logo
This Week in Mets: Which Mets deserve to be All-Stars?

This Week in Mets: Which Mets deserve to be All-Stars?

New York Times2 days ago

'Sometimes
Is a good answer to any existential question.'
— 'American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin,' Terrance Hayes
This was a good week for the New York Mets.
New York clinched the season series over the Los Angeles Dodgers with a split in Chavez Ravine, and it took care of business over the weekend at Coors Field to complete a season sweep of the wretched Colorado Rockies. Oh, and elsewhere in the division? The Philadelphia Phillies put Bryce Harper on the injured list, were swept at the Pittsburgh Pirates and have lost nine of 10. The Atlanta Braves are 0-for-June so far.
Advertisement
Let's put it this way: The Mets won five games last week. The other four teams in the NL East combined to win … four.
So now's as good a time as ever to think about awards for this Mets team — specifically, how many players might be making an extra trip to Atlanta next month for the All-Star Game. Voting for the starters commenced last week, and the rosters will officially be announced in July.
Which Mets, right now, deserve a spot, and which might make the conversation?
Alonso hasn't always had the easiest path to an All-Star berth at a position of depth in the National League. He's competed with the likes of Freddie Freeman, Paul Goldschmidt, Matt Olson and Harper.
That shouldn't be a problem for Alonso this year. He should be a shoo-in to be on the team, and the only question is whether his fifth trip to the All-Star Game is his first start.
He's tied with Freeman in wins above replacement (according to FanGraphs) to lead all first basemen, and his 17 homers and 61 RBIs are well ahead of Freeman's.
Yep, it's going to happen: Francisco Lindor is going to make his first All-Star team as a Met.
Lindor's five consecutive summers without an All-Star appearance will go down as a historical anomaly — a product of one canceled Midsummer Classic and four years when he wasn't at his peak when voting was held. His OPS on the morning of June 9 during his years as a Met: .637, .758, .716 and .723. This year it's .842.
That gives him a leg up at a loaded position, ahead of last year's starter Trea Turner, converted shortstop Mookie Betts and the Arizona Diamondbacks' Geraldo Perdomo, whom every Mets fan remembers chiefly for getting an All-Star nod over Lindor in 2023.
Senga has yet to sound all that pleased with his results this season, yet here he is, into June, with a 1.59 ERA that leads the National League.
Advertisement
The peripheral numbers are not as enthusiastic on what Senga's done this season, and the likelihood from here is that Paul Skenes is making his second consecutive start for the senior circuit. But provided the bottom doesn't fall out over the next few weeks, Senga should be on the team for the second time.
How's this for a sneaky candidacy? Peterson is seventh in the NL in ERA at 2.80, backing up the 2.83 mark he posted over the final four months last season. Again, his peripheral numbers aren't as sparkling, and it's tough to crack the pitching staff in this game since a lot of teams with only one All-Star send a pitcher. However, that he belongs in the conversation is worth noting.
You could probably put Griffin Canning (2.90 ERA) and Clay Holmes (2.95) in this same bucket.
Díaz has been especially sharp lately, allowing a single run over the past six weeks. He's 14 for 15 in save chances this season and right next to San Diego's Robert Suárez as the best closer in the National League. (Hey, and each can opt out of their contracts at season's end!)
We've seen a few more setup men crack the All-Star roster in recent years, and in that context, Garrett has a strong case with an ERA that, even after a hit last week, sits below 1.00.
Garrett's problem is that, in San Francisco, Randy Rodriguez is pitching in the same role just a little bit better. Rodriguez is the only reliever in the NL with a better ERA than Garrett's, and he owns the league's top strikeout rate.
