Through each of their first six starts, Bartolo Colon and Jon Niese appeared to be on track for excellent seasons. Recently however, both veteran pitchers have struggled mightily, a staunch contrast to the recent successes of the Mets other three starters. With the Mets offense going through a lengthy stretch of ineptitude, strong starting pitching has become that more important.
After his sixth start, Niese held a 3-2 record with a 1.95 ERA, impressive numbers for a backend of the rotation pitcher. In his last two starts however, the southpaw has pitched 11.1 innings, while allowing 12 earned runs, and an extremely high amount of baserunners. His ERA on the season has ballooned to 3.72 in that short timeframe.
Colon, on the other hand, has allowed 17 earned runs over his last three starts, most recently allowing 8 in just 4.1 innings on Wednesday against St. Louis. Through his first six starts Colon was among the best in the National League, pitching to a 5-1 record, with a 2.90 ERA, and the best K/BB ratio in Major League Baseball.
Fans have been quite worried in the wake of these pitchers failures. Some call for a trade, others for the promotion of Steven Matz, who is currently tearing up the PCL with a 1.80 ERA and 54 strikeouts. Some are preaching patience, which is wise.
At this point last year, fans were panicking over Bartolo Colon’s start to the season, where solid performances had been scarce. Colon eventually righted the ship, as he will again this year. While far passed his prime, Colon is a professional who won’t let a few rough starts dictate his year. Those clamoring for a Colon trade need to relax and be patient. Perhaps watch a few of Bartolo’s at bats to take the edge off.
Jon Niese’s poor outings have been more worrisome. In his last two starts the lefty has displayed poor body language and demeanor, as well as a poor fastball. These are problems that have plagued Niese throughout his career, popping up every so often to derail long stretches of quality starts. Hopefully for Neise, and the Mets faithful, this is just another bump in the road. But should Niese’s troubles persist into summer, it may be time to pull the trigger and bring Steven Matz to the big show.
In the most appealing scenario, the Mets are able to trade one of their veterans to pave the way for Matz, while also adding a piece to help the playoff run. If that scenario is to come to fruition fans must be patient for the right deal, which also means being patient in waiting for Niese and Colon to recuperate their value. In summation: patience is a virtue, Mets fans.
