Mets Finally Won a Road Series and Now They're Hunting the Rockies

The New York Mets needed this. After stumbling out of the gate with a 10-21 record, New York grabbed something rare: a road series victory. They took two of three from the Los Angeles Angels, and now they're heading to Denver to face the Colorado Rockies in a three-game set starting Monday, looking to ride that momentum as far as it'll take them.

"That's our goal, to start winning series," Mets manager Carlos Mendoza 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."

Vientos and the Bats Finally Show Up

Mark Vientos was exactly what the Mets needed on Sunday, launching two two-run home runs in a 5-1 win over the Angels. It's a sign the offense might be waking up. Right now, New York's 118 runs scored rank second fewest in baseball, ahead of only the Giants' 106.

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

The Mets' first road series win since a four-game set against San Francisco in early April tells you how much they've been struggling away from home. But if the bats stay hot, maybe that changes this week.

Peterson Takes the Mound Against His Hometown

Mendoza announced the team will use an opener Monday before David Peterson (0-4, 6.53 ERA) takes over. The 30-year-old Denver native has been a disaster lately, failing to get through four innings in each of his last three starts. His most recent outing saw him surrender seven runs on five hits in 3 2/3 frames during a 14-2 loss to Washington.

Peterson does have history against Colorado though. He's 3-1 with a 1.99 ERA in his first four starts against the Rockies, and Monday will be his fifth matchup with his hometown team.

Rockies Look to Stop the Bleeding

Colorado is in freefall. They've dropped five of their last six games since sweeping the Mets from April 24-26, and things got worse fast against Atlanta. The Rockies allowed 28 runs across a three-game sweep by the Braves.

The Rockies will counter with offseason addition Tomoyuki Sugano (3-1, 2.84 ERA), who was lights out last time. Sugano threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts in a 13-2 win over Cincinnati on Wednesday.

"He set the tone, kept them off-balanced, relied on his offspeed pitches," Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said. "He was really good, efficient, just like he's been all year."

Sugano, 36, is a former Baltimore Orioles pitcher who faced the Mets once last year, allowing three runs in six frames in a 7-3 win on July 10. The game starts Monday, moved up three hours because of predicted bad weather.

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