LOS ANGELES, CA — The game time temperature for tonight’s matchup between the New York Mets and the Los Angeles Dodgers will be 61 degrees. Will that cool off the red-hot Mets as they make their first West Coast road trip this season? I doubt it. After a slow 0-5 start, they now sit at 10-8, two and a half games back of the NL Eastern division first-place Braves. The 12-9 Dodgers have lost four-of-their-last-six-games and are atop the National League Western Division, one-game up on the Padres.
The Mets will face the most sought-after pitcher this winter: 25-year-old righty Yoshinobu Yamamoto. He looks every bit like the pitcher the Dodgers thought he would be. Can he cool off the Mets lineup, which is batting .245 with 19 home runs after 18 games?
Starling Marte, of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, recorded his 150th career home run in the Mets’ series finale against the Pirates on Wednesday afternoon, April 17th, at Citi Field – Image Credit: George Napolitano/Latino Sports
The Dodgers, though, are batting .265 with 26 home runs. The Mets hold the edge in pitching with a team ERA of 3.15 compared to the Dodgers’ 4.14. The numbers show the appearance of two closely matched teams. But that Dodger lineup through their first six hitters is a starting pitcher’s nightmare.
Max Muncy, Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts and Miguel Rojas in Dodgers-Mets from July 2023 at Citi Field – Image Credit: Simon Lindenblatt/Latino Sports
The Mets starter, left-hander Sean Manaea, will have his hands full as he faces the first six hitters who are batting a combined .314 right now. Think about facing Mookie Betts .369, Shohei Ohtani .360, Freddie Freeman .276, Will Smith .348, Max Muncy .257, and Cotui, Dominican Republic’s Teoscar Hernández .275. That will take a lot of concentration and toughness on the part of all of the pitchers on the Mets for this three-game series.
Teoooooo! pic.twitter.com/ncIv2v8V1V
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 13, 2024
Yeah, I know. It is roughly twenty games into a 162-game season, but the Mets have had a problem coming to the West Coast early in the year after a good start and returning home with their tails between their legs. When they leave L.A., they will face the Giants in San Francisco. It would be great for them if they can come away 4-2. But that will be a challenge as the Dodgers look to separate themselves from the rest of the N.L. West early. This will be a good test for both clubs..
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Julian Guilarte
May 8, 2024 at 5:37 pm
This was a really good preview