NEW YORK METS NOTES:
METSCELLANEOUS: The Mets fell to the Royals, 4-0, last night…The Mets continue a six-game road trip (0-2) to Kansas City (0-1) and Baltimore (three games).
CH-CH-CHANGES: Major League Baseball has announced the following scoring change…In the top of the ninth inning of the Mets vs. Nationals game on July 29, Stone Garrett reached first on what was originally scored an RBI-single…This has been changed to a fielding error by Brett Baty…As a result, two runs in the inning are now unearned…Grant Hartwig’s ERA is now 3.63 (7 ER/17.1 IP).
HERE’S THE CATCH: Francisco Alvarez has hit 21 home runs this season… He joins Pete Alonso (53, 2019) and Darryl Strawberry (26, 1983) as the only Mets rookies to have 20 or more home runs in a season…Alvarez leads all major league catchers with 19 home runs playing that position and is tied with Arizona’s Corbin Carroll for the rookie lead in homers….In 21 games last month, Alvarez batting .284 (21-74) with 16 runs, nine home runs, 18 RBI, six walks with a .354 OBP and a .649 SLG…He was fourth in the NL with nine home runs in July.
FOR PETE’S SAKE: Alonso is third in the majors and second in the Senior Circuit with 31 home runs…He is third in the NL and sixth in the majors with 77 RBI…He is hitting .319 (15-47) with eight extra-base hits, 15 RBI, nine runs and a 1.089 OPS in his last 12 games…He was hitting .132 (12-91) with seven extra-base hits and a .549 OPS over his previous 25 games (since his return from the IL on June 18-19).
WE’RE NOT IN KANSAS ANYMORE: The Mets last played at Kuaffamn Stadium from August 16-18, 2019, taking two out of three games from the Royals…Overall, the Mets are 9-9 against the Royals in the regular season and 4-6 at The K…Pete Alonso has played five games at the ballpark and is 8-21 with four runs, two doubles, two home runs, six RBI and two walks there…Francisco Lindor has hit .283 (51-180) with 31 runs, eight doubles, one triple, 11 home runs, 35 RBI and 15 walks in 43 career games at the yard.
IF YOU START ME UP: The Mets are 32-8 when the starting pitcher throws at least 6.0 innings…New York has gone 14-1 when its starter pitches 7.0+ innings and are a perfect 5-0 when the starter completes 8.0 innings.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: The Mets are 24-34 on the road this year…They have posted a 4.76 ERA in away games…This compares to a 3.84 mark at home…New York has played 58 games on the road this year…That is the second-most in the majors…Only the Phillies have played more road games with 60.
LINSANITY: Francisco Lindor ranks 14th in the majors with a 14.7 fWAR… That is eighth-best in the National League…Over the last 37 games, Lindor is batting .279 (38-136) with 28 runs, six doubles, two triples, nine home runs, 21 RBI, 22 walks, 11 steals with a .383 OBP, a .551 SLG and a .934 OPS…Lindor has stolen 17 bases in 106 games this season, exceeding his total from 2022 (16 steals in 161 games)…His career-best is 25 steals 158 games in 2018…The shortstop ranks third in the majors with a 94.4% success rate in steals…He has gone 17 out of 18 in stolen base attempts in 2023.
RETURN OF THE MARK: In nine games since he was recalled from Triple-A Syracuse, Mark Vientos is batting .276 (8-29) with two runs, three doubles, one home run, four RBI, one walk with a .313 OBP and a .483 SLG.
DOING THE SPLITS: Brandon Nimmo is batting .286 (63-220) with 30 runs, nine doubles, three triples, six home runs, 29 RBI, 30 walks, a .374 OBP and a .436 SLG on the road this season…This compares to a .218/.327/.425 slashline with 18 extra-base hits at home…Francisco Lindor is a .252 (57- 226) with 40 runs, 15 doubles, two triples, 12 home runs, 43 RBI, 23 walks, a .331 OBP, a .496 SLG and an .826 OPS on the road in 2023…He is slashing .211/.314/.411 with 17 extra-base hits at Citi Field this year.
