Mets @ Pirates: 07/28 7:05 PM ET; PIX, SN, MLBN; WOR, ESPN, KDKA

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GAME 102, ROAD GAME 48

Saturday, 28th July
7:05 PM ET
PNC Park




METS -- STANDINGS



PIRATES -- STANDINGS



METS -- LEADERS -- PIRATES



METS -- BATTING -- PIRATES



METS -- PITCHING -- PIRATES



METS -- TRANSACTIONS - INJURIES



PIRATES -- TRANSACTIONS - INJURIES



GAME START WEATHER



METS -- LINEUPS -- PIRATES

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Pirates Hope to Start Another Run Against Mets



PITTSBURGH, PA -- The Pittsburgh Pirates, pressing to prove that a recent 11-game winning streak was no fluke, will be looking to start another string of wins Saturday in the third game of a series against the New York Mets at PNC Park.

Pittsburgh (54-51) had lost two in a row after their winning streak before scoring a walk-off 5-4 win Friday over the Mets (43-58), who had walloped them 12-6 with 14 hits in the series opener.

"This team came in against us swinging the sticks. You can tell they've got some purpose going," David Freese said of the Mets after he hit a walk-off single in the ninth inning and drove in all five Pirates runs, including a two-run homer, on Friday. "We just kept fighting and got it done."

They did it with a short bench and without outfielders Starling Marte (hand) and Corey Dickerson (hamstring), who are not on the disabled list and could return as soon as Saturday.

"We didn't have a lot of depth," Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. "That's one thing these guys have done all year long is they show up. Whoever's available plays, and they depend upon one another. If it doesn't get done one inning, you try and set up the next inning for it to get done."

The Mets have won three of four, but are languishing far below .500. They remain a seller going into the trade deadline, and Friday they made infielder Asdrubal Cabrera a late lineup scratch and traded him to Philadelphia for a top Phillies prospect, right-hander Franklyn Kilome.

"It's nothing I can control," Cabrera, scheduled to hit free agency after the season, told the New York Times before the deal. "Whatever they do, they want the best for the team."

The Mets made one other move Friday to reinforce an injury-plagued outfield. They signed Austin Jackson, released recently by Texas, and designated Matt den Dekker for assignment.

The Pirates made a bullpen move, recalling right-hander Alex McRae from Triple-A Indianapolis and optioning right-hander Michael Feliz to Indianapolis.

On Saturday, Mets right-hander Jacob deGrom (5-5, 1.71 ERA) is scheduled to face Pittsburgh righty Trevor Williams (8-7, 4.11).

In his only career start against the Mets, Williams allowed one run in seven inning on June 4, 2017, in an 11-1 win.

Williams has pitched 11 shutout innings in his past two starts, including a rain-shortened six-inning complete game Monday at Cleveland, a 7-0 win.

Williams joked that he was "not counting it" as a complete game, but he took note of beating Indians starter Corey Kluber.

"You want to outduel an ace, and when I saw that I was going to get matched up with Kluber, it's maybe once every three years, once every six years, that happens," Williams said.

DeGrom is no slouch, with 50 career wins and a career 2.77 ERA and 1.10 WHIP. He also could be targeted in a trade.

"I've been a New York Met my whole career. I have a good relationship with them and that's not my decision," he said last week. "I've enjoyed my time with them, yes."

He is 1-2 with a 2.14 ERA in five career starts against the Pirates.

DeGrom's record this season has been dampened by a lack of run support. He has 12 straight quality starts (16 overall), including his last outing.

He struck out 10 and tied a season high by going eight innings for the fifth time (third straight), giving up two earned runs and five hits in a 3-2 loss Monday to San Diego.

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ROSTER MOVE: The Mets have recalled infielder Luis Guillorme from Las Vegas (AAA) of the Pacific Coast League to replace Asdrúbal Cabrera on the roster...Guillorme will wear #15...Guillorme has hit .172 (10-58) with two doubles and four RBI in 29 games for the Mets this year, his first year in the majors...He was hitting .301 (55-183) with 11 doubles, two homers, 26 RBI and a .376 on-base percentage in 51 games for Las Vegas this year.

ANOTHER NEW FACE: New York signed outfielder Austin Jackson yesterday...Jackson is wearing #16 and went 0-1 as a pinch-hitter last night...Jackson, 31, hit .242 (36-149) with eight doubles and 13 RBI in 59 games for the Giants this year...He was traded to Texas on July 8...The Rangers released Jackson on July 14...Jackson was named a Wilson Defensive Player of the Year in 2012 and 2013.

