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Here are the lineups for game 1 against the Mets. Let’s discuss.

For the Phillies:

And we're back!#RingTheBellpic.twitter.com/tUyIDcuDb8

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) July 16, 2026

For the Mets:

Starters in Philly ⚾️ #LGMpic.twitter.com/CtncemX5jZ

— New York Mets (@Mets) July 16, 2026

Major League Baseball announced its schedule for the 2027 season on Thursday, July 16 – assuming there is going to be a season to play next year.

The current collective bargaining agreement ends at 11:59 p.m. ET on Dec. 1, and there could be a lockout if issues such as owners' calls for a salary cap are not resolved by then.

For now, opening day is set for March 24 with a standalone game on Netflix. MLB has yet to announce the teams playing in that game.

There are no international games on the schedule. The All-Star Game will take place at Wrigley Field in Chicago on July 13, and the regular season is set to end Sept. 26.

2027 MLB schedule opening games

• Colorado Rockies at San Francisco Giants
• Atlanta Braves at Los Angeles Dodgers
• New York Mets at Miami Marlins
• Boston Red Sox at Seattle Mariners
• Baltimore Orioles at Tampa Bay Rays
• Philadelphia Phillies at Washington Nationals
• Cleveland Guardians at Chicago Cubs
• St. Louis Cardinals at Cincinnati Reds
• Chicago White Sox at the Detroit Tigers
• Texas Rangers at Houston Astros
• Minnesota Twins at Kansas City Royals
• Los Angeles Angels at Milwaukee Brewers
• Toronto Blue Jays at New York Yankees
• Athletics at Pittsburgh Pirates
• Arizona Diamondbacks at San Diego Padres

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: MLB 2027 schedule revealed: When is opening day? Will there even be a season?

The Milwaukee Brewers are back in action this weekend, as they’ll host the Miami Marlins to open up the second half of the season. Milwaukee, who limped into the break with a sweep at the hands of the Pirates in Pittsburgh, still sits atop the NL Central, with a five-game lead over the Cubs. They also own the second-best record in baseball at 59-37, just behind the 61-36 Dodgers.

The Marlins have also surged over the last month and a half, pushing themselves into the final NL Wild Card spot as of the All-Star break at 52-45, just ahead of the Cardinals. They also suffered a sweep heading into the break, though, as they lost all three games against the Guardians in Cleveland.

Milwaukee’s IL remains pitcher-heavy, with Rob Zastryzny (late July), Brandon Woodruff (possibly out for season), Kyle Harrison (late July or August), Joel Kuhnel (late July or August), DL Hall (late July), Brian Fitzpatrick (out for season), Quinn Priester (out for season), and Angel Zerpa (out for season) all on the IL. Outfielder Brandon Lockridge is still out with a knee injury that has kept him out since early May, but he’s nearing a rehab assignment, while infielder David Hamilton is looking at a late July return after suffering a strained hamstring right before the break.

The Marlins are without pitchers Michael Petersen (TBD), William Kempner (TBD), John King (TBD), Anthony Bender (late July), Josh Ekness (August), Andrew Nardi (September), Ronny Henriquez (out for season), and Adam Mazur (out for season). Outfielder Owen Caissie is the lone position player on the IL, and he’s looking at a late July return.

Milwaukee is led by Jake Bauers offensively, as he’s enjoying a career year with a .268/.373/.508 line and 18 homers through 87 games. Brice Turang has added 14 homers, and Jackson Chourio has 13. William Contreras and Gary Sánchez have been a solid backstop duo, while Garrett Mitchell has stayed healthy for the first time in his career *knock on wood*. Christian Yelich, Sal Frelick, and Andrew Vaughn also play key roles, with David Ortiz, Luis Lara, Cooper Pratt, and Braden Shewmake rounding things out. As a team, the Brewers are hitting .254/.337/.398 (.735 OPS ranks tied for ninth), with 89 homers (tied for 28th), 489 runs (fourth), and 89 steals (tied for sixth).

Similar to Milwaukee, the Marlins aren’t a homer-heavy team, but they’ve found a balanced attack offensively this year. Heriberto Hernández and Liam Hicks are tied for the team lead with 13 homers each, with Kyle Stowers right behind then at 12 homers. Otto Lopez and Xavier Edwards are both hitting over .300, creating a strong duo up the middle. Javier Sanoja, Jakob Marsee, Griffin Conine, and Joe Mack are among the other regulars, with Brian Navarreto, Leo Jiménez, Old Friend Esteury Ruiz, and Rece Hinds serving as depth. As a team, the Marlins are hitting .253/.330/.411 (.741 OPS ranks tied for sixth), with 98 homers (tied for 23rd), 439 runs (13th), and 101 steals (second).

