Nolan McLean and Foster Griffin made for a lopsided ledger on paper alone. McLean, the Mets' rookie right-hander and a frontrunner for NL Rookie of the Year, took the ball for New York in the 1:10 PM ET matinee. Across town in a Cleveland uniform for the first time was Griffin, the left-hander Cleveland snagged from Washington just days earlier at the deadline after he made the All-Star team as a National.
Show fees
FINAL
Spread
ML
Total
Mets(49-66)
WWLLL
13
Guardians(57-58)
LLWLL
6
Best BetGuardians -109
Postgame
This one didn't come close. Griffin's Cleveland debut got rocked instead of providing the lift we banked on, and the bear case we flagged — the Mets already owning this series — turned out to be the whole story. New York's 13-6 win makes this pick a clean miss.
Pregame
Cleveland's still the deeper team on paper, and Griffin's 12-3 mark gives them a real edge on the mound even after a shaky last outing. The Mets have won the first two games of this series, though, and McLean's been arguably the best pitcher in this matchup all year — this line sitting near even money reflects real uncertainty. We'll stick with the home side given the overall roster gap once Ramirez is back to full strength.
The stakes behind that debut were real. Griffin was Cleveland's headline trade-deadline pickup, brought in alongside Jo Adell and Nathaniel Lowe to try to drag a .500-ish roster back into contention. New York, on the other hand, had nothing to play for but pride and a rookie arm worth watching, plus a beat-up bullpen after placing both Cionel Perez and Austin Warren on the 15-day injured list within the last two weeks.
Nolan McLean
(9-8)·3.34 ERA
Jul 30 vs Marlins
ND
6.1IP
2ER
6K
2BB
99P
08/06 Lineup
Foster Griffin
(14-4)·3.18 ERA
Jul 31 @ Braves
L
5.1IP
6ER
3K
2BB
78P
08/06 Lineup
Neither team arrived with much momentum behind it. The Mets had dropped 3 straight to Miami before finding life against Cleveland, while the Guardians were already limping into this series having lost 4 of their last 5. Something had to give, and it wasn't subtle.
New York Mets
(7)
10-Day-ILJuan Soto (LF) — The Mets placed Soto (calf) on the 10-day injured list Saturday with a strained left calf.07/25
10-Day-ILMark Vientos (1B) — Mets interim manager Andy Green said Thursday that Vientos has been diagnosed with a fractured right hand and will be placed on the 10-day injured list, Chelsea Janes of SNY.tv reports.07/10
15-Day-ILCionel Perez (RP) — The Mets placed Perez on the 15-day injured list Friday with a left forearm strain.07/31
15-Day-ILAustin Warren (RP)
60-Day-ILJustin Hagenman (RP) — The Mets announced June 1 that Hagenman (rib) has yet to resume a throwing program, MLB.com reports.07/13
60-Day-ILReed Garrett (RP) — The Mets placed Garrett (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Tuesday.05/08
60-Day-ILTylor Megill (SP) — The Mets placed Megill (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Thursday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.05/08
Cleveland Guardians
(1)
60-Day-ILShawn Armstrong (RP) — The Guardians transferred Armstrong (calf) to the 60-day injured list Tuesday.08/05
It got away from Cleveland fast and then again late. The Mets scored 3 in the 2nd, 2 more in the 3rd, and had the game essentially in hand before Griffin exited. Cleveland clawed within a run in the 5th, but New York answered with a 3-run 7th and a 4-run 8th to slam the door, finishing with 18 hits against just 10 for the home side. Both offenses played clean defense — zero errors apiece — which only underlines how much of this one was about barrels, not breaks.
That result completes a series in which New York has now taken all 3 meetings from Cleveland, a rough welcome-to-town moment for a Guardians club that just spent prospect capital trying to get better. Andy Green's interim tenure in Queens has had its ugly stretches given the Mets' 49-66 mark, but this series was not one of them.
New York Mets
(49-66)
Aug 5W@ Guardians6-5
Aug 4W@ Guardians6-2
Aug 2Lvs Marlins0-2
Aug 1Lvs Marlins2-6
Jul 31Lvs Marlins2-5
Cleveland Guardians
(57-58)
Aug 5Lvs Mets5-6
Aug 4Lvs Mets2-6
Aug 2Wvs Diamondbacks5-0
Aug 1Lvs Diamondbacks8-12
Jul 31Lvs Diamondbacks1-4
For Cleveland, the concern now is whether Griffin's first outing in the new digs was an aberration or a sign the transition takes time. For the Mets, it's just further proof that when McLean and the lineup click, they can hang with anybody — postseason math or not.
