4 Mets highlights from the first half of the 2022 season

The New York Mets were set to make waves in 2022 after a very disappointing 2021 season. They started off in the offseason by reshaping the organization from top to bottom. By hiring Billy Eppler as General Manager and the very well-respected Buck Showalter as manager, they set a precedent that the team from Queens meant business.

On top of that, the Mets retooled the roster bringing in veteran leader Max Scherzer to help Jacob deGrom lead the starting rotation. They also brought in star outfielder Starling Marte and role players, Eduardo Escobar and Mark Canha.

Everything was coming together until deGrom went down with an injury but the Mets still had Scherzer to lead the charge. As the season started and progressed we got a taste of how good this team could be and then Scherzer went down for 6 weeks with a strained oblique muscle. What seemed like doom and gloom only propelled the Mets.

The Mets overcame the obstacles in front of them and played better than anyone could have ever imagined. They not only have led the division for most of the season but they also have the 2nd best record to start a season in franchise history just below the 1986 team (and we all know what that team accomplished in the end).

The first half of the 2022 season has been filled with many great Mets moments but these 4 are at the top:

Mets Highlight: April 29th, The Combined No-Hitter

People will try and denounce this accomplishment but a no-hitter is a no-hitter no matter how you play it.

Playing against their division rivals from Philly, five Mets pitchers combined to shut out and shut down a potent Phillies lineup led by Bryce Harper, Nick Castellanos, JT Realmuto, and Kyle Schwarber.

Tylor Megill got the start and mowed down the Phillies offense for 5 innings including 5 strikeouts. Drew Smith came in relief and had a very impressive outing striking out four in 1.1 innings pitched. Smith was on a historic start of his own not allowing any runs in the first month of the season.

The no-no didn’t seem real until the Mets scored in the 5th and 6th inning capped off with a Polar Bear Blast from Pete Alonso. Once the runs were in place Seth Lugo and Joely Rodriguez came in and continued the Mets pitching brilliance. Rodriguez got into a little trouble giving up two walks but kept the Phillies hitless and Lugo got out the only two batters he ended up facing.

In the 9th, in front of a raucous crowd at Citi Field, Edwin Diaz came in against the heart of the Phillies order: Harper, Castellanos, and Realmuto. Not only does Diaz set them down in order, but he also finishes with a flourish, striking out the side.

The combined no-hitter was the second no-hitter in Mets history; ten years after Johan Santana pitched one in Queens as well.