Mets On Deck: Trio of lineup mainstays carry hot streaks vs. Rangers, Mariners

NEW YORK — The Rangers' trip to Citi Field will not come with the returns of Jacob deGrom or Max Scherzer on the diamond.

DeGrom, who won two Cy Young Awards during his Mets tenure and signed with the Rangers last offseason, is likely to miss a large chunk of the 2024 season after undergoing Tommy John Surgery in early June. He made six starts in his first season of a five-year, $185 million deal.

Scherzer, who was shipped to the Rangers in exchange for Luisangel Acuña ahead of the trade deadline, pitched on Saturday night. The 16-year veteran is 3-1 with a 2.64 ERA and 0.91 WHIP in five starts since moving to the American League West.

Those reunions will have to wait, along the fans' chances to cheer or boo of their own volition. Instead, they will get to see a unit that sent six All-Stars to the Midsummer Classic in Seattle. The Rangers, led by Corey Seager, who has a .343 batting average with 24 home runs, 79 RBI in 87 games, are second in team batting average and first in starting pitchers' ERA.

With that in mind, here is what to watch for in the Mets' upcoming series against the Rangers and Mariners.

Auspicious August: Francisco Lindor, Jeff McNeil, Daniel Vogelbach

In a chaotic month of August, full of twists, turn, deadline deals and fresh faces, a trio of regular starters has found its footing. Francisco Lindor, Jeff McNeil and Daniel Vogelbach are each delivering their best month of the season with one month to go.

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Lindor has led the way. He entered Sunday afternoon on a 12-game hitting streak and he was slashing .337/.404/.506 with three home runs and 14 RBI in the month of August.

Jeff McNeil, meanwhile, has safely hit in 19 of his last 22 games with three home runs and 13 RBI. McNeil was batting .320 in the month entering Sunday's game and had raised his 2023 batting average from .252 to .266.

Daniel Vogelbach added another home run on Saturday night in the Mets' loss. Vogelbach has belted five of his 12 home runs in 19 games in the month of August.

Pete Alonso has added nine home runs and 20 RBI in the month despite entering Sunday with a .230 batting average in the first 25 games of the month.

Mets injury news, updates

One of the most intriguing storylines down the stretch of the Mets' 2023 campaign is the looming return of Edwin Diaz. The Mets closer, who is working back from the torn patellar tendon he suffered in mid-March, threw off an outdoor mound for the first time on Sunday morning — his third bullpen session. Buck Showalter said he was waiting to hear how Diaz felt on Monday before providing an update on his status.

Mark Vientos was reinstated from the 10-day injured list before Sunday's series finale against the Angels. Vientos, who was dealing with right wrist tendinitis, spent only one day past the minimum on the injured list. The 23-year-old rookie was back in the Mets' lineup and playing third base.

The Mets were fortunate again with Pete Alonso after he was hit in the neck by the Angels' Jose Soriano in the eighth inning of Saturday night's loss. Alonso cleared concussion protocol and was back in the lineup on Sunday afternoon. He has been hit by 17 pitches this season, which leads the National League.

Mets vs. Rangers: TV info, times and probable pitchers

Monday, 7:10 p.m., SNY: Tylor Megill (7-7, 5.54) vs. Jon Gray (8-7, 3.76)

Tuesday, 7:10 p.m., SNY: Jose Quintana (1-5, 3.73) vs. Andrew Heaney (9-6, 4.34)

Wednesday, 6:40 p.m., SNY: TBD vs. Dane Dunning (9-6, 3.36)

Outlook: The Braves offense can make it a long day on a starting pitcher, and that was the case for Tylor Megill and Jose Quintana last week. The Mets starters are in for another tough test this week as they face the Rangers, who lead the American League with a .797 OPS and

Megill only lasted 4.2 innings against the Braves - matching his shortest start since returning to the Mets starting rotation in the beginning of August. The 28-year-old right-hander gave up three earned runs on a pair of home runs and eight total hits with five strikeouts.

Meanwhile, Jose Quintana is coming off his roughest outing as a Met after five straight quality starts. The left-hander took his fifth loss after giving up five earned runs on nine hits and three walks.

Mariners' return to New York

In the last series between the Mariners and Mets met in May 2022, the Mets dropped their first series of the season after winning or splitting their first nine sets of the campaign.

The Mariners enter the week at 74-56, one game ahead of the Rangers and Astros for the AL West lead. They are led by their starting rotation, which leads Major League Baseball in WHIP and is sixth in ERA.

The Mets are lined up to face Logan Gilbert, Luis Castillo and Bryan Woo. Castillo is the ace of a loaded pitching staff, working to an 11-7 record with a 3.01 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 181 strikeouts in 164.1 innings and 25 starts.

Julio Rodriguez, the reigning American League Rookie of the Year and two-time All-Star, leads the Mariners offense with an .807 OPS, including 22 home runs, 82 RBI and 35 stolen bases.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NY Mets: Previewing matchups with Rangers, Mariners