Aaron Ashby still leads all of baseball with 12 wins, though he hasn’t been quite as unhittable over the last month or so, with a 3.56 ERA and 75 strikeouts over 55 2/3 innings this year. Abner Uribe and Trevor Megill have both been fantastic over the past couple of months, while Chad Patrick has bounced back nicely after a rough stretch in June, allowing just two runs over his last 11 innings. Grant Anderson, Jared Koenig, Craig Yoho, and Bryse Wilson round out the bullpen. As a staff, the Brewers have a 3.48 team ERA (second), including a 3.40 starter ERA (first) and a 3.58 bullpen ERA (fifth). They’ve struck out 928 batters (second) over 858 2/3 innings.

Calvin Faucher leads the team with 40 appearances out of Miami’s bullpen, though he hasn’t been great, with a 4.31 ERA. Pete Fairbanks has a dismal 6.83 ERA but leads the team with 13 saves in 15 opportunities, and Michael Petersen and UW-Whitewater alumni Lake Bachar also figure prominently. Cade Gibson, Tyler Zuber, Dax Fulton, and Ryan Gusto round things out. As a staff, the Marlins have a 4.02 team ERA (10th), including a 4.25 starter ERA (14th) and a 3.69 bullpen ERA (seventh). They’ve struck out 815 batters (13th) over 854 innings.

Probable Pitchers

Friday, July 17 @ 6:40 p.m.: RHP Logan Henderson (3-1, 3.18 ERA, 2.47 FIP) vs. RHP Sandy Alcantara (10-5, 3.99 ERA, 3.78 FIP)

Henderson, 24, continues to shine in the majors, as he’s now 6-1 for his career with a 2.52 ERA, 2.73 FIP, and 67 strikeouts over 53 2/3 innings through 11 career starts. He’s earned the win in each of his last three outings, including a win in his return from injury on July 9 against the Cardinals, when he went 5 1/3 innings with three runs allowed and four strikeouts. This will mark Henderson’s first career appearance against Miami.

Alcantara, 30, continues to be an innings eater here in his ninth MLB season. He currently leads the league in starts (20) and innings pitched (130 2/3), with a 3.99 ERA, 3.78 FIP, and 100 strikeouts. The 2022 NL Cy Young winner took a loss in his last outing, though, as he allowed three runs on five hits over seven innings against the Guardians, striking out eight. Over eight career appearances (six starts) against Milwaukee, he has a 3.14 ERA and 31 strikeouts over 43 innings. He took a loss against the Brewers in Miami back in April, allowing three runs (two earned) on four hits and six walks, striking out one.

Saturday, July 18 @ 3:10 p.m.: LHP Shane Drohan (4-3, 3.09 ERA, 3.24 FIP) vs. RHP Max Meyer (9-1, 2.58 ERA, 3.53 FIP)

Drohan, 27, has made the most of his opportunities with the Brewers this year, as he’s now made 19 appearances (nine starts) with a 4-3 record, 3.09 ERA, 3.24 FIP, and 67 strikeouts over 70 innings. He took a tough luck loss in his last outing, though, as he allowed three runs on five hits and no walks while striking out six in a 3-2 loss to the Pirates. This marks Drohan’s first career appearance against Miami.

Meyer, 27, has put things together in his fourth year here in 2026, as he’s well on track to finish with positive bWAR for the first time in his career. He went 9-1 with a 2.58 ERA, 3.53 FIP, and 116 strikeouts over 108 innings in the first half, enough to earn him an All-Star selection. The right-hander went five-plus frames in his last appearance against the Mariners, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks while striking out four in an extra-innings win. Meyer’s lone appearance against Milwaukee came back in 2024, when he went four innings with three runs allowed on four hits and two walks, striking out three in a no-decision.

