Who started for the NY Mets on Opening Day the most at each position?
These players had the most Opening Day starts for their position for the New York Mets.
SAN FRANCISCO — The Mets’ scuffling offense received a bit of a reprieve before their Wednesday matchup against the Giants.
The Giants announced that their probable starter Blake Snell had been placed on the 15-day injured list with an adductor strain. Suddenly, the Mets were contending with a bullpen game against a unit that entered with the second-worst ERA in Major League Baseball.
The Mets took advantage of that sudden change, breaking away with six runs between the third and fifth innings and avoiding a sweep with an 8-2 victory over the Giants in front of 30,183 fans on Wednesday afternoon at Oracle Park.
Francisco Lindor broke out after going hitless in his first seven at-bats of the series. The Mets shortstop opened the scoring with a left-handed two-run home run on a low knuckle curve over the 25-foot wall in right field and closed with another two-run shot in that direction to finish 4-for-5 with four RBI.
“It feels good, especially when you win,” Lindor said. “Every at-bat is separate. Every at-bat is individual, and you don’t want to carry on everything from each at-bat, but you want to learn from it. The one thing you want to carry on is the feeling of being successful.”
Jeff McNeil and Tyrone Taylor each collected a pair of hits, with Taylor driving in three runs and scoring twice.
The victory capped a six-game California road trip where the Mets finished 3-3 against the Dodgers and Giants. They return home for a seven-game homestand against the Cardinals and Cubs with a 13-11 record. And when they get there, they’ll be looking forward to the long-awaited debut of JD Martinez.
“I feel like we’re not close to where we want to be and where we should be,” Lindor said. “Yeah, it’s going to continue to grow and get better day in and day out. With that being said, you’ve got to attack it day by day.”
JD Martinez heading north
After being held to three runs in 28 innings between three losses to the Dodgers and Giants, the Mets are exciting about the lift that Martinez can provide to a lineup that will be missing Francisco Alvarez for the next eight weeks.
Manager Carlos Mendoza said that the expectation is that Martinez will be in the lineup batting behind Pete Alonso on Friday night against the Cardinals, assuming the designated hitter comes through his final start with Triple-A Syracuse healthy.
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“This is a guy that it’s not a secret how good of a career (he’s had) and what he provides from the offensive side and the impact that he has on the ballclub,” Mendoza said before the game. “This is a pretty smart leader and he’s got his ideas and he’s very impactful for the position player group side of things.”
Martinez, who was signed with a week left in spring training, had a quick ramp-up, followed by a setback to deal with lower back tightness. In a pair of games between Single-A St. Lucie and Syracuse since his return, Martinez was 3-for-7 with a double, two runs and two RBI.
“I’ve heard that he’s a freak when it comes to hitting. I love that,” Lindor said. “I can’t wait to see how he goes about his business and whether it’s preparation in the cage, but also how he studies pitchers. I’m excited for that.”
Mendoza said he plans to be careful with Martinez’s playing time in the early going.
Tyrone Taylor provides a spark
Over the course of the 2024 season, Taylor has been the ultimate Swiss arm knife in the outfield for the Mets.
The 30-year-old outfielder has made four starts in right field, three left and two in center field while filling in as a defensive replacement and pinch hitter. On Wednesday afternoon, Taylor earned the start in right field as Mendoza gave Starling Marte a day at designated hitter.
Taylor continued his torrid start to the season at the plate, finishing 2-for-5 with a solo home run to center field and an opposite-field two-run double into the right-center field gap. Following his big game, Taylor is now slashing .327/.358/.510 with two home runs, 13 RBI, two doubles and five runs scored.
“I think just stay mentally prepared and show up and try to be my best self every day,” Taylor said. “I have to show up every day as if I’m gonna be in the lineup no matter what, whether I’m in it or not. So far, so good. I’m happy to help the team win.”
For Mendoza, Taylor is making it hard to be denied when the Mets skipper pencils in the lineup card each day.
“He’s one of those where I know he’s gonna be ready, but he’s also a good player,” Mendoza said. “There’s gonna be days where I can’t put him in the lineup but I gotta keep him fresh as well. I gotta keep that rotation going. He’s going to be a huge part of this team moving forward.”
Sean Manaea frustrated with abbreviated scoreless outing
Sean Manaea called it “one of the best, worst games” he’s had in his life.
There were some qualities of his outing that were commendable. Manaea did not allow an earned run across 4⅔ innings, struck out the side in the first and closed with six strikeouts. On the other hand, Manaea needed 101 pitches to record 14 outs and was pulled short of qualifying for his potential second win of the season.
The left-hander was able to trim his ERA from 4.12 to 3.33 by getting around a no-out, bases-loaded jam in the second inning by producing three straight fly balls. He walked the opening two batters of the third inning but was able to evade any damage with a pick-off at second base, a strikeout and a pop-up.
“From a pure pitching standpoint, just falling behind guys, walking guys, but also getting outs when I needed to,” Manaea said. “I got a few strikeouts, but just overall, it was a very weird outing.”
Manaea ended up allowing four hits and four walks in his abbreviated outing. After tossing six scoreless in his debut, the 32-year-old has not recorded more than 15 outs in a game since.
