Pete Alonso hit two home runs and Edwin Diaz struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth inning, leading the Mets to a 5-3 win over the Marlins Saturday afternoon. The victory gives the Mets the series win and guarantees the club a winning record in the month of June.
Alonso got things started with an opposite field home run in the second inning. The Mets tacked on two more runs in the fourth to stake Chris Bassitt to a 3-0 lead. Bassitt pitched well but he allowed two home runs that tied the game.
And the only reason those homers only tied the game was because Starling Marte threw out a runner at third base right before Jesus Sanchez hit a two-run blast. Marte’s throw was up the line, but in the air, which allowed Eduardo Escobar to easily catch it, get back to the base and apply the tag.
The Mets took the lead for good in the eighth inning on Alonso’s second homer of the game, a rocket hit to left center with an exit velocity of 110.4 mph which traveled 433 feet. They added an insurance run in the ninth when James McCann scored from first on Brandon Nimmo’s double.
Bassitt picked up the win with a 7 IP, 3 ER, 0 BB, 5 K outing. Seth Lugo pitched a scoreless eighth inning, lowering his ERA to 1.48 in games when he comes in at the very start of the frame. Diaz, who did not strike out a batter in Friday night’s save, fanned all three batters he faced en route to his 16th save of the season.
Against righties Bassitt gives up a .561 OPS, while against the lefties his OPS is .794. Therefore, giving up the two long balls to righties to me was disappointing. The Marlins being predominantly righty hitters played into Bassitt’s strength. The Marlins have tons of talent but it appears they have internal issues with their club that a team meeting didn’t solve. Isn’t Kim Ng the GM? She needs to address the mix and hitting balance.
The good news is the Mets did what it took to win this game, including Escobar softly serving a hanging off speed pitch away into left center for a big two-out hit to score that third run. It does look like Guillorme has cooled off.
Gut Reaction: Alonso made the difference with his two homeruns. Marte is a good rightfielder with range and arm. (6 R drs). Showalter knew that he was the best choice of the Met personnel way back in spring training. The Marlins could used a Showalter type manager because they are talented but not fundamentally sound .
Let’s go for the sweep. Let’s Go Mets!
Seems these is a change in history hopefully upon us because it seems that the Fish have always has our number. Thankful for creating a more complete hitting team that gets contributions up and down the lineup. Nice to see McCann back in and getting a hit. Luis has definitely cooled off but he’s still at .315 after an 0 for 4. Would still love to see one more big HR bat in this lineup to take some pressure off the small ball. Pete continues to take matters into his own hands and Diaz is the pitcher we hoped he would be when we got him. Had hoped to see Max back on the bump today but no issue being cautious. When he returns he will be quite the upgrade from Trevor Williams. A sweep would certainly be sweet today.
Ah, the idea that refuses to go away – that the Marlins have the Mets’ number.
The Mets have been under .500 in three of the past four years heading into 2022 yet their record against the Marlins in that span is 41-26. I wish every team had the Mets’ number like that.
Anyway, this idea gained traction back in 2007 & 2008, when the Marlins took September series against the Mets. Yet even with those wins, the Mets still took the season series in both years – with a combined 21-15 record in those two seasons.