Series Thread: Mia.Marlins @ NY Mets (8/29-9/1)

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• Series preview: Mets vs. Marlins


NEW YORK METS (66-64, third place/NL East) vs. MIAMI MARLINS (67-63, second place/NL East)

Monday: RHP Rafael Montero (0-0, 11.57) vs. RHP Jose Fernandez (13-7, 2.91), 7:10 p.m. ET

Tuesday: RHP Seth Lugo (1-2, 2.51) vs. RHP Tom Koehler (9-9, 3.85), 7:10 p.m. ET

Wednesday: RHP Bartolo Colon (12-7, 3.44) vs. RHP David Phelps (7-6, 2.52), 7:10 p.m. ET

Thursday: LHP Steven Matz (9-8, 3.40) vs. RHP Jose Urena (2-5, 5.83), 7:10 p.m. ET

 

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• Morning Briefing: Are Mets shrewd or repeating history?





NEW YORK -- Are the New York Mets failing to learn from history?

In 2007, the Mets decided to give extra rest to Pedro Martinez down the stretch, resulting in starts for Brian Lawrence and, during the final week, a spot start for Philip Humber.

Mets fans know all too well how that season ended -- squandering a seven-game lead with 17 to play and falling short of the postseason by one game.

Viewed through that prism, is skipping Jacob deGrom one turn and usingRafael Montero in Monday’s series opener against the Miami Marlins a sensible decision? Or will it also end up haunting the organization, albeit with the Mets chasing the competition this time instead of trying to hold it off like 2007?

There is a historical example for why skipping deGrom makes sense, too. During deGrom’s first season in the majors, the Mets placed him on the disabled list in August 2014, citing shoulder fatigue. After a two-week break, deGrom came back rejuvenated. He stumbled in his first outing after being activated from the DL, then went 3-0 with a 1.32 ERA in five starts the remainder of the season en route to earning the National League Rookie of the Year award.

Although deGrom indicated he felt fine in St. Louis after his latest start, Terry Collins believes deGrom may again be fatigued. DeGrom has allowed 13 runs and 25 hits in 9 2/3 innings over his last two outings.

The Mets enter Monday’s game in fifth place in the wild-card standings. The Giants (71-59) and Cardinals (68-61) occupy the two playoff positions, followed by the Pirates a half-game back, Marlins 1½ games back and Mets 2½ games back.

Skipping deGrom might not be as complicated if it were just a matter of the standings and the Mets weren’t stretched thin in starting pitching. With Matt Harvey, Steven Matz, Jonathon Niese and Zack Wheeler all on the disabled list, the Mets already have Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellmanmaking starts.

That means Montero will be promoted from Double-A Binghamton to fill in for deGrom opposing Jose Fernandez in Monday’s 7:10 p.m. ET opener at Citi Field.

Montero went 4-6 with a 7.20 ERA in 16 starts with Triple-A Las Vegas before getting demoted to Binghamton in mid-July. He walked 40 batters in 80 innings in the Pacific Coast League. Montero then went 4-2 with a 1.70 ERA in eight starts for the B-Mets, but that’s against Double-A competition.

 

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Yo Baby Yo!!

• Cespedes homers in 10th, Mets top Marlins 2-1 in opener

NEW YORK -- Yoenis Cespedes homered with two outs in the bottom of the 10th inning to give the New York Mets a 2-1 victory over the Miami Marlins in the first game of a pivotal series between National League playoff contenders Monday night.

Jose Reyes dashed home to score the tying run in the eighth on a dangerous collision at the plate, and the Mets pulled even with Miami for second place in the NL East. With its seventh victory in nine games, New York remained 2 1/2 games behind St. Louis for the league's second wild card.

It was an exhilarating win for the Mets, who appeared to be at a major disadvantage on the mound in the opener of a four-game set. New York was shut out for six innings by Marlins ace Jose Fernandez, but Mets starter Rafael Montero also put up zeros in his first major league start since April 2015.

 

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Jose Reyes says he is fine from his plate collision. He adds that he's not surprised by his August success even though people wrote him off after he was released by the Rockies.

Asdrubal Cabrera's left knee was not feeling well enough to start, but he did pinch hit on Monday. Cabrera struck out in the seventh against Marlins reliever Kyle Barraclough. Cabrera, the reigning NL Player of the Week, had departed Sunday's game in the first inning with knee discomfort. He recently spent three weeks on the DL with a strained patellar tendon in that knee.

The Mets had a short bench on Monday, with infielder T.J. Rivera demoted to make room for spot starter Rafael Montero and with Neil Walker (back) and Asdrubal Cabrera (knee) nursing injuries. In fact, only Jay Bruce and backup catcher Rene Rivera were available to pinch hit. So whom did Terry Collins call upon to pinch hit in the fifth inning for Montero in a scoreless game? Jacob deGrom, whose start had been skipped because of suspected fatigue. DeGrom grounded out to first base against Jose Fernandez.

