Two Colorado lefties squared off in front of a packed house in Queens Saturday night in what turned out to be a sweet pitcher’s duel.
In the end, the Mets’ David Peterson, the distinguished alumnus of Regis Jesuit High, bested the Rockies’ Kyle Freeland, the pride of Thomas Jefferson.
Peterson blanked the Rockies for six innings, giving up just four hits, striking out seven and walking none in the Mets’ 3-0 victory at Citi Field.
“What we noticed was the uptick in the velocity, up to 97 (mph),” Rockies manager Bud Black told AT&T SportsNet. “We have seen him in the past, 90, 91, 92, but I think the uptick in the velocity is what stood out for me.
“And a good change and a few good sliders. He pitched well. The pitching tonight was really good.”
New York, winners of 15 of their last 17 games at Citi Field, improved to 43-19 at home, while the Rockies cemented their hold on the worst road record in the majors (18-42).
Peterson’s victory over his Colorado buddy comes with an asterisk. While Peterson had the Mets’ offense backing him, Freeland had the Rockies’ lifeless road offense in his corner. Colorado totaled just five hits, just three after the first inning, and struck out 11 times.
Freeland, gritty as always, gave up two runs on just four hits in five innings, but two of the hits he surrendered were game-changers. And he needed 95 pitches to get through his night, in part because the Mets fouled off 28 of his pitches.
Brando Nimmo greeted Freeland in rude New York fashion, demolishing Freeland’s second pitch of the game for a 433-foot homer that turned out to be the only run the Mets needed.
The first frame has been problematic for Freeland all season. He entered Saturday’s game having allowed 18 runs in the first, tied for the sixth-most in the majors. Opponents are batting .330 in the first inning against Freeland, and it didn’t help Colorado’s cause that New York is now 65-12 when scoring first this season.
Nimmo hurt Freeland again in the second, ripping a two-out, RBI double to right. Freeland set himself up for trouble, plunking Mark Canha to open the inning and then walking Jeff McNeil.
“I thought early that Kyle was showing the secondary pitches quite a bit and they were fighting them off,” Black said. “And then he sort of turned the corner and got to the fastball location a little bit more and the later innings were much better, obviously.”
Black is testing a lot of relievers as the season winds down, including right-hander Justin Lawrence, who’s showing glimpses that he could be a late-inning reliever next season. But he was hit and miss Saturday night, giving up a run on three hits in two innings. Lawrence was hurt in the seventh inning when he issued a one-out walk to Nimmo, followed by a run-scoring double by Starling Marte that pushed the Mets’ lead to 3-0.
The Mets, who have beaten the Rockies eight times in the last nine games at Citi Field, will attempt to finish off the four-game sweep on Sunday afternoon.
On Deck
Rockies RHP Germán Márquez (6-10, 5.22 ERA) at Mets RHP Max Scherzer (9-3, 2.33)
11:40 p.m. Sunday, Citi Field
TV:հո
Radio: KOA 850 AM/94.1 FM
Marquez is trying to rebound from a rough start at Coors Field vs. Texas. He was saddled with six earned runs over his six innings. That was a gut punch for Marquez, who had been on a nice roll, allowing three or fewer runs in six of his last seven outings while posting a 3.30 ERA. The Mets took it to Marquez on May 21 at Coors Field, scoring five runs (four earned) on 11 hits over six innings. In six career starts vs. New York, he’s 3-2 with a 3.89 ERA.
With 199 victories, Scherzer is one win away from joining a select club of active pitchers with 200-plus victories. Justin Verlander (242) and Zack Greinke (223) are the only active pitchers who have won more than 200 games in their careers. Scherzer is coming off a sub-par performance against the Yankees, who tagged him for four runs on seven hits, including a home run, over 6 2/3 innings. Scherzer has struggled against the Rockies, going 2-4 with a 4.91 ERA in 11 career starts. A big part of that ugly number, of course, is Coors Field, where he’s 0-3 with a 6.39 ERA in six starts.
Trending: Outfielder Wynton Bernard, the 31-year-old rookie, entered Saturday’s game having hit safely in eight of his first 10 career games, including three multi-hit games. He was hitting .308 (12-for-39).
At issue: Of the Rockies’ 41 road losses in 2022 (entering Saturday night’s game), 13 have been one-run games (18-21 overall in those games), and of those 13 games, 11 of them ended with the opponents scoring the game-winning run in the eighth inning or later. Seven of those losses were walk-offs, including Friday night’s Mets victory.
Pitching probables:
Monday: Off Day
Tuesday: Rockies RHP Jose Urena (2-5, 5.98) at Braves LHP Max Fried (12-4, 2.52), 5:20 p.m., ATTRM
Wednesday: Rockies RHP Ryan Feltner (2-5, 5.87) at Braves RHP (16-5, 2.99), 5:20 p.m., ATTRM
