on a wild pitch by Muñoz, allowing him to be driven in on an opposite-field RBI single by Daniel Vogelbach. That gave the Mets the lead for the first time all night, giving the team the chance to close it out in the ninth inning.

The Mets sent out Drew Smith, who entered the game with three home runs given up in 11 innings in the month of August, to try to record the save. Smith walked Cal Raleigh to lead off the inning but made up for it with an impressive pickoff move to record the first out. After recording the second out of the inning easily, Smith gave up a single but subsequently struck out Ty France to record his third save of the season and give the Mets a tough 2-1 win. With the win, the Mets improved to 62-73 on the year.

Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports

Player of the Game

In his first game in the big leagues, Ronny Mauricio is the player of the game. Not only did he look comfortable at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a scorching double, he also looked comfortable in the field, finding himself in the middle of several crucial plays. The hope is that he can keep up this performance down the stretch, as the Mets will get to see what they have in their highly-touted prospect.

Stat of the Game

According to Sarah Langs, Ronny Mauricio’s 117.3 miles-per-hour double in the third inning was the hardest-hit first career hit by any player in the Statcast era (since 2015). Not only that, it was also the hardest-hit ball in play by any Met during the entire 2023 season. With one swing of the bat, Mauricio demonstrated the power he possesses that Mets fans will be hoping to see more of during the final month of the season.

On Deck

The series between the Mets and Mariners continues at 7:10 p.m. ET Saturday evening. David Peterson (3-7, 5.23 ERA) will take the mound for the Mets, looking to continue his stretch of strong performances. Luis Castillo (11-7, 3.01 ERA), one of the frontrunners for the American League Cy Young Award, will be on the mound for the Mariners. The game will be broadcast on SNY.

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The Mets hit a new low on Friday night, losing to the Angels 3-1 to fall into last place in the NL East for the first time since August 2020. Although the Mets are riding a tough three-game losing streak and have had a rough go of it from the beginning, the Mets being in last place is also a testament to how well the Nationals have played lately, playing at a 24-15 record since the All-Star break. Nevertheless, it is another embarrassing milestone in a season filled with them for the New York Mets.

Latest Mets News

In the Mets’ loss last night to the Angels, their only offense came off of a Francisco Lindor solo home run. On the mound, Kodai Senga was fantastic, giving up just two runs and striking out 10 over 6 2/3 innings.

Mike Piazza met with the sons of Andrew Jordan, a firefighter who lost his life during the 9/11 attacks, at a fire station in Brooklyn. He autographed a collage for them and spoke to Brian Heyman of Newsday about topics surrounding 9/11 and the 2023 Mets.

With their loss on Friday to the Angels, the Mets are now in last place in the NL East, joining their cross-town rival New York Yankees who are also at the bottom of their division. Since the Mets’ inaugural season in 1962, the Yankees and Mets have never finished in last place in the same season. The last time both teams had a losing record in the same season was 1992.

Latest MLB News

Parker Meadows of the Tigers hit the first home run of his career, a three-run shot to walk off Ryan Pressly and defeat the Astros 4-1. Earlier in the game, Framber Valdez had thrown seven no-hit innings for the Astros before being pulled due to a high pitch count.

Mookie Betts returned to Boston for the first time since 2019 and received a standing ovation from the crowd. In his time with Boston, Betts was a four-time all-star and won four gold gloves, three silver sluggers, an MVP, and a World Series in 2018.

Matt Monagan of MLB.com wrote about Victus, the company behind the viral pencil bat used by Bryson Stott in the Little League Classic.

The Brewers signed lefty pitcher Fernando Abad to a minor league deal, per MLB’s transactions page.

The Cubs announced that they outrighted former Met Edwin Uceta to Triple-A.

Latest on MMO

In the latest Mets Minors Recap, Michael Mayer highlights Ronny Mauricio‘s big night at the plate on Thursday.

Michael Famulari argues that the Mets should still pursue Shohei Ohtani despite his injury.

Colby Morris profiles Double-A pitcher Brendan Hardy and his status as a Rule 5 eligible player.

Michael Mayer wrote about Marco Vargas and Ronald Hernandez (both acquired in the David Robertson trade) and their recent promotion to Low-A St. Lucie.

On This Date in Mets History

1996: The Mets promoted Bobby Valentine, then the Triple-A manager, to manage the big league team after the termination of Dallas Green.

Birthdays: Trevor Gott (31), Ricky Bottalico (54), Álex Treviño (66)

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Ohtani had a great night at the plate, as he always seems to. He only recorded one hit, but he reached base three other times via the walk, one of which was intentional. He made his one-hit count, as it was a 115.4 miles-per-hour laser double to right field in the third inning. That set up runners on second and third with nobody out and both runners came around to score on a sacrifice fly and an RBI single off the bat of Mike Moustakas, giving the Angels an early 2-0 lead.

