The New York Mets will begin a nine game road trip, starting with a three game series vs. the Cleveland Indians over the weekend at Progressive Field.
The Mets just completed a disappointing homestand, losing 2-of-3 to both the Philadelphia Phillies and also the Miami Marlins, although they did salvage a 2-1 win in their last game against the Fish on Wednesday afternoon to improve their record to 3-5.
The Mets will look to build on that win and have a much better showing on their upcoming road trip starting in Cleveland where the Indians so far are 4-3 to start the year.
Being away from home for awhile could possibly help these Mets, particularly their offense to, get back on track with road games in Philadelphia and in Atlanta to follow after Cleveland.
Pitching Matchups
Game 1: Bartolo Colon, RHP vs Cody Anderson, RHP
Bartolo Colon started his career in Cleveland 20 years ago so he will be pitching on familiar territory for the Mets in the series opener.
Colon made his first 2016 start last Saturday against the Phillies. He lost, but pitched really well, giving up only one run in six innings, showing that the soon to be 43-year old is still efficient at times on the mound.
He will go up against Cody Anderson who is 0-2 with a 3.00 ERA to start 2016.
Game 2: Matt Harvey, RHP vs Josh Tomlin, RHP
Harvey is looking to right his ship in Ohio after two disappointing starts to begin this year. he lost both games and didn’t pitch past the sixth inning in neither of those two starts.
He will go up against Josh Tomlin who will be making his first 2016 regular season start.
Game 3: Steven Matz, LHP vs Corey Kluber RHP
Steven Matz will look to bounce back in a huge way after getting shelled by the Marlins on Monday night, giving seven runs (all in the second inning) in 1.2 innings.
He will go up against Indians ace Corey Kluber who won the AL Cy Young award back in 2014. However like Harvey, Kluber has had a slow start to 2016, going 0-2 with a 4.85 ERA so far.
Keys To A Series Win
Curtis Granderson must step up
The Mets offense as a whole have struggled so far this year. None more than leadoff hitter Curtis Granderson who is batting .097 to start the year and only three hits in 31 at bats. Because Granderson is the leadoff hitter, he must step up and get on base in order for the Mets offense to go. Grandy getting on base will set things up for the other Mets hitters to make more of an impact.
Grandy had a hit in the Mets last two games against the Marlins, including a double to lead off the game on Tuesday so maybe that could get him going this weekend.
Matt Harvey and Steven Matz has got to be themselves
There’s no doubt that both Harvey and Matz are much better than what they showed so far this season.
Harvey wasn’t terrible overall in his first two starts but was not great either and he certainly was not at his level. What was most alarming is how Harvey has racked up only five strikeouts in 11.2 innings so far even though his fastball was in the mid 90s.
Matz meanwhile gave up the most runs he ever had in his early career with seven in less than two innings.
Harvey and Matz could both possibly have bounceback innings vs an Indians lineup that only has ome starter hitting over .300 to start the year (Francisco Lindor .321).
Players to Watch
Francisco Lindor
He is the Indians future and possibly their present as well at the plate. He’s only 22 years old and after hitting .313 last season, he is off to a good start this season, hitting .321 with a home run, six runs and two stolen bases.
The Mets pitchers certainly have to look out for him in the middle of Cleveland’s lineup.
Matt Harvey
The Mets are still waiting to see the real Harvey this year. Perhaps this weekend vs. a not so overpowering lineup. If he has another subpar start, then there will be real concerns about him.
Harvey has always been a competitor and certainly knows how to bounce back from bad starts so it will be worth watching.
Game Times, Predictions
- Game 1: Friday, 7:10 PM ET, SNY
- Game 2: Saturday, 4:10 PM ET, WOR
- Game 3: Sunday, 1:10 PM ET, SNY
This road series vs another weak opponent could perhaps jump-start the Mets offense. Even though the Mets still struggled offensively in their 2-1 series finale win over the Marlins, they finally got a big hit with Kevin Plawecki‘s two run single in the seventh inning. The Mets have struggled mightily with runners in scoring position during the first week and a half of this season. Maybe Plawecki’s huge hit could be the start of a renaissance.
Bold Prediction:
Matt Harvey will finally have a Dark Knight like performance, shutting down the Indians for eight innings.
Curtis Granderson will build on his two hits in his last two games with at least a hit in each of the three games including his first homer of 2016.
With that, the Mets offense will finally have at least a decent series and that will propel them to a three game sweep.