A Subway series rich in pitch but lacking in sluggers

The last edition of the Subway Series already looked a bit lackluster: The Mets (31-35) are not having nearly as good a season as the Yankees (38-29). But then the series suffered a massive power outage: Aaron Judge (toe) and Pete Alonso (wrist), who lead their respective leagues in home runs, will both miss the series with injuries.

That said, these teams tend to go head-to-head — there’s a reason both games are nationally televised — and the pitching matchups feature some big names, even if their recent results aren’t what you’d expect .

Tuesday

Severino against Scherzer

Luis Severino (0-1, 5.75 ERA) has made four starts for the Yankees after starting the season on the injured list. He looked great in the first two, striking out 10 batters in 11⅓ innings while allowing only two earned runs. But he’s struggled in his last two starts.

Results are also mixed for Max Scherzer (5-2, 3.71 ERA), who has had three starts in which he pitched at least six innings while allowing one or zero earned runs, and three other starts in which he allowed five or more. earned runs. He also missed time with a 10-game suspension for violations of Major League Baseball’s rules against tacky substances.

Gerrit Cole (7-1, 2.84 ERA) had a great year by all accounts, but was especially impressive when he started after a loss to the Yankees. In the six starts he made this year, in which his team lost the previous game, Cole has a 2.00 ERA and the Yankees have won all six. If Severino can’t tame the Mets on Tuesday, Cole would be lined up to break the slump – as always.

In Cole’s way would be Justin Verlander (2-3, 4.85 ERA), who has shown some of the tenacity and talent that puts him tied with Scherzer as the game’s highest-paid pitcher, but also relieves that is in three of his seven starts. . At 40, it’s reasonable to consider whether expectations for him need to be changed in the future – though Verlander has proven many times in the past that such doubts are false.