It will be interesting to see whether Soto can build a stronger case for himself over the next few weeks. Because right now, there isn't much of one to be made for him. He's seventh among NL outfielders in weighted runs created, and he doesn't offer much value elsewhere. Furthermore, outfielders who are behind him in production such as the Miami Marlins' Kyle Stowers and the Rockies' Jordan Beck have reasonable shots to make the squad as their teams' only representatives.
Advertisement
The Mets swept the Rockies for the second consecutive weekend. They won't see Colorado again this season unless it's in the postseason. New York is 41-24 and has built its lead in the National League East out to 4 1/2 games over the floundering Phillies.
The Washington Nationals cooled a bit this week, losing consecutive series to the Chicago Cubs and Texas Rangers at home. Washington is 30-35 and in third place in the NL East.
The Tampa Bay Rays have been one of the hottest teams in baseball over the past three weeks. With its series win over the Marlins this weekend, Tampa Bay improved to 14-4 over its last 18 games. It's at 35-30 and in second in the AL East heading into a three-game set at the Boston Red Sox starting Monday.
vs. Washington
RHP Griffin Canning (6-2, 2.90 ERA) vs. LHP MacKenzie Gore (3-5, 2.87 ERA)
LHP David Peterson (4-2, 2.80) vs. RHP Jake Irvin (5-2, 4.02)
RHP Kodai Senga (6-3, 1.59) vs. RHP Michael Soroka (3-3, 4.86)
vs. Tampa Bay
RHP Clay Holmes (7-3, 2.95) vs. RHP Taj Bradley (4-5, 4.58)
RHP Tylor Megill (5-4, 3.76) vs. RHP Drew Rasmussen (5-4, 2.22)
RHP Griffin Canning vs. RHP Shane Baz (5-3, 4.96)
Red = 60-day IL
Orange = 15-day IL
Blue = 10-day IL
• Mark Vientos landed on the IL this week with a low-grade hamstring strain. Vientos should be able to start baseball activities by the end of this week or early next week.
• Sean Manaea started his rehab assignment Friday night for High-A Brooklyn with 1 2/3 innings. He'll build up inning by inning, a process that will take his return close to the All-Star break.
• Frankie Montas made his fourth rehab start Sunday with Syracuse, throwing 76 pitches over 3 2/3 innings. That's a good build on his pitch count, but the innings stagnated; he'd thrown four innings the start before earlier in the week. The results have also been less than encouraging, with Montas carrying an ERA over 9.00. As mentioned last week, the Mets' next need for a sixth starter is in the final week of June, and Montas figures to be targeting that spot on the calendar. Barring a setback, his rehab assignment must be completed by June 24.
Advertisement
Triple-A: Syracuse at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (New York, AL)
Double-A: Binghamton at Richmond (San Francisco)
High-A: Brooklyn vs. Asheville (Houston)
Low-A: St. Lucie at Daytona (Cincinnati)
• Why the Mets' pitching staff is better equipped to handle the Dodgers now compared with last year
• Griffin Canning on how he's revived himself with the Mets
• Broken toe and all, Francisco Lindor saves the Mets again
• Some sloppy defense and other takeaways from a split with the Dodgers
• How Ronny Mauricio fits the Mets roster
• Paul Blackburn returns and stars in a start against L.A.
• TWIM: Looking ahead to potential trade deadline needs
I told you I was in a poetry phase!
Paul Blackburn recorded a four-inning save Sunday — the Mets' first save of that long since Brian Stokes in 2008. My initial question was going to be 'Who is the only Met to record a five-inning save?' However, it would be weird if the answer, for two consecutive weeks, was Doug Sisk.
So, which Mets reliever, known to a different generation as 'the second spitter,' owns the most career saves of at least three innings in franchise history?
Bonus question: This is a straight over/under: Is the largest margin of victory in a game in which a Met recorded a save over or under 14 1/2 runs?
(I'll reply to the correct answers in the comments.)
(Top photo of Kodai Senga: Justin Edmonds / Getty Images)

