Christian Scott is emerging as a bright spot for the Mets.
With the series win already in the bag entering today’s make-up game against the Colorado Rockies, Scott was handed the start and delivered an impressive performance. He tunneled his four-seam fastball and cutter at high levels of both volume and effectiveness, combining for 71 of his 82 total pitches and 46 of his 52 strikes (per Statcast).
Scott struck out six Rockies batters, allowing just three hits and two walks. The lone run he surrendered came in the bottom of the fourth inning, when Rockies switch-hitting utility man Willi Castro laced a two-out single to right field to drive designated hitter Tyler Freeman home from second base.
Scott immediately bounced back to shut the door on the inning, freezing Jake McCarthy with a nasty sweeper for the punch-out, stranding the two Rockies left on base.
The following inning, with the Mets leading 2-1, Scott was pulled by Mets manager Carlos Mendoza after walking Rockies leadoff hitter Edouard Julien on four pitches. Mendoza summoned Huascar Brazobán from the bullpen, who promptly recorded the third out to end the fifth.
The Mets would eventually relinquish their lead, and with the score 2-2, Craig Kimbrel‘s nightmare eighth inning – culminating in a gargantuan grand slam off the bat of McCarthy – doomed the Mets to a 6-2 defeat, the team’s 23rd loss of the season.
Despite the result, both Scott and Mendoza kept their chins up and dismissed speculation that Scott had more left in the tank when he was pulled.
In his postgame press conference, Mendoza explained that he “had a number of pitches in mind, and he pretty much went over [it].” It makes sense that the team is paying close attention to Scott’s pitch count, given the fact that the 26-year-old righty missed the entirety of the 2025 season after going under the knife for combined Tommy John and internal brace surgery in September of 2024.
When asked how he felt about leaving the game in the fourth inning, Scott emphasized his “respect” for his manager’s decision.
The ailing Kodai Senga‘s return to the Mets’ starting rotation is still to be determined, and combined with the well-documented struggles of veteran southpaw starters David Peterson and Sean Manaea, Scott has a golden opportunity to stake his claim as a regular starter.
Through three starts on a strict pitch count, Scott’s impressive 3.27 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, and 15 strikeouts through just 11 innings pitched should give Mets fans, coaches, and executives alike hope for the pitcher’s present and future.
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