The Mets’ strong July so far has been fueled by their starting rotation.
The quintet of Luis Severino, Jose Quintana, David Peterson, Christian Scott and Sean Manaea have been on a roll of late, combining for a 2.79 ERA in 12 starts this month with 24 walks and 50 strikeouts in 74 ⅓ innings pitched.
Manaea continued the strong work, holding the Rockies to three earned runs while striking out nine over seven innings in the Mets’ 7-6 victory.
“[I like] the way they are attacking hitters, getting ahead. And the times when they are getting behind, their ability to get back into counts, their ability to continue to make pitches when needed, especially when they get in trouble,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “We’ve seen it with a lot of the guys, but the biggest thing is their ability to give us five, six innings consistently, staying on the attack and making pitches when they get in trouble.”
All five members of the rotation have been doing their job well.
Scott has the highest ERA at 4.15 and Peterson the lowest at 3.09.
As Mendoza referred to, they are giving the Mets length with their outings.
The last Mets starter to fail to pitch into the fifth inning was Quintana back on June 28.
Mendoza was ejected for the first time as the Mets’ manager in the seventh inning.
Jose Iglesias was called out on a 3-2 pitch that appeared high.
Iglesias was upset at the call and Mendoza had his back, leading to home plate umpire Jeremie Rehak tossing him.
“I just thought they got a few calls that I thought were balls up in the zone,” Mendoza said. “That last one I thought was well out. Listen, I understand [the umpires] have a hard job. … I just felt like I needed to express my frustrations there.”
Sean Reid-Foley is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Saturday, according to Mendoza.
There is hope the right-handed reliever can return shortly after the All-Star break.
“He’s trending in the right direction,” Mendoza said of Reid-Foley, who has been out since June 22 with a right shoulder impingement.
The Mets placed Peterson on the paternity list and recalled left-handed reliever Eric Orze from Triple-A Syracuse.
Right-handed relievers Bryce Montes de Oca and Shintaro Fujinami remain options for the bullpen down the road, Mendoza said.
The two are on rehabilitation assignments with Triple-A Syracuse.
The Mets own a 24-10 record since June 2.
The 24 wins are tied with the Astros for the most in the major leagues, as is their .697 winning percentage, in that span.