7/14/17 Game Preview: Colorado Rockies at New York Mets

The All Star Break is over, so the New York Mets (39-47) will kick off the second half of their season tonight. The first half was a bitter disappointment for the Mets, who battled injuries and poor performance to fall out of the National League East race. The Mets still have a slim possibility of a wild card berth as they trail the Colorado Rockies (52-39) by eight losses in the standings, making this weekend’s three game set against Colorado extremely important. The Rockies and Mets will begin their three game set tonight, with first pitch for the opener scheduled for 7:10 pm at Citi Field.

After a disappointing season in 2016, the Rockies have been one of baseball’s biggest surprises, currently holding the second wild card spot in the National League. The Rockies had the best record in baseball at one point but now trail the Los Angeles Dodgers by 9.5 games in the NL West. Offense has never been a problem for the Rockies, who have gotten huge seasons from All Stars Nolan Arenado (.301 batting average/17 Home Runs/70 RBI’s) and Charlie Blackmon (.319/20/61) along with second baseman D.J. Lemahieu (.307/4/41). The big surprise for the Rockies has been their young pitching staff, which has survived pitching at Coors Field to post a 4.45 team ERA, which is a respectable 16th in the major leagues. The bullpen has been particularly outstanding, with closer Greg Holland recording 28 saves while pitching to a 1.62 ERA while being supported by lefty Jake McGee (2.70 ERA) and converted starter Chris Rusin (2.30 ERA). The Rockies have been on a skid, however, dropping 13 of their last 18 games in the first half to open the door for other teams to catch them in the wild card race.

The Mets will send right hander Jacob deGrom (9-3, 3.65 ERA) to the mound tonight. deGrom was a bit off in his last start, giving up four solo homers in seven innings against the St. Louis Cardinals last Friday, but picked up his fifth consecutive win thanks to some strong run support from the Mets’ lineup. The Rockies will counter with right hander Jon Gray (2-0, 3.75 ERA). Gray picked up his second win of the season back on July 5th, limiting the Cincinnati Reds to three runs (two earned) in 5.2 innings of work.

Local Coverage:

Television: SNY

Radio: WOR

New York Mets Lineup:

1. CF Michael Conforto
2. 2B Asdrubal Cabrera
3. LF Yoenis Cespedes
4. RF Jay Bruce
5. 3B T.J. Rivera
6. 1B Lucas Duda
7. SS Jose Reyes
8. C Travis d’Arnaud
9. SP Jacob deGrom

Pre-Game Notes:

• The Mets went just 1-6 against the Rockies in 2016, but their one win did come in a four game set at Citi Field last July.
• deGrom is 2-0 with a 0.95 ERA in four career starts against the Rockies.
• Gray is 1-0 with a 6.14 ERA in three career starts against the Mets.