Sunday, July 19 @ 1:10 p.m.: LHP Robert Gasser (2-4, 5.24 ERA, 5.28 FIP) vs. RHP Eury Pérez (5-7, 3.78 ERA, 4.26 FIP)

Gasser, also 27, hasn’t been nearly as good in season No. 3 as he was in his brief cameos in 2024 and 2025. The left-hander is just 2-4 with a 5.24 ERA, 5.28 FIP, and 43 strikeouts over 46 1/3 innings in nine starts this year, and he’s coming off his worst start yet. He went just three-plus innings in Sunday’s series finale in Pittsburgh, allowing seven runs on eight hits and a hit batter while striking out three. Gasser’s lone appearance against the Marlins came in his third career start back in 2024, when he went six innings with five runs allowed (four earned) on 10 hits and two hit batters, taking a no-decision as the Brewers would go on to win 7-5.

Pérez, 23, is in his third MLB season and continues to be a serviceable starter in the majors. Across 16 starts this year, Pérez is 5-7 with a 3.78 ERA, 4.26 FIP, and 95 strikeouts over 85 2/3 innings. The young right-hander has been especially good of late, allowing just five runs over his last six starts, spanning 33 1/3 innings (1.35 ERA) with 37 strikeouts. He’s made three career starts against Milwaukee, totaling 15 2/3 innings with a 2.30 ERA and 20 strikeouts. That includes a victory back in April, when he went six innings with one unearned run allowed on three hits and a walk, striking out seven.

How to Watch & Listen

Friday, July 17: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)

Saturday, July 18: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)

Sunday, July 19: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)

Prediction

The Brewers are deploying a trio of young arms, while the Marlins are using their top three arms, which will make for a tough series, even at home. These are also a pair of fairly evenly matched offenses, so I’ll take the Marlins to sneak away with two of three.

The All-Star Break is nearly over, the Yankees ready to kick off their second-half slate with a showdown with the Dodgers. Before we get to the second half of the 2026 season, however, MLB has announced the schedule for the 2027 season.

The Yankees will open next season at home against the Blue Jays on Thursday March 25th, a welcome development after having opened two of their last three campaigns on the road. A three-game set with the Jays will be followed by three games against the A’s, giving New York a six-game homestand to start the year. On the other end, they’ll close the 2027 season with a six-game road trip against division rivals, with a trip to Toronto followed by three games against the Orioles.

Interestingly, the season-opening set with the Blue Jays will be the Yankees’ only divisional matchup during the season’s first six weeks until they host the Rays for four games in the second week of May. In related news, the first series with Boston once again won’t happen until the Yankees travel to Boston on June 4th; this will mark the fourth time in five seasons that the first Yankees-Red Sox matchup won’t come before June.

A few other highlights dot the schedule. The first edition of the Subway Series will come on May 28th at Citi Field, before returning to Yankee Stadium on July 16th, the first series coming out of the All-Star Break, with the All-Star Game itself on July 13th. The Yankees will also travel to play the Dodgers next year, with that series starting August 27th in Los Angeles.

We may have a whole half-season (and a playoff tournament) to play for 2026, but we’ve already got an eye on 2027. Here’s a look at the full Yankees schedule:

You can check out the rest of the 2027 MLB schedule here.

The national baseball media has been trying to trade Tarik Skubal from the minute the Detroit Tigers were eliminated from the ALDS by the Seattle Mariners last October. That’s not a surprise, because it’s a good storyline, and one that media in major markets loves to push as the big spending teams pluck talent from smaller markets. The whole concept of a Skubal trade has been a huge maker of hay since the beginning of the offseason, and it’s certainly an interesting topic. Now that it’s finally becoming a more relevant one, it’s worth keeping in mind that the Tigers already placed their bets this season, and don’t seem at all keen on dealing the back-to-back AL Cy Young winner in the first place.

There certainly were plenty of reasons to think a trade made sense over the offseason, and there are plenty of reasons to think a trade makes sense now. The Tigers front office passed on considering a trade last offseason, and it’s hard to believe they will easily change their minds unless they really struggle coming out of the All-Star break. Remember the bet Scott Harris and Jeff Greenberg already placed on this season by keeping Skubal in the first place.

Since taking over the Tigers, the biggest trade the Scott Harris-led Tigers have made was dealing a rental in Jack Flaherty. In terms of volume of trades, they rank toward the bottom of the league in the Harris era, waiver claims excluded. This front office doesn’t pursue many trades. They aren’t out there aggressively trying to upgrade their roster with trades during the offseason, and so far they haven’t been very good at making deadlines trades either. And other than trading Jack Flaherty at the 2024 deadline, the trades they have made, whether buying or selling, have been small in scale and consequence. These things are related. A potential Skubal trade exists on a higher level of importance and scrutiny than anything they’ve done through four offseason and three trade deadlines.

