After sweeping Subway Series at Citi, Mets look to do same in Bronx
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The Mets are nearing the end of a stretch in which they will have played 13 games in 12 days all against teams currently in postseason position -- but not before they head to the Bronx to wrap up their season series with the Yankees.
After playing seven games against the Phillies and four against the Braves over the past 10 days, the Mets open a highly anticipated two-game set vs. the Yanks on Monday night.
Here’s everything you need to know about the final series between the Mets and Yankees this season -- well, at least for the regular season anyway.
Scherzer and … deGrom?
The Mets’ rotation was lining up to have Max Scherzer take the mound on Monday followed by Jacob deGrom on Tuesday -- but Taijuan Walker’s status could impact whether the Mets roll out their two aces against the Yankees.
Scherzer will start Monday’s opener regardless, but Walker -- who missed his scheduled start on Sunday due to a bulging disc in his lower back -- could return as soon as Tuesday. If he is indeed ready and the Mets decide to start Walker, that could give deGrom two extra days of rest, thanks to Wednesday’s off-day, before starting on Thursday vs. the Rockies. Of course, the Mets could just stick with deGrom and opt to give Walker those extra recovery days.
As for the Yankees, the Mets will miss their top starters after Gerrit Cole pitched on Saturday and Nestor Cortes went on Sunday against the Blue Jays. Instead, the Mets are lined up to face Domingo Germán on Monday and Yankee newcomer Frankie Montas on Tuesday.
Montas has allowed 14 earned runs in 14 innings (9.00 ERA) through three starts with the Yankees. Germán, meanwhile, has a 3.20 ERA over his past five starts, including a July 27 outing against the Mets in which he allowed two runs over 4 2/3 innings while striking out seven.
What’s at stake
After sweeping the two-game set at Citi Field from July 26-27, the Mets are looking to sweep the Yankees in the season series for just the second time. The only year in which the Mets won every meeting was 2013, when they went 4-0 against the Yanks. They’ve been on the wrong end of a season sweep twice, going 0-6 against the Yankees in 2003 and 0-4 in 2017.
The good news for the Mets is no matter what happens in these two games, they’ve already assured themselves of a fifth straight year without losing the season series to their crosstown rival. The two clubs split the series each year from 2018-20 before the Mets won four of six last season.
Trending in opposite directions
Though both New York clubs remain in first place in their respective divisions -- a spot the Mets have held since April 12 and the Yanks since April 27 -- the two are certainly trending in opposite directions.
While the Yankees had by far the best record in the Majors through June -- their 56-21 mark was seven games better than any other club -- it’s been a different story since. They are just 18-27 since the start of July, which is the seventh-worst record in MLB during that span. This month has been particularly bad for the Yanks, whose 5-14 record in August is the worst by any team.
Meanwhile, the Mets are 32-15 since July 1, good for the fourth-best record across the Majors. Only the Dodgers, Braves and Mariners have posted a better mark during that span.
Polar Bear vs. The Judge
Only three players in Major League Baseball have at least 30 home runs and 100 RBIs this season -- and this series will feature two of them. Pete Alonso joined the 30-100 club this weekend with another dominant showing against the Phillies, while Judge is already in the 40-100 club -- and closing in on 50-100.
The only other time a Mets-Yankees series of any kind featured a pair of players who had already reached the 30-100 club came in the 2000 World Series. Mike Piazza (38 home runs, 113 RBIs) and Bernie Williams (30, 121) each had 30-100 campaigns that year.
Senior Reporter Anthony DiComo has covered the Mets for MLB.com since 2007.