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Outside of facing Ohtani and those two runs he gave up, Senga had a really strong night on the mound. He had good swing-and-miss stuff, especially with his ghost forkball against an Angels lineup that was seeing him for the first time. That led to a terrific outing in which he struck out 10 batters over 6 2/3 innings. With his performance, he lowered his already stellar season ERA from 3.19 to 3.17.

As good as Senga was, though, Angels’ starter Patrick Sandoval was arguably even more impressive. Like Senga, Sandoval also generated plenty of swings and misses, particularly with his changeup. That led to seven strikeouts over six innings in which he only gave up one run and two hits, his lone blemish being a Francisco Lindor solo home run to make it a 2-1 game. Sandoval did walk four batters, including Pete Alonso three times, but those free passes never came back to bite him.

The Mets had a chance to tie or take the lead in the bottom of the seventh inning, with Sandoval being replaced by lefty reliever Matt Moore. Danny Mendick greeted him with an opposite-field double before Jonathan Araúz laid down a bunt that the catcher Logan O’Hoppe couldn’t gather cleanly, putting runners on the corners with still nobody out.

However, a brutal sequence followed in which Tim Locastro struck out on three pitches and Brandon Nimmo hit a shallow fly ball to left field. Mendick tagged up, a questionable decision given where the ball was caught and the fact that Lindor was on deck, and he was easily thrown out at the plate which put a disappointing end to a once-promising inning.

Adam Kolarek and Trevor Gott pitched 1 1/3 combined shutout innings behind Senga out of the Mets’ bullpen before Sam Coonrod found himself in trouble with runners on the corners in the ninth inning. With Coonrod needing just one more out to escape the inning, Nolan Schanuel kept his hitting streak to start his big league career alive by throwing his bat out and looping a tough pitch into shallow center field which scored the runner on third, giving the Angels a massive insurance run and making it a 3-1 game.

The Mets brought the tying run to the plate with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, but 2023 All-Star closer Carlos Estévez struck out Daniel Vogelbach to put the finishing touches on this one. The 3-1 loss was the Mets’ third in a row as their season record drops to 59-70.

Stat of the Game

With a Nationals victory earlier tonight and the Mets losing this one, the Mets find themselves in last place in the NL East for the first time all year and for the first time since August of 2020. It has been a year of unforeseen lowlights for the Mets and being in last place in late August might just be the worst of them all.

On Deck

The series with the Angels will continue Saturday evening with first pitch scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET. Carlos Carrasco (3-7, 6.42 ERA) will take the mound for the Mets as he hopes to find any sort of glimmer of hope in what has been a really tough season. For the Angels, 23-year-old Chase Silseth (4-1, 4.00 ERA) will take the mound as he comes off of a rough start against the Rays. The game will be broadcast on SNY.

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The Mets defeated the Cardinals on Friday night 7-1, giving the team three consecutive wins for the first time since July 16-19. The team is in the midst of a solid stretch, having won five of their last six, after looking completely flat following the trade deadline. With their better play of late, even with that abysmal stretch after their sell-off, the Mets enter today just seven games out of a wild card spot, the exact number of games back they were at the trade deadline.

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Now, onto the morning briefing!

Latest Mets News

During the Mets’ 7-1 victory over the Cardinals, Joey Lucchesi pitched 5 2/3 shutout innings in his first start since May. Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil shined offensively, each recording three hits and a home run.

Nimmo recorded his 18th home run of the season on Friday night against the Cardinals, breaking his previous single-season home run record of 17 set in 2018. The Mets’ left fielder has been dynamic for New York this season, recording a 123 OPS+ and 3.2  bWAR this season before Friday night’s matchup.

Brandon Nimmo sets a career-high with his 18th home run of the year! pic.twitter.com/KZSzYIYfsc

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 19, 2023

Mike Puma of the New York Post wrote about Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the star Japanese pitcher set to be posted this offseason, and Kodai Senga‘s thoughts on him. Senga said, “I have known him since he was 20 years old. He’s been at the top level since he was very young, and I know he has a ton of talent. He is an amazing player.” On if Yamamoto were to potentially join the Mets, Senga noted, “Everybody on the team is such a great teammate… I think he would be a great fit and the whole team would welcome him.”

Darryl Strawberry was at the Syracuse Mets’ game on Friday night which was eventually canceled due to weather. Strawberry signed merchandise and souvenirs for fans while at the game.

Latest MLB News

Michael Clair of MLB.com wrote about Genevieve Beacom, an 18-year-old who is a two-way superstar from Australia. She has drawn comparisons to Shohei Ohtani, the best two-way player in the world.

