The Mets met the Nationals again Wednesday night at Citi Field, with David Peterson opposing Cade Cavalli in the second game of the series after New York opened with an 8-0 rout. First pitch was set for 7:10 p.m. ET on April 29, 2026.
New York entered the game 1-0 against the NL East after scoring seven runs in the fourth inning Tuesday night, when Juan Soto and Bo Bichette both homered. The burst gave the Mets a fast start to a series they already controlled, and it put more attention on Peterson, who had a 5.06 ERA, a 3.76 FIP, a 1.650 WHIP and a 79 ERA+ at the time.
Peterson’s recent work has been better than his season line. After being bumped from the rotation, he had allowed only one run on a solo homer over seven innings in two outings, and he had been especially effective against Washington last season, giving up one run in 17 innings over two starts. One of those outings was a complete-game shutout.
Cavalli came in with a different kind of momentum. The Nationals right-hander had thrown 24 2/3 innings over six starts with a 4.01 ERA, a 2.80 FIP, a 1.662 WHIP and a 102 ERA+, and he had struck out 10 Braves hitters over five innings in his previous start while allowing two runs. He had also held the Mets scoreless over five innings last September in a game Washington won in extra innings.
The matchup came with Washington shuffling its roster, too, as Luis Robert Jr. was out with lower back tightness and was scheduled to receive an MRI on Thursday. A.J. Ewing had reached base four times and added two extra-base hits in his Triple-A debut Tuesday, and Tommy Pham cleared waivers and elected free agency.
For the Mets, the task was simple: back up Tuesday’s outburst and keep the division pace they set in motion at the start of the series. For Washington, Cavalli needed to slow a New York lineup that had already shown it could break a game open in one inning.
