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Welcome back to the Amazins in Astoria, a season long chronicle of my life in relation to the 2022 New York Mets.
For the first entry in this series, click here.
For the previous entry in this series, click here.
June 14th-16th-Home Series vs. Milwaukee Brewers (40-22 Pre-series)
The Milwaukee Brewers have been a sneaky good team for me this season, and by "sneaky team for me," I mean "team that everyone knows is good except for me because they haven't played the Mets yet." Because of this, I'm not too sure what Milwaukee is going to throw at the Mets, and enter this weekday set a little nervous.
They weren't throwing much at the Mets in Game 1, as New York went up 3-0 in the 1st and never looked back. After opening up to the media and saying that he was not at his best last week, I am so happy to see Chris Bassitt back to his early season form. Of course, I like how his 8 scoreless innings help give the Mets the win, but his comments postgame about how he was able to break down his mental blocks and return to form are a huge testament to the character of this team. Even with the best record in the National League (for now), this team is focused on ironing out their kinks.
Good Lord, Corbin Burnes. In Game 2 on Wednesday, the 2022 Cy Young hopeful COOKED the Mets. It's just one of those days where batters head back to the dugout shaking their heads, realizing that any attempt to make contact with Burnes' cutter is completely futile. The way he fans Eduardo Escobar in the 2nd with one in the high outside corner is pretty emblematic of the way tonight goes for the Mets. With the 10-2 win, Craig Counsell becomes the winningest manager in Brewers history, and once again my Mets-centric main character syndrome is completely shattered.
The Mets love rubber games in 2022, and especially rubber games that come down to the wire. Luckily, like we've already seen against the Phillies this year, Nick Plummer is built for moments like this. Am I being a bit overdramatic? Yes, through tonight's 5-4 win, he's got a slash line of .153/.178/.423, but dammit, he's got that dog in 'em. In the 8th inning of an offensive slugfest, Plummer snags a go-ahead RBI, sending Marte home on a fielder's choice play. I do have to give Guillorme some credit on that play as well, as he pretty much blocked the throw to first with a bit of a sloppy slide. In the 9th, as Hunter Renfroe tries to go 1st to home, Plummer snags the ball in shallow right to make the relay throw to Alonso, who sends a bullet home for an in-time tag by Nido.
With the win, the Mets clinch another series, and more importantly, stand firm in their 4.5 game lead over the Braves.
June 17th-20th-Home Series vs. Miami Marlins (42-23 Pre-Series)
On the subway to work, I notice the man sitting next to me is reading an article about the recent LIV Golf Tour chaos. It's a large newspaper and I'm literally just using some side eye to take a peek at the headlines, so I was not expecting him to notice. He does, and folds his newspaper before turning and staring directly into my soul in disapproval. I get off at the next stop, fully convinced that my day cannot get any worse.
It does get worse, as after deciding to watch the Mets game from home tonight, I learn that I missed the Pride Night fanny pack giveaway. It's a great win for the team, with Carrasco striking out 7, Lindor hitting his 10th homer, and Pete Alonso bringing in 4 runs with a grand slam in the 6th. All of that is irrelevant, however, as the fanny pack eludes me. For the rest of my life, whenever my pockets are overstuffed, I will look out onto the horizon and wonder what could have been if I had just sucked it up and bought tickets tonight.
On Saturday morning, I head back out onto Long Island to clear my mind over this fanny pack fiasco. On the bus, I once again pass the Lavender sign. All of "Lavender" is intact, and now even has "I <3" in front of it. Quite the glow up! Speaking of glow up, a big shout out to Drew Smith, who has let up just 1 run in all of June so far. He strikes out 3 in 1.1 relief innings to help the Mets get through a tough 3-2 game. Taijuan Walker is definitely the star of tonight, however, blanking out 9 over 6.2.
On the bus home, I pop in the afternoon game radio feed, and at first, it's quite an entertaining duel. Through 6.1, Bassitt holds the fish scoreless as he continues to find his rhythm. As Bassitt works his way through Miami's lineup, Sandy Alcantara is just as dominant. Through 6, Alcantara has struck out 4, with the only run of the game so far coming from Lindor RBI single. In the top of the 7th, Bassitt leaves the mound with 9 strikeouts and 1 ER, but bases loaded for Seth Lugo to take over. No biggie, though, as he's facing Jerar Encarnacion, who has yet to record his 1st Major League hit. The Rookie works up a full count, then blasts one to right off a Lugo fast ball for his first big league hit, his first big league home run, and his first big league grand slam, all wrapped up in one little pitch. Slow offense, bad bullpen. The cycle continues.
I'm the only person I know with a 3-day weekend this week, so I'm watching this afternoon series finale from the couch. They've already clinched the series which is nice, but Atlanta continue to loom with their sweep of the Cubs, so taking 3-4 in a divisional series like this is so huge. Luckily, the bullpen remembers how to pitch today, and the Mets cap off their homestand with a 6-0 win before flying down to the Lone Star State.
June 21st-22nd-Away Series at Houston (45-24 Pre-Series)
The Astros win both games in this one 8-2 and 5-3. Whatever. It's old news. Water under the bridge. You know why? Because this week, I'm a Binghamton Rumble Ponies fan, as Max Scherzer takes the mound in a rehab start Wednesday against the Reading Fightin Phils. It's not the best start (6 K 2 ER 3 H over 3.1 IP), but it sure is enough to get the hype train rolling, especially when it comes with the news that he could be back in a Mets uniform THIS SUNDAY against the Marlins. So I don't gush about it too much, I'll let Max speak for himself via the Daily News' Deesha Thosar:
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