Mets may make David Peterson, Sean Manaea move after latest loss

New York Mets starting pitcher David Peterson failed to stop the club's bleeding on Tuesday night, as he surrendered six earned runs on a career-high 11 hits in a 7-2 loss to the Cincinnati Reds that dropped the Mets to 22-33 on the season. 

Meanwhile, former Mets starter Sean Manaea allowed just one run and recorded six strikeouts over three innings of relief work against Cincinnati. Following the Mets' fifth-straight loss, manager Carlos Mendoza hinted that he could replace Peterson with Manaea in the rotation. 

Mets to have "a conversation" about short-term futures of David Peterson, Sean Manaea 

"I'm pretty sure there's going to be a conversation," Mendoza said about possibly switching the pitchers' roles, per Colin Martin of SNY. "We just ended here, but we're going to need all of them. We're going to need Petey to throw important innings for us, whether it's a starter, whether it's coming after an opener, or pitching out of the bullpen. We're going to need innings from them, especially with how the rotation is right now." 

Patience is clearly no longer a virtue for Mendoza. Potential future Mets ace Nolan McLean has recently produced back-to-back rough outings, and fellow starter Clay Holmes is out of action indefinitely due to a fractured fibula. 

Meanwhile, RotoWire Staff noted that the 66 hits Peterson has given up this season are tied for fifth-most in the National League. He is responsible for a 5.57 ERA and 1.67 WHIP over 53.1 innings of work. To compare, Manaea has a 3.75 ERA over 12 innings for May.

"There's a lot to like there," Mendoza said about Manaea. "With his delivery, you got to give him credit, man, he kept working and he continues to work. The life on the fastball. I think you see the swing and misses, especially at the top of the zone. The cutter, the sweeper, some changeups in there. He faced a lot of righties today...but overall, he came in with a runner on third and got out of it."

David Peterson addresses potential demotion to the bullpen

"I haven't thought about it," Peterson said about possibly being moved to the bullpen ahead of his next scheduled start. "It's been week-to-week every week. I'm focused on going back and looking at what we did well, what we need to do better, and move forward. Focus on the next one, whatever situation that's in."

Before such a decision is made, the Mets will look to end their latest losing streak and avoid suffering a second-straight series sweep when they host the 29-25 Reds on Wednesday evening.