The Mets started a hard part of their schedule last night with the first game of a 3 game series against the Orioles, who were tied with the Yankees for the best record in the AL.
The Mets got off to a good start with a 2 run HR from JD Martinez (who has not been hitting as many as I was hoping for). Taylor drove in another and the Mets went up 3-0.
Peterson was solid until the 5th, when he made a bad pickoff throw to allow a runner to go from 2nd to 3rd. That gave the Orioles an unearned run.
He got in trouble again in the 7th (and Mendoza again let David try and pitch out of it). David almost got out of it. Struck out a batter with a runner on 3rd and 1 out. But then he had a mini melt down, balked the runner home to make it 3-2 and on the next pitch gave up a home run to tie the game up. At that point, he finally got out of the inning but the lead was gone.
Butto replaced Peterson and was solid in the 8th. I expected him to also pitch the 9th but Mendoza put Diaz in. Diaz was good too and held the Orioles scoreless but I was unhappy. Really wanted to save Diaz for the 10th, when you need a solid reliever to hold the other team scoreless.
It looked inevitable the game would go to extra innings when the Mets made 2 outs to start the bottom of the ninth but Alvarez, who had been slumping (and also not hitting home runs like I was expecting he would), got ahead in the count 3-0. And then this happened:
Francisco Alvarez belts a walk-off home run to center field, securing the Mets' 4-3 win against the Orioles
www.mlb.com
The Orioles probably didn't like the reaction from Francisco after he hit the homer. I had to work the next day, it was close to 10 PM and I was going to sleep after the Alvarez at bat, so it was a very happy development from my perspective.
The Mets also got good news on the injury front, as the Braves and Diamondbacks both lost key players to the IL. Austin Riley is out for the regular season (broken hand). Ketel Marte, an MVP candidate, has a badly sprained ankle that will keep him out for at least 10 days. This is important for the Mets as they play Arizona next after the Orioles and the Padres as mentioned, this is a tough stretch in the schedule coming up) .
The Braves and Diamondbacks are two of the teams the Mets are battling with for playoff spots. Sorry those guys got hurt. Sometimes you need a few breaks to get where you need to go in baseball.
Also a welcome back to
Dedniel Nunez, who is returning to Syracuse today for a hopefully short rehab assignment before returning to New York to help the Mets to make the playoffs. He is pencilled in to pitch an inning today for the Syracuse Mets. They have been slumping badly and could use any help they can get.
If you go tonight, also keep an eye out for
Drew Gilbert. He is a really talented outfielder who has been out almost all season but is finally playing again. He is a top 100 level prospect, has been compared to Lenny Dykstra, and should be fun to watch play while he is here.
I suspect he will be starting for the NY Mets on opening day next season. Enjoy him while you can.
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