NEW YORK METS NOTES:
METSCELLANEOUS: The Mets defeated the Dodgers, 5-3, yesterday… The Mets are a season-high tying five games above .500…New York earned their fifth series victory (out of six) of the season…With the victory, the Mets secured at least a .500 road trip…The Mets finish their second road trip of the season an 11-day, 10-game trip (5-1) against the Athletics (3-0), Dodgers (2-1) and Giants (four games)… The Mets are off on Monday before they return home for a six-game homestand against the Nationals (three games) and Rockies (three games).
WAR, WHAT IS IT GOOD FOR?: Brandon Nimmo leads the National League and is second in the majors with a 1.3 fWAR…Francisco Lindor is fourth in the National League and sixth in the majors with a 1.1 fWAR. WALK THIS WAY: Brandon Nimmo has drawn 15 walks and struck out just seven times this season…Jeff McNeil has 12 walks and has also struck out only seven times…There are 25 players with at least a dozen walks in 2023 and Cleveland’s Steven Kwan is the only other with fewer than 10 strikeouts…Overall, the Mets are tied for the major league lead with 92 free passes this season.
CANHA GET AN AMEN: Mark Canha has recorded seven extra-base hits through 18 games this season…He had no extra-base hits until his 15th game last year and did not collect his seventh until June 6, his 45th game…He is hitting .317 (19-60) with a .990 OPS in his last 15 games against the Giants with a double, a triple, five home runs, 15 RBI and 15 runs scored.
THE MAY BE GIANTS: Francisco Lindor hit .375 (12-32) with four doubles, a triple, three homers, 12 RBI, seven runs scored and a 1.207 OPS in seven games vs. SF last season…Eduardo Escobar has hit safely in each of his last nine games against the Giants, going 16-35 (.457) with a 1.256 OPS…His .315 average is the highest against any opposing team other than the Pirates, which he has a .400 average against.
FIVE FOR FIGHTING: Yesterday, Brandon Nimmo went 5-5 with two runs, one home run and two RBI…It was the second time in his career that he recorded five hits (also, August 15, 2018 at Baltimore)…See chart below for Mets who have recorded multiple five-hit games:
METS WITH MULTIPLE 5+ HITS IN A GAME
PLAYER TEAM
Keith Hernandez 3
Rusty Staub 2
Mike Piazza 2
Brandon Nimmo 2
INVADER NIM: Overall, in 18 games this season, Brandon Nimmo is batting .349 with 12 runs, five doubles, 10 RBI, 15 walks, a .481 OBP and a .476 SLG…His .481 OBP ranks second in the majors and in the Senior Circuit…The left-handed hitter has drawn 338 walks in his career, which places him tied for 17th in franchise history with John Milner…Dave Magadan is 16th with 347 free passes…Nimmo has posted a .389 OBP, which is the third-highest in franchise history (min. 2,000 PA)…Only John Olerud (.425) and Dave Magadan (.391) had higher OBP.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: The Mets are 5-1 on their current 10-game road trip…The team has hit .246/.359/.415 with 11 doubles, eight home runs, 35 RBI and seven steals during the trip…The Mets are outscoring opponents 37-25 during the first six games of the trip…Overall, the Mets are 8-5 on the road this season.
HOMER HAPPY: The Mets have homered in six of their last seven games…The team has hit 10 home runs in that span…The Mets hit a total of 10 home runs in the previous 12 games.
ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US: The Mets have stolen 21 bases this season, which is tied for fourth in the majors and is tied for second in the National League…New York is one of only five teams with 20 or more stolen bases in 2023, joining the Guardians (26), Orioles (25), Cubs (22) and Pirates (21)….The team’s 21 steals through 19 games are tied for the second-most in club history (courtesy of Sportsradar)…they also had 21 in 2007 and 1970, with a franchise-most 29 in 1991.
WHEN YOU WISH UPON A STARLING: Starling Marte is tied for sixth in the majors and tied for third in the NL with seven steals…He ranks third among active players with 321 career SB…Only Elvis Andrus (337) and Billy Hamilton (324) have more.