THEY’RE OUT OF MY LEAGUE: The Mets are in a stretch of 14 of 18 games against American League opponents…They are 4-6 in that span…The new schedule format has New York playing a total of 43 Interleague games in 2023, more than double their previous high for a single season (20)… The Mets are 14-16 against the American League this year…Overall, New York owns a 249-243 record in Interleague play…The team’s .508 winning percentage is the second-best among National League clubs.
JEFF McHITS: Jeff McNeil has safely reached base in 14 of his last 15games… Over that span that started on July 16, McNeil is batting .300 (18-60) with nine runs, three doubles, one triple, eight RBI with three walks and has posted a .364 OBP.
STEAL MY SUNSHINE: New York has recorded 79 steals in 87 attempts…The team’s 90.8 percent success rate is the best in the majors…The Mets had a franchise-record run of 35 consecutive stolen bases without being caught from May 14-June 29…Overall, New York has been successful in 53 of their last 55 stolen base attempts.
STARTING PITCHER – CARLOS CARRASCO RHP #59
2023 STATS: 3-5, 6.40 E R A
LAST TIME OUT: Threw 2.1 innings against the Washington Nationals on July 29 at Citi Field…Allowed eight runs, six earned, on eight hits and one walks while striking out two batters in an 11-6 Mets loss.
AND WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS: Carrasco will face Kansas City for the first time this season…Carrasco will be making his 28th appearance and 23rd start against the Royals in his career…In his last start against Kansas City on September 9, 2020 while with Cleveland, he threw 7.0 innings, allowing one earned run on seven hits while fanning six batters…His last win against the Royals came on July 26, 2020, after throwing 6.0 innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits and a walk while striking out ten batters…Throughout his career against Kansas City, Carrasco has pitched to a 3.72 ERA (56 ER/135.1 IP) and holds a 12-8 record…Carrasco holds a 7-4 record with a 3.92 ERA (29 ER/66.2 IP) on the road compared to a 5-4 record and a 3.54 ERA (27 ER/68.2 IP) at home.
KANSAS CITY ROYALS NOTES:
SERIES-CLINCHING SHUTOUT: The Royals scored a 4-0 win over the Mets last night to clinch their second straight series victory, their 5th shutout win and their 5th straight win overall…Cole Ragans, who the Royals acquired from Texas on June 30 in a three-player trade for Aroldis Chapman, made his 2nd start with Kansas City and held the Mets scoreless over 6.0 innings with a career-best 8 strikeouts…the Royals pounded out 11 hits in 5.2 innings off Kodai Senga, including a 2-run double by Michael Massey in the 1st inning, which proved to be all the offense they needed…Angel Zerpa returned to the Majors for the first time in more than a year and pitched 2.0 scoreless innings, and Taylor Clarke escaped a bases-loaded jam in the 9th to preserve Kansas City’s 1st shutout win over the Mets and clinch the Royals first regular season series win vs. them since 2013.
WE’RE GOING STREAKING!: The Royals have won 5 straight games to begin this homestand vs. the Twins (3-0) and Mets (2-0), during which they’ve outscored opponents 31-19 (+12), including a pair of walk-off wins in extra innings and a shutout victory…it’s the longest active win streak in the Majors and is their longest win streak in two years, since July 20-26, 2021, when they won 6 straight games at Milwaukee (2), vs. Detroit (3) and vs. the White Sox (1)…with a win today, the Royals would complete their fifth perfect homestand in franchise history (min. 6 games), and it would be the first since they went 6-0 vs. the White Sox and Rays from May 27-June 1, 2016.
Kansas City’s 5-game win streak has been fueled by strong starting pitching, which is 3-0 with a 2.25 ERA (7 ER in 28.0 IP) over the last 5 games with just 5 walks allowed (1.6 BB/9) and 30 strikeouts (9.6 K/9).
