Last night was a good night! First, congratulations to any Knicks fans reading this, as there is some considerable overlap between the two fandoms. I’m not a big NBA guy myself, but I always enjoy Boston sports being on the losing end. Meanwhile, the Yankees drew first blood in the most anticipated Subway Series in quite some time. More, please.
Clarke Schmidt takes the ball today as New York looks to keep stacking wins. This will be his sixth start after returning to the rotation from injury. In each of his last two, he’s gone at least six innings. The Yanks used some high-leverage relievers last night, so even with the recent Thursday offday, distance from Schmidt would be great.
If you want something to watch for, keep an eye on Schmidt’s success (or lack thereof) against lefties. Early this season, he’s been wildly more effective against RHB (.484 OPS allowed) than LHB (.951 with a .582 SLG). The Mets can run some name brand-name left-handed bats out there, so hopefully Clarke has a plan and can execute it.
The Mets entered this series, as the YES booth noted last night, with the best rotation in the majors by ERA. Today, Griffin Canning and his 2.36 ERA take the mound. Canning’s FIP is more than a full run higher, however, at 3.48. And a quick look reveals that he’s been putting traffic on the bases. His WHIP sits at 1.262, thanks in part to a 9.2 BB%. Moreover, his hard-hit rate and his average exit velocity allowed are both among the worst in baseball (10th percentile for the former, 7th percentile for the latter).
If he starts handing out free passes and the Yankees start tagging his stuff, then the Yankees could be in business, just as they were yesterday against the similarly overachieving Tylor Megill. Canning has been great at inducing groundballs though so the Yanks will need to get the ball in the air.
Today in “musical lineups,” Trent Grisham gets the day off and Ben Rice is back, leading off as the designated hitter. Aaron Judge, whose otherworldly start defies description is in right field hitting second. Cody Bellinger, who’s had a heck of a last two weeks—.317/.388/.533 in his last 15 games—protects Judge. The lineup is definitely top-heavy today, with a top six where Bellinger’s is the lowest OPS. J.C. Escarra, DJ LeMahieu, and Jorbit Vivas fill out the bottom of the order.
Last night was fun. The Stadium was rocking, Juan Soto didn’t kill us, and we took game one. Let’s do that again. Play today, win today.
How to watch
Location: Yankee Stadium – Bronx, NY
First pitch: 1:05 pm ET
TV broadcast: YES, SNY
Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280, Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App 92.3 HD2
Online stream: MLB.tv
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