The Mets came flying into San Francisco riding high, and taking the first two games from the Giants. Unfortunately they ended up losing the next two and splitting the series. Overall the trip as a whole was successful, I think if you asked any Mets fans if they would have taken 7-3 on a West Coast trip they’ll tell you 100 times out of 100, absolutely they would. This was kind of a “meh” series so I think breaking it down is a waste of time, and I would rather talk about some of the nice things/concerning things I noticed this past week.

Joey Lucchesi: This guy looked fuckin’ DYNAMITE!!! His first start in a MLB game since 2021 coming off surgery and he strikes out 9 guys, goes 7 innings, and doesn’t give up a single run. This was literally best case scenario. Coming off a game in which Max Scherzer gets ejected and Buck Showalter is forced to go to his bullpen in the 4th inning, it was no secret that the Mets needed some length from their starter the following game. Joey “Fuego” did just that. He really seemed locked in out there, throwing strikes and keeping the waters calm all night, allowing the offense to thrive and pick apart Anthony DeSclafani and the rest of the San Francisco bullpen. Lucchesi has made a major case for himself with that outing, and if the next start or two is shaky for David Peterson, it would not surprise me to see management use a minor league option on Peterson, and allow Joey “Fuego” to continue dealing within the rotation.

David Peterson and Tylor Megill: Both young arms are trending right now for the Mets, and it isn’t for reasons they would like. Both games lost in this series were headlined with both of these guys back to back, and both David and Tylor looked brutal out there. Peterson just looked lost, like a deer in headlights. There was zero confidence, his location was way off, and honestly I feel like you just knew from the beginning this was going to be an uphill battle. 7 runs on 7 hits is not the line we expected out of David Peterson that afternoon. I feel for him, he really hasn’t had a great start all year, outside of the Dodgers game where he gave up 2 runs, other than that he looks real bad. Maybe some time in Syracuse would do him well. I hate that I even have to type something like that. Ordinarily you would want to see a guy like that figure it out up here, because overall Peterson has earned the right to wear a MLB uniform. But right now, the Mets need immediate results, they’re goal is a World Series, and they really cannot afford to have a starter “find himself” on their time. As for Tylor, not as bad a start, but definitely not a good one. The Giants hit him, and they hit him hard. I feel like every ball that came off their bat had over 100mph exit velocity. 4 runs on 6 hits, also no ideal. Megill seemed a little more in control as compared to Peterson, but still 4 runs in 4 innings isn’t good either. Both these guys need to figure it out because Verlander and Scherzer come back in another week or so. 2 guys gotta go back to AAA, and honestly right now, my money is on Peterson, and at this point probably Tylor too. The baseball season is long and as we all know, injuries are inevitable, so these guys will more than likely both get their shots to come back up and join the Mets. For a guy like David Peterson it really is time for him to figure this out. He was a 1st round draft pick, he made his debut in 2020, and since then he’s been really inconsistent.

Brett Baty: If i had to give him a number grade, I would give him about a 75-83 range. He’s done some really nice things in the field, and it’s evident that he can play the position, not only is he not a liability, he’s a legit ball player out there. Baty may never win a gold glove, but he’s more than serviceable. Offensively however, he’s been much more inconsistent with his results, but I really gotta say he’s had professional at bats. I’m no talent scout and I won’t pretend to be. But I think if you watch this game long enough and close enough, you can see a guy who’s ready to face major league pitching. Brett doesn’t always get a hit, but he finds a way to work counts, and get the pitcher to work and sweat a bit. We haven’t really seen his power much yet, but I’m sure that will come as he becomes more comfortable at the plate. Ultimately I’m happy that Buck is giving the kid his at bats and letting him work through the issues. At the end of the day he’s hitting 8th in the lineup, you’re not losing games because of him, and it’s not like Eduardo Escobar was going to give you more production anyway.

Francisco Alverez: I’m not as high on Alverez at the moment, but that doesn’t mean I don’t think he’s any good. He’s 21 years old, and I think he’s in over his head a bit. The first thing to understand about this situation is that if the Mets and Buck specifically, thought Alverez was major league ready, the organization never would have signed Omar Narvaez. The power is evident, and he certainly had made strides behind the plate, but the guy has ways to go. He hit a nice home run last night to tie the game up which was great, but he also grounded into a double play earlier with the bases loaded. Overall the talent is there and it seems like the effort is too. I just think it’s not his time yet and hopefully Narvaez can heal a little quicker than originally anticipated, because he was definitely providing much needed offense at the position on a consistent basis. I think next year we should anticipate seeing Francisco Alverez on the roster for opening day, but I think right now, in this moment, he’s got some more work to do.

On to Flushing to play the Nationals: Simple job here, take 2/3 at a minimum. Washington isn’t nearly at the level of the lowly Athletics, but they are a bad team nonetheless. Hopefully the rested today, and they walk into the series Tuesday night ready to play. Not a whole lot to really say, do your job, win the series, and be ready for Atlanta to come to town for a 4 game series. LFGM!