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

With World Cup exactly 1 year out, USMNT legends say pressure is turned up a notch
With World Cup exactly 1 year out, USMNT legends say pressure is turned up a notch

Fox News

time28 minutes ago

  • Fox News

With World Cup exactly 1 year out, USMNT legends say pressure is turned up a notch

The United States Men's National Soccer Team will be the home squad in next year's World Cup, and they could make a big splash. Eleven of the 16 host stadiums in next year's tournament, which begins exactly one year from Wednesday, are in the United States, with New Jersey's MetLife Stadium hosting the final. After 1994, Major League Soccer was born, and it goes without saying that the immediate rise of soccer's popularity in the country was exponential. But it's seemingly hit a wall in recent years as the USMNT hasn't exactly given Americans a chance to grasp on. The squad got into the Round of 16 in 2010 and 2014 but failed to even qualify for the tournament in 2018. The USMNT returned to the Round of 16 three years ago but couldn't get out of the Copa América group stage on their own home soil last year. Team USA legend Landon Donovan, though, feels that soccer is "secure" in the country, even if Team USA disappoints, and its popularity can only go up from here. "There's going to be a lot of pressure, for sure, on this team. You play a World Cup in front of your home crowd, there's certainly going to be pressure. Is the state of soccer in trouble if they don't do well? No," Donovan said in a conference call with reporters this week. "There is a massive, massive opportunity [for this team]. In my experiences from the '02 World Cup, when we did really well, my life changed, and the trajectory of USA Soccer changed a little bit." But then again, Donovan scored one of the most famous goals in United States soccer history: his goal in stoppage time against Algeria put the U.S. through the group stage for the first time since 2002. "In 2010, it was that on steroids when we had an iconic moment. So if this team can do one of two things, either go far and/or have an iconic moment or two, it will catapult soccer through the roof in this country." Alex Lasry, the CEO of the NYNJ Host Committee, offered similar sentiments, saying the global stars coming to the United States will be enough to grow the sport itself. "If it ends up being not what we're hoping, I don't think that's going to dampen what the World Cup means to the United States," Lasry told Fox News Digital at Jersey City's Liberty State Park, which is the home of the official 2026 World Cup fan festival and hosted a one-year countdown launch party on Wednesday. "I don't think it's going to dampen how that 6-, 7-, 8-year-old looks at it. Having [Lionel] Messi, [Kylian] Mbappe, [Cristiano] Ronaldo, [Christian] Pulisic, the stars of the sport here, is what's going to lead to that next generation of athletes saying, 'I want to be a part of that.'" Fellow USMNT alum Alexi Lalas took the other side of the coin. While agreeing with Donovan in that all it takes is one special moment to get the country latched on, he said he isn't letting this squad "off the hook." "This is a generation that, over the last 30-plus years, everybody has worked to make sure that they have everything they possibly need in terms of the opportunities and the resources they have; and with that comes higher expectations and fair expectations," Lalas said. "Whoever is ultimately on that field next summer, I hope they recognize the opportunity and responsibility to further the game. What [does that look] like? It can come in a lot of different forms. But when that final whistle blows for the U.S. team, you want to leave thinking, 'That was something I'm going to remember. That made me proud to not just be a soccer fan in the United States, but to be an American.'" "You've got to be ready for that and embrace that opportunity with both hands and make the most of it," he said. "I don't want to let them off the hook, because I think they can do things we haven't seen before. They need the soccer gods to smile, but every team in the World Cup needs a little bit of luck going forward. And over the next year, they're going to have to work at what's going on, and I think the attitude off the field, to make sure they maximize next summer." The 2026 FIFA World Cup takes place in North America next year and will be featured on FOX Sports. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Oakmont's "magnificent" and "relentless" traits define why it's meant to host the U.S. Open
Oakmont's "magnificent" and "relentless" traits define why it's meant to host the U.S. Open

CBS News

time29 minutes ago

  • CBS News

Oakmont's "magnificent" and "relentless" traits define why it's meant to host the U.S. Open

Collin Morikawa says he has the "game to win" the U.S. Open Collin Morikawa says he has the "game to win" the U.S. Open Collin Morikawa says he has the "game to win" the U.S. Open As the best golfers in the world are set to tee off for the 125th playing of the U.S. Open, Oakmont Country Club is being heralded for its "magnificent" and "relentless" traits that make it meant to host America's national championship. Oakmont is hosting the U.S. Open for a record 10th time this week and will certainly prove a difficult test for a field of players packed with talent. Giants in the game of golf have won the U.S. Open at Oakmont. Names like Nicklaus, Hogan, Els, Cabrera, and Johnson. "It's important where players win their U.S. Open, men or women, and the ghosts of the past matter," said USGA Chief Championships Officer John Bodenhamer. Bodenhamer said that Oakmont is one of the great places in the game of golf and its relentless setup makes the club a great host for the U.S. Open. Shane Lowry hits a wedge shot out of thick rough while playing the 17th hole at Oakmont Country Club on June 10th, 2025 during a practice round ahead of the 125th playing of the U.S. Open Championship. Mike Darnay / KDKA "There's no letup," Bodenhamer said. "It's a grind. There are limited opportunities to catch up once you get behind." Bodenhamer spoke at length Wednesday about the number of reasons Oakmont is so special, focusing heavily on the toughness and culture of the course and the club. "It's not just the toughness of the golf course," Bodenhamer said. "It's the culture of this club. They want it to be tough." And tough it's going to be this week. Firm and fast fairways and greens, deep bunkers, and thick rough will all contribute to a test of physical and mental toughness for those looking to add their name to golf's history books. If the fairways, greens, bunkers, and rough don't make things difficult enough, then there's the ditches. Oh yeah, the ditches. The 10th hole at Oakmont Country Club presents a number of challenges including a fairway that slopes downhill, a tilting and sloping green, and a ditch that cuts across the middle of the fairway. Mike Darnay / KDKA "Where have you gone where you've seen a U.S. Open, let alone a major championship, where they have ditches, strategic ditches?" Bodenhamer said. "I never have been to one, but Oakmont has them, and it's magnificent. Bodenhamer said Oakmont is the kind of place where you can stand on the first tee box and just feel like you're in a place where the U.S. Open is meant to be played. "It's just a magnificent place, and we're honored to be here at the 125th U.S. Open," Bodenhamer said. COMPLETE U.S. OPEN COVERAGE:

