Mets at Marlins
Hours after New York Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen told reporters that he has "low expectations" for the rest of the year, his team did nothing to change that narrative. After dropping the series opener in Miami on Friday, the Mets will attempt to end a four-game losing streak against the Marlins when the teams resume their three-game set on Saturday night.
New York managed five hits in Friday's 8-4 setback to drop its sixth consecutive game away from home and fall to a National League-worst 17-32 on the road. Todd Frazier belted a two-run homer and Wilson Ramos drove in a pair of runs for the Mets, who are a season-worst 11 games below .500. Miami entered the series with the worst record and fewest homers (68) in the majors but clubbed three Friday, including two-run shots from Curtis Granderson and Brian Anderson. Garrett Cooper added a solo shot and RBI double to improve to 5-for-11 with five RBIs and four runs scored during a three-game hitting streak.
TV: 6:10 p.m. ET, WPIX (New York), FS Florida
PITCHING MATCHUP: Mets RH Noah Syndergaard (6-4, 4.68 ERA) vs. Marlins RH Zac Gallen (0-1, 4.50)
While Syndergaard is unbeaten in his last seven starts and went 3-0 in his last four outings, he did not exactly head into the All-Star break on a high note. He yielded 12 runs on 20 hits, including four home runs, over 16 2/3 innings in his last three starts but his teammates helped him out by amassing 22 runs in that span. Syndergaard fell to 6-1 with a 1.74 ERA in nine starts versus the Marlins after tossing seven innings of two-run ball in a loss at Miami on May 19.
Gallen will be looking to earn his first win as he makes his fourth major league start overall and second at Marlins Park. A third-round draft pick of St. Louis in 2016, the 23-year-old worked five innings of one-run ball in his major league debut and followed that up by allowing three runs over five innings in a loss to Washington on June 26. Gallen, who went 9-1 with a 1.77 ERA at Triple-A New Orleans, had his last start cut short after two innings by a rain delay.
WALK-OFFS
1. Anderson's homer was his 12th of the season, surpassing his total from his rookie campaign in 2018.
2. Mets 2B Robinson Cano was 1-for-4 Friday but has gone 11 games without an extra-base hit.
3. The Marlins on Friday signed OF JJ Bleday, the No. 4 overall pick in last month's draft.