We certainly thought that a major package of prospects including a major league ready starter was a possibility worth exploring back in the offseason. Yet there was no point writing about it, because the Tigers had no real interest in exploring the possibility. Neither party showed any interest in an extension offer either. Months later, with the Tigers creeping back into the postseason chase after a catastrophic month of May, there still appears to be no real interest in trading their ace. At least nationally, few seem to be taking this part of the equation seriously. The Tigers have to trade him even if they might get a wild card spot, right? Right?

Not so fast.

The Tigers have had some reason and plenty of opportunity to at least explore the possibility of a Skubal trade for a long while now, and they’ve shown zero interest in doing so. The projected return on a Skubal trade has diminished with each step. Would they fiually change their minds now when they’re 3.5 games out of a postseason berth in mid-July? Was the decision to hold onto him this year and try and go for it contingent on a specific marker in the minds of the Tigers’ decision makers? Or would they have to really stagger out of the gate after the All-Star break to even consider listening to offers?

We don’t have the answer, but their history says they’re not real comfortable in this position. Since taking over the Tigers at the end of the 2022 season, the Harris front office has been in three big spots nationally. They’ve had two notably valuable players to trade at the deadline in Eduardo Rodriguez in 2023 and Jack Flaherty in 2024. The third was the Skubal arbitration hearing over the winter, which was one of the biggest stories nationally for a while. When this front office has had the spotlight on them in a negotiation, things haven’t gone very well.

So, it’s time to sharpen up old Occam’s Razor here. Scott Harris and Jeff Greenberg believed that keeping Skubal gave them a legit shot at reaching the World Series this year, and that taking that shot was worth more than dealing him for two really good prospects and thinking beyond 2026. Reaching the World Series is the only goal worthy of holding onto him in his walk year. And so it’s a straight line from there to the realization that they wont’t trade their ace unless they’re convinced that they won’t make the postseason. They’ve already placed a pretty big bet on making it to the party and shooting their shot in October. They probably don’t care how they get into the tournament to face a pretty mediocre looking American League postseason field. Only that they have a chance.

The Tigers hold a 22-14 record going back to June 1. They are 6.5 games behind first place Chicago for the top spot in the AL Central. They are 3.5 games outside of a wild card berth. They’ve made a really nice run to get back on the fringes of the conversation. There are 66 games left in the season. The Tigers certainly aren’t in good position here, but they’re still close enough as of this writing to believe they can at least draw a wild card slot. Their odds will be on a seesaw unless they go on a post All-Star break run or collapse which would make the decision easy.

FanGraphs currently has the Tigers postseason odds at 27.7 percent. For an analytic organization, what do the playoff odds have to be for the Tigers’ brass to decide that they have to start thinking long term and open up trade talks on their ace? The next 16 games could certainly sway those odds significantly, but it would be very interesting to hear the front office put a number on it. That’s not happening publicly, of course.

We’ve seen the Tigers and Guardians both make massive runs to the postseason in the final weeks of each of the last two seasons. We’ve also seen the Twins in 2024 and the Tigers in 2025 fall apart in September. There’s really no predicting the outcome. A handful of top teams will probably continue to play great, and a lot of really bad teams will continue to be bad and sell off over the next two and a half weeks. For everyone else it’s a crapshoot.

One would think the Tigers have to win something like 9-10 of their next 16 and gain more ground in the wild card chase to hold onto their potential trade chips, but this front office does things their own way. So, just remember who we’re dealing with here. The Tigers could play the next 16 games, find themselves still 3.5 games back in the wild card hunt, and I still couldn’t say with any certainty that they’re going to make a deal for Skubal.

Personally, I think the idea of trading Skubal fills them with dread. If they make a deal, punting on the 2026 season in most fans’ eyes, and don’t land at least one really good player, it will be a major failure. Of course, if they keep him and miss the playoffs, that would be equally disastrous. So, while we can scheme all sorts of Skubal trade ideas that would make the Tigers better in 2027 and beyond, without fully giving up on the 2026 season, I assume that things would have to go pretty poorly over the next 16 games to get them into a selling posture. Right now, I think they’re planning to keep him, as they did this offseason when he had more value and potentially could have commanded two blue chip prospects.

