Game Chat: Mets vs Reds, 6:40 PM

Friday, September 5, 2025 • 6:40 PM
Great American Ball Park • Cincinnati, OH
LHP David Peterson (8-5, 3.61) vs. LHP Andrew Abbott (8-5, 2.65)
SNY

The next seven games can decide if the Mets make the playoffs.

Heading into play today, the Mets trail the Philadelphia Phillies for the NL East lead by six games. They are five games ahead of the Cincinnati Reds for the last Wild Card spot. A solid series in Cincinnati this weekend could effectively knock the Reds out of the postseason picture (barring a Padres and Giants collapse). In July, the Reds took two of three games from the Mets at Citi Field, so there is a possibility that Cincinnati could get the tiebreaker outright from the Mets this weekend. New York is still in control of their destiny, however. Let’s go!

Mets Lineup

1. Francisco Lindor – SS
2. Juan Soto – RF
3. Pete Alonso – 1B
4. Mark Vientos – 3B
5. Brandon Nimmo – LF
6. Starling Marte – DH
7. Jeff McNeil – CF
8. Francisco Alvarez – C
9. Luisangel Acuña – 2B

David Peterson has thrown 152 innings over 26 games this season with a 3.61 ERA, 3.38 FIP, 1.309 WHIP and a 111 ERA+. He is coming off of a rough start against the Miami Marlins where he allowed eight runs over the first two innings on eight hits and three walks. Before that outing, he allowed only three runs over his previous 13 2/3 innings while striking out 18 during that stretch. He had a great start against the Reds back in July, holding them to one unearned run over six innings, scattering four hits.

The Reds have the following career numbers against Peterson:

• Miguel Andujar 2-7, 2B, BB
• Elly De La Cruz 1-3
• Santiago Espinal 1-4
• TJ Friedl 1-6, BB, 2 K
• Ke’Bryan Hayes 4-9, 2B, 2 BB, K
• Austin Hays 0-4, K
• Gavin Lux 0-2, BB
• Noelvi Marte 2-5
• Matt McLain 1-3, 2 K
• Spencer Steer 1-6, HR, 2 BB, K
• Jose Trevino 1-1

Opposing Lineup

1. TJ Friedl – CF
2. Noelvi Marte – RF
3. Elly De La Cruz – SS
4. Miguel Andujar – DH
5. Austin Hays – LF
6. Spencer Steer – 1B
7. Tyler Stephenson – C
8. Ke’Bryan Hayes – 3B
9. Matt McLain – 2B

Andrew Abbott has pitched 139 innings over 24 starts with a 2.65 ERA, 3.63 FIP, 1.115 WHIP and a 173 ERA+. August was a rougher month for Abbott, who posted a 4.45 ERA and 3.63 FIP over 30 1/3 innings spread over five games. That stretch included a seven-inning shutout (August 17) and seven runs (six earned) over four innings (August 23).

He held the Mets to two runs over six innings back in July. and the Mets have the following career stats against him:

• Luisangel Acuña 1-1, 2B
• Pete Alonso 0-4, BB, 2 K
• Brett Baty 2-6, K
• Francisco Lindor 3-7, 2B, HR, BB, K
• Starling Marte 1-2, BB, K
• Ronny Mauricio 2-2
• Jeff McNeil 1-4, 2 BB
• Cedric Mullins 2-4, 2B, HR, K
• Brandon Nimmo 1-8, 3 K
• Juan Soto 3-8, BB
• Luis Torrens 1-3
• Mark Vientos 2-5, K

Game Notes

• Reed Garrett made the first appearance of his rehab assignment on Thursday night for Double-A Binghamton, striking out a pair of batters as part of a scoreless inning. For more, check out our minor league recap!
• Kodai Senga officially accepted an assignment to Triple-A Syracuse on Friday and is expected to make two starts with the affiliate, per SNY’s Andy Martino.

Three Things To Watch For

1. Francisco Alvarez. Alvarez is starting tonight’s game, which is impressive because he has been through it over the last month. Against the Seattle Mariners in mid-August, he sprained his UCL in his right thumb sliding into a base. He’s playing through the injury despite needing surgery to really fix it. While rehabbing, he got hit in his left hand by a pitch, fracturing his pinky finger. So here comes Alvarez with two hurt hands. He was smoking the ball before getting injured, with three multi-hit games in his last seven played with three home runs, two doubles, seven runs scored and nine RBIs over that stretch. He’s coming off a game in the minors where he hit a grand slam as well.
2. Ballpark Factors. Over the last three years, Great American Ball Park has had a park factor of 103 per Baseball Savant, which is fourth in the majors (positive for hitters). Great American’s park factor is almost entirely due to its home run numbers (123), meaning that players from all teams are observed to have 23% more home runs at GABP compared to their performance elsewhere. We already know the Mets smash home runs. We also know the Mets’ bullpen has been a struggle recently. This will play part of the story all weekend. Interestingly, Abbott has much better splits at home (81 innings, 2.11 ERA, 8 HR) compared to on the road (58 innings, 3.41 ERA, 7 HR).
3. Scoreboard watching. The Wild Card race has gotten interesting over the last couple of days. The Padres have lost eight of their last ten games and now have a one-game lead over the Mets for the second spot. They are playing the Colorado Rockies this weekend. The San Francisco Giants, on the other hand, have surged, winning nine of their last ten games while leapfrogging the Reds. While Cincinnati is five games back, the Giants are only four games back of the Mets for the last Wild Card spot. The Phillies, with their six-game lead in the division, start a series with the Marlins tonight.

Let’s go Mets!

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