Your Thursday morning dose of Mets and Major League Baseball news, notes, and links.
Meet the Mets
The Mets finished off a sweep of the Angels behind strong performances by their stars. Brandon Nimmo started the scoring with a home run in the first inning and then Pete Alonso blasted a three-run home run in third to break the game open. Francisco Lindor finally snapped his hitless streak and went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a run scored.
Sean Manaea got the start and gave up one run in five innings. The one run was a home run off the bat of Mike Trout but other than that the lefty was strong on the mound. He struck out five and walked two. When José Buttó faltered in his return to the mound in relief Brooks Raley and Edwin Díaz somehow navigated trouble to close out the game and finish off the sweep and a 4-2 homestand.
Choose your recap: Amazin’ Avenue, Daily News, LoHud, MLB.com, Newsday, Post
Sean Manaea built on his first start of the season and afterwards said he is close to where he wants to be stamina-wise.
Despite not being at his sharpest, Manaea was able to battle on the mound which is an encouraging sign for the team.
Díaz has had to do some heavy lifting recently but the closer is fine with his recent workload.
Before the game the Mets activated José Buttó and optioned Justin Garza.
The Mets are reportedly among the teams interested in Padres ace Dylan Cease.
Around the National League East
The Braves gave up three home runs in their 9-3 loss to the Giants.
Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara outdueled Padres starter Dylan Cease in Miami’s 3-2 win over the Padres.
The Phillies did not complete the sweep of the Red Sox and lost 9-8 in extra innings to fall out of first place in the NL East.
The Nationals were shut out by Nick Lodolo in their 5-0 loss to the Reds.
Around Major League Baseball
With the Trade Deadline looming, where do all 30 teams stand and what moves could they potentially make before the deadline?
Tigers star Tarik Skubal is a Cy Young contender now but he was once a prospect that nobody knew about.
Justin Verlander finally picked up his first win in a Giants uniform after 16 straight winless games which was the longest streak in Giants history.
The Rockies defeated the Cardinals 6-0 which was their first shutout in over a year.
The Blue Jays took the series from the Yankees to extend their lead in the AL East.
Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue
Alexander Choi took a look at what the Mets need most at the Trade Deadline.
This Date in Mets History
On this date in 1970, Tommie Agee stole home in the tenth inning to give the Mets a win over the Dodgers.