The fact that Skubal isn’t having a Tarik Skubal level season is probably less of a factor than people might think. Prospective teams interested in his services are all about October. They aren’t concerned with his numbers before and after returning from the surgery. They’re concerned with his recent trendline and how they think he’ll pitch down the stretch and in the postseason. And with teams with excellent farm systems like the Dodgers, Rays, and even potentially the Brewers at least curious on the price, there is going to be competition and a ton of interest. Let no one tell you otherwise. At the same time, with 12 teams in the postseason, and few teams particularly in the American League really separating from the pack, the situation is still really murky and may require the next two weeks to really force teams’ hands in making deadline decisions.

Skubal was hit up for more home runs than usual in June, but he was basically speed running spring training again to get back into the groove of the regular season over his first couple of starts back. He’s now allowed four earned runs in his last three starts, while punching out 23 hitters in 16 innings of work, with three walks allowed. The only real criticism we can offer is that even in his last couple of outings, his command hasn’t been quite as sharp as peak Skubal, which has made it a bit harder to put hitters away as quickly and efficiently and led to a few more hittable pitches for hitters in swing counts.

All the underlying metrics say he’s healthy. His fourseam fastball is averaging 96.7 mph, which is nearly a tick less than in 2025, but on par for his 2023-2024 campaigns. The injury is arguably as much a feature as it is a bug, because taking six weeks off to rehab the elbow after having a bone chip removed makes him more likely to be fully fresh down the stretch and in October, rather than starting to run out of gas at the end of a full regular season campaign. This isn’t the kind of injury that raises any particular long-term red flags either. For all the same reasons, the Tigers have reason to believe that keeping Tarik Skubal gives them a particularly important weapon in trying to actually win something this season. The Tigers certainly shouldn’t be discounting him, and have to hold out for a full price package.

So let’s hope that’s the play here. If there’s a silver lining, it’s that the Tigers, unlike most teams, can credibly say they aren’t that motivated to trade him. There’s a weird kind of leverage available for a team that is notably trade averse. What would seem like a tactic from most teams might actually be true in the Tigers’ case, allowing them to hold out for a package that disregards the injury and underperformance in the first half. The attitude being, if you’re not going to give us what we want, we might as well play it out and say at season’s end, hey we believed in our team and we expected to make a run. There’s still the backup plan of holding onto Skubal, extending the qualifying offer, and collecting a compensation pick.

We also have the fun factor of a new CBA negotation and a potential work stoppage that could affect the 2027 season. Some teams may not feel comfortable enough at this deadline to make a big move, but others may look at this as a last chance before the ruleset and salary structure of the game is changed again. Talk about a Pandora’s Box of possible changes teams will have to, in some way, account for as the deadline approaches.

The Harris-Greenberg front office does love prospects, so if you’re really begging for a trade, you can perhaps take heart from the possibilities before them. Could the Tigers land Mike Sirota from the Dodgers, or Luis Peña from the Brewers along with some upper level pitching talent? Questions like these should at least intrigue this front office. At the same time, this is a rental, and while they need to do way better than they did with Jack Flaherty, it’s harder to know how many teams are really feeling all-in about making an aggressive win-now trade with so many other clubs still in the mix.

Of course, what this front office is really about, is trying to draft and develop well, augmenting the major league club with generally low cost, short term commitments. The specter of collecting a PPI pick for Kevin McGonigle’s Rookie of the Year campaign, getting compensation picks for Skubal and potentially for Casey Mize as well, in a year in which the Tigers are scheduled to have a a CBA pick after the regular first round (new CBA pending, of course), would have this front office drooling over the 2027 draft. That thought might be enough to keep Skubal and take a crack at winning this year despite the odds, or at very least to be very stubborn about holding out for a haul in order to trade him.

With the All-Star break ending, and the trade deadline looming, it’s certainly time to talk trades. It’s just well worth establishing the context that most of this Skubal trade talk doesn’t always acknowledge. The Tigers have at no point uttered a single word of interest in a Skubal trade. Whether they should trade Skubal or not is a separate question. Unless you believe that the Tigers are going to get their bullpen sorted without outside additions, it’s hard to like their chances. At the same time, they are right within striking distance of their targets now and perhaps everything simply comes down to how they perform over the next two weeks.