METSCELLANEOUS: The Mets had their three-game winning streak snapped last night...New York is 6-4 in its last 10 games...New York is 11-10 in July...The 11 wins this month are the second most among NL East teams behind the Phillies, who have 14 victories in July...The Mets are 18-37 in their last 55 games.

ON THE ROAD: The Mets are 22-25 on the road this year...New York is 9-17 in its last 26 road games, but 4-3 in its last seven.

ROAD OPS: New York has a .756 OPS on the road this year, the fifth-highest mark in the majors.

WALK-OFFS: New York suffered its seventh walk-off loss this year last night...The seven walk-off losses are tied for the second most in the majors...Minnesota is first with 10...The Mets have 16 walk-off losses over the last two years.

SECOND-HALF CONFORTO: Michael Conforto is seventh in the NL and tied for ninth in the majors with nine RBI since the All-Star break...He is tied for seventh in the NL with a .385 second half batting average and ninth with a .452 on-base percentage... Conforto is also tied for eighth in the NL with three homers.

MORE MIKE: Conforto is 10-for-26 (.385) with three homers, two doubles and nine RBI in seven games since the All-Star break...Over his last 11 games, Conforto is hitting .342 (13-38) with four home runs, two doubles, 12 RBI, 11 runs scored and a .447 OBP...Conforto has a 14.9 percent walk-rate, the ninth-best in the majors.

AMED ROSARIO: Has scored six runs and driven in four runs in his last six games...Rosario is hitting .314 (16-51) with 10 runs scored, two doubles, four triples, six RBI, four stolen bases and a .340 OBP in his last 12 games...Is tied for fifth in the majors with six triples.

JOSÉ BAUTISTA: His next home run will be his 340th career homer and tie him with Jack Clark for 98th on major league baseball's all-time list... Bautista hit 43 homers with the Pirates from 2004-2008...Bautista is sixth among active players in home runs, behind Albert Pujols, Adrián Beltré, Miguel Cabrera, Edwin Encarnacion and Nelson Cruz.

1,000: Bautista has scored 999 runs during his career...He will be one of 10 active players with 1,000 runs scored.

STREAKS: Jacob deGrom has hurled 12 straight quality starts, the longest streak by a Mets pitcher since R.A. Dickey had 14 straight quality starts from July 25, 2011-April 13, 2012...deGrom has held opponents to three runs or less in 17 straight starts, the longest streak by a Mets pitcher within a single season since Dwight Gooden's 24 start streak in 1985...DeGrom has pitched 8.0 innings in three consecutive starts for the second time in his career (also June 12-24, 2017)...The last Mets pitcher to go four or more straight starts of 8.0 innings or more was Bill Pulsipher, July 24-August 16, 1995, when he had five such starts.

deGROMINATE: Jacob deGrom leads the majors with a 1.71 ERA, is second in the NL and sixth in the majors with 159 strikeouts, fifth in WHIP (0.97) and is third in the majors with a .293 slugging percentage...DeGrom has a 1.91 ERA (14 earned runs/66.0 innings) since June, but only has one win.

ONE RUN OR LESS: DeGrom has allowed one earned run or less in 12 of his last 16 starts...He has allowed one run or less in 58 of his 127 career starts (46 percent).

NIMMO NOTES: Brandon Nimmo has a .516 on-base percentage in the second half, the sixth-highest mark in the majors...He has walked four times in the last two games...Nimmo has a career high 13 homers, but has one home run in his last 31 games...Overall, he is seventh in the NL with a .386 on-base percentage, 13th with a .874 OPS and tied for fifth in the majors with six triples.

WILMER FLORES: Is batting .295 (23-78) with five doubles, three homers, eight RBI and a .337 on-base percentage in 21 games this month...Flores is hitting .291 (37-127) with six homers and 21 RBI in 36 games since June.

WELCOME TO THE BIGS: Jeff McNeil became the second player in team history to reach safely in six of his first seven career plate appearances according to Elias...He is hitting .333 with a .600 OBP after his first four games in the majors...McNeil, 26, was batting .342 (116-339) with 26 doubles, five triples, 19 home runs, 71 RBI, 72 runs scored, a .411 OBP, a 617 slugging percentage and a 1.028 OPS in 88 combined games between Binghamton (AA) of the Eastern League and Las Vegas...His 1.028 OPS was fifth-highest among all full-season minor league players while his .617 slugging percentage was third-best among full-season minor leaguers...His 71 RBI were 15th-most in the minors.