D-FENCE: The Mets have committed just four errors in 19 games this season, the fewest in the majors…The team’s .994 fielding percentage is the best in the majors…Francisco Lindor has recorded five DRS (defensive runs saved) according to the Fielding Bible…That is tied for the most in the majors.
BROTHERS IN ARMS: Together, Adam Ottavino and David Robertson have combined to post a 1.58 ERA (3 ER/17.1 IP) with five walks and 19 strikeouts…They have converted seven of eight save opportunities… They are one of three pairs of teammates who have each recorded multiple saves this season (also, Devin Williams and Bryse Wilson of the Brewers, Carlos Estévez and José Quijada of the Angels).
THE SMITH: Drew Smith has 12 strikeouts in 7.2 innings this season… His 14.09 K/per nine among relievers is 11th in the NL (minimum 5.0 innings)…He is 1-0 with a 2.35 ERA (2 ER/7.2 IP) in nine games this year.
POWER STATION: Pete Alonso is tied for the major league lead with eight home runs…He is tied for sixth in the NL with 15 RBI, ranks fifth in the league with a .615 SLG and 10th with a .978 OPS…Alonso has safely hit in 11 of his last 13 games, batting .333 (17-51) with 11 runs, seven home runs, 13 RBI, six walks with a .404 OBP and an .745 SLG.
Rank Player HR GAMES
3rd Mike Piazza 220 972
4th Howard Johnson 192 1,154
T5th Pete Alonso 154 549
T5th Dave Kingman 154 664
7th Carlos Beltrán 149 839
Rank Player RBI GAMES
12th Daniel Murphy 402 903
13th Rusty Staub 399 942
14th Todd Hundley 397 829
15th Michael Conforto 396 757
16th Pete Alonso 395 549
METS ALL-TIME LEADERS
ROAD WARRIOR: Alonso has hit 88 home runs on the road in his career…That places him tied for sixth place in franchise history with Carlos Beltran…Beltran recorded 88 homers in 434 road games… Next up is Howard Jonson who socked 102 in 580 away games.
TODAY’S STARTER – KODAI SENGA RHP #34
2023 STATS: 2-0, 3.38 ERA
SENGA’S PITCH ARSENAL
Pitch Type Usage Rate vs. LHB vs. RHB Avg. Velocity
Four-Seam Fastball 41.6% 46.0% 38.5% 96.1 mph
Forkball 21.5% 23.9% 19.9% 84.3 mph
Sweeper 19.7% 6.2% 29.2% 82.2 mph
Cutter 17.2% 23.9% 12.4% 90.5 mph
SENGA NEWS & NOTES
LAST TIME OUT: Senga fell one out shy of winning his third straight start to begin his career…Threw 4.2 innings in the Mets 17-6 win on April 14 against Oakland, allowing four runs on seven hits with four walks and seven strikeouts.
PUTTING THE K IN FORK: Senga’s “ghost fork” has accounted for 16 of his 21 strikeouts through three starts…The pitch has a 62 percent whiff rate and a 36 percent putaway rate…Opponents have managed just one hit in 20 at-bats ending with the forkball, a .050 batting average.
ALL I DO IS WIN: Tonight, Senga will look to become the second Mets starting pitcher ever to begin his career 3-0 (Steven Matz, who won his first four career decisions, is the other)…The only Japanese-born pitchers to start their career 3-0 or better are Senga won his first two starts this season, making him the fourth player in franchise history to earn the win in their first two career major league starts, joining Steven Matz, Mike Pelfrey and Gary Gentry…Additionally, he joins Kazuhisa Ishii, Hideki Irabu and Koji Uehara as the only Japanese-born pitchers to win each of their first two career major league starts.
