FLUSHING, NY — David Peterson left no doubts out on the mound Wednesday night vs. the Nationals, recording a complete-game shutout; the first of his MLB career.
On his way to the first complete-game shutout for a Mets pitcher since August 17, 2024 (RHP Luis Severino vs. the Marlins), and first by a Mets left-hander since July 27, 2019 (LHP Steven Matz vs. the Pirates)—Peterson maneuvered through the Nationals’ offense by executing first pitch strikes and pitching to contact—recording 22 first pitch strikes out of his 31 total batters faced on the night.
David Peterson put on a pitching clinic Wednesday night at Citi Field vs. the Nationals – Image Credit: George Napolitano/Latino Sports
As a result of putting pressure on his opposition early in counts and not relying solely on velocity, the 29-year-old southpaw surrendered just six hits, with zero walks and six strikeouts over 106 pitches, 75 for strikes.
“It’s awesome, you dream of doing stuff like this,” Peterson said of his complete-game shutout. “We try to go as deep as we can in the game. To be able to go all nine was something very special, and something I couldn’t have done without Luis (Torrens), and our defense, and obviously, the offense putting up runs.”
Heading into the bottom of the ninth with three outs to go, there were points of concern on if Mets manager Carlos Mendoza would allow his starter to go back out there on 97 pitches thrown to potentially get the job done.
“I called him down in the tunnel and I said, ‘Man, this is a tough one,’ Mendoza explained on the decision to let Peterson go back out for the ninth. “He was like, ‘Let me finish it.’ I was like, ‘You only have a few pitches here’ and he said, ‘Let me finish it’ and I said, ‘Alright, it’s yours.’”
Ultimately, Mendoza’s decision and trust paid off, as Peterson displayed little to no fatigue, closing the door on the Nats at Citi Field, 5-0, in front of an amped up crowd of 40,681.
“You guys have been bringing it all year,” Peterson said in an on-the-field postgame interview to the Amazin’ fans in attendance.
“Keep this energy going. This is an amazing home atmosphere, a playoff atmosphere. Let’s keep it going!”
The Mets now stand 26-7 at home this season and 20 games over .500 at 44-24 – Image Credit: George Napolitano/Latino Sports
All in all, grounding out on 13 different occasions and flying out six times, the Nats clearly had no answer for what Peterson was firing in the zone, going 1-4 as a team with runners in scoring position while leaving four on.
Now, in legitimate consideration for a 2025 All-Star nod amongst National League starting pitchers, Peterson’s found his groove this season, pitching to a 5-2 record, a 2.49 ERA (4th in NL) and 1.19 WHIP across 13 starts (79.2 innings pitched) with 71 strikeouts.
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