SERIES SPEAKING: The Royals went 4-27-2 in their first 33 series of the season and failed to sweep any of those opponents…but with last night’s win, they’ve clinched consecutive series victories for the first time this season and with a win today, would secure their second straight series sweep…the Royals have already clinched their first regular season series win over the Mets since Aug. 2-4, 2013 in New York—where they won 2 of 3— and today they’re seeking their first series sweep over the Mets…the Royals have not swept a National League team in almost two years, since they won 3 games at Wrigley Field over the Cubs from Aug. 20-22, 2021.
The Royals have won three of their last five series at Kauffman Stadium after losing 12 of their first 13.
INTERLEAGUE INTRIGUE: The Royals are 12-22 in Interleague play, but have won each of their last 4 games, including 2 games this week vs. the Mets and the last 2 games vs. the Dodgers from July 1-2…the Royals have not won 5 straight games vs. National League opponents since April 28-June 1, 2021, when they went 5-0 at Pittsburgh (1-0), vs. Milwaukee (2-0) and vs. Pittsburgh (2-0)…the Royals will play 14 of their 28 games in August vs. National League teams, including 6 straight to begin the month vs. these Mets and the Phillies this weekend.
ON DECK: Following today’s homestand finale vs. the Mets, the Royals will fly east to begin a 7-game road trip in Philadelphia (3 games) and Boston (4)…this will mark their fourth trip to Philadelphia and first since 2016…although the Royals have found success on this homestand, they’ll be seeking their first road series win since May 15-17 at San Diego…the upcoming trip will continue a stretch in which the Royals are playing 10 consecutive games vs. East Division teams, a run that will end with a 2-game set vs. St. Louis from Aug. 11-12.
AFTERNOON DELIGHT: Today’s 1:10 p.m. CT series finale vs. the Mets marks the Royals 47th day game of the season and they’re scheduled for 65 day games this year, which would mark the 2nd most in club history behind only last year, when they played 69 matinees…the Royals are 16-30 in day games, but they have won 9 of their last 14 day games at Kauffman Stadium after beginning with 8 consecutive home day game losses.
The Royals have recorded 6 walk-off wins this season—already their most since 2018 (6)—and 4 have come in day games, including a 4-3 win on May 11 vs. the White Sox, a 3-2 win on May 28 vs. the Nationals, a 10-9 win vs. the Angels on June 17 and a 4-3 win in 10.0 innings on June 29 vs. the Guardians.
The Royals are batting .247 with 51 homers in 46 day games and .229 with 47 homers in 63 night games.
BOBBY BASEBALL: Bobby Witt Jr. had 2 hits and a stolen base last night to mark his 30th steal of the season, matching his career high set last year as a rookie…he’s the third player this century with 30 steals in each of his first two big league seasons, joining Ichiro Suzuki (2001-02) and Elvis Andrus (2009-10), and his 60 steals are the most by any player through his first two big league seasons since Billy Hamilton had 69 steals from 2013-14.
His 30 steals rank 4th in the Majors behind Ronald Acuña Jr. (51), Esteury Ruiz (43) & Corbin Carroll (33).
Witt Jr. is the second player in Major League history to record at least 15 home runs and 30 stolen bases in each of his first two big league seasons, joining Barry Bonds, who did so from 1986-87…this does not include players who began their careers in the Negro Leagues before playing for a team in the American League or National League, as Major League Baseball has recently recognized seven Negro Leagues as major leagues, adopting the statistics of more than 3,400 players in those leagues from 1920-48.
THE RUNNING ROYALS: The Royals are 11-for-11 in stolen base attempts on this homestand—including 6-for6 in this series—and have been successful on their last 13 steal attempts since Bobby Witt Jr. was caught by Kyle Higashioka in the 6th inning on July 23 at Yankee Stadium…the Royals lead the American League with 57 stolen bases in 53 games since June 1 and also lead the American League with 21 steals in 18 games since the All-Star break…for the season, they rank 5th in the Majors and 3rd in the American League with 97 steals.
