Snow leads to another Mets postponement

Another Mets game has been postponed. Friday night’s game against the Rockies has been moved to a Saturday doubleheader after a snowstorm and cold temperatures in Denver.

The pair of seven-inning games is scheduled to begin at 5:10 p.m. Saturday. It’s the seventh time a Mets game has been postponed this season, against eight games actually played. Three games were postponed because of the Nationals’ coronavirus outbreak, three more in a long stretch of rainy weather in New York, and now at least one due to snow. The 5-3 Mets did manage to make up one rained-out game against the Phillies.

Jacob deGrom, Friday’s scheduled starter, will again be pushed back one day and start the first game Saturday against the Rockies. DeGrom, who has a 0.64 ERA across two starts (14 innings) and a 0-1 record, was supposed to pitch Thursday afternoon on his regular five days of rest. Thursday’s series finale against the Phillies was the third rainout of the Mets’ first homestand of the season.

Joey Lucchesi will make his rotation debut in Game 2 Saturday, followed by Marcus Stroman pitching Sunday to wrap up the team’s series in Colorado. Following an off day Monday, the Mets will open a three-game series at Wrigley Field in Chicago on Tuesday.

“In the month of April, in history, there’s been some disruptions in playing,” Mets manager Luis Rojas said Thursday. “As far as the weather … I think we can find a way to be prepared. We just did it when we had the two (rainouts) before this series. And we just won three games in a row against the Phillies.”

Francisco Lindor compared the Mets’ wacky schedule to spring training: They play a couple of games, then they’re off the next day. The Amazin’s have played just one nine-inning game this week, on Wednesday in their 5-1 win against the Phillies. Their next full game isn’t until Sunday, if the weather accommodates the rest of their schedule in Denver.

As frustrating as these postponements have been for fans — the Mets have played the least number of games in MLB — there are a couple of silver linings.

The Mets will enter Saturday with at least eight seven-inning games remaining on their 2021 schedule. Shorter games will allow the Mets’ rotation (a so-far solid unit that has a 2.34 ERA to start the year) to pitch deeper into games and potentially avoid using the bullpen. The relief corps is one of the team’s weakest areas, particularly without setup man Seth Lugo, who is on his way back from right elbow/bone spur surgery.

The cancellations have also given rehabbing starters Carlos Carrasco and Noah Syndergaard time to remain on their return schedules back in Port St. Lucie, Fla. In their eight games in the past 16 days, the Mets have not even used Lucchesi as their fifth starter, which was their initial plan when they broke spring camp without Carrasco.

Both Carrasco and Syndergaard are expected to return to the rotation by June, in time for the team’s makeup seven-inning doubleheader June 25 against the Phillies.