The New York Mets are struggling against elite pitching. While there pitching rotations is one of the best in the league and traditionally been shutting down offenses all season, the Mets' bats are reacting the same way which certainly showed against Clayton Kershaw on Thursday night. Kershaw dangled a perfect game before giving up three late hits while still getting the win. Zack Greinke is capable of the same thing, but is being skipped in his start offering a break for the Mets.
Greinke was scheduled to start on Friday night as he aims to extend his scoreless streak of 43 2/3 innings, but instead he will be flying back to Los Angeles as his wife is scheduled to give birth in the coming days. With Greinke out, the Dodgers are bringing Ian Thomas to the mound as an emergency replacement. He is currently 0-1 with a 5.23 ERA after bouncing around Triple-A Oklahoma City. He recently tossed two scoreless innings against the Phillies in relief. He will be facing a slumping Mets lineup that is seeking some kind of breakout game.
The Mets are currently 10 for 71 with runners in scoring position. Curtis Granderson and Ruben Tejada remain the only players hitting above .235 as their offensive slump has reached new height. After a strong first half to the season, the Mets have gone 2-5 since the All-Star break and are in danger of losing speed quickly. Lucas Duda is doing everything he can to improve while injuries to players like Michael Cuddyer are not happening. The outfielder was officially placed on the disabled list after missing 12 of his last 19 games. The Mets had been hoping he would avoid the disabled list, but they were left with no choice.
Jonathon Niese will be taking the mound to try and get the Mets moving. He has been a trade target with the deadline approaching and if he performs well, those rumors could easily ramp up in the coming days. He is 2-0 with a 1.21 ER in his last three starts while being 2-1 with a 3.79 ERA against the Dodgers. Los Angeles has been struggling at the plate as well. Adrian Gonzalez is their best contributor going 13 for 28 since the break.