How Mets' Chris Bassitt Is Endearing Himself to Team, Fans
“I don’t care who you are. I’m coming after you.”
Those words were used by Mets’ pitcher Chris Bassitt after his first start of the season against the Washington Nationals earlier this month, specifically after he struck out superstar Juan Soto.
“I faced (Shohei) Ohtani a lot, I faced (Mike)Trout a lot. I don’t care about the name on the back of your jersey, I’m coming.
“That’s been my mentality no matter who I face. I know he’s probably the best hitter in the world, but I don’t care.”
Now after four starts in blue and orange, Bassitt has a sparkly 2.25 ERA with 26 strikeouts over 24.0 innings pitched.
After grinding through a rough start at Citi Field last Wednesday against the Giants where he allowed five runs, Bassitt returned to form Tuesday with six shutout innings against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Bassitt has pitched like an ace in a starting rotation that leads the league with a 2.16 ERA, 2.7 WAR, 28% strikeout rate, 0.85 WHIP and .177 opposing batting average.
When the Mets signed Max Scherzer this past winter, it was clear the team meant business.
However, if last year proved anything, it was that the Mets pitching corps were thin, especially in regards to the rotation.
With the acquisition of Bassitt from the A’s after the lockout concluded this offseason, it felt as if New York had acquired the missing piece to the puzzle.
Not only did it give the Mets one of the best No. 3 starters in baseball when everyone is healthy, but it really helped lengthen the rotation.
It pushed Carlos Carrasco back to the No. 4 guy, and it gave the team an option to see if one of Tylor Megill, Taijuan Walker or David Peterson would run away with the last spot.
Megill has likely separated himself from the pack, but it’s a long season and having more arms than not is crucial.
Bassitt, again showed his fiery character after his win on Tuesday, a game in which three Mets hitters were plunked with pitches.
"I had some close calls tonight. I've been hit in the face, I don't ever want to do that to anybody ever,” Bassitt said. “MLB has a very big problem with the baseballs. They're bad. Everyone knows it. They don't care. MLB doesn't give a damn about it."
Not only did New York acquire a great pitcher on the mound, but one who isn’t afraid to speak his mind and is unrelenting in his pursuit to win.
Bassitt's latest effort helped the Mets capture their sixth consecutive series win to open up the regular season, which is a new franchise record. The club has the best record: 14-5 and winning percentage: .737 in baseball across the first 19 games. They'll go for a sweep of the Cardinals on Wednesday afternoon.
Read More:
- Mets Bring Back RHP Tommy Hunter On Minor-League Deal
- How Max Scherzer Is Thriving As Interim Ace In Mets' Rotation
- Mets' Jacob deGrom's Latest MRI Shows 'Considerable Healing'
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