After driving in all three runs in Tuesday’s win, Todd Frazier belted two home runs Wednesday to lead the Mets to a 9-0 win over the Diamondbacks Wednesday night. The Mets’ victory gave them the series win and they’ll go for the sweep Thursday afternoon. They also jumped ahead of the D’Backs in the race for the Wild Card.
Perhaps the key play of the game came in the first inning. With one run in and two outs with a runner on third base, J.D. Davis hit a fly that looked like it would end the inning. But the left fielder pulled up, the ball dropped and a run scored. And the Mets would tack on three more runs after that in the inning, thanks to a two-run homer by Frazier and a solo shot by Brandon Nimmo.
Frazier’s homer was over the great wall of Flushing, an estimated 406 feet. He also homered in the third inning, an opposite field blast to right. The two HR give Frazier 20 homers on the season.
Steven Matz was the recipient of the early offensive outburst. Perhaps due to the lengthy first inning, Matz struggled in the second. He loaded the bases with no outs but got out of it without any damage thanks to a strikeout and a double play ball. Matz finished with six shutout innings, lowered his ERA to 3.84 and raised his home record to 7-1.
Jeff McNeil also had a big day with three hits, including two homers into the upper deck in right field. McNeil now has 20 HR on the season, too.
With the win, the Mets upped their record to 35-20 here in the second half. They’re now 8-4 since the disastrous back-to-back sweeps by the Braves and the Cubs, with all 12 of those games coming against Wild Card contenders.
Finally attended a winning Mets game tonight. Great job by Matz as you noted after having to sit for a long while. Familia looked good and I held my breath as Bashlor came in, almost certain that he would blow the shutout. Great win and time to go for the tomorrow. Ya gotta believe.
The Mets scored 9 runs on 11 hits. Hmm, interesting…
Gut reaction only two games separate the Mets from a playoff spot!
McNeil looks good in the third spot in the batting order but McNeil looks good no matter what position he plays and where he bats. Frasier has been awesome the last two games. The bullpen threw three shutout innings in a low-pressure situation. Stroman needs to step up this afternoon and the bullpen, Lugo and Wilson are rested. A win will get some distance from Arizona and keep the pressure on the Cubs, Brewers and Phillies. LGM