Jacob deGrom will return to the rotation on Friday with four extra days of rest. Noah Syndergaard will pitch after deGrom, on Saturday against the Nationals.

The expectation is Robert Gsellman will move to the bullpen once he recovers from Sunday's start. Assuming Steven Matz starts without difficulty on Thursday, it would seem Seth Lugo would remain in the rotation to join Matz, Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard and Bartolo Colon.

T.J. Rivera has been demoted to clear the roster spot for Rafael Montero's spot start on Monday against the Marlins. Las Vegas' season ends next Monday, so at a maximum the demotion should last a week.

 

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Big Time Props to Montero
•Mets win on night they skip Jacob deGrom


More Yo.
•Can Yoenis Cespedes again fuel Mets' run to playoffs?

 

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Wild Card Watch...

WC #1
Giants + 2.0

WC #2
Cardinals
Pirates - 1.5
Mets - 2.5
Marlins - 2.5
Rockies - 6.5

 

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• Morning Briefing: And now Seth Lugo gets a shot


NEW YORK -- For the third straight day, the New York Mets send a young pitcher to the mound in a big game on Tuesday.

Following starts by Robert Gsellman and Rafael Montero, Seth Lugo now pitches for the Mets at 7:10 p.m. ET. Lugo (1-2, 2.51 ERA) opposes Miami Marlins right-hander Tom Koehler (9-9, 3.85) at Citi Field.

Lugo tossed five scoreless innings against the St. Louis Cardinals in his last start before departing with right calf cramping. He is expected to remain in the rotation after this start, with Gsellman likely ticketed for the bullpen once he recovers from Sunday’s 94-pitch effort, according to Terry Collins.

The upcoming pitching probables for the Mets: Bartolo Colon on Wednesday and Steven Matz returning from the DL on Thursday against the Marlins, followed by Jacob deGrom in Friday's opener against theWashington Nationals, then Noah Syndergaard and Lugo to complete the homestand.

 

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The Mets confirm that P Logan Verrett will be added to the roster from Triple-A Las Vegas before Tuesday's game against the Marlins. They also say that Rafael Montero has been demoted to Triple-A Las Vegas to clear the roster spot for Verrett. Montero will be permitted to return in one week, when the 51s' season ends. Montero being sent down makes sense since he threw 100 pitches Monday and would be unavailable for several days anyway.

 

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Rafael Montero actually is headed back to Binghamton, not Las Vegas. The initial announcement was incorrect.

The Mets have extended their player development agreement with Triple-A Las Vegas for two more seasons, through 2018. The Pacific Coast League is clearly not ideal travel-wise, but the Mets decided to re-up.

 

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Here is the Mets lineup for Tuesday's 7:10 p.m. ET game against the Marlins at Citi Field:

Jose Reyes – 3B
Asdrubal Cabrera – SS
Yoenis Cespedes – LF
Jay Bruce – RF
Alejandro De Aza – CF
Wilmer Flores – 2B
James Loney – 1B
Rene Rivera – C
Seth Lugo - RHP

 

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Oy vey....here we go again.....

• Mets' Matz (shoulder) won't come off DL Thursday

Terry Collins confirms Michael Conforto will join the team when the roster expands Thursday. Conforto will be "in the mix" for playing time, although Collins could not define what that means.

Terry Collins said he's not privy to announce the specifics of Neil Walker's back injury, but Walker will need rest every several games once he returns to the lineup. He will not be playing five straight games without a day for the remainder of the season.

 

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Put it in the Books!!!

• Granderson homers twice off bench, Mets beat Marlins 7-4

• Injuries aside, things continue to look up for Mets

Curtis Granderson on Tuesday became the third player in franchise history to homer twice in a game he did not start. The others: Hawk Taylor in 1964 against the Phillies and Scott Hairston against the Nationals in 2011. Granderson pinch hit for Seth Lugo in the sixth and went deep in consecutive innings.

Seth Lugo is a keeper. He tossed five scoreless frames to complete his outing against the Marlins on Tuesday, lowering his ERA to 2.60. Lugo allowed only a two-run homer to Christian Yelich in the opening frame of his six-inning, 89-pitch outing. He next starts on Sunday against the Nationals and should remain in the rotation for the foreseeable future.

 

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According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Mets' call-ups on Thursday when rosters expand will include:
Michael Conforto, Ty Kelly, Kevin Plawecki and Gabriel Ynoa.

Another wave is expected after the 51s' season ends Monday.

 

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Wild Card Watch...

WC #1
Giants +1.0

WC #2
Cardinals

Mets -2.5
Pirates -2.5
Marlins -3.5
Rockies -7.0

 

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•Morning Briefing: Wins and injuries mount

NEW YORK -- The New York Mets are acting like a legitimate contender.

