New York Mets: What the bleep is wrong with Steven Matz?
By Tim Boyle
It’s only Spring Training, but New York Mets pitcher Steven Matz has been atrocious in both of his starts. What the bleep is going on?
Not long ago, New York Mets pitcher Steven Matz looked like the finishing touch to an already stellar starting rotation. Injuries and other factors have curtailed those hopes for a championship in Queens. After narrowly missing a World Series victory in 2015, the Mets have taken many steps back.
Though still armed with a pretty good group of starting pitchers, fans may need to start rethinking their opinion of Matz. After pitching well in 2015 and 2016, Matz saw his stock plummet in 2017. He finished the year with a 2-7 record and 6.08 ERA over the course of 13 starts. Worse, his Spring Training has not started off well at all.
Matz has taken the hill for the Mets twice already. The results are disastrous.
Steven Matz’s terrible Spring Training
On February 27, Steven Matz made his 2018 debut. Unfortunately, he had to face the defending champion Houston Astros. Matz lasted only one inning against the Astros, but not before allowing five runs to cross the plate on three hits. All five of those earned runs came in the second inning, where Matz would leave from without retiring a single batter.
More recently, Matz started against the division rival Washington Nationals. Again, he turned in a pitiful performance. This time, however, Matz didn’t even make it out of the first inning alive. The Nationals scored five earned runs against him two-thirds of an inning. Matz walked two and allowed five hits.
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Tally up the two starts and Matz has surrendered ten runs over 1 2/3 innings this spring. The abysmal performance has Mets fans befuddled. What the bleep happened to this once promising starter?
One possibility is that he is not yet at 100%. The young lefty made only 13 unlucky starts last year for New York. Pressured to get back into the rotation, maybe Matz is saying he’s better than he actually is.
The New York Mets have the unfortunate “problem” of employing a surplus of starting pitching options. Only Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom, and Jason Vargas look like absolutes when it comes to the rotation. The thought is that Matz and Matt Harvey were the early favorites for the final two spots with Zack Wheeler likely headed to the bullpen. A bad preseason for Matz could always change Mickey Callaway’s plans.
Some positive New York Mets news
At the opposite end of the spectrum, other New York Mets pitchers have done well. Health concerns aside, Matz is the only one really stinking up the joint.
Next: Mets may be playoff contenders once again
Outfielder Brandon Nimmo has been the team’s best hitter, which could make for some interesting competition as Spring Training progresses. The Mets have multiple candidates for the outfield with Nimmo appearing to break past Juan Lagares as the best option to start in center field on Opening Day.