McCann Hits IL, Mets Waste Max Gem vs. Mariners
McCann Hits IL, Mets Waste Max Gem vs. Mariners
Backstop hits IL with broken bone in his hand and Mets can't capitalize vs. Seattle...
The Mets caught a tough break heading into their three-game set with the Mariners beginning Friday — Seattle’s first trip to Queens since 2008 and their inaugural visit to Citi Field — with the news that James McCann (broken left hamate bone) would be going under the knife and be on the shelf for the next six weeks, at least.
Despite an anemic .196/.266/.286 batting line this season, McCann’s value as a veteran backstop receiving a first-class starting rotation wasn’t hard to see. And at the end of the day, it’s a dynamic that could be missed.
Tomas Nido, owner of the 26th-most framing runs (8 CFR; Statcast) and seventh-best strike rate (51.3%) since MLB began tracking catcher metrics in 2015, it’s your time to shine. Patrick Mazeika was recalled to serve as Nido’s backup.
Buzz-wise, the Mariners’ demotion of former Mets’ top prospect Jarred Kelenic (traded to Seattle in the deal that brought Edwin Diaz and Robinson Cano to New York ahead of 2019) was the headlining roster move ahead of game time.
The 22-year-old outfielder was hitting just .140/.219/.291 over his first 96 plate appearances (.173/.256/.338 over 123 MLB games). A total of 51 games between Double-A and Triple-A before making a hasty MLB debut can have that effect. A stay in Tacoma could very well help get Kelenic back on track. Very hard to believe this is his ceiling.
Though, with a 22-11 record, Max Scherzer on the mound, plus an active, franchise-record, 10-series unbeaten streak out there, there was ample motivation for these Metropolitans to draw from without a former farmhand in the opposing dugout. It was just a matter of mustering it.
A misty fog proved to be no deterrent for Scherzer, who found his rhythm right out of the gate. The 37-year-old entered the evening with a 2.92 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and .195 batting average against (the latter two good for 12th in MLB among qualified SP; ERA, 24th). Clearly, neither rain, sleet, snow, hail, nor the dreaded late-30s can slow Max down.
The Mets plated one in the first via Brandon Nimmo’s infield single and Starling Marte’s double down the line off Seattle southpaw Marco Gonzales, followed by a sacrifice fly off the bat of Francisco Lindor.
The damage could have been greater had Mariners’ center fielder Julio Rodriguez not made a fantastic diving play to keep Lindor’s bloop from dropping, or had the Mets been able to string together another knock or two.
For a while, it looked like that would be all New York needed.
Scherzer didn’t allow his first baserunner (Ty France HBP) or hit (J.P. Crawford single) until he had an out on the board in the fourth. Jesse Winker drove France home with a two-out, two-strike single to tie the game at one later in the frame. Fun player, that Winker.
Despite traffic on the basepaths (two leadoff hits and a one-out walk after the first), the Mets had trouble breaking through against Gonzales. To New York’s benefit, Scherzer was just as impenetrable.
He hit some turbulence in the seventh courtesy of a Eugenio Suarez single and Winker walk leading off the frame, and a very close call gave Mike Ford a free pass to load the bases with one out, but Max pulled a 5-4-3 inning-ending double play out of his black cap to keep things knotted at one. Huge.
All told, Scherzer held the M’s to one run on three hits with two walks, two hit batsmen, and six strikeouts over seven innings (98 pitches, 60 strikes), lowering his ERA to 2.66 on the year. What a performance; and precisely what Billy Eppler & Co. brought him here to do. Now it was on to the Mets to make it stand up.
They threatened in the seventh (Nido two-out walk, Nimmo bloop double), but former Mets hurler Paul Sewald struck out Marte to end the rally. As we’re all well aware, those missed opportunities have a tendency to come back and bite ya.
Drew Smith issued back-to-back walks to start the eighth and France made him pay for his transgressions with an RBI single to the right side, staking Seattle to a late 2-1 lead and handing Smith his first earned run this season. He’d strike out Suarez and Crawford and strand two with a Winker pop up to extinguish the fire. Big-time stuff.
Adam Ottavino got through the eighth scoreless, but the Metsies went down in order in the ninth, dropping the first of three at Citi this weekend.
Chris Bassitt gets the ball on Saturday against rookie fireballer George Kirby. 7:10 PM EST start time. See you then.
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