MLB DEBUT NOTES: Senga became the 64th pitcher whose major league debut came in a start for the Mets…New York has had one pitcher make his MLB debut as a starter in each of the previous three seasons: José Butto in 2022, Tylor Megill in 2021 and David Peterson in 2020 (the Mets won each of those three games)…Senga allowed one run over 5.1 innings on three hits, three walks and eight strikeouts in his major league debut…His eight strikeouts were tied for the fourth-most by a Japanese-born pitcher in their major league debut and tied for the third-most by a Mets pitcher in their major league debut.
SAN FRANCISCO GIAMTS NOTES:
TONIGHT’S GAME: The Giants return home to open their longest homestand of the year, an eight game stretch against the New York Mets (tonight-Sunday) and the St. Louis Cardinals (Monday-Thursday)…San Francisco is coming off a 1-4 road trip to Detroit (0-2) and Miami (1-2) (SF had last Sunday’s game against the Tigers postponed due to rain).
EXTRA! EXTRA! READ ALL ABOUT IT: The Giants defeated the Marlins by a score of 5-2 in extra innings yesterday, which saw two, two-run homers by the Giants in the 11th inning by Michael Conforto and Mike Yastrzemski…according to Stats, LLC, it marked the Giants’ 13th time ever hitting multiple homers in a single extra inning and their fifth time doing so in the last 30 seasons (previous: August 1, 2015 at Texas in the 11th inning by Hunter Pence and Brandon Belt).
BACK IN THE NEW YORK GROOVE: San Francisco currently has four former Mets on its roster who played a combined total of 1,750 games over 18 seasons in New York…OF Michael Conforto (2015-2021, 757 games), IF J.D. Davis (2019-2022, 335 games), IF Wilmer Flores (2013-2018, 581 games) and IF Darin Ruf (2022, 28 games).
300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE: The Giants have four different players hitting at least .320 so far this season (C Joey Bart, .333, IF J.D. Davis, .333, IF Thairo Estrada, .323 and IF Wilmer Flores, .320)…SF’s four players hitting over .320 is tied with the Braves and Cubs for second most in MLB behind only the Phillies with five players hitting over .320 (Stats, LLC).
RIGHT FROM THE START: Dating back to last season, no starting pitcher for the Giants has allowed more than four runs in any of the team’s last 27 games, which is the team’s fifth-longest such streak since 1958 and is currently tied for the longest active streak in MLB with the Twins (Stats, LLC)… during that 27 game stretch, Giants starters have posted a 3.01 ERA (38er, 113.2ip) and struck out 124 batters, compared to just 18 walks…the last Giants starter to allow more than four runs was RHP Alex Cobb on September 24, 2022 at Arizona (five earned runs).
SF Giants, Most Cons. Games W/ SP Allowing 4 or Fewer Runs (Since 1958) (Stats, LLC)
Steak Start-End
37 9/06/1993-4/16/1994
31 9/13/2021-4/20/2022
30 6/27/1965-8/01/1965
29 8/29/2010-9/30/2010
27 9/25/2022-4/19/2023
LATE RUNS ALLOWED: The Giants have allowed 38 runs in the 7th inning-or-later, which ranks as the third-most runs allowed in the Majors behind the Oakland Athletics (46) and Chicago White Sox (43).
HAVE TO WAKE UP BATS: The Giants struck out 11 times yesterday, the club’s 11th double-digit strikeout game of the year…those 11 double-digit strikeout games are tied for most in the Majors with Milwaukee…SF has gone 3-8 in the 11 games…the Giants 188 strikeouts are most in MLB entering play today despite playing two fewer games than the next closest five teams.
DEEEEEP CUTS: SF’s 28 homers are the third-best in the Majors entering play today behind the Rays (42), Dodgers (33)…the Giants’ 28 homers through their first 17 games are the most in franchise history, passing the 2000 club, who hit 27 homers over the club’s first 17 games…SF has been homer-dependent this year with 61.% (48 of 79) of their runs coming via the big fly according to Sports Info Solutions.
HAIR WE GO: LHP Sean Manaea will take the hill for his fourth outing (third start) with the Giants…his changeup has been his most effective pitch this year with opponents going 1-for13 off it…Manaea has faced the Mets twice in his career, most recently on June 8, 2022 when he threw 7.0 innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits, as he picked up the win for the Padres.