The Angels called up 2023 first-round pick Nolan Schanuel, who was drafted by the team just last month. Schanuel, 21, was in Double-A and had posted a .955 OPS over 75 plate appearances there.

The Dodgers signed infielder Kolten Wong to a minor league contract. Although he struggled mightily this year in Seattle, he is just one season removed from having a 117 OPS+.

Per Sarah Langs, Julio Rodríguez is the second-youngest player with 12 hits in a three-game span since 1901. The only player younger than him to achieve that feat was Buddy Lewis in 1937.

Latest on MMO

In the latest Mets Minors Recap, Sean Kenny wrote about Luke Ritter and Carlos Cortes‘ strong performances with Triple-A Syracuse.

Michael Mayer argued that Ritter and Cortes should get a chance with the Mets.

Michael Mayer wrote about Kodai Senga‘s willingness to help recruit Yoshinobu Yamamoto, as well as the Mets’ reported interest in Japanese pitcher Shota Imanaga.

Michael Famulari recapped José Quintana‘s quality start in the Mets’ victory over the Cardinals Thursday night.

Rich Sparago looked at fans’ and customers’ different perspectives on the Mets’ 2023 season.

On This Date in Mets History

1969: Tommie Agee hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 14th inning to give the Mets a 1-0 victory over the Giants. Juan Marichal had given up just five hits and no runs through 13 1/3 innings up to that point, and he recorded the loss despite a fantastic performance. For the Mets, Gary Gentry and Tug McGraw combined to shut out the Giants over 14 innings with McGraw recording the win.

Birthdays: Chris Capuano (45), Jeff Tam (53), Matt Franco (54), Ron Darling (63), Mike Phillips (73)

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The Mets actually fell into a three-run deficit within the first two innings as Kodai Senga failed to strand Boston baserunners early. Jarren Duran scored on a fielder’s choice in the first inning before Yu Chang plated two with a double off the Green Monster in the second inning.

The Mets displayed impressive resiliency, though, as they erased the 3-0 Boston lead in a hurry. Brandon Nimmo made Kutter Crawford pay by sending a hanging curveball over the right field wall in the top of the third for a two-run homer. Daniel Vogelbach hit a two-run shot of his own the following inning, sending a much more difficult pitch above the strike zone into the right field bleachers.

That was all the two teams were able to play Friday night due to the rain, with play resuming at 2:10 p.m. ET on Saturday afternoon from the same point in the game where it stopped.

Needing the bullpen to piece together 5 2/3 innings, the Mets called on Grant Hartwig to start things back up and he dealt with the tough task by putting together two scoreless innings and keeping the Mets’ lead intact. David Peterson followed him by giving up a run over 2/3 of an inning, but Dominic Leone, Brooks Raley, and David Robertson combined for three more scoreless innings to finish out the game and secure a 5-4 Mets win.

The lone run given up by the bullpen was in the seventh inning after the Mets had already made it a 5-3 game on an RBI infield single from Brett Baty. Peterson allowed a leadoff triple to Triston Casas after Mark Canha had trouble fielding the ball in right field. Peterson was then relieved for Leone, and the runner on third scored on a Rob Refsnyder sacrifice fly.

Daniel Vogelbach SOCKS a 2-run shot to right to give the Mets a 4-3 lead! pic.twitter.com/txhdMVPsCy

— SNY (@SNYtv) July 22, 2023

Looking to blow the game open in the eighth inning, the Mets loaded the bases with nobody out after three straight singles. However, the opportunity to score was squandered after a Francisco Álvarez infield pop up and a Brett Baty ground ball double play kept it a one-run game. Then in the ninth inning, the Mets failed to score yet again after putting runners on first and second with nobody out.

The Mets brought in Robertson for the bottom of the ninth, hoping the Mets’ offensive woes with runners on base didn’t come back to hurt them. Robertson made sure there were no dramatics with an easy 1-2-3 inning to give the Mets the win, improving the team’s record to 46-51.

Player of the Game

Brandon Nimmo continued his power surge by hitting his 15th home run of the season to open the scoring for the Mets in this one. The two RBIs on that homer made the difference in this one-run Mets’ win. He also added on another hit with an opposite field single, going 2-for-5 in the game as he continues his impressive offensive season.

On Deck

Action will pick right back up tonight with the second game of the doubleheader at 7:10 p.m. ET. Max Scherzer (8-3, 3.99 ERA) will take the mound for New York, hoping to put together another fantastic outing after giving up just one hit and no runs in seven innings against the Dodgers his last time out. For Boston, it will be James Paxton (5-2, 3.51 ERA) on the mound who, unlike Scherzer, will be hoping to move on from his last outing in which he gave up six earned runs in three innings against the Cubs. The game will be broadcast on PIX11.