GETTING OFFENSIVE: In 5 games on this homestand, Royals are batting .309 (54-for-175) with 17 extra-base hits for an .849 OPS, while averaging 6.2 runs per game…in 18 games since the All-Star break, the Royals are averaging 4.3 runs per game with a .738 OPS, both of which mark significant improvements from the first half of the season, when they ranked 29th in the Majors with 3.8 runs per game and 28th with a .677 OPS.
The Royals have registered 191 hard hit balls in 18 games since the All-Star break, which rank 3rd in the American League behind the Orioles (214) and Astros (193)…hard hit balls are defined as those with an exit velocity of at least 95.0 mph…Maikel Garcia is tied for 4th in the Majors since the break with 31 hard hit balls, trailing only his cousin Ronald Acuña Jr. (37), Fernando Tatis (35) and Gunnar Henderson (34).
ARMS RACE: Drew Waters recorded his 3rd outfield assist of the season last night, when he threw out Mark Vientos at home plate to end the 6th inning and preserve the shutout…it also extended the Royals Major League lead in the category to 25, which are 3 more than the next closest team, the Tigers (22), and are 3 more than their total from all of last season…they’re attempting to lead the Majors in outfield assists for the first time since 2011 and 2012, when they had 51 in both seasons, which were the most by any team since Cleveland had 51 in 1993.
Nine different Royals have recorded an outfield assist this year, led by MJ Melendez’s 7 outfield assists.
TODAY’S STARTERS: RHP BRADY SINGER (6-8, 5.46)
BRADY SINGER is making his team-high 22nd start of the season and 85th of his career today vs. New York…it’s his 1st career start vs. the Mets, leaving the Royals,
Marlins, Brewers and Phillies as the only teams he’s never faced…Singer is in his fourth season in the Majors and was selected by Kansas City in the 1st round (18th
overall) of the 2018 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Florida.
THE LAST TIME: Singer did not figure into the decision of Kansas City’s 8-5, walkoff win in 10.0 innings vs. the Twins last Friday night to begin this homestand, in
which he allowed 2 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks in 5.0 innings, with a season-high 10 strikeouts…he had just one clean inning—a 1-2-3 2nd—and yielded nine baserunners
on 4 hits, 2 walks, 2 hit batters and an error, but held the Twins to 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position…Singer stranded a 1-out hit batter in the 1st and a pair of baserunners in the 3rd, before the Twins scored 2 runs in the 4th on an RBI single by Ryan Jeffers and a steal of home by Willi Castro…Singer loaded the bases in the 5th on a leadoff double and a 2-out error and hit batter, before inducing an inning-ending groundout to escape trailing 2-1…the Royals later led 4-2 before the Twins scored 2 in the 9th to force extras…after the Twins scored 1 run in the top of the 10th, Bobby Witt Jr. hit a walk-off grand slam in the bottom half to clinch the win.
I’M STILL STANDING: Following a breakout season in 2022, Brady has struggled through ups and downs this year, as he’s been charged with at least 4 earned runs in 10 of his 21 starts, something that happened in only 5 of his 24 starts last season… the Royals, predictably, are 2-8 in games that he allows at least 4 earned runs… but on the flip side, he’s held opponents to 2 earned runs or fewer in his other 11 starts, in which the Royals are 7-4…after going 2-4 with an 8.82 ERA (33 ER in 33.2 IP) and 7 home runs allowed in his 1st 7 starts of the season, Singer is 4-4 with a 4.05 ERA (36 ER in 80.0 IP) with only 5 home runs allowed in his last 14 starts.