They now will try to keep things rolling with Bartolo Colon (12-7, 3.44 ERA) starting opposite Miami Marlins right-hander David Phelps (7-6, 2.52) on Wednesday at 7:10 p.m. ET at Citi Field.

Winners of eight of their last 10 games, the Mets sit 2½ games behind the St. Louis Cardinals for the National League’s second wild-card spot.

Wednesday is the final day a player can be acquired during the waiver period and be eligible for the postseason roster.

Steven Matz will not pitch Thursday as originally intended. Matz revealed he has been diagnosed with an impingement in his left shoulder, which is causing rotator-cuff inflammation. The southpaw predicted he would return this season and would not require shoulder surgery, although an offseason elbow procedure to remove a spur still will be necessary. Jacob deGrom will move up to Thursday, followed byNoah Syndergaard on Friday, Robert Gsellman on Saturday and Seth Lugo on Sunday. Read more in Newsday, the Daily News, Record and at NJ.com and MLB.com.

Neil Walker’s back injury is more severe than the organization originally let on. Terry Collins said there’s “a lot of concern” about the impact on Walker for the remainder of the season. Walker is feeling tingling on one side of his body, according to the Post. Another report suggested the back woes are affecting Walker’s legs, too. Walker declined comment as he departed the clubhouse after Tuesday’s game. Read more in Newsday and at MLB.com.

 

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Neil Walker update:

Mets' Walker has herniated disk; status unclear


Down on the Farm:

Farm Report: Dominic Smith produces another super season

 

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The Mets lineup for Wednesday's 7:10 p.m. ET game against the Marlins at Citi Field:

Jose Reyes – 3B
Asdrubal Cabrera – SS
Yoenis Cespedes – LF
Curtis Granderson – CF
Wilmer Flores – 1B
Jay Bruce – RF
Travis d'Arnaud – C
Kelly Johnson – 2B
Bartolo Colon – RHP

 

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Mets GM sandy Alderson said the Mets are still waiting on the second opinion on Neil Walker's lower back regarding whether he needs surgery. The herniated disk is causing weakness in a leg and numbness in a foot. Manager Terry Collins said the Mets do not want to put Walker in the lineup until the second opinion comes back, which should be soon. "His (Walker's) discomfort has been off and on all year," Collins said.

 

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Woooo Hoooo........Amazin's do it again.

• Johnson's double send Mets to 5-2 win over Marlins

• Ya gotta believe? Mets win third straight as playoffs becoming realistic




Mets even got some out of town help from Milwaukee, as Capt.Kirk (remember him?) beamed one up to beat St. Louis.

Thanks to a three-run homer from old friend Kirk Nieuwenhuis, the Brewers beat the Cardinals 3-1 on Wednesday. That allowed the Mets to move within 1.5 games of the Cardinals for the NL's second wild-card spot. In recent days the Mets have leapfrogged the Marlins and Pirates. So there are no longer any teams between the Mets and the current wild-card-spot occupants.

 

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NEW YORK -- The uphill battle for the New York Mets to reach the postseason is not looking quite as steep these days, even as an unfathomable volume of injuries continues to rise.

Kelly Johnson delivered a tiebreaking three-run double with two outs in the eighth against A.J. Ramos and the Mets beat the Miami Marlins, 5-2, Wednesday at Citi Field.

The Mets (69-64) have won the opening three games of this series against Miami and nine of their last 11 games overall. They are now five games over .500 for the first time since July 28.

More importantly, the Mets have moved to within 1½ games of the St. Louis Cardinals for the National League's second wild-card spot. The Mets have leapfrogged the Marlins and Pittsburgh Pirates in the standings in recent days, so no one stands between the Mets and the current wild-card-spot occupants.

"I like our chances," general manager Sandy Alderson said Wednesday.


Terry Collins had the shortest of meetings after Wednesday's win to thank his players for not rolling over during tough times. The Mets had been two games under .500 as recently as 12 days ago and have managed to fight on amidst all the injuries.

The latest blow: Second baseman Neil Walker has decided to undergo season-ending surgery to repair a herniated disk in his lower back, which was causing weakness in a leg and numbness in a foot. There's also uncertainty about when, or if, left-hander Steven Matz will return from a shoulder impingement.

"I told them we aren't having any more meetings," Collins said. "I took 30 seconds and told them how proud I was of the fact they've hung in there through all the injuries, all the different things that have happened. They've hung in there, and heading into this last month we're in a race."

As the calendar now flips to September, the Mets have a highly favorable schedule on their side down the stretch. After bidding for a four-game sweep against the Marlins on Thursday and then hosting the Washington Nationals this weekend, the Mets play only six of their final 25 games against teams with winning records.