The Mets look to run their winning streak to six as they continue their four-game series with the Marlins at 7:10 PM tonight at Citi Field.
Here is tonight’s starting lineup:
1) Curtis Granderson – RF
2) Juan Lagares – CF
3) Lucas Duda – 1B
4) Michael Cuddyer – LF
5) Daniel Murphy – 2B
6) Eric Campbell – 3B
7) Wilmer Flores – SS
8) Anthony Recker – C
9) Bartolo Colon – RHP
Here are tonight’s pitching matchups:
Bartolo Colon (2-0, 2.77 ERA) will start for the Mets. Colon is coming off of back-to-back really good starts for this team. Quite honestly, I’m a bit surprised. Colon finished 2014 with an ERA of 4.09, and at his age, I was expecting him to float somewhere around that this season. I mean, we’re two starts into the year, so let’s not get ahead of ourselves, but you can’t ignore what he’s done so far. After pitching well on Opening Day, Colon continued that against the Braves in Atlanta last weekend finishing with the following line: 7 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 1 HR. Colon only threw 77 pitches in his last start, 60 (78%) of them for strikes.
Key matchups vs. Colon:
Giancarlo Stanton: 2-for-2, 2B, RBI
Ichiro Suzuki: 26-for-87, 2 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 8 K.
Michael Morse: 2-for-8, 1 K.
David Phelps (0-0, 36.00 ERA) will start for the Marlins. Phelps, coming off paternity leave, will be making his first start of the season for Miami tonight. Prior to tonight’s game, Phelps has come out of the bullpen for the Marlins twice, allowing four earned runs in one total inning. The Mets have only faced Phelps once, as a starter when he was on the Yankees on May 29, 2013 where he took the loss, allowing four earned runs on four hits in 0.1 innings pitched. Only three players in the Mets starting line-up tonight have faced Phelps in their career, and in very limited at-bats.
Key matchups vs. Phelps:
Michael Cuddyer: 0-for-2, 1 K.
Lucas Duda: 0-for-1, 1 K.
Daniel Murphy: 1-for-1, 2B, 1 RBI.
Here’s what I am looking for tonight from the Mets…
Can they keep it going?
The Mets have won five consecutive games for the first time in two years, and tonight they’ll look to extend that streak. The last time the Mets won six straight was April 19-24, 2011. Even without David Wright, this team is playing well. They’ve pitched well from the get-go, and now they’re starting to hit to boot. If they win tonight, the Mets will have their first 8-3 start to a season since 2006, the season of their last playoff berth.
Lucas Duda putting the Mets on his back.
First baseman Lucas Duda is off to a rip-roaring start in 2015. He’s hitting .395 with a home run, six doubles and eight RBI so far in this young season. Duda now has six multi-hit games this season, and three consecutive games where he’s had multiple extra base hits with his two doubles against the Marlins on Thursday night. After his break-out performance last season, strong spring and hot start, Duda is proving that not only was last season not a fluke, but that he’s on his way to becoming one of the most feared power hitters in the National League. This is exactly what this Mets offense needs, especially while they’re without captain David Wright for at least a few weeks.
Can Wilmer Flores build off of last night?
It’s no secret that shortstop Wilmer Flores is off to a tough start this season. He’s struggled in the field (three errors) and at the plate as well, hitting under the Mendoza line (.172) in the first 10 games of the year. Last night, however, Flores delivered in the bottom of the 5th, blasting a 3-run home run, his first home run and RBIs of the season, which tied the game at 3 and was a huge factor in the Mets’ victory. This was Flores’ only hit of the night, but it was a huge one, not only for the team but for his confidence as well. I’ll be looking to see is Flores can put together back-to-back good games, starting tonight.
Just Mets 