The New York Mets invested so much money into their offense, they forgot they needed to make sure their pitching staff was intact. David Peterson’s the latest Mets pitcher to fall apart in the dumpster fire that is their rotation right now. Just after finding out Griffin Cannon’s season is done due to an Achilles injury, Peterson decided to once again have a terrible outing.
In his last 12.1 innings pitched through the first four innings against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Peterson had 10 earned runs. In the game against the Pirates, he allowed six hits and four earned runs. After a hot start, he’s finally come back down to earth. It couldn’t be at a worse time for the Mets.
On top of that, the Pirates have been hitting him hard. Five Pirates batters have had exit velocities over 100 miles per hour with Alexander Canario and Ke’Bryan Hayes each approaching 108 mph.
David Peterson’s meltdown couldn’t come at a worse time for the New York Mets
Is it too late to see if Jacob deGrom would break his no trade clause to come back to Queens? Because if there was a time the Mets needed pitching help it’s now. Cannon’s injury added another setback to a pitching rotation that’s been depleted this season.
The injuries are piling up with Tylor Megill and Kodai Senga out as well. So much for a team putting it all on the line when they signed Juan Soto. What they didn’t account for is their pitching to hold them back. And now they’re stuck with limited options to address their biggest weakness.
If Peterson, who had a strong start to the year, can’t get back on track, the Mets will be scrambling over the next few weeks to try and get any replacement they can before the trade deadline.
Who can the New York Mets turn to as pitching woes reach new lows?
One player the Mets could turn to over the next few weeks is Merrill Kelly. He’s having a solid season with the Arizona Diamondbacks and could be up for sale. He’s a free agent after the season and at 36 years old, Arizona might look to move on from him when they can get something in return.
Kelly is 7-3 this year with a 3.39 ERA. He would instantly come in and help this rotation from completely imploding, which is exactly what they need. Walker Buehler could be another name on the move. The Boston Red Sox have shown they aren’t shy about moving off players with the Rafael Devers trade.
This season, Buehler is having an up-and-down season. He has a 6.29 ERA with a 1.57 WHIP and 56 strikeouts. Again, those aren’t great numbers but maybe a change of scenery can help him recapture the version of himself that won a World Series last year.