Last night, the Mets were taking it easy with John Maine. He only allowed one hit, but was removed after only giving up one hit after five strong inning.
In came Brian Stokes, who made a spot start a few days ago for Maine, and he pitched four dominant innings in relief, even earning a save. Sure, it may have helped that the Mets were up by double digits, but Stokes was impressive.
Through four innings on the bump, Stokes allowed only three hits and did not issue any walks. He also struck out three batters. Pretty impressive.
Stokes, if he could keep this up, could be the missing piece to this bullpen. He's able to give you multiple innings, good ones at that, or could serve for just one inning if needed. He's Aaron Heilman, without the history.
So far, so good with Stokes. I liked him out of spring training, and I'm glad he's finally getting his shot with the club and performing. Something in my gut tells me he's going to pay dividends down the stretch when the team needs him.
Just a hunch, but I like what I'm seeing with Stokes.