The Tigers have passed on opportunities to trade Skubal already when he had more value and it made pretty good sense to do so. They placed their bets in the offseason, signed Framber Valdez, and decided to try and make a push with this group in 2026. It hasn’t gone very well, but the trendline is certainly headed in the right direction. Unless circumstances really force their hand by August 3, their interest in trading Tarik Skubal is likely lower than the baseball world believes. They’re going to hold out as long as possible, and we’ll see if anyone changes their mind with a really great offer. That’s not the worst position to be in coming out of the All-Star break after the debacle that was the month of May, but the decisions made between now and the trade deadline are crucial ones to get right after the deadline failures and collapse of 2025. This front office’s legacy may be defined by the decisions they make in the next few weeks.

The Mets’ bullpen churn has kicked into high gear as we head into the All-Star break, as evidenced by how many new names are on the meter this week. There are even more names (we hardly knew thee, Dan Hammer) who were shadow Mets who never got into a game and therefore don’t appear on the meter. The Mets’ pitching struggles continue, as the bullpen (with the exception of double fireball awardee Luke Weaver) has hit a rough patch. As for the rotation, Nolan McLean and Christian Scott have been its most consistent members of late, but Zach Thornton had his best start yet as a Met and may have earned himself more innings in the second half, especially if the Mets deal one or more of their pitchers at the deadline.

Player	Last week	This week
Huascar Brazobán, RHP
Xzavion Curry, RHP	—
Joey Gerber, RHP	—
Sean Manaea, LHP
Nolan McLean, RHP
A.J. Minter, LHP
Tobias Myers, RHP
Freddy Peralta, RHP
Cionel Pérez, LHP
Brooks Raley, LHP
Christian Scott, RHP
Matt Seelinger, RHP	—
Kodai Senga, RHP
Zach Thonton, LHP	—
Austin Warren, RHP
Luke Weaver, RHP
Devin Williams, RHP
Guillo Zuñiga, RHP	—

Poor Zach Thornton. He pitched seven shutout innings against the Red Sox and was in line for his first big league win when Francisco Lindor booted a potential game-ending double play and the Red Sox went on to win. That doesn’t take anything away from Thornton, who yielded just two hits while walking two batters and striking out five. After a rough big league debut, he has now pitched two gems in his next two chances. He’ll probably start a lot more games for the Mets in the second half.

Devin Williams blew the save in the ninth in the final game before the break, costing Thornton the win. It’s true that he was let down by Lindor in the field, but he collapsed totally after the error, issuing two costly walks. Williams’ performance has been uneven of late. He pitched a scoreless ninth in a non-save situation in the Mets’ series finale victory over the Royals, but had two consecutive outings in the Braves series in which he gave up at least one run. In the series finale in Atlanta, after Juan Soto’s clutch homer in the ninth gave the Mets the lead, Williams blew the save in the bottom of the frame, giving up a game-tying two-run homer to Matt Olson. Luckily for Williams and the Mets, they went on to win the game in extras. The day before, Williams found himself pitching in a game he did not expect to be pitching in, as the Mets almost blew a seven-run lead. Williams narrowly managed to protect it, but not without agita.

Williams found himself in that situation because Huascar Brazobán had his worst outing of the season thus far, giving up five runs in just a third of an inning, resulting in the Mets having to use Williams in a game they thought was well in hand. That outing heavily skews Brazobán’s ERA for this two-week span, which is ugly, but he did not give up any earned runs in any of his other three outings this month thus far. That doesn’t mean those outings were necessarily smooth though. In last Tuesday’s absolutely insane 16-12 loss to the Royals, after Austin Warren failed to retire a batter, Brazobán came in and allowed the tying runs to score, but those were charged to Warren. Warren was subsequently placed on the injured list with a forearm strain, which explains his poor outing. Brazobán went on to pitch a scoreless inning in the following frame when given a clean slate to work with, but he did have to navigate out of a jam to do so. He came back out to the mound two days later and pitched a 1-2-3 eighth inning ahead of Williams. He also pitched two thirds of an inning in relief of Freddy Peralta in Saturday’s loss to the Red Sox.

