NEW YORK – Everything David Peterson has been working toward this season came to fruition Tuesday night.

In the New York Mets’ 7-2 victory over the Red Sox on his 29th birthday, Peterson improved his season record to 9-1 by making what is quickly becoming a status quo start for him: six innings, one run, but with 11 strikeouts, a career-best.

Peterson’s development is a reflection of the development of the Mets’ entire rotation – a group that is performing at its highest level at the most important time of the season.

After a disappointing 2023 season, Peterson focused on refining his mix for five viable pitches, including improving his four-seamer and curveball.

The four-seamer was Peterson’s best throw on Tuesday. Although he’s used it less this season than in the past, it’s also been far more effective. That was a target last winter, when Jose Quintana emerged as a case study for Peterson.

“Q does a really good job of getting through to right-handers, and that helps him with his changeup, curveball and sinker game at the bottom of the zone,” said pitching coach Jeremy Hefner. “That’s what we’re going for.”

“That’s a pitch that’s been a big part of my 2022,” Peterson said. “After I figure it out and get it to where I want it, I’ll continue to build on it and use it when I can.”

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Francisco Lindor played like an MVP. David Peterson threw well again. This is the sixth win in a row.

The Mets are 75-64.

— Tim Britton (@TimBritton) 4 September 2024

Against Boston, Peterson’s four-seamer was far more than just a show pitch. He usually throws it about a quarter of the time; on Tuesday he used it 31 times in 89 pitches and it was effective from the start. The Red Sox missed their first six hits on the pitch, including three strikeouts in the first inning. On the night, the Red Sox missed 14 of their 20 hits against Peterson’s fastball, and nine of those 11 punchouts were highlighted by him.

After developing five pitches worth throwing, Peterson needed to figure out how to throw all of them and get strikes. After finally getting healthy again following hip surgery in the offseason, Peterson was able to better repeat his technique and refine his pitch between starts.

If you can throw anything to get a strike, you can throw anything at any time.

“He avoids patterns,” President of Baseball Operations David Stearns said before the game. “He has the ability to be pretty unpredictable from start to finish as to what he’s going to throw on a given count.”

Because he has so many potential weapons, Peterson can tailor his approach to each opponent and each hitter. On Tuesday, the focus was on the four-seamer. Last time out against Arizona, he threw more sinkers and sliders.

“Depending on our plan and the matchups, that will determine the deployment,” Peterson said. “It’s always great to have options.”

“Sequencing,” manager Carlos Mendoza said of his performance Tuesday, “he and (Francisco) Alvarez did a damn good job.”

Peterson’s rise is just part of the story of a Mets rotation that is just hitting its stride. New York entered the season with its rotation as the biggest question mark, then lost its best starter for all but one game. Still, the Mets entered Tuesday’s game with the NL’s best ERA since June 20.

Their rotation ranks second in the major leagues in terms of number of innings pitched since the end of July.

“They encourage each other,” Hefner said. “There’s a competitiveness within the group. They like each other, and I don’t think that’s true of all teams. This group really likes to hang out together, cheer each other on, push each other and hold each other accountable.”

Stearns spoke of “stabilizing forces” in the rotation – what Sean Manaea and Luis Severino were for most of the season, what Peterson has become over the course of the year.

“When you have a couple of guys you feel good about, you get six innings that night,” Stearns said, “that makes the scheduling and (Mendoza’s) work a lot more predictable.”

The rotation has become a stabilizing force, keeping the Mets in the game regardless of their offensive performance and putting the bullpen in a position to succeed. Peterson’s counterpart, Kutter Crawford, allowed a single hit on Tuesday night. He still left the game one behind.

“You’re talking about the ability to sustain winning streaks when your core players play six or seven innings every time,” Hefner said.

A Mets starter has not allowed more than three runs in the last six games. How long is the Mets’ winning streak, you ask? It’s six.

“We’re in the thick of it. We’ve earned the right to be here,” Stearns said. “It’s not an accident. We have one more month to play some really good baseball so we have a chance to have fun in October. That’s what you want this time of year.”

(Photo by David Peterson: Wendell Cruz / USA Today)