After sweeping the Washington Nationals, the New York Mets welcomed the Colorado Rockies into town for the final three-game series before the all-star break.
The blue and orange hit five home runs in the series opener, including a pair by both Jose Iglesias and Harrison Bader, which was enough to take game one 7-6.
A mistake by the Rockies in the second inning led to the Mets plating four, and that would be all they would have needed as they went on to score seven for the second day in a row and win game two 7-3.
The black and purple would hit six home runs in game three, three of which came off the bat of Michael Toglia, and it would be too much for the Mets to overcome as they dropped the series finale 8-5.
Here are three takeaways from the Mets’ series victory over the Rockies.
Jose Buttó has become a weapon out of the bullpen
After impressing as a starter in the major leagues, José Buttó returned to the show to come out of the depleted Mets bullpen and has turned into a weapon.
Buttó pitched 2.2 innings out of the bullpen, allowing just one hit and one walk while striking out five and picking up a save. The Venezuelan native is naturally a starter and likely will get some chances to start games again in the future, but for now, Butto has turned into quite the threat out of the bullpen.
Jose Iglesias needs to be the full-time starter
President of baseball operations David Stearns made plenty of brilliant signings that have worked out this past offseason, but none have been more surprising than the success of Iglesias.
The 34-year-old impressed against the Rockies, going 6-for-8 with two home runs, two RBIs and a walk while scoring four runs. With the ability to play the struggling Jeff McNeil in right field, it is time to make Candelita the full-time starter.
Jose Quintana comes back to earth
No starting pitcher on the Mets roster had been hotter than Jose Quintana, but the clock struck midnight on the 35-year-old’s recent excellent stretch against the Rockies.
Quintana went 5.2 innings, allowing five runs, six hits( four of which were home runs), and a walk while striking out nine. Although the Columbia native’s stellar run of starts came to an end, there were still some positives out of this outing, and Quintana will look to bounce back in his first start after the all-star break.