Freddy Peralta was sunk by walks on Saturday, issuing five of them in just 4 1/3 innings of work, over which he also struck out six. He only gave up two runs, but that was enough for him to get saddled with the loss, as the Mets were shut out that day. That outing is not really why he got a bad grade though. He got a bad grade because his outing in Toronto on Canada Day was quite bad. In that game, he was knocked around for five runs on seven hits in just four innings of work. “Not good,” Peralta said after that game. “I don’t feel good. But just trying to come back and make the adjustments.” Peralta also started the game in which the Mets eked out an extra-inning victory over the Braves. In that outing, he gave up three runs in 4 2/3 innings, but only one of those three runs was earned. All told though, Peralta—who is supposed to be one of the Mets’ best assets to deal at the deadline—has struggled and his ERA north of 4.5 is one of the worst among qualified NL starters.

Kodai Senga’s struggles continue unabated as well. His first couple of outings of the month of July were rocky. In Atlanta, he gave up a solo homer to Matt Olson—Olson’s second of the game in what ended as a 5-3 loss for the Mets. He followed that up with a nightmarish three innings as the bulk guy against the Royals in last Tuesday’s rollercoaster game. He gave up four runs in three innings of work, putting the Mets in an early hole, which they would eventually climb out of and then some, only to give it all back again…and then some. But there appears to be some hope Senga will have utility as a one-inning reliever. In his most recent outing on Friday night in the series opener against the Red Sox, Senga was deployed for just one inning for the first time this season and he did pitch a scoreless frame with a strikeout. So there is at least some light at the end of the tunnel and a path forward for him to provide value for the Mets in the second half and perhaps carve out a different future for himself.

Cionel Pérez served as the opener for last Tuesday’s wacky game against the Royals and was one of the only pitchers not to be scored upon in a game that ended with double-digit run totals for both teams. Unfortunately the pitcher everyone will remember from that infamous affair is Matt Seelinger, who made his big league debut under very tough circumstances. Due to the ineffectiveness of Senga, Warren, and Brazobán, Seelinger came into a tie game the Mets had once led by a significant margin and got shelled in the seventh to the tune of seven runs and still had to go back out for another inning afterwards. Seelinger was designated for assignment after the game, but remains in the organization after clearing waivers. Cionel Pérez’s month of July so far has consisted of two good outings sandwiched between two poor ones. In Toronto, Pérez gave up four runs of insurance to the Blue Jays in the rubber game, effectively sealing the Mets’ fate. He then bounced back to pitch 1 1/3 scoreless innings in relief of Peralta in Atlanta and served effectively as the opener ahead of Senga, but then in the series opener against the Red Sox, Pérez gave up two insurance runs in the ninth, only managing to record the first two outs before needing to be bailed out.

Xzavion Curry—one of the many new names on this meter—came in to record the final out of the ninth inning on Friday night. Curry also appeared in last Wednesday’s 6-2 victory over the Royals and allowed a run in the ninth, but luckily the Mets had broken out for a five-run eighth and he had a large lead to work with.

Joey Gerber was also back in the majors during this 13-game span. Freshly recalled from Triple-A, he appeared in the two losses the Mets took in Toronto, though neither was his fault. In the series opener, he pitched a 1-2-3 eighth inning with two strikeouts to keep the Mets within a run and then in the Canada Day series finale, he threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings before Pérez imploded. Things went less well for Gerber on Independence Day when he came into an already lopsided game and gave up three runs before Luis Torrens spared the rest of the bullpen by recording the final out of the laugher. Gerber was then optioned back to Triple-A Syracuse.

Sean Manaea took the loss on July 4th in Atlanta, though he was far from the only culprit. Manaea gave up six runs in five innings of work, but only three of those runs were earned because of the comically bad defense the Mets played, including a miscommunication between Tyrone Taylor and Francisco Lindor that resulted in the ball evading both of them and the bases clearing. Manaea’s other two starts in the past two weeks were much better, though the Mets playing poor defense remained a theme across all three starts. In the series opener in Toronto, George Springer was credited with a triple on his Little League home run because the ball never touched Soto’s glove, but Soto’s miscue absolutely cost Manaea and the Mets a run, even though it goes on the ledger as earned. That was one of two runs Manaea gave up in 5 2/3 innings of work, striking out four and walking two. He took the tough luck loss on a day the Mets only scored one run. After two straight losses, he did finally earn a win against the Royals with a quality start in which he gave up just three runs—only two of them earned (thanks to the stellar Mets defense again)—in seven innings of work. He struck out six and walked only one in that outing.

