Mets’ Brett Baty hopes to stay hot in rubber game vs. Dodgers

As part of the $765 million deal he signed with the New York Mets last December, Juan Soto got to wear his preferred No. 22, which was worn the previous three seasons by Brett Baty.

Fortunately for the Mets, they kept Baty when Soto took his number.

Baty will look to stay hot and Soto will hope a long-awaited hit was a sign of things to come on Sunday night, when the Mets host the Los Angeles Dodgers in the rubber match of a three-game series.

Kodai Senga (4-3, 1.43 ERA) is slated to start for the Mets against fellow right-hander Landon Knack (2-1, 6.17 ERA) of the Dodgers.

Baty had three hits, two RBIs and a walk out of the No. 9 hole Saturday, when Soto delivered the tie-breaking two-run double in the fourth inning of a 5-2 win.

The multi-hit effort was the third in as many games for Baty, who is batting .318 (14-for-44) with five homers and 13 RBIs in 15 games since he was recalled from Triple-A Syracuse on May 7.

“I feel like I’m contributing to wins,” said Baty, who is wearing No. 7 this season. “It’s nice to hit the ball hard.”

Baty’s emergence has come as Soto – who bought Baty an SUV to express his appreciation for the infielder giving up No. 22 – experienced one of the longest slumps of his career.

Soto’s double Saturday was his first extra-base hit since May 9, when he homered against the Chicago Cubs. Even after a two-hit night Saturday, Soto is hitting a mere .156 (7-for-55) with as many RBIs (four) as stolen bases in his last 12 games.

“I know the player, I know the way he goes about his business, I know how he handles adversity – there’s been a big track record there,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “So for us to worry about him – not really, he’s too good. And we know that sooner than later, the results are going to be there.”

Likewise, the Dodgers aren’t too worried about a quiet couple of games for their big three of Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman. The trio was a combined 1-for-12 with five strikeouts against David Peterson and Edwin Diaz Saturday.

“We just couldn’t really muster anything after those early innings,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.

Regardless of how he fares at the plate Sunday, the finale likely is to be notable for Ohtani, who is scheduled to throw his first live batting practice since he underwent his second Tommy John surgery in September 2023.

“It’s a big step getting on a mound to face hitters,” Roberts said. “Rightfully so, there’s a lot of anticipation But I think he’s really looking forward to it.”

Senga took the loss in his most recent start last Monday, when he gave up three runs over six innings as the Mets fell to the Boston Red Sox, 3-1. Knack also last pitched Monday, when he allowed four runs over five innings of relief in the Dodgers’ 9-5 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Senga didn’t factor into the decision in his lone regular-season start against the Dodgers on July 15, 2023, when he gave up one run over six innings in the Mets’ 5-1 loss. He was also 0-1 with an 18.00 ERA in two games (one start) against Los Angeles in last year’s National League Championship Series.

Knack made his only appearance against the Mets in Game 2 of the NLCS last Oct. 14, when he gave up five runs over two innings of relief in New York’s 7-3 win.

-Field Level Media