With the all-star break now concluded, the New York Mets’ second half began with a road trip to Miami as they faced off against the Marlins in a four-game series.
The Marlins scored a pair in the second and third innings of game one, which ultimately became too much for the Mets to overcome as they fell 6-4.
Game two was a pitchers duel between Luis Severino and Roddery Munoz, with Francisco Álvarez grounding into a fielder’s choice that scored Pete Alonso the only run in a 1-0 Mets victory.
After a sacrifice fly from Luis Torrens in the fourth inning gave the Mets a 1-0 lead, Jazz Chisholm Jr. would respond with a three-run home run in the bottom half of the inning, which would be enough as the blue and orange bats went cold in a 4-2 game three loss.
A pair of home runs from Francisco Lindor and three RBIs from Jeff McNeil would be all the Mets needed. Despite the Marlins bringing the tying run to the plate at the bottom of the ninth, the blue and orange held on for a 6-4 game-four victory to secure the series split.
Jeff McNeil’s bat has reawakened
Arguably, no Met struggled more in the first half than the 2022 batting champion. However, McNeil’s bat has reawakened after adjusting his swing during the all-star break. The 32-year-old went four-for-12 against the Marlins with three home runs and six RBIs.
If McNeil can start producing at the plate, the Mets lineup will regain some flexibility and length that it has felt lacking over the past couple of weeks.
Luis Severino shines on short notice
After initially being scheduled to pitch on Sunday, Severino was forced into action a day early due to Jose Quintana being sick. Despite the short notice, the Mets’ surprise ace did nothing but shine. The 30-year-old went six strong innings against the Marlins, allowing no runs and just two hits while striking out seven.
Severino has been everything the Mets could have hoped for, and now his ability to pitch on short notice could play a huge role in postseason play if the situation were to arise later this season.
Jose Iglesias just keeps hitting
While McNeil may have struggled the most in the first half, his second base counterpart, Jose Iglesias, did nothing but shine, which continued in the second half’s first series. Iglesias went six-for-14 against the Marlins with a double, triple, and RBI.
The 34-year-old has revived his career since donning the blue and orange and should continue to be a crucial cog of the squad down the stretch.