Mets blanked by Blue Jays as Chris Bassitt outduels Justin Verlander
Justin Verlander pitched like Justin Verlander.
Unfortunately for the Mets, their offense couldn’t touch Toronto starter Chris Bassitt and their three-game winning streak was snapped in a 3-0 loss to the Blue Jays on Friday night at Citi Field.
Attempting to win their ninth straight contest at home and get to four games over .500 for the first time since April 27, the Mets instead suffered another quiet night at the plate.
After they had scored eight runs over their previous three games, the Mets were shut out for the eighth time this season.
Verlander made just one mistake all night, on the second pitch of the game, which George Springer hit for a leadoff homer.
It was the only run Verlander gave up in six innings. And it was the lone run of the game until Toronto’s Daulton Varsho hit a two-run homer off Jeff Brigham in the ninth.
“He did what he needed to do to keep us in the game,” manager Buck Showalter said of Verlander. “We just couldn’t push across any runs.”
Bassitt, who spent the 2022 season with the Mets, was booed throughout the night, but blanked his former team for 7²/₃ innings.
After the start of the game was delayed by approximately an hour and a half because of rain, Springer didn’t take long to give Toronto the lead, with a 422-foot homer.
“Home runs happen,’’ Verlander said. “I’m a fly-ball pitcher. You’ve got to reset and keep making pitches.”
That’s what Verlander did, throwing 117 pitches — the most of any pitcher in an MLB game this season and the most by a 40-year-old since knuckleballer R.A. Dickey tossed 121 in 2017 for the Braves. Verlander also was hit by a pair of line drives, but remained in the game.
The Mets’ best scoring opportunity came in the third inning.
Mark Canha continued his hot stretch at the plate with a single to start the inning. He stole second and moved to third when Francisco Alvarez reached on an error by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at first. But Brandon Nimmo popped out, Francisco Lindor struck out looking and Jeff McNeil — who had been stranded after he doubled in the first inning — fouled out to waste the scoring chance.
Verlander gave the Citi Field crowd a boost in the sixth.
He was drilled for the second time by a liner, this one a 106-mph screamer off the bat off Bo Bichette for a leadoff single. Guerrero then walked before Verlander struck out Brandon Belt and Matt Chapman.
Whit Merrifield’s infield single loaded the bases, but Verlander responded by fanning Varsho on his final pitch to keep it a one-run game.
The Mets’ offense couldn’t figure out Bassitt, who gave up seven runs in four innings to the Twins in his previous start, but has pitched well this season.
He was dominant on Friday.
After Alvarez reached on the error in the third, Bassitt retired 14 in a row until Starling Marte singled to right with two outs in the seventh. Marte stole second, but Mark Vientos grounded out.
Dominic Leone and Drew Smith tossed scoreless innings after Verlander departed and Bassitt was replaced by Tim Mayza. He entered to face Nimmo, who was called for an automatic strike three for a pitch-clock violation to end the inning.
Brigham entered in the ninth inning and allowed Varsho’s monstrous homer to the upper deck in right to make it 3-0.
“I wish we could have kept it at 1-0 there,’’ Showalter said.
Toronto closer Jordan Romano took over in the bottom of the ninth and Lindor sent a fly ball to the warning track in left, but it came up short.
As did the Mets.
“We’ve been playing pretty good baseball,” Verlander said. “This was just one of those days. We had good fight, a good game. We were in it the whole way. We didn’t come out on top. It’s not anything to get frustrated about.”
