Brewers-Mets Opening Day starting pitchers: Peralta vs. Quintana

At this time last year, Freddy Peralta was the Brewers’ fourth starter, coming off a season that saw him pitch just 78 innings due to shoulder and lat trouble. Jose Quintana was off the Mets’ roster entirely, due to a concerning injury and surgery that cost him the first half of the season.

Now, they will oppose each other as their teams’ respective Opening Day starters when the Mets host the Brewers at Citi Field on March 28.

For Peralta, the assignment is a nod both to his breakout 2023 season, as well as the fact that Corbin Burnes (traded) and Brandon Woodruff (injured) are no longer around after starting each of Milwaukee’s past four Opening Days. Similarly for Quintana, it’s partially a recognition of his steady excellence, partially the fallout of Kodai Senga’s shoulder injury.

Here’s a closer look at both:

RHP Freddy Peralta
Previous Opening Days starts: None
2023 season: 12-10 with a 3.86 ERA in 30 starts

Tabbing Peralta was a foregone conclusion after the Brewers traded Burnes to the Orioles over the offseason, but his credentials for the job nonetheless jump off the page. Peralta set career highs in victories (12), innings (165 2/3), strikeouts (210) and starts (30) a year ago, helping fill the void left when Woodruff was able to make only 11 starts while battling a shoulder strain.

"Now, the new goal is to be a little better than that," Peralta said, adding that he has 200 innings in his sights. "It's a challenge. It is good for me and my career. I want to get there. I know I can do it."

Only five big leaguers reached 200 innings in 2023, but Peralta has shown the stuff to go with the mindset. He had some of the best peripherals in the NL a year ago, limiting opponents to a .212 batting average while making 16 quality starts. He filled the zone, averaging 11.4 strikeouts per nine innings with a 1.12 WHIP and a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 3.89-to-1.

Peralta missed two months of the 2022 season with a shoulder strain but had no issues a year ago, when his strong finish helped the Brewers win the NL Central. He was the NL Pitcher of the Month last August, going 5-0 with a 2.10 ERA in five starts, and the winning streak reached six in mid-September.

Peralta has been effective against the Mets before -- he threw six shutout innings against them in his first start in 2023, a 10-0 home victory on April 3 in which he gave up two singles and struck out seven. He is 2-0 with a 3.18 ERA in two career starts versus New York, with 12 strikeouts in 11 1/3 innings.

LHP Jose Quintana
Previous Opening Day starts: 2017, with the White Sox
2023 season: 3-6 with a 3.57 ERA in 13 starts

Quintana earned the nod because the Mets’ unquestioned ace, Senga, will miss at least all of April rehabbing from a strained posterior capsule in his right shoulder. The unfortunate nature of that injury aside, the Mets were happy to reward Quintana, a 12-year Major League veteran whom they consider a consummate professional.

“There’s a lot of energy around,” Quintana said of Opening Day, drawing upon his previous experience in 2017 with the White Sox. “That’s the experience I got the first time. Now with more experience, I understand it’s one more game. It’s an exciting moment, but nothing changes from the way we’ve been preparing this Spring Training.”

Quintana has come a long way since this time last year, when he was recovering from emergency surgery to repair a stress fracture on a rib that had a benign lesion on it. He made his Mets debut after the 2023 All-Star break and immediately became a strong complement to Senga, relying on pinpoint precision from the left side. He also made good on his reputation as one of the game’s most consistent pitchers, going at least five innings in 12 of his 13 starts and at least six in nine of them. Quintana allowed more than three earned runs in an outing just twice. He was even better at Citi Field, with a 2.76 ERA in six starts.

Although Quintana did not face the Brewers last season, he has plenty of history against them after spending most of his career in the AL and NL Central divisions. It’s good history, too; Quintana has more wins against Milwaukee than any other team, going 9-5 with a 2.90 ERA over 20 career starts and a relief appearance. In particular, he’s silenced Brewers stalwart Christian Yelich over the years, holding him to a .586 OPS.