Nolan McLean went through a rough patch, but has been a lot better lately. He pitched six shutout innings against the Blue Jays in the second game of that series and the only game the Mets won. He struck out seven in the outing and walked only two while scattering five hits. In fact, he gave up exactly five hits in each of his three starts in the past two weeks and all three were quality starts. He earned another win on July 5 in Atlanta in which the Mets hung on to win by the skin of their teeth. He gave up three runs—only two earned—in six innings of work, striking out five batters and walking one. But alas, he fell to .500 again on Friday despite a good outing. He gave up two runs, but neither of them were earned. Over six innings, he struck out seven and walked only two. But the Red Sox pulled away in the late innings.

Luke Weaver continues to be nothing short of spectacular—the lone shining light of stability in a bullpen full of meltdowns, blown saves, and a revolving door of new faces. Weaver pitched a scoreless eighth inning in relief of McLean in Toronto, earning his tenth hold of the season. He then pitched on back-to-back days in Atlanta; he pitched a scoreless eighth inning on July 5 before the Mets took the lead in the ninth, only to nearly give it all back in the bottom of the inning. The next day he earned his first save of the season, working around two walks to hold the Braves to just the one run in the bottom of the tenth (scored by the ghost runner) to seal the victory. He also pitched as scoreless eighth inning in relief of Zack Thornton on Sunday before things went south for Devin Williams. Weaver ends the first half with a 1.85 ERA.

Brooks Raley took the loss on Sunday for giving up one unearned run in the tenth on a sacrifice bunt and a sacrifice fly that scored the ghost runner. It was tough luck for Raley, who did his job, but the Mets were unable to do even the bare minimum in the bottom of the inning to keep the game going, so a loss on his ledger it was. Raley bounced back after a rough patch to end his first half on a high note. Tied for the most appearances of any Mets reliever over this 13-game span with six, Raley didn’t give up an earned run across 5 1/3 total innings of work in those appearances. Raley pitched a scoreless seventh in relief of McLean in Toronto to set the stage for Weaver and Williams. He also appeared in both victories in Atlanta with a scoreless seventh in relief of McLean again last Sunday. The next day after Williams blew the save in the ninth, Raley recorded a key final out to help send the game to extra innings and ultimately earned the win for doing so. Future Mets Sporcle answer Guillo Zuñiga appeared in that game as well, pitching a scoreless eighth inning and being thanked by being designated for assignment the next day. He was outrighted to Triple-A and is still in the organization. Raley earned another win for a scoreless eighth last Wednesday against the Royals, as the Mets went on to have a big inning in the bottom of the frame to take a commanding lead. Finally, Raley appeared in both Saturday and Sunday’s games against the Red Sox, contributing a scoreless innings to each of those ultimately losing efforts.

A.J. Minter, another lefty on an expiring contract and potential trade piece for the Mets, appeared in six games in the final two weeks of the first half as well. He pitched 1 1/3 hitless innings to finish off the Canada Day game in Toronto. He gave up a solo homer to Matt Olson in the series opener in Atlanta, but then rebounded to contribute a scoreless inning to the extra-inning victory in the finale. He pitched the ninth inning of the insane series opener against the Royals and his hitless frame stuck out like a sore thumb amongst a box score otherwise full of crooked numbers. He then appeared in each of the first two games in the Red Sox series and had mixed results. In the series opener, he gave up a two-run homer to Anthony Seigler in the seventh in relief of McLean that ultimately sealed that game. But the next day he pitched a scoreless sixth with two strikeouts despite the Mets being shut out that day.

Christian Scott finished out a solid first half with a so-so start and a good one. In Atlanta, he lasted just four innings, giving up three runs and taking the loss. He struck out an impressive seven batters in that outing, but walked four. He followed that up with five shutout innings against the Royals in which he gave up just three hits, striking out five and walking one.

I hate to end on a bad note, but I think the Mets broke Tobias Myers, who gets poop emoji’d again. Scott didn’t earn the win for his five shutout innings because Myers blew the tenuous one-run lead in that game in the sixth. But he did come back out for the seventh and worked around a leadoff double to keep the game tied and the Mets would go on to win thanks to a big eighth inning. Myers pitched the final two innings of Saturday’s game against the Red Sox and they doubled their lead against him; Masataka Yoshida hit a two-run homer. It didn’t very much matter since the Mets were shut out that day, but Myers continues to struggle, his role moving forward uncertain. He was optioned back to Triple-A Syracuse after the outing and will begin the second half in the minors.