Mets to use a six-man rotation

With Steven Matz and Seth Lugo set to rejoin the Mets, manager Terry Collins told reporters before the series opener that the team will start using a six-man starting rotation beginning this weekend. Those six pitchers are: Jacob deGrom, Zack Wheeler, Matt Harvey, Robert Gsellman, Matz, and Lugo.

Before the decision to switch to a six-man rotation—a decision that might prove to be very temporary based on the way the Mets have dabbled with it in recent years—there had been a suggestion from the team that Gsellman could be bullpen-bound. But he’s been great in his past few starts, which might have affected the team’s approach to the whole situation.

Presumably, the Mets will roll with a major league-standard seven-man bullpen, which would leave them with just a four-man bench. They’ve worked with one for much of this season as they carried eight relievers instead of seven over several stretches.

Starting pitcher has been a major disappointment for the Mets this year. Despite getting a few great starts from Noah Syndergaard and surprisingly reliable, good performances from Zack Wheeler, the team’s rotation has a 5.07 ERA on the year, the fourth-worst mark in baseball. Just last year, Mets starters had a 3.61 ERA, the third-best mark in the game.