TODD FRAZIER: Is scheduled to play for St. Lucie (A) tonight vs. Charlotte in a minor league rehabilitation game...Frazier has been on the DL since July 9 with a left rib cage muscle strain.

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Top of 1:
Mets first. Rosario struck out. Nimmo lined out to left fielder Luplow. Flores grounded out, first baseman J.Osuna unassisted.
Runs: 0, Hits: 0

Bottom of 1:
Pirates first. Frazier singled to center. Marte flied out to left fielder Conforto. G.Polanco struck out. Moran struck out.
Runs: 0, Hits: 1

Top of 2:
Mets second. Conforto lined out to right fielder G.Polanco. J.Bautista grounded out, third baseman Moran to first baseman J.Osuna. McNeil flied out to left fielder Luplow.
Runs: 0, Hits: 0

Bottom of 2:
Pirates second. J.Osuna flied out to center fielder Nimmo. Luplow grounded out, pitcher deGrom to first baseman Flores. Cervelli flied out to center fielder Nimmo.
Runs: 0, Hits: 0

Top of 3:
Mets third. Mesoraco hit an infield single to third. Evans walked, Mesoraco to second. deGrom bunted into fielder's choice, pitcher Williams to third baseman Moran, Mesoraco out, Evans to second. Rosario grounded out, third baseman Moran to first baseman J.Osuna, Evans to third, deGrom to second. Nimmo struck out.
Runs: 0, Hits: 1

Bottom of 3:
Pirates third. Mercer grounded out, third baseman Evans to first baseman Flores. Williams struck out. Frazier singled to right. Marte lined out to right fielder J.Bautista.
Runs: 0, Hits: 1

Top of 4:
Mets fourth. Flores fouled out to catcher Cervelli. Conforto singled to center. J.Bautista singled to center, Conforto to second. McNeil walked, Conforto to third, J.Bautista to second. Mesoraco grounded into a double play, shortstop Mercer to second baseman Frazier to first baseman J.Osuna, McNeil out.
Runs: 0, Hits: 2

Bottom of 4:
Pirates fourth. G.Polanco doubled to center. Moran grounded out, second baseman McNeil to first baseman Flores, G.Polanco to third. J.Osuna grounded into fielder's choice, pitcher deGrom to catcher Mesoraco, G.Polanco out. Luplow flied out to right fielder J.Bautista.
Runs: 0, Hits: 1

Top of 5:
Mets fifth. Evans struck out. deGrom doubled to left. Rosario walked on four pitches. Nimmo struck out. Flores fouled out to third baseman Moran.
Runs: 0, Hits: 1

Bottom of 5:
Pirates fifth. Cervelli grounded out, third baseman Evans to first baseman Flores. Mercer popped out to second baseman McNeil. Williams lined out to right fielder J.Bautista.
Runs: 0, Hits: 0

Top of 6:
Mets sixth. Conforto struck out. J.Bautista grounded out, second baseman Frazier to first baseman J.Osuna. McNeil singled to center. Mesoraco flied out to right fielder G.Polanco.
Runs: 0, Hits: 1

Bottom of 6:
Pirates sixth. Frazier struck out. Marte struck out. G.Polanco singled to right. G.Polanco stole second. Moran singled to right, G.Polanco scored. J.Osuna flied out to right fielder J.Bautista.
Runs: 1, Hits: 2

Top of 7:
Mets seventh. Santana pitching. Evans flied out to left fielder Luplow. deGrom singled to center. Rosario grounded into fielder's choice, shortstop Mercer to second baseman Frazier, deGrom out. Rosario stole second. Nimmo struck out.
Runs: 0, Hits: 1

Bottom of 7:
Pirates seventh. Luplow singled to right. Cervelli sacrificed, catcher Mesoraco to first baseman Flores, Luplow to second. Mercer singled to left, Luplow to third. Freese pinch-hitting for Santana. Freese grounded out, shortstop Rosario to first baseman Flores, Luplow scored, Mercer to second. Frazier doubled to right, Mercer scored. Marte lined out to right fielder J.Bautista.
Runs: 2, Hits: 3

Top of 8:
Mets eighth. Crick pitching. S.Rodríguez in as second baseman. Flores struck out. Conforto struck out. J.Bautista struck out.
Runs: 0, Hits: 0

