Mets Finally Won a Road Series and Now They're Chasing Denver's Collapsing Rockies

The Mets needed a win. Actually, they needed a lot of wins. After crawling through April with a 10-21 record that felt like watching paint dry at T-Mobile Park, New York finally caught a break on the West Coast. They took two of three from the Angels, snagging their first road series victory since early April against the Giants. Now they're heading to Denver to keep the good vibes rolling against a Rockies team that is absolutely falling apart.

Mark Vientos Is Waking Up When the Mets Need It Most

In Sunday's 5-1 win that clinched the series, Mark Vientos went absolutely off with two two-run home runs. That's the kind of clutch hitting the Mets have been starving for all season. Right now, New York has scored just 118 runs, second fewest in all of baseball ahead of only the Giants' 106. The offense is anemic, but at least someone is starting to figure it out.

"I think that's the name of the game, putting yesterday in the past," Vientos said after the win. "We have to focus on the right now."

Manager Carlos Mendoza is thinking bigger picture. "That's our goal, to start winning series. That's what it's going to take for us to get to where we want to be. One series at a time, one game at a time."

Peterson Gets a Homecoming Against a Reeling Colorado Staff

The Mets plan to use an opener Monday before David Peterson takes over. The 30-year-old left-hander is a Denver native, but he comes in ice cold. Peterson is 0-4 with a 6.53 ERA and has failed to pitch four full innings in each of his last three starts. His most recent outing was brutal: seven runs on five hits in 3 2/3 frames against Washington.

On the flip side, Colorado's pitching got absolutely shredded this weekend. The Rockies allowed 28 runs across a three-game sweep to Atlanta. They're turning to offseason addition Tomoyuki Sugano (3-1, 2.84 ERA) to stop the bleeding. Sugano threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts in his last outing against Cincinnati. The 36-year-old right-hander faced the Mets once last year with Baltimore, giving up three runs over six innings in a 7-3 Mets win on July 10.

First pitch Monday is three hours earlier than originally scheduled due to weather. This is the kind of series the Mets need to win if they want to climb out of the hole they dug early on.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.