The Mets’ disappointing season continued in Houston this week. After a dominant and stress-free win on Monday, Justin Verlander kept a frustrating pattern going in Game 2. And despite putting up eight runs in the finale, New York dropped yet another series. Now, they’ll look to get on track at Citizens Bank Park against the Phillies.
This might be the best-case scenario for manager Buck Showalter’s club. The Amazins went 14-5 against Philly last year. They’ve met one other time in 2023, which included the Mets sweeping a three-game set at Citi Field about three weeks ago.
Here are the probable pitching matchups for this series.
Friday at 7:05 p.m. ET: Kodai Senga vs. Taijuan Walker
Kodai Senga’s last outing against the Cardinals was the definition of uneven. He gave the Mets length (6.2 innings) while striking out eight and walking only one. But, the righty also allowed four runs on five hits (two homers). This will be Senga’s second start against the Phillies. The first one was excellent, as he one-hit them and struck out nine across seven shutout innings.
Taijuan Walker will be looking for a better outing against his former club than the first one. At Citi Field a few weeks ago, he allowed three runs on two hits, three walks, and two strikeouts in four innings of work.
Saturday at 4:05 p.m. ET: Max Scherzer vs. Cristopher Sanchez
Max Scherzer is fresh off one of his best performances as a Met. His eight-inning performance against the Astros was the first time he went that deep in a game with New York. We’ll see if the adjustments he made to his slider will hold against the Phillies. He allowed two runs (one earned) on five hits, one walk, and nine strikeouts in seven innings when facing Philly a few weeks ago.
This will be Cristopher Sanchez’s third start of the season. His first came on April 22nd, and his most recent one took place on June 17th. The latter was more impressive, as Sanchez allowed one hit and one walk with five strikeouts across four shutout innings against the Oakland Athletics.
Sunday at 1:35 p.m. ET: Carlos Carrasco vs. Zack Wheeler
Will the Cookie keep crumbling, or will Carlos Carrasco pick up the pieces against Philly? We’ll see, as he’s coming off a three-inning outing vs. St. Louis that yielded six runs (five earned). Carrasco also pitched against the Phillies when they visited Cit Field a few weeks ago. He allowed one run on six hits, one walk, and four strikeouts in six innings.
Zack Wheeler will be facing his former club for the first time in 2023. He owns a 3.29 lifetime ERA against the Mets in 76.2 innings. Last year was rough on him, though. Wheeler went 0-3 in four starts against New York. He allowed 12 earned runs on 20 hits, 10 walks (one intentional), and 21 strikeouts in 22 innings, resulting in a 4.91 ERA.
You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
