The Mets Just Won Their First Road Series Since April and They're Heading to Denver to Face a Rockies Team That's Falling Apart

The New York Mets desperately needed a win to turn around a brutal start to the season. After stumbling out to a 10-21 record, they finally got one, and now they're banking on riding that momentum into Colorado for a three-game set against the Rockies starting Monday.

New York came back from the West Coast with a series victory over the Los Angeles Angels, their first road series win since taking down the San Francisco Giants back in early April. It's not much, but for a team that's been searching for any reason to believe, it's something to build on.

Vientos Is Waking Up, and the Mets' Bats Needed Him

The Mets' offense has been anemic all season. They've scored just 118 runs, second fewest in baseball with only the Giants scoring fewer at 106. That changed on Sunday when Mark Vientos delivered two two-run home runs to lead a 5-1 victory.

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

Manager Carlos Mendoza is preaching patience but also urgency. "That's our goal, to start winning series," he said. "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 His Hometown Shot Against the Rockies

The Mets will deploy an opener Monday before David Peterson takes over. The 30-year-old left-hander has been brutal lately, failing to get out of the fourth inning in each of his last three starts. He's 0-4 with a 6.53 ERA, and just last time out against Washington, he gave up seven runs on five hits in 3 2/3 innings in a 14-2 blowout loss.

There's one silver lining for Peterson: he's facing his hometown team. In four previous starts against the Rockies, he's 3-1 with a 1.99 ERA.

Colorado is reeling. They've dropped five of their last six games after sweeping the Mets earlier in April. This past weekend against Atlanta was a disaster, giving up 28 runs in a three-game sweep. The Rockies will counter with offseason addition Tomoyuki Sugano, who's been one of the few bright spots this season. Sugano is 3-1 with a 2.84 ERA and threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings in his last outing against Cincinnati on Wednesday, striking out two in a 13-2 victory. 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 win on July 10.

Game time was pushed up three hours due to rain coming to Denver. First pitch Monday will tell us if the Mets can stack wins or if they're about to fall right back down.

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