The Mets split the 4-game series with the Cubs, winning the finale in dramatic walk-off fashion. They stand at 16-15 as they travel to Tampa to take on the 14-18 Tampa Rays for a 3-game set. Rookie Christian Scott will be making his big league debut with the start on Saturday in Game 2.
Chicago Cubs Series – Game Recaps
Game 1: Cubs 3, Mets 1
Brandon Nimmo provided the early (and only) firepower for the Mets from the plate, hitting his 3rd HR of the season to lead off the bottom of the 1st to put the Mets up 1-0. Jameson Taillon went 7.1 strong innings for the Cubs, surrendering only the 1 run on 4 hits and lowering his ERA on the season to 1.50. For the Mets, other than Nimmo, the star of the game was Luis Severino, who took a no-hitter into the 8th inning. In the 8th, manager Carlos Mendoza subbed Joey Wendle in as a defensive replacement at 3rd which likely cost the Mets the game. Severino started the 8th by giving up a walk. This was followed by a broken bat base hit by Dansby Swanson to break up the no hitter. On the next play, Severino awkwardly covered first base on an attempted double play, and was hit by the runner (DH Matt Mervis) in his throwing arm. This put runners at the corners. After being checked by the trainers, Severino stayed in the game and induced a slowly hit grounder to 3rd. Instead of Wendle throwing home to nail the runner at the plate for the inning’s second out, he went to 2nd to try for a double play, and it didn’t work. That tied the game at 1-1. Severino then retired the side and left to a standing ovation. After the Mets failed to score in the bottom of the 8th, they brought in closer Edwin Diaz for the 9th. With 2 outs and a runner at 2nd, Diaz missed his spot on a fastball, sending it down the middle of the plate. Christopher Morel deposited the fastball in the seats in left center and the 3-1 score ended up being the final. Also of note, the Mets moved to 0-2 in their City Connect jerseys, and Bill Murray was in the crowd to cheer on his Cubbies.
Game 2: Mets 4, Cubs 2
The hero for the Mets was DJ Stewart, who was the topic of speculation to be sent back to the minors when Starling Marte was reinstated from the bereavement list. In Marte’s place, Mark Vientos was called up and played well, including a walk-off HR vs. the Cardinals to salvage the last game of that series. Nevertheless, the Mets stuck with Stewart, as Vientos was optioned to AAA, and it paid off. His 3-run HR in the bottom of the 6th, which he crushed into the second deck in right field, gave the Mets a 4-1 lead. Sean Manaea went 5 innings, allowing 1 run on 3 hits across 92 pitches. His season ERA stands at 3.07. With Edwin Diaz being used in the prior game, as mentioned above, Jorge Lopez served as the closer. He allowed a lead-off double which produced a run after two subsequent groundouts, but the game ended with former Mets 1st round pick Pete Crow-Armstrong fouling out to 3rd. Cult hero Reed Garrett pitched the 7th and didn’t allow a run, lowering his ERA to 0.57. As an interesting aside, attendance was 22,880 and 44,269 hot dogs were sold on Dollar Dog Night.
Game 3: Cubs 1, Mets 0
This was a tight game that ended in controversy. Shota Imanaga was very impressive on the mound for the Cubs, pitching 7 scoreless innings of 3-hit shutout ball, lowering his season ERA to 0.78. Not as heralded as Yoshi Yamamoto (Dodgers) coming out of Japan this off-season, his signing with Chicago has worked out much better so far. Jose Butto put up a good fight for the Mets and kept them in the game, pitching 6 innings and giving up only 1 run on 4 hits, lowering his ERA to 2.57. He’s done a great job making the case to stay in the rotation, even when Kodai Senga and Tylor Megill return from the IL. While former Mets 1st round pick Pete Crow-Armstrong drove in the game’s only run with a sacrifice fly, it was really decided in the bottom of the 9th. With 1 out, Pete Alonso was hit by a pitch and advanced to 3rd on a double by J.D. Martinez. Jeff McNeil came to the plate and hit a fly ball to left field. Alonso tagged on the play and was called out on a bang-bang play at the plate. The Mets challenged but to no avail. The call was upheld, and despite an irate Carlos Mendoza arguing the call the game was over and the Mets lost 1-0. The play could have been overturned in two instances. First, if Alonso’s hand hit the plate before being tagged. That was not easily seen on replay. Second, based on the new rules this season, Mendoza argued that the plate was blocked; however, the counter argument is that Alonso still had a lane to get to home.