AGAINST LEFTIES AND RIGHTIES: The Giants have been better against right-handed pitching, compared to lefty pitching (see chart below)…SF is 4-7 against right-handed starters and 2-4 against left-handed starters.
TODAY’S STARTER – SEAN MANAEA LHP #52
2023 RECORD: 0-0, 4.76 ERA
WITH THE GIANTS: In his first season with Giants…signed two-year, $25 million contract with an opt-out after this season with San Francisco this offseason after spending 2022 with San Diego.
LAST OUTING: Manaea allowed two runs on four hits and a walk while striking out four Tigers in 3.1 innings on April 14…it was Manaea’s first time in 2023 in which he did not get tagged with a home run, something he struggled with last season…per SIS, Detroit had 10 batted balls vs. Manaea, all line drive or fly balls…he forced nine ground balls and 10 balls in the air over his first two appearances.
NEW YORK-NL: The southpaw has two career starts vs. the Mets, with his most recent being one of the better starts during his Padres tenure…he struck out three while allowing two runs, one earned, on three hits and three walks across 7.0 innings on June 8, 2022 at Petco Park to earn the win.
WALK IT OUT: The Mets have a 110-point difference between their batting average (.227) and on-base percentage (.337) this season, which is the largest gap in MLB (SIS)…that’s because they are tied with the Dodgers for the most walks in MLB (92)…Manaea has walked 39 righties since the start of last season, which is tied for 12th in the National League.
STAY IN THE YARD: Since the start of 2022 Manaea is tied for the third most home runs surrendered to right-handers (27)…the Mets are third this year with 10 homers vs. lefties, and are sixth since the start of 2022 with 62 big flies vs. lefties…IF Eduardo Escobar (4×9)
and IF Francisco Lindor (4×12) both have a homer off Manaea in their careers, and OF/DH Tommy Pham has two homers among five hits in nine at-bats (.556).
HOMESICK: Manaea is back in his home ballpark, an environment he’s excelled in throughout his MLB career…his career home ERA is 3.65 and OPS is .692 compared to his 4.50 ERA and .747 OPS on the road…in his one home outing this season, April 8 vs. Kansas City, Manaea struck out eight while allowing a single run on three hits and a walk in a season-high 6.0 innings…since his debut in 2016, he has the 18th-best home ERA in MLB among pitchers with at least 450.0 innings.
MANAEA PITCH ARSENAL / STATCAST INFO (2023)
Pitch Type Usage Percentage Avg. Velo BAA SO
Sinker 50.3% 94.6 mph .235 6
Slider 25.1% 84.5 mph .364 3
Changeup 24.6% 85.7 mph .077 4
MANAEA VS. NEW YORK METS (CAREER)
Last Win: June 6, 2022 (with SD) Last Loss: None
W-L ERA G/GS IP H ER BB SO
2022 1-0 1.29 1/1 7.0 3 1 3 3
Career 1-0 3.55 2/2 12.2 13 5 4 5
at SF — -.– — -.- — — — —
at NYM 0-0 6.35 1/1 5.2 10 4 1 2
2023 GAME-BY-GAME
Date Opp. Dec Result IP H R ER BB SO HR TP
4/3 at CHW — W, 12-3 2.0 2 3 3 2 1 1 37
4/8 vs. KC — L, 5-6 6.0 3 1 1 1 8 1 76
4/14 at DET — L, 5-7 3.1 4 2 2 1 4 0 82
April 0-0 4.76 11.1 9 6 6 4 13 2 —
APRIL FLOWERS: Manaea’s not been one for slow starts to a season…including his one career March start, the first month of a campaign has been kind to the lefty…in 25 career March/ April games, Manaea has a 3.15 ERA, 138 strikeouts, and monthly bests 1.00 WHIP, .191 opposing batting average and 8.7 strikeouts per nine innings over 143.0 innings…two of Manaea’s three career shutouts have been in April, including his no-hitter vs. Boston on April 21, 2018.
