New York Mets: Keys to victory in the Subway Series


(Photo Credit: Keith Allison)

Ah, the Subway Series. The best time of the year for Yankee fans and the worst time of the year for Mets fans. The Mets are playing horrible baseball right now, just in time for their crosstown rivals to stop in for a weekend series. It is not looking too pretty for the orange and blue. 

The Mets have now dropped to five games under .500 and own a record of 27-32 after their hot 11-1 start. It's hard to believe times have gotten as tough as they have in Queens, but nothing is more Mets than a nosedive from the top.

Across town, the guys from the Bronx are doing just fine. The Yankees are now 22 games over .500 could pass Boston in the American League East at any second. How could the Mets and all of their struggles possibly come out on top this series? The planets will have to align for the Mets to leave the series with a win, but maybe they could take advantage of some of the Yankees' weaker elements.

Do the Yankees have a weakness?

If the Mets are going to come out on top, they will have to do it before Luis Severino takes the mound in the series finale on Sunday. Severino has been the Yankees' most successful pitcher in 2018 and is sure to take the upper hand over an ice cold Mets offense. Is there really anything that the Mets can do to stop the Bronx Bombers?

The Yankees are not the best defensive team. If the Mets ever put a ball into play again, they have a shot at getting one through the right side of the infield, as rookie second baseman Gleyber Torres has committed 8 errors in his 39 games in the majors.  

The Mets have their ace Jacob deGrom on the mound for the series opener on Friday night. deGrom will mow down any line up that steps in to face him, even one that has both Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton in it. If the Mets once again fail to get a much-deserved win for deGrom, they deserve to lose. deGrom is leading the National League with a 1.49 ERA and only has four wins, speaking perfectly to just how poorly Mets are playing right now. 

Also, let's not forget that the Yankees will have to play the first half of the Subway Series without a designated hitter, forcing them to sit one of their powerful bats on the bench. 

Do the Mets have any strengths?

The Mets haven't been doing anything offensively for a decent amount of time. They have to break out eventually, right? If they can do that against the Yankees, they will find some success.

Yoenis Cespedes is scheduled to make his return to the lineup for this series, which will hopefully add a much-needed spark to the Mets and their tired offense. Noah Syndergaard is also planning on being activated and pitching the series finale against Severino. Both Cespedes and Syndergaard are vital to a successful Mets team and are hoping to get back on track this weekend. 

The first two pitchers that the Mets will face, Masahiro Tanaka and Domingo German, are weaker pitchers on the Yankees staff, giving the Mets a prime opportunity to score a few runs. Though the offense has been a horror story as of late, guys are tired of losing and have expressed their frustration, as reported by Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. Hopefully, for the Mets' sake, their frustrations translate to productivity at the plate and the Mets can get something going.

The Yankees are a fantastic ball club, and the Mets have their work cut out for them this weekend. If the guys from Queens could exploit the Yankees weaknesses, and work their own strengths to their maximum potential, they have a great shot at getting a win or two. If they keep playing like they have been, however, there may be a massacre at Citi Field this weekend.

Will the Mets pull it together this weekend? Let us know what you think in the comments!



For more articles like this, take a look at our MLB The Show page.