New York Yankees at New York Mets – Subway Series Game 1 Preview
The interleague play opens up today with the New York Yankees and the New York Mets playing a three-game Subway Series with the first game starting at 7 PM ET.
New York Mets (20-22, 14-8 home) have just one win in their last nine outings and now sit last in the NL East with rumors that manager Jerry Manuel won’t have a job for long.
They are coming off of a victory in Washington over the Nationals. David Wright set the tone early with a three-run double in the first inning. The third baseman is a bit of a boom or bust player with the power to turn a game quickly, but his 55 strikeouts is third worst in the majors.
The New York Yankees (25-16, 12-10 away) currently occupy second place in the AL East, but they have lost consecutive games at home for the first time after being swept in a two-game series by the league-leading Tampa Bay Rays.
The Yankees lead the majors in most offensive categories including runs, batting average, OBP and OPS. The scary thing about these Yankees is that they could be so much more dangerous. Robinson Cano is leading the team with a .338 batting average and a .977 OPS while leaders such as Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira play a supporting role.
The Yankees send Javier Vazquez (2-4, 8.01 ERA) to the mound to see if he’s worked through his early season problems. The right-hander’s 8.01 ERA has been a huge disappointment this season. He’s been skipped twice in the rotation to work on his delivery. In two starts against the Twins last season, Vazquez went 1-1 with a 4.61 ERA .
Getting his first major league start for the Mets will be Hisanori Takahashi (3-1, 3.12 ERA). The Mets are putting a lot of pressure on the left-hander by giving him the first game in this traditional rivalry, but he has earned the right to get the start and seems ready.
