Mets prepare for four-game showdown with NL West champ Giants

The Mets (7-3) conclude their first homestand of the season against the defending NL West Champs, the Giants (7-2). New York managed just one win in six tries against San Francisco last season, and were swept by the Giants at Citi Field last August.

The Mets collected their third consecutive series win over the weekend by taking two out of three against the Diamondbacks. The offense exploded for 10 runs in front of a raucous home crowd at the home opener on Friday afternoon. In a packed day that included celebrating Jackie Robinson Day and unveiling the Tom Seaver statue, Chris Bassitt tossed six stellar innings of one-run ball. On offense, Francisco Lindor hit homers from both sides of the plate, while Robinson Canó hit his first homer of the year. Starling Marte added his first home run as a Met for good measure as New York won a laugher.

The offense apparently used up all of its runs on Friday and couldn’t get much of anything going against Zac Gallen and Arizona’s bullpen on Saturday. Carlos Carrasco was terrific over five shutout innings, but the combination of Joely Rodirguez and Seth Lugo coughed up three runs in the seventh. Marte tried to get the Mets back in the game with a two-run homer in the eighth, and Lindor followed with a walk to give the Mets their best chance to tie up the game. Pete Alonso couldn’t come through and hit into a rally-killing double play, and the Mets went meekly in the ninth inning.

The Mets bounced back with a 5-0 win on Easter Sunday to take the rubber match and the series. David Peterson, in place of the injured Taijuan Walker, pitched 4.1 shutout innings, and the bullpen added 4.2 shutout innings from there. The Mets were again quiet until the sixth, when they hung a three-spot on the Diamondbacks. Alonso launched a two-run shot in the seventh to give New York some breathing room.

Through ten games this season, the starting pitching has continued carrying the Mets. So far, the rotation has posted a 1.07 ERA, which is impressive enough in its own right but especially eye-opening when you consider the losses of deGrom and Walker. Megill and Peterson have yet to give up a run, while Bassitt and Carrasco have each given up one run over two starts. Walker is expected to make a rehab start later this week, and could hopefully return in the not-too-distant future.

The Giants enter this series on a five-game winning streak after sweeping the Guardians on the road. Prior to that, they took two of three from the Padres at home.

Monday, April 18: Alex Cobb vs. Tylor Megill, 7:10 p.m. on SNY

Cobb (2022): 5.0 IP, 10 K, 2 BB, 0 HR, 3.60 ERA, 0.26 FIP, 1.20 WHIP, 0.0 bWAR

After a solid 2021 with the Angels, Cobb ended up about 400 miles north in San Francisco on a two-year deal. In his first start, the former fourth round pick struck out ten over five strong innings against San Diego. He threw 53 of his 83 pitches (64%) for strikes and allowed two earned runs in his outing. With San Francisco pouring on 13 runs, it was more than enough for him to earn his first win as a Giant. The 34-year old has only made two starts in his 11-year career against the Mets and has allowed six earned runs in 12.2 innings.

Megill (2022): 10.1 IP, 11 K, 0 BB, 0 HR, 0.00 ERA, 0.93 FIP, 0.58 WHIP, 0.0 bWAR

Megill has been terrific in his first two starts for New York in place of Jacob deGrom. He became just the third Opening Day starter to post shutouts in back-to-back starts to begin the year, joining Tom Seaver (1972) and the aforementioned deGrom (2019). In his last outing at notoriously hitter-friendly Citizens Bank Park, he limited the Phillies to just three hits while striking out five over 5.1 innings. His fastball has also been touching 99 miles-per-hour this year. While nobody can ever truly replace deGrom, Megill is at least doing his best to fill the void admirably while the club waits for their ace to return.

