The tough schedule will continue for the Detroit Tigers heading into May with the New York Mets heading into town. The Mets are a team with world series aspirations & will look to bounce back against a Detroit team in a funk.

A Couple of Old Friends

Justin Verlander, you may have heard of him, will make his season debut against the Tigers on Thursday. It will be his first start as a New York Met after signing a two-year $86.66 million dollar contract this offseason. The former MVP is now 40 years old & is coming off his third cy young season in 2022.

Max Scherzer was another Tigers pitcher who was pretty good. He will make his fifth start of the season against the Tigers on Wednesday. Scherzer isn’t exactly a spring chicken either, as Max will turn 39 in July. The former three-time cy young winner is coming off a ten-game suspension after being accused of using sticky stuff in his start against the Dodgers.

Joey Lucchesi will get the start in game one for the Mets on Tuesday. The 29-year-old has a 2.19 ERA in 12.1 innings pitched so far this season.

What to Make of the Mets Offense

The New York Mets offense is an interesting topic to debate. On one hand they have proven hitters like Pete Alonso, Francisco Lindor, Starling Marte & Brandon Nimmo. Despite all that Steve Cohen still tried to bring in Carlos Correa this offseason before that deal fell through. The Mets offense does not sit in the top ten in MLB & has shown inconsistency throughout this & last season.

Despite the underwhelming start to the season, the Detroit Tigers will need to be wary of the Mets sluggers, especially Pete Alonso. Brandon Nimmo got a huge contract in the winter & is living up to it in a big way to start his 2023 season as well. Jeff McNeil & Daniel Vogelbach are two underrated hitters in this lineup & Brett Baty is a young & upcoming rookie who is making waves as well.

Update on the Detroit Tigers

What is your biggest takeaway from the Detroit Tigers first month of the season? One of the main talking points would be the offense for the Tigers. The Detroit Tigers team OPS sits at .628 which is actually four points lower than in 2022. The Tigers offense has just 20 home runs in 27 games played in 2023.

Luckily Javier Baez is back in the Tigers lineup & is coming off a strong game four against the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday. Baez has yet to homer this season but has been very good with runners in scoring position in 2023.

Spencer Torkelson will be another big talking point heading into the month 0f May. Tork is hitting just .206 with an OPS & OPS+ that is worse than last year. Torkelson is hitting the ball slightly harder than last year & his SO% is down but that has not translated to success in the batter’s box. Can the Tigers offense show some life in the month of May?

Can the Tigers win their upcoming series against the Mets?

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Photo Credit: © Rich Storry