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Although play halted with the Mets in the lead, it was the Red Sox who scored first. Jarren Duran reached base with a leadoff single and then advanced to third after Francisco Álvarez’s throw on an attempted stolen base found its way into center field. A weak ground ball off the bat of Justin Turner with the infield playing back brought Duran in to give the Sox an early 1-0 lead.

Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Kodai Senga got into more trouble in the second inning after retiring the first two batters he faced. A walk to Triston Casas and an infield hit off the bat of Connor Wong brought up Yu Chang batting in the ninth spot in the order. Chang sent a ball into left field that just scraped off the Green Monster which scored the two baserunners to extend the Boston lead to three.

The three-run lead didn’t remain for long, though. With Brett Baty on second base after a leadoff double in the top of the third, Brandon Nimmo connected on a hanging breaking ball that he crushed over the right field wall, giving him his 15th home run of the year and bringing the Mets back within one run.

The Mets erased the Red Sox’ lead entirely the following inning. Jeff McNeil reached second base on a leadoff double, just as Baty had the previous inning, and then Daniel Vogelbach demonstrated serious power by crushing a ball above the strike zone over the wall in right field for the Mets’ second two-run homer in as many innings.

That was all the two teams could fit in before it started pouring. Senga, of course, will not take the mound when the game resumes tomorrow. His outing ends after 3 1/3 innings pitched in which he gave up three hits, one walk, and struck out three while giving up three earned runs.

The game will pick up tomorrow with one out and nobody on in the bottom of the fourth inning with the Mets holding a 4-3 lead. First pitch is scheduled for 2:10 p.m. ET, while the game originally scheduled for 4:10 p.m. ET will be pushed back to 7:10 p.m. ET.

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After Julio Urías gave up a leadoff double to Brandon Nimmo that was initially ruled a home run but overturned after a review showed the ball bounced off the top of the wall and back in play, Urías didn’t just escape the first inning scoreless. He thrived the rest of his outing and surrendered just two more baserunners and no more hits through six total innings. Three Dodgers relievers followed him up with three more hitless innings as well, holding the Mets to just one hit all game.

“It sucks. This was not a good game of baseball in any facet,” Justin Verlander said, talking after the game about starting the second half of the season this way.

Verlander was on the mound for the Mets and held a no-hitter after four innings. Out of context that sounds fantastic, but Verlander was battling an elevated pitch count and lack of command unlike Urías who was rolling. That put Verlander in a dangerous spot in the fifth as he walked the bases loaded with one out and Mookie Betts at the plate.

Betts made the Dodgers’ first hit of the night count as he singled into left field to make it a 1-0 game. In the next at-bat, Freddie Freeman doubled down the right field line and just like that, a 0-0 pitching duel became a 3-0 ballgame.

Verlander exited the game after throwing 104 pitches through five innings, giving up two hits and striking out six, but also walking six on the way to giving up three earned runs. It was yet another inconsistent and inefficient outing from a Mets starting pitcher, the type of start that seemed routine over the first half of the season.

“Inexcusable,” Verlander said about his outing. “Can’t walk six guys and expect to win a ballgame or give your team a chance.”

Verlander’s departure after five innings led the way for David Peterson to make his first relief appearance of the year in the sixth inning. Getting in trouble right away after giving up a leadoff walk and then a two-out single, Peterson couldn’t complete a clean inning as Miguel Rojas drove in a run with an opposite field single to make it a 4-0 game.

J.D. Martinez added on in the eighth with an opposite field home run before Will Smith drove in another run in the ninth on a fielder’s choice, bringing the Dodgers’ lead to 6-0.

The Mets’ bats failed to put up any sort of effort as the game came to a close, resulting in a dreadful 6-0 defeat for the team’s ninth shutout loss of the year and a brutal start to the second half of the season.

“I’m hoping we can win the next two games against a good team and win the series and move on,” Buck Showalter said after the game, clearly looking to put this one in the rear-view mirror. “I know our guys are frustrated by it.”

Player Focus

Verlander demonstrated the highs and lows he has dealt with this year in this game, evidenced by giving up no hits through four innings and also by his season-high six walks by the end of his outing. The Mets will need Verlander and Max Scherzer to pitch like the aces they’re paid to be if they want to make a playoff push, and this start from Verlander in which he threw 104 pitches and gave up three runs in five innings certainly doesn’t inspire optimism.

On Deck

The series with the Dodgers continues on Saturday evening with first pitch scheduled for 7:15 p.m. ET. Kodai Senga (7-5, 3.31 ERA), coming off a really strong first half, will be on the mound for the Mets while Tony Gonsolin (5-3, 3.86 ERA), who has struggled in each of his last four outings, gets the start for the Dodgers. The game will be broadcast on FOX.

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