Rockies at Mets
The New York Mets made big news Friday afternoon by designating for assignment one-time star pitcher Matt Harvey. Hours later they went out and continued their slump with a loss against the Colorado Rockies, who will try to make it two straight over the reeling Mets when the teams continue their three-game series in New York on Saturday.
Harvey was an All-Star in 2013 before injuries and ineffectiveness led him through several rocky seasons, including a demotion to the bullpen early in 2018. "I think we've tried to find some other solution over a fairly long period of time," general manager Sandy Alderson told reporters Friday. "This was a long time coming. It's something we tried to address, we struggled with, and we wrestled with over two managerial regimes." With news of the move still fresh, the Mets spotted the Rockies five first-inning runs and had a comeback fall short in Friday's 8-7 loss, their seventh in the last nine games. Charlie Blackmon slugged his 11th home run and Tony Wolters hit his first for Colorado, which has won three in a row and improved to 13-8 on the road.
TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain (Colorado), SNY (New York)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Rockies RH Chad Bettis (3-1, 2.43 ERA) vs. Mets LH Steven Matz (1-2, 4.98)
Bettis completed at least seven innings in three of his last four starts, including a hard-luck loss at Miami on Sunday in which he allowed two runs and four hits. The 29-year-old is 3-1 with a 1.71 ERA in four road starts. Jay Bruce has a home run and a double in four at-bats against Bettis, who surrendered nine runs in 13 career innings against the Mets.
Matz was 1-1 with a 3.77 ERA through his first three starts but is 0-1 with a 7.36 mark over the last two outings. He lasted just 3 1/3 frames in a loss at St. Louis on April 25 before having his next start pushed back due to back soreness. Blackmon is 5-for-8 with two doubles and Nolan Arenado has a pair of homers in eight career at-bats against Matz.
WALK-OFFS
1. Arenado is 6-for-15 with three homers and seven RBIs over his last three games.
2. Mets OF Michael Conforto went 0-for-5 with four strikeouts Friday and is 0-for-12 with seven strikeouts over a three-game span.
3. New York 3B Todd Frazier has three multi-hit efforts over the past four contests, homering twice in that stretch.