Mets Morning News: A win? Is that allowed?

Around the National League East

The Phillies fired manager Rob Thomson, promoting Don Mattingly to interim manager. The hope is that Mattingly can provide the same spark that Thomson did when he took over for Joe Girardi mid-season in 2022. Alex Cora was offered the managerial spot with the Phillies, but he opted to spend time with his family instead. The Phillies first game in the Don Mattingly-tenure was a big 7-0 victory over the Giants, with Trea Turner going 4-for-5 and Adolis Garcia driving in two runs on a double. The new Phillies mantra under Don Mattingly seems simple enough: get back to “better baseball.” While Ronald Acuña Jr. has had a disappointing season (by his standards) at face value this year, a closer look reveals some cause for hope. The Braves beat the Tigers 5-2, with Martín Pérez going five innings, striking out five and walking four while only allowing two hits and no runs. The Marlins held on to beat the Dodgers 2-1, behind a solid Janson Junk start of six shutout innings, allowing just three hits and striking out four.

Around Major League Baseball

Tatsuya Imai is struggling with adjusting to American baseball and culture, and a not insignificant part of those struggles might just be the team he decided to sign with. One month into the season, there are already some big surprises—and some major disappointments. Giancarlo Stanton has found himself on the injured list yet again—this time with a low-level calf strain. Pete Alonso hit a two-run home run to propel the Orioles to a 5-3 win over the Astros, in an encouraging sign after his slow start to 2026. The Tigers were dealt another blow to their rotation, with Casey Mize leaving his start against the Braves in the third inning with groin tightness.

Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue

A Pod of Their own returned with a new episode. Chris McShane wrote about the difficulty of envisioning a Mets turnaround with Francisco Lindor on the injured list for so long. Steve Sypa had this year’s fifth grouping of Mets Minor League Players of the Week.

This Date in Mets History

30 years ago, John Franco recorded his 300th save, becoming the first left-handed pitcher to reach that tally.