The last time that the Mets faced Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga it was not pretty. Although Chicago squeaked out a 1-0 win, the Japanese star dominated the Mets at Citi Field.
On the May 1 night, Imanaga pitched seven scoreless innings, giving up just three hits, walking one batter and striking out seven. Imanaga lowered his ERA to a minuscule 0.78 after that start.
Friday’s game was much different.
The Mets tattooed Imanaga’s pitches to the tune of 10 runs on 11 hits (including three home runs) across three innings, all season worsts.
So, what was the difference between the two starts?
“We took his heater away,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said after the game. “We were ready for the fastball and when we got pitches in the zone, especially with the fastball, we were ready to go.”
The first-year skipper was right, the damage the Mets did against Imanaga was on his fastball. Francisco Lindor led the game off with a double on a 91 mph fastball. J.D. Martinez punctuated the opening frame with a three-run shot off a 92 mph fastball.
An inning later, Francisco Alvarez went up and launched a 420-foot blast off a 90 mph fastball above the zone. And finally, Brandon Nimmo’s two-run blast was off a 90 mph fastball he took the other way — and was likely aided by Wrigley Field wind.
“One through nine, I thought the approach was great because we were ready for his fastball,” Mendoza added.
“I felt their lineup, when I faced them today, they were different,” Imanaga said through an interpreter via MLB.com. “And then how I felt against them the previous time and today, it was a little different. So, I definitely felt like they made an adjustment.”
Aside from a good game plan, Imanaga’s velocity was noticeably down on Friday. He entered his start on Friday averaging 91.8 mph, but averaged 90.1 mph against the Mets, topping off at 92 mph, according to Baseball Savant. Imanaga topped off at 93.4 mph in his first start against the Mets.
Imanaga said after the game that he sometimes drops his velo on purpose before ramping it up towards the end of his start. He tried that approach again on Friday but it didn’t work.
“I think they were ready for the fastball and ready for the breaking balls in the zone,” Imanaga said. “I made an adjustment towards that, but I felt like they made another adjustment on top of that.”
The down velocity was noticeable to the Mets as well, but they were still ready for it no matter how hard Imanaga was throwing.
“His fastball, compared to the one we faced at home, had a little less life on it,” Martinez said after the game. “He’s got a great fastball, that’s his best pitch. He’s one of those guys you have to be ready for their fastball.”
“We saw [the fastball] and how effective he was at Citi Field and then today guys… it’s their second time, it’s a different fastball.” Mendoza said. “You have to treat it as a plus-plus and because it’s going to get in on you and we executed well today.”
The Mets (36-38) have an opportunity to jump over some teams and claim a Wild Card spot this weekend. But they’ll need to take care of business first, and that starts with their next two games against the Cubs.
With how the Mets offense has gone of late — scoring double-digit runs in three of their last five games — it may not matter who is on the mound.
“We got good players, we have good hitters,” Mendoza said of his offense. “We are executing our game plan. Guys going out there with conviction, not giving away at-bats. They are ready to go when they get their pitches. Not only having a good approach but going out there and executing.”
The Mets and Cubs re-convene Saturday afternoon with first pitch scheduled for 2:20 p.m.
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