Tuesday, April 19: Logan Webb vs. Max Scherzer, 7:10 p.m. on SNY

Webb (2022): 14.0 IP, 10 K, 1 BB, 0 HR, 1.29 ERA, 1.85 FIP, 0.71 WHIP, 0.0 bWAR

Webb was sensational in his last outing against the Padres. The right-hander, who currently leads the NL with 14 innings pitched over his two starts, hurled eight innings, allowing one earned run on four hits while striking out seven. He reached 96 pitches in the start and threw 71 of them (74%) for strikes. In his lone start against the Mets, which came last August at Oracle Park, Webb picked up the win while tossing 7.1 innings of two-run ball.

Scherzer (2022): 11.0 IP, 13 K, 4 BB, 1 HR, 3.27 ERA, 3.24 FIP, 1.09 WHIP, 0.0 bWAR

Scherzer got off to a shaky start in his last outing but bounced back nicely. He walked three in the first inning, which is uncharacteristic for the future Hall of Famer, and was in immediate peril as he faced a bases loaded jam. He was able to escape unscathed and ended up allowing one earned run on five hits over five innings pitched. He walked just those three and ended up punching out seven Phillies batters while throwing 66 of his 96 pitches (69%) for strikes. Despite not being 100% yet with that hamstring issue that plagued him at the tail end of Spring Training, he has still been good in his first two turns with the Mets. On Tuesday, he’ll get his first turn in front of the home crowd.

Wednesday, April 20: Carlos Rodón vs. Chris Bassitt, 7:10 p.m. on SNY

Rodón (2022): 12.0 IP, 21 K, 4 BB, 0 HR, 1.50 ERA, 0.81 FIP, 0.75 WHIP, 0.0 bWAR

Much like he did last year, Rodón has gotten off to a terrific start. After signing a two-year, $44 million contract after the conclusion of the lockout, Rodon struck out 12 in his Giants debut against the Marlins on April 9. He followed that up by picking up his first win with San Francisco last Friday, allowing one earned run on two hits over seven stellar innings. The left-hander struck out 9 while walking two, and he currently holds the NL lead with 21 strikeouts. This will be Rodón’s first time facing the Mets.

Bassitt (2022): 12.0 IP, 14 K, 3 BB, 1 HR, 0.75 ERA, 2.81 FIP, 0.67 WHIP, 0.0 bWAR

Bassitt started the team’s home opener and was tremendous, picking up his second win in as many tries. He gave up one earned run on two hits while striking out six and walking two against Arizona. Over his two starts, he has allowed five hits and has a team-leading 14 strikeouts. So far over his two outings with New York, Bassitt has been a terrific addition and has been a key contributor as the rotation has shined in the early part of the 2022 season.

Thursday, April 21: Anthony DeSclafani vs. Carlos Carrasco, 1:10 p.m. on SNY

DeSclafani (2022): 8.1 IP, 9 K, 1 BB, 0 HR, 4.32 ERA, 1.62 FIP, 1.68 WHIP, 0.0 bWAR

Following a very successful stay in San Francisco last year, DeSclafani resigned on a three-year deal to remain with the Giants. The Freehold, New Jersey native started his season by allowing two earned runs on eight hits over 3.2 innings against Miami in a game the Giants would go on to win 3-2. He followed that up by giving up two earned runs on five hits with four strikeouts in 4.2 innings pitched. In seven outings against the Mets, DeSclafani owns a 5.40 ERA.

Carrasco (2022): 10.2 IP, 13 K, 2 BB, 1 HR, 0.84 ERA, 2.40 FIP, 0.66 WHIP, 0.0 bWAR

After struggling mightily in his first go-around in Queens, Carrasco has gotten off to an encouraging start this year. The veteran right-hander has looked good to kick off the 2022 season, allowing one earned run over 10.2 innings while striking out 13 batters. After serving up a home run in the first inning of his first start, which continued a troubling trend of first inning runs, he has held his opponents off the board for the past ten innings. His last time out, he struck out eight and scattered three hits in five shutout frames.

Prediction: The Mets and Giants split their four games at Citi Field this week.