Carlos Carrasco has pitched 13 seasons in the major leagues, spanning 264 games and 217 starts.
Yet he has never faced the San Diego Padres.
That will change Monday night when Carrasco (6-1, 3.63 ERA), a right-hander, gets the start for the visiting Mets against Padres left-hander Blake Snell (0-2, 4.80).
San Diego will be the second of three stops for the Mets on a three-city, 10-game tour of Southern California. Meanwhile, the Padres are returning home after winning three straight games in Milwaukee to cap a 3-4 trip against the top two teams in the National League Central.
“We’ve played a lot of good series this season,” Padres manager Bob Melvin said Sunday after Jake Cronenworth hit a three-run homer in the top of the 10th — his second homer in as many days — to lead the Padres to a 6-4 win over the Brewers.
“But coming back the way we did after losing that first game after leading by three into the ninth, this is one of the better series of the season. It tells you something about these guys … they never give up on a game.”
The Padres are 20-11 on the road this season. But they are only 13-10 at home going into a seven-game homestand against the Mets and Colorado Rockies, a four-game set that includes a make-up doubleheader.
“We’ve played very well on the road,” said Melvin. “We need to start playing better at home.”
There are no walks in the park on this trip for the Mets, who rallied Sunday to win and split a four-game series against the National League West-leading Dodgers. The Padres are second in the NL West with the third-best winning percentage in the league behind the Mets and Dodgers. Mathematically, the Padres have a slightly stronger pitching staff than the Mets.
The Mets are 18-11 on the road this season.
This has been a week of firsts for Carrasco. On Wednesday at Citi Field, his father saw him pitch a major league game for the first time. Carrasco responded by shutting out the Nationals on four hits and five walks over five innings to win his fifth straight decision. The Mets are 6-2 in Carrasco’s last eight starts.
Now he’ll face the Padres for the first time in his career.
Carrasco also has a 1.211 WHIP and a .255 opponents’ batting average. He is 4-0 at home with a 2.78 ERA in six starts at home with a .233 OBA. On the road, however, he is 2-1 with a 5.06 ERA, a 1.266 WHIP and a .287 OBA.
“Everyone pulls for Carlos because he’s such a quality guy,” said Mets manager Buck Showalter. “He carries his fastball the whole game, which keeps him in games.”
Snell will make his fourth start of the season after opening the campaign on the injured list with a left-adductor strain. He held the Cardinals to two runs on two hits and three walks with six strikeouts over six innings in his most recent start Tuesday in St. Louis.
“There are no restrictions on Snell any longer,” said Melvin.
–Field Level Media
