The New York Mets needed something to go their way in hopes of turning around a forgettable start to the season.
Fresh off a rare series win, the Mets will hope to keep the momentum going when they travel to Denver to take on the reeling Colorado Rockies on Monday to begin a three-game set.
New York began its six-game West Coast road trip by taking two of three from the Los Angeles Angels — the team’s first road series victory since a four-game set against the San Francisco Giants in early April.
After a 10-21 start, the club may be finding some momentum.
“That’s our goal, to start winning series,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “That’s what it’s going to take for us to get to where we want to be. One series at a time, one game at a time.”
Desperately needing a shot in the arm at the plate, New York received a pair of two-run home runs from Mark Vientos in a 5-1 win on Sunday. The Mets’ 118 runs are second fewest in the majors — ahead of only the Giants’ 106.
“I think that’s the name of the game — putting yesterday in the past,” Vientos said. “We have to focus on the right now.”
Mendoza said the team plans on using an opener Monday before David Peterson (0-4, 6.53 ERA) takes the mound.
The struggling veteran left-hander has failed to complete four innings in each of his last three starts. On Wednesday, the 30-year-old Denver native surrendered seven runs on five hits in 3 2/3 frames in a 14-2 loss to the Washington Nationals.
Peterson is slated to face his hometown team for the fifth time, going 3-1 with a 1.99 ERA in the first four starts.
Colorado, meanwhile, has dropped five of its last six since sweeping the Mets from April 24-26. The Rockies’ pitching staff is coming off a disastrous weekend set against the Atlanta Braves, allowing 28 runs across the three-game sweep.
Needing a stopper, Colorado will turn to offseason addition Tomoyuki Sugano (3-1, 2.84) in the series opener, which was moved up three hours due to predicted inclement weather.
Last time out, Sugano threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings, striking out two in a 13-2 win over the host Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday.
“(Sugano) set the tone, kept them off-balanced, relied on his offspeed pitches,” Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said of Sugano’s last outing. “He was really good, efficient, just like he’s been all year.”
Sugano, 36, went 10-10 with a 4.64 ERA in 30 starts for the Baltimore Orioles last year as a rookie. The right-hander, who signed with Colorado in February, faced the Mets once last year, yielding three runs in six frames in a 7-3 win on July 10.
–Field Level Media
