The streak is now at two, and unfortunately it’s two losses. And more unfortunately, Jeff McNeil’s MRI shows actual squirrels biting his hamstrings. He’s headed for the injured list and Ruben Tejada is making his Mets return. Yay, nostalgia.
#Mets officials believe it’s likely Jeff McNeil will need to be placed on the injured list due to injured left hamstring, but they’re waiting for MRI confirmation this afternoon, source says. Ruben Tejada is the likely callup, per @JonHeyman. @MLBNetwork @MLB
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) August 14, 2019
Thankfully, the squirrels took it easy on him and the strain is mild:
Source: Jeff McNeil's MRI revealed only a mild left hamstring strain. The expectation is he will be able to return the Mets in 10 days.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) August 14, 2019
Even without McNeil the show must go on as the Mets will face the Braves once again at Sun Trust Park for a 7:20 start. (I’m sure Steve Gelbs is excited to have the extra pre-game segment all to himself.)
It was hot for Tuesday’s game and the high on Wednesday is supposed to reach 93 degrees with thunderstorms in the area, so Gelbs might have even more segments to himself. More importantly, it could impact Steven Matz’s start if the rain hangs around past game time.
How To Enjoy
Ron and Gare (not that Gare … it’s Gary Apple!) have the call on SNY, while Wayne Randazzo and John Sadak have your call on WCBS 880.
Please note Howie and Gary have this week off. John Sadak is filling in on the radio side with Wayne. Gary Apple is here in Atlanta with Ron. Thanks for tuning in.
— Mets Radio Booth (@MetsBooth) August 13, 2019
How do Gare AND Howie have a week off at the same time? I want their agent.
Also, you can listen on ESPN Deportes 1050, though I’m sure their main announcers also have this week off so you might have Jeff Wilpon and a French guy on the call. (I don’t discount anything anymore.) Oh, and if you’re in Atlanta, Chip Caray sings the chop for three hours while Jeff Francoeur grows a beard on FOX Sports South. On the radio side the Braves are on 680 AM/93.7 FM The Fan. Also, the Braves are on Rock 100.5 where the 100th caller during the fifth inning gets Allman Brothers tickets.
The Pitchers
If the stark splits are any indication, Matz is in for a rough game tonight. He’s 5-0 with a 2.14 ERA at Citi Field, while on the road he’s 2-7 with a dismal 6.79 ERA on the road (much of that coming in Philadelphia). For his career, Matz’s ERA is a full run higher on the road (4.59) than at home (3.59), and his career road WHIP is 1.422 in 251 innings (1.19 at home in 248 innings). His last three starts have featured two good starts at home, and one bad one on the road.
Dallas Keuchel is another in a long line of holdouts that sign late and can’t get it together right away. Keuchel is 3-5 with a 4.83 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP this season with Atlanta, and a lot of that damage came in his last start in Miami where he gave up eight runs in 3 and 2/3’s innings against the Marlins which raised his ERA almost a full run. To be fair, his seven starts before that were pretty solid, going 2-3 with a 3.57 ERA over 45 and 1/3 innings. He has a batting average against of .210 in that span with an OPS against of .630.
The Lineups
Game two in Atlanta. #LGM
⌚️ 👉 7:20 p.m.
🏟️ 👉 Atlanta, GA
💪 👉 @Smatz88
👀 👉 @SNYtv
👂 👉 @wcbs880, @ESPNDep1050AM
💻 👉 https://t.co/AlXQDiphqk pic.twitter.com/IO3X2ckxgd— New York Mets (@Mets) August 14, 2019
The Mets waste no time getting Tejada into the lineup, and he’ll even get his number 11 back.
For Atlanta …
Going for the series win tonight at @SunTrustPark!#ChopOn pic.twitter.com/HTop9oW0Nl
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 14, 2019
Brian McCann, Matt Joyce, and Charlie Culberson are out, Tyler Flowers, Adam Duvall, and Johan Camargo are in to face the lefty.
Game Notes
- Freddie Freeman, who kills every Met he faces, has a .318 average and a .920 OPS against Matz lifetime.
- Josh Donaldson, who had a .600 lifetime average against Zack Wheeler before his two singles last night, has also been successful against newest Met pitcher Brad Brach. Donaldson is 6-for-17 lifetime with four doubles and an OPS of 1.038.
- The last time Ruben Tejada wore a Mets uniform in a game he was the victim of an assault. Since then he has batted .207 in 202 plate appearances with the Cardinals, Giants, and Orioles (he also spent time in the Yankees system.) Tejada hit .230 for Norfolk last year in 392 plate appearances while in the Orioles system, and .330 in 304 plate appearances with Syracuse this season.
- Tejada will bat 7th tonight. He’s hitting .310 career out of the 7th spot in the order in 173 plate appearances, for whatever that’s worth.
- Adam Duvall is hitting .161 against current Mets in his career, but he’s 1 for 1 against Matz, and 2 for 3 with a home run off tomorrow’s starter, Marcus Stroman. (Again, for whatever that’s worth.)
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