Bottom of 8:
Pirates eighth. Gsellman pitching. G.Polanco doubled to right. Moran singled to center, G.Polanco scored. J.Osuna struck out. Luplow grounded into fielder's choice, shortstop Rosario to second baseman McNeil, Moran out. Luplow stole second. Cervelli singled to center, Luplow scored. Mercer walked on four pitches, Cervelli to second. S.Rodríguez lined out to shortstop Rosario.
Runs: 2, Hits: 3

Top of 9:
Mets ninth. Ri.Rodríguez pitching. McNeil struck out. Mesoraco struck out. Evans flied out to center fielder Marte.
Runs: 0, Hits: 0

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Williams Outduels deGrom, Pirates Blank Mets 5-0



by WES CROSBY

PITTSBURGH, PA -- Trevor Williams embraced being penciled in against Jacob deGrom on Saturday after pitching opposite Corey Kluber in his last start. Then, as he did on Monday, Williams outdueled one of the better pitchers in the major leagues.

Williams frustrated the New York Mets through six innings, and the Pittsburgh Pirates got to deGrom late in a 5-0 win.

"You want to face the league's best," Williams said. "deGrom's definitely one of the best in the league. You see him maybe once or twice a year and that matchup is exciting. It makes you play up, and I'm thankful for that. ... It's fun, two starts in a row seeing two aces."

After shutting out the Cleveland Indians in seven innings of a rain-shortened 7-0 win on Monday, Williams (9-7) allowed five hits in six innings with five strikeouts and three walks on Saturday. He hasn't allowed a run in 17 straight innings since he surrendered three in the third inning of a 17-5 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on July 6.

Williams has started six of Pittsburgh's 12 shutouts this season. The Pirates have won 13 of their past 15 games, while the Mets have lost two straight after winning their previous three games.

Pittsburgh's first run came after deGrom (5-6) began the sixth inning with two strikeouts. Gregory Polanco singled down the right-field line before stealing second. Colin Moran singled to right, scoring Polanco.

David Freese, who had five RBIs in a 5-4 win Friday, pinch-hit in the seventh, grounding out but scoring Jordan Luplow from third. Adam Frazier followed with a double to right, driving in Jordy Mercer from second to make it 3-0.

"They beat me there," deGrom said. "I made a couple good pitches and they were able to battle me, and find some holes. So, I was frustrated with that."

Moran drove in Polanco again with a single up the middle in the eighth, extending it to 4-0. Polanco was 3 for 4 with two doubles; Moran was 2 for 4 with two RBIs.

Francisco Cervelli made it 5-0 later in the eighth with a single that scored Luplow.

Williams got out of trouble in consecutive innings, first when he got Devin Mesoraco to ground into a double play with one out and the bases loaded in the fourth. An inning later, he struck out Brandon Nimmo and forced Wilmer Flores to pop up to third, stranding runners on first and second.

"We're talking about a guy who pitched six innings and gave up no runs," Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. "It goes back to him finding a way to make pitches, and his ability. ... The three walks pushed him into some tough spots, but he was able to make pitches."

deGrom lost for the fourth time since June 28, when he last won a start. He allowed three runs on eight hits, his most surrendered this season, with five strikeouts in seven innings.

"I think that the guys know they haven't been scoring runs for him," Mets manager Mickey Callaway said. "I'm sure they don't feel very good about it."

ROSTER MOVES

Mets: INF Luis Guillorme was recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas. The 23-year-old rookie has a .172 batting average with four RBIs in 29 games with New York this season.

Pirates: OF Austin Meadows and INF/OF Jose Osuna were recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis. Osuna, who hit .196 with two home runs and seven RBIs in his first 23 games with Pittsburgh this season, played first base Saturday.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Pirates: 1B Josh Bell was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a left oblique strain. He left Pittsburgh's game Friday after playing the first two innings. ... OF Starling Marte returned to the lineup after missing the previous two games with a left hand contusion. He hit second and played centerfield. ... OF Corey Dickerson was placed on the 10-day disabled list retroactive to July 25 with left hamstring discomfort.

UP NEXT

Mets: RHP Zack Wheeler (4-6, 4.33) will have the chance to carry momentum from his past two starts into Sunday against the Pirates. He won each while allowing a combined six runs on 12 hits in 14 2/3 innings pitched.

Pirates: RHP Joe Musgrove (4-4, 3.90) will look to have another strong start when he faces the Mets on Sunday. In his last outing, Musgrove allowed two runs on five hits in seven innings of a 9-4 win over the Cleveland Indians on Tuesday.

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