ELECTRIC SLIDE: Brady struck out a season-high 10 batters last Friday vs. the Twins, and 9 of those strikeouts came on his slider, matching the highest single-game total of his career, previously done on July 23, 2022 vs. Tampa Bay, when he recorded a career-best 12 strikeouts…Singer’s 9 strikeouts on his slider are tied for the most by any pitcher in the Majors this season, with Pittsburgh’s Vince Velasquez who got 9 strikeouts on his slider on April 23 vs. Cincinnati…according to Baseball Savant, Singer’s 61 strikeouts on his slider are the 3rd most by an American League pitcher this season, trailing only Dylan Cease (73) and Reid Detmers (64).
WALK THIS WAY: Brady has pitched at least 5.0 innings without issuing a walk in 14 of his 45 starts since last year, tied for the 4th most in the Majors during that time, trailing only Aaron Nola (16), Corey Kluber (15) and teammate Zack Greinke (15)… but on the flip side, Singer has issued multiple walks in 13 of his 21 starts this season, which are 5 more than his total of multi-walk starts from all of last season, when he made 24 starts…he’s walked 38 in 113.2 innings this year for a 3.0 BB/9, 3 more than his walk total in 153.1 innings last season (35), when he had a career-best 2.1 BB/9.
CALL ME MAYBE: In 45 starts since his recall on May 17 of last year, Brady has induced a called strike on 843 of 4,293 pitches (19.6%), 4th most in the Majors behind Logan Webb (911), Gerrit Cole (854) and Aaron Nola (847)…his rate of 19.6% called strikes since May 17, 2022 leads the Majors (min. 4,000 pitches), ahead of Alex Cobb (17.8%)…since his 2020 debut season, Singer’s called-strike rate of 20.5% ranks 2nd in the Majors (min. 5,000 pitches), trailing only Adam Wainwright (20.8%).
CAN’T TOUCH THIS: Singer has recorded 442 strikeouts in 459.2 innings since his 2020 debut for an 8.7 K/9, which is the best rate in Royals history among pitchers who’ve started at least 70 games, ahead of Ian Kennedy (8.4), Jakob Junis (8.1) and Danny Duffy (8.1)…his 442 strikeouts are the most by a Royals pitcher through 87 career appearances…to hold that lead through 88 appearances, he needs 8 to match and 9 to pass Royals Hall of Famer Steve Busby, who had 450 strikeouts.
SONG OF THE SOUTH(PAWS): Opponents have stacked their lineups with lefthanded batters vs. Singer, who is mostly a two-pitch pitcher, as his sinker and slider account for 94% of his pitches…of the 503 batters Singer has faced, 302 of them (60.0%) have been left handers, which is the highest rate in the Majors (min. 400 BF)… in 3 starts since the All-Star break, he has held left handers to a .149 average (7-for47) and a .486 OPS, after they hit .292 (64-for-219) with an .862 OPS in the 1st half.
INTERLEAGUE INTERLUDE: Singer is making his 1st career start today vs. the Mets but it’s his 8th Interleague start of the season…in his previous 7 starts vs. National League teams, he’s 4-1 with a 4.20 ERA (19 ER in 40.2 IP)…he’s held opponents to 2 earned runs or fewer in each of his last 5 starts vs. NL foes, a stretch in which he’s 4-0 with a 1.82 ERA (6 ER in 29.2 IP)…for his career, he’s 7-3 with a 3.91 ERA (34 ER in 78.1 IP) in 14 Interleague starts.
TAKE ME HOME: Singer is 4-4 with a 4.58 ERA (36 ER in 70.2 IP) in 13 starts at Kauffman Stadium this season…his ERA is more than 2 points lower at home than it is on the road, where he’s 2-4 with a 6.91 ERA (33 ER in 43.0 IP)…Brady has held opponents to 2 runs or fewer in 8 of his 13 home starts, including 6 of the last 7, a stretch in which he’s 3-1 with a 2.36 ERA (11 ER in 42.0 IP) and only 2 home runs allowed in 42.0 innings (0.4 HR/9).