Game 4: Mets 7, Cubs 6 (11 Innings)
Adrian Houser, who has struggled early in the season, got the start for the Mets. While he performed better and forced a lot more ground ball outs (his bread and butter), he gave up a 3-run HR to Christopher Morel in the 5th to fall behind 4-0. His ERA stands at 8.16 after the game and he has walked more batters than he has struck out. He needs to step up to keep his spot in the rotation (see comments about Jose Butto above). The Mets came back to tie the game at 5 in the 6th inning with timely doubles by Francisco Lindor and Brandon Nimmo. In the top of the 10th, Starling Marte showed off his cannon arm, throwing out the potential go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly to end the inning. After the Mets went quietly in their half of the 10th, the Cubs scored in the 11th to make it 6-5. This inning was also ended with a laser throw from Marte in RF. Francisco Lindor, who exited Game 3 of the series with flu-like symptoms, came in as a pinch hitter for Joey Wendle in the 6th, and drove in 2 with a base hit to left in the bottom of the 11th to win the game 7-6.That was his second 2-run double of the game, as he finished 2-3 with 4 RBI’s.
Krom’s Korner:
Instead of my normal Key Takeaways section, I have decided to pay homage to one of my favorite post-game segments on TV growing up. Legendary broadcaster Ralph Kiner was the star of Kiner’s Korner on after games. He would interview players post-game and it was a show that debuted originally in 1963 but was on for many years. I appreciated Ralph’s perspective on the game as one of the best power hitters in history, and look forward to sharing my own perspectives on the Mets through Krom’s Korner from here on out.
For my perspectives at Krom’s Korner, let’s take another look at the new City Connect uniforms. Following this series with the Cubs, the Mets are 0-3 in their new grey and purple City Connect uniforms. While intended to be worn for Saturday home games, the players have the option of wearing them more frequently (and they have). Unfortunately, the Mets have not done well in the games they have either been required to, or chose to, wear them for. While losing all 3, strange things have happened in those losses. The first game was a 7-4 loss to the Cardinals last Saturday; however, Pete Alonso reached a milestone in hitting his 200th career HR. Then, on Monday, they lost 3-1 to the Cubs in a game where Edwin Diaz (arguably the best closer in the game) uncharacteristically lost a game and gave up a big HR. Also in that game, Luis Severino took a no-hit bid into the 8th inning and the Mets lost. Finally, on Wednesday, the Mets lost 1-0 on the controversial call to end the game. Don’t want to go as far as confirming a curse from the new uniforms, but so far they’ve proven to bring about interesting happenings that are not normal. What they have not brought about is a Mets victory.
Who’s Next: Tampa Bay Rays
Up next for the Mets are the surprisingly last place 14-18 Rays in Tampa. This is the first time the Rays have been at least 4 games under .500 since 2018. They are coming off a series loss in Milwaukee against the Brewers, after having been swept in Chicago by the White Sox. The Rays are 8-9 at Tropicana Field on the season and are 2-8 in their last 10 games. For the Mets, one of the highlights of this upcoming series is the debut of much-hyped rookie pitching prospect Christian Scott who will be making the start on Saturday in Tampa. Carlos Mendoza made this announcement after Thursday’s Cubs game, with the purpose of giving Luis Severino and others more rest based on where they are in the schedule. So, the anticipated Mets starters for the series are Jose Quintana, Christian Scott, and Luis Severino.
Here are a few players to watch on the Rays in this 3-game series:
Amed Rosario: The former Met, who was moved to Cleveland in the Francisco Lindor trade and has since played for Cleveland, the Dodgers, and now Tampa Bay, is batting .295 this season with an OPS of .734. He has also produced 2 HR’s and 13 RBI’s. Rosario has faced Quintana 7 times and has 3 hits for a .429 average. Against Severino, he has 2 hits over 11 at-bats, including 1 HR, for an average of .182.
Randy Arozarena: The star of the Rays lineup, Arozarena has gotten off to a slow start this season. He carries a .139 average and OPS of .455 into the series against the Mets. Along with that he has 3 HR’s and 9 RBI’s. For those believers in “reversion to the mean”, Arozarena will get himself right at some point, and get closer to the stats he produced over the last three years (average .250 – .270, 20-25 HR’s and 70-90 RBI’s). He is 1-2 in his career vs. Quintana.
Similar to the Cubs series, the Mets will be carrying the emotion of a walk-off victory into the Tampa, and have the excitement of a heralded rookie’s first career start to look forward to. Following the Rays, the Mets will travel to St. Louis for a 3-game set against the Cardinals.
Written by: Jason Krom
Stats by espn.com
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