Andre Pallante (6-4, 3.96) takes the ball for St. Louis after dancing through 5.2 innings of one-run ball in Texas his last time out. New York counters with reliever Austin Warren as an opener, the same gig he handled June 1 against Seattle when he threw a clean 1.0-inning, 19-pitch frame before handing it off. First pitch 7:10 PM ET.
This is the Mets' second bullpen game of the homestand and it could not come at a worse time. Freddy Peralta got chewed up for 6 runs in 6 innings Monday night, Dustin May shoved for the Cardinals, and Alec Burleson did most of the damage with a homer and 3 RBI. St. Louis is now riding a 5-game winning streak and has climbed to 36-28.
The Mets at 29-37 are starting to look like a team running on fumes. They have been shut out 7 times already this season, one shy of last year's full-season total, and they are still missing Francisco Lindor and Jorge Polanco from the everyday lineup. Lindor is at least working back into full baseball activities during this homestand, but he is not walking through that door tonight.
- Day-To-DayPacky Naughton RP — Naughton will undergo surgery next month to repair the damaged UCL in his left elbow, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
- Day-To-DaySem Robberse SP — Robberse (elbow) signed a minor-league contract with the Cardinals on Monday, which includes an invitation to spring training, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
- Day-To-DayVictor Santos RP — The Red Sox traded Santos (undisclosed) and Nick Robertson to the Cardinals on Friday in exchange for Tyler O'Neill (foot), Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.
- Day-To-DayIxan Henderson SP — Henderson (elbow) is starting the season on the 60-day injured list at Triple-A Memphis.
- Day-To-DayZack Thompson RP — The Cardinals reassigned Thompson (shoulder) to minor-league camp Monday.
- 10-Day-ILRamon Urias 3B — Urias (elbow) returned to St. Louis to undergo an examination on his left elbow, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
- 15-Day-ILRyan Fernandez RP — The Cardinals recalled Fernandez from Triple-A Memphis on Tuesday.
- Day-To-DayBrandon Waddell RP — Waddell (shoulder) picked up the win after allowing three runs on four hits while striking out two across three innings during Saturday's game against Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre.
- Day-To-DayAdbert Alzolay RP — The Mets reassigned Alzolay to minor-league camp Tuesday.
- Day-To-DayMike Tauchman RF — Tauchman (knee) is still rehabbing at the Mets' spring training complex and has yet to resume baseball activities, Tim Britton of The Athletic reports.
- Day-To-DayGrae Kessinger 3B — no
- Day-To-DayJoe Jacques RP — The Mets signed Jacques to a minor-league contract Wednesday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.
- Day-To-DayKevin Herget RP — Herget signed a minor league contract that includes an invitation to spring training with the Mets on Thursday, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.
- Day-To-DayJose Rojas 3B — Triple-A Salt Lake placed Rojas on its COVID-19 injured list Sunday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.
- 10-Day-ILJorge Polanco 1B — An MRI on Polanco's left ankle/Achilles tendon came back negative Tuesday, Andrew Tredinnick of The Bergen Record reports.
The flip side: Pallante is not exactly an ace, and bullpen games can go sideways for the favorite in a hurry if the opener gets squared up. If Sean Manaea or whoever follows Warren can give them length, this thing is a coin flip. If not, it is another long night in Flushing.
The market still has the Mets as a -128 home favorite, which feels generous to a team that just got blanked in their own building. One small sharp ticket has already nibbled on the Cardinals side. The pitching matchup on paper says Mets; the last 10 days say otherwise.