The Mets are concluding a six-game homestand this weekend and will be welcoming the Cleveland Guardians to Queens. It will serve as a reunion of sorts thanks to the blockbuster trade that went down three offseasons ago.
Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco will be facing Cleveland, while former Mets infielders Amed Rosario and Andres Gimenez will be back at Citi Field. Here’s what the probable pitching matchups look like.
Friday at 7:10 p.m. ET: Carlos Carrasco vs. Cal Quantrill
Carrasco is returning from the injured list to face his former club. He’ll hope things go better than how they were before he was put on the shelf. Through three starts, the veteran is 0-2 with an 8.56 ERA, but at least his last start wasn’t so bad. It was his longest start of the three (five innings) while allowing two runs on four hits, one walk, and three strikeouts to the Oakland Athletics.
Cal Quantrill’s season-long ERA is down to 3.97 thanks to his most recent three starts, which have all been great. After allowing five runs on eight hits in 3.1 innings to the Rockies on April 24th, he’s produced a 2.21 ERA over his most recent 20.1 innings, winning all three.
Saturday at 4:10 p.m. ET: Max Scherzer vs. Tanner Bibee
After more injury issues, Max Scherzer returned to the hill on May 14th and looked more like himself against the Nationals. He allowed just one run on two hits, two walks, and six strikeouts in five innings. The right-hander has a 4.25 lifetime ERA against Cleveland in 20 starts, but this will be the first time he faces them since 2016.
Tanner Bibee has just four big-league starts under his belt. However, he’s coming off what’s easily been his best performance thus far. The righty limited the Angels to one run on two hits, no walks, and seven strikeouts across 7.1 innings. He got the no-decision, but Cleveland escaped with a 4-3 win.
Sunday at 7:00 p.m. ET: Justin Verlander vs. Shane Bieber
Justin Verlander is taking the hill in primetime for his second home start. Hopefully, he won’t get booed off the field like he did in his Citi Field debut. He allowed six runs on eight hits over five innings on Tuesday against the Rays. JV will be looking to bounce back while Jeff McNeil tries to not drop any F-bombs while mic’d up. Verlander owns a 4.53 lifetime ERA against the Guardians, which spans 337.2 innings.
Shane Bieber has produced a typically solid start to the year, but his last time on the mound was his worst appearance thus far in 2023. He allowed six runs (five earned) on 12 hits (two homers), no walks, and four strikeouts in 4.2 innings. This will be his second career start against the Mets. His first came back in 2019.
You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
