This afternoon the Mets take on the Astros in the rubber game of their 3-game series. The play in this series has been downright dreadful, but we’re baseball fans. So we will watch…if you don’t have Cablevision. Today’s 1:10 pm game will not be seen on Cablevision again, due to their spat with the hedge fund people involved with WPIX. Oh well. But I was actually one of the people who wanted to see Lucas Duda’s return to the lineup. Its pretty amazing how he was sent down because he was having poor at-bats and playing terrible defense. But at least we got to see Jordany Valdespin’s total disregard for fundamentals. Now those will be displayed in Buffalo as he was sent down for Duda.
Today Jeremy Hefner (2-5 5.11 ERA) will return to the mound after the birth of his daughter Jaylee, on Wednesday. He will be opposed by Lucas Harrell (9-10 4.04 ERA). Harrell has been on a bit of a roll here in the second half. It’ll be interesting to see of the Mets can muster more than 3 runs off a pitcher for the first time in over a week.
If you are unlucky (or lucky, depends how you look at it) to have Cablevision, you can listen to the game on WFAN 660 AM
Starting Lineups vis Metsblog.com and Rotoinfo.com
| Batting Order | New York Mets | Houston Astros |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andres Torres CF | Brandon Barnes CF |
| 2 | Daniel Murphy 2B | Marwin Gonzalez 2B |
| 3 | David Wright 3B | Brett Wallace 1B |
| 4 | Ike Davis 1B | Ben Francisco RF |
| 5 | Lucas Duda LF | Scott Moore 3B |
| 6 | Ruben Tejada SS | Tyler Greene SS |
| 7 | Mike Baxter RF | Chris Snyder C |
| 8 | Kelly Shoppach C | Fernando Martinez LF |
| 9 | Jeremy Hefner RHP | Lucas Harrell RHP |
Who’s HOT for the Mets?…Pitcher Matt Harvey. He’s 2 for his last 2. No one on the Mets can even remotely considered “HOT”
Who’s HOT for the Astros?…And if you thought the Mets were hot, the ‘Stros hottest hitter at the moment might just be Fernando Martinez. He’s 4 for his last 15.
Pitching Matchup
Jeremy Hefner (2-5 5.11 ERA) gets the call for the Mets today. His wife gave birth to a baby girl on Wednesday, so this will be his first start since they welcomed her to the world. Hopefully there has been some time for a nap here and there for Hef. In his last start against the Nats, Hefner didn’t fare too well. He got hit pretty hard and allowed 8 hits in 5 innings, with 2 homers and 5 runs, in a 5-2 loss. Mets starters have been fantastic during this home stand, and against an anemic offense, Hefner should fare well today.
Lucas Harrell (9-10 4.04 ERA) will be on the hill for the ‘Stros today. Up until his last start, Harrell had gone 7 consecutive starts allowing 2 runs or less. His post All-Star break ERA has been a solid 2.96 and has nearly averaged a strikeout per inning. In his last outing he lasted only 5 innings while allowing 6 runs in a 7-0 loss to the Cardinals.
