New York @ Baltimore preview
Oriole Park at Camden Yards
Last Meeting ( Jun 11, 2010 ) NY Mets 5, Baltimore 1
As the next man up in the New York Mets rotation, Hisanori Takahashi has a high bar to clear - or a low one, depending on your point of view.
Takahashi will take the mound against the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday at Camden Yards with the challenge of following outstanding efforts from Jonathon Niese and R.A. Dickey, who surrendered a total of one run over the Mets' past two games.
If the 35-year-old left-hander can match his two predecessors in the starting rotation, the Mets will have a good chance of continuing their hot streak and their climb up the NL East standings.
New York has won six of seven to move into second place, passing the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday and pulling within 1 1/2 games of the Atlanta Braves.
Niese's one-hitter on Thursday against the San Diego Padres and Dickey's seven innings of one-run ball Friday against the Orioles have provided the latest heroics. Now Takahashi hopes to follow suit and return to the form he showed in his first two starts.
Takahashi (4-2, 3.80 ERA) threw six scoreless innings in each of his first two outings after joining the rotation. However, he hasn't fared as well in his last two starts, posting an 0-1 record and a 10.61 ERA in 9 1/3 innings.
He'll have the benefit of facing a struggling Orioles offense that has mustered more than four runs only twice in the last 15 games. Baltimore was baffled by Dickey's knuckleball Friday, and the Orioles went 3-for-17 with runners in scoring position and struck out a season-high 12 times.
The visit to Baltimore could be just the cure for the Mets' road woes, as they go for consecutive road wins for the first time since last July 25-26 at the Houston Astros.
The Mets' key hitters are heating up at the right time, too. Third baseman David Wright went 3-for-4 with two RBIs on Friday and is hitting .462 with two homers and nine RBIs in his past 11 games. Leadoff man Jose Reyes has multiple hits in three of his past four games and is 8-for-17 during that span.
Like most of the Mets, Wright and Reyes will get their first look at Orioles rookie Brian Matusz as he tries to turn around his luck after losing his last six decisions.
Matusz (2-6, 5.10 ERA) won two of his first three starts, but he is 0-6 with a 5.53 ERA over his last eight outings, and the Orioles are 1-7 in those games. Matusz has been the victim of some bad luck - he has turned in five quality starts since his last victory.