David Peterson and the bats were just good enough tonight, and the Mets have won two straight.
Prior to tonight’s rain-delayed game, the Mets got some more tough injury news. Quite simply, the pitching staff is in taters right now, and the team will need to find a way to win with some less than ideal names taking the ball for them between now and the All-Star break. Given that reality, it’s more important than ever for the established pitchers to provide stability and for the team to grind out wins where they can. Well, the Mets did that tonight, muscling out a 3-2 victory against the Brewers to take the series from them.
It was a battle between southpaws in today’s game, as David Peterson—coming off back-to-back starts in which he surrendered five runs in less than five innings—faced off against former Met José Quintana. The Amazins got the scoring started with one out in the bottom of the second inning. A day after hitting a much-needed grand slam, Brandon Nimmo once again hammered the first pitch he saw for a solo homer. That one-run lead only lasted until the fourth inning, however. Peterson started the frame with a walk (his third in the first four innings), and following a strikeout Rhys Hoskins hit a ball to second base that should have been an inning-ending double play, but the ball instead bounced off him into the outfield to put runners on first and second. A force out at second on a ground ball to shortstop (one that Mark Vientos probably could have fielded at third and turned a double play on, but alas) then put runners on the corners with two outs, and Peterson was on the verge of getting out of it. Alas, he then surrendered a weak groundball to third base to Caleb Durbin, who beat out the throw to first and thereby allowed the runner at third to score to tie the game.
Peterson came close to giving up more runs in the fifth after a leadoff double to Joey Ortiz. But after he advanced to third on a groundout, Sal Frelick hit a groundball to first with the infield drawn in, and Pete Alonso fielded it cleanly and threw the ball home for the easy forceout. Peterson subsequently got out of the inning unscathed—then had yet another scare in the sixth, when Hoskins—with a runner on and no outs—hit a shot to left field that looked like it would be a two-run homer (Hoskins certainly thought it was, judging by his bat flip). But to the Mets’ fortune, the ball curved and was just barely foul, and Peterson instead induced a double play and managed to get out of that inning unharmed as well.
Quintana, meanwhile, continued to perform in a manner that was likely familiar to many Mets fans: he didn’t demonstrate dominating stuff, but he managed to put up for several innings following the Nimmo homer. The Mets finally broke through again in the bottom of the sixth—aided by some BABIP luck. After Tyrone Taylor (who continues to struggle mightily) struck out to start the frame, Starling Marte hit a soft ground ball to second base. The throw brought Hoskins slightly off the bag at first, and Marte was safe (and somewhat generously given a single). Francisco Lindor followed with a ground ball that wasn’t hit particularly hard, but got through the hole into right field to put runners on first and third with one out. That brought Juan Soto to the plate, and the $765 million man hit another ground that just got past the reach of a diving Andruw Monasterio at second, bringing home Marte to give the Mets the lead once more. That would prove to be the last batter of Quintana’s night, but the Amazins added one more run to his final line once Nick Mears came on to replace him, as Alonso hit the first pitch he saw from him off the walk in left-center field for a double to bring in yet another run. Alas, the next two batters struck out to strand the runners on second and third, but the Mets now had a 3-1 lead.
Peterson was brought back on for the seventh and got the first two outs, but then number nine hitter Manasterio lined a shot over the left field wall for a solo homer to make it 3-2. An infield hit to the next batter ended Peterson’s night, and while it wasn’t necessary a dominant one, he was the first Mets pitcher to provide 6+ innings since June 17th (when he himself did it). And the two runs (one earned) would be all that he would provide, as Ryne Stanek came on and induced a lineout to end the inning and leave Peterson’s last runner stranded.
Stanek proceeded to come back on for the top of the eighth and excelled, striking out the side in a dominant inning. Unfortunately, despite getting two runners on in the bottom of the frame, the Amazins could not add any insurance runs, so Edwin Díaz came in for the ninth with just the one-run lead. The Mets’ closer retired his first batter via strikeout, but Christian Yelich then pinch-hit and hit an opposite-field single. Unsurprisingly, Yelich broke for second on the second pitch of the at-bat to pinch-hitter Brice Turang. Luis Torrens unleashed a perfect throw right into the runner, and the result was about as close a play as you can see. The umpire initially called Yelich safe, but the Mets challenged the call and it was reversed upon review. Following that monumental call, Díaz closed the door, striking out Turang to end the game and secure the series victory.
Given all the troubles the team has faced over the past few weeks and the bevy of pitching injuries they are currently dealing with, it’s hard to overstate how huge this win tonight was. The Mets will now need to rely on their dilapidated pitching staff to try to keep things rolling over the next few days as the Yankees come to Citi Field for round two of the 2025 Subway Series. The two teams will face off against each other tomorrow afternoon at 3:10.
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Big Mets winner: Ryne Stanek, +15.9% WPA
Big Mets loser: Luis Torrens, -12.3% WPA
Mets pitchers: +44.1% WPA
Mets hitters: +5.9% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Juan Soto RBI single in the sixth, +13.6% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Caleb Durbin RBI single in the fourth, -12.6% WPA