Tyler Adams says USMNT not concerned with 'outside noise' from former players
Tyler Adams says USMNT not concerned with 'outside noise' from former players

Fox News

time30 minutes ago

  • Fox News

Tyler Adams says USMNT not concerned with 'outside noise' from former players

Tyler Adams says the U.S. soccer team has tuned out criticism from former players. Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey, who share the American goals record with 57 each, are among those who have been critical of current regulars not in the struggling roster preparing for the CONCACAF Gold Cup. "We don't talk about that internally as a group," Adams said Wednesday during a Zoom interview with The Associated Press. "The noise on the outside is the noise on the outside. I think we need to focus on what we need to do as a group and continue to build." [RELATED: Landon Donovan, Christian Pulisic, and the drama over USMNT stars not playing] Star Christian Pulisic is skipping the June camp and Gold Cup to rest after playing about 120 games for club and country over two seasons. "Whether it was Gold Cup, whether it was Copa (America), whether it was Confederations Cup, whether it was the World Cup, I wasn't going to miss competitions," Dempsey said last week on the "Men in Blazers" podcast. "For me, I don't understand it because that wasn't my mentality. I always wanted to play in those games." Watching Portugal celebrate its win over Spain in Sunday's European Nations League final, Donovan said on the Fox postgame show: "I can't help but think about our guys on vacation not wanting to play in Gold Cup." Pulisic has not spoken publicly of his decision. The U.S. has lost four straight games, its longest skid since 2007, following a 4-0 rout Tuesday night by Switzerland. "This is part of the process," Adams said. "You're going to win games. You're going to lose games. It's about continuing to build that. I think we're on the right path. We have to continue to build and try the things that we've been training. It'll take a little bit of time, but it will come together." Adams didn't dress for the Switzerland friendly but is confident he will be ready for the Gold Cup, where the Americans open Sunday against Trinidad and Tobago. "A little turf toe-type injury. More of an overuse thing probably than anything — overload. It was something that I picked up when I came into camp," Adams said. "Progressing well right now, but just trying to be smart and manage it." Adams, who captained the U.S. at the 2022 World Cup, funded a pair of mini-pitches at Pulaski Park in Poughkeepsie, New York, near his home in Wappinger. He spoke on the Zoom about his work with Allstate, the U.S. Soccer Foundation and Black Star Soccer to construct fields about the size of basketball courts at the Fisher Magnet Upper Academy in Detroit and The Bell Avenue School in Yeadon, Pennsylvania. "Before the World Cup hopefully we plan to do one more with a city unnamed yet," Adams said. "It's something that I think has real impact, continues to grow the sport, serves underserved communities." [RELATED: Projecting the USMNT's World Cup squad: Luna over Reyna? Turner starts at GK?] Now 26, Adams is feeling back to his old self. He had back surgery last July with Dr. Robert Watkins and returned to the field with England's Bournemouth on Oct. 26. Adams played in 28 Premier League matches this season after being limited to three in 2023-24 because of leg injuries. "It's definitely enjoyable when you're healthy," he said. "The 16-to-18 months that it was just on and off inconsistency is something I never had in my career and never had to battle. And then when it hits you and you go through that, you just learn different ways to navigate things, enjoy life, just not take things for granted, all the little things." Since Mauricio Pochettino took over as U.S. coach last fall, players have had more autonomy to break away from rigid positioning employed by his predecessor, Gregg Berhalter. "From a positional standpoint, obviously we had probably a little bit of a different structure under Gregg," Adams said. "Maurizio gives the players freedom to find spots they're comfortable in and see how they can affect the game in different ways. I think our attacking players definitely have freedom to try and find the ball and create things in the right areas of the field. So, yeah, I think he gives everyone freedom, but there's still structure to the way that we want to play." Adams will be with the U.S. team in Austin, Texas, next Wednesday, and following intently when the Premier League releases its 2025-26 schedule at 3 a.m. CDT. He feels improved because of his time with Leeds in 2022-23 and Bournemouth the past two seasons. "After you play in the Premier League, every game feels slow,'" he said. "No matter what game I play in now the game feels slow. You look at your schedule when the season comes out and you have to play in a row Arsenal, Tottenham, Man City, Liverpool, Manchester United, all these big games back to back to back you just learn how to make decisions quicker and if you don't, you get punished." Reporting by The Associated Press. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store