Gut Reaction: Giants 13, Mets 12 (5/24/22)

The Mets and Giants played the middle game of the three game set with Chris Bassitt facing Logan Webb, and the Giants took the lead first. Two batters into the Giants first turn at bat, it was second and third with Darin Ruf coming up. Ruf got a run in on a grounder, but the trail runner stayed at second and couldn’t score on a ground out by the next hitter and so the Giants only got the one run.

The Mets equaled in their next at bat as McNeil led off with a double, got to third on an infield hit by Escobar and scored on a hit by Cahna. But, Smith and Nido hit groundouts keeping Escobar from scoring and Nimmo hit a bullet right over second base to a waiting Brandon Crawford so the Mets had first and second with no outs but got nothing more.

So, 1-1 was the score until the bottom of the third. Bassitt issued a one out walk to Mike Yastrzemski and after striking out Ruf for the second out, Joc Pederson did what he does to the Mets; he hit it out, making it 3-1.

While Webb was getting outs in key spots, for the second straight inning Bassitt couldn’t finish an inning and it cost him. With a man on third, a two-out walk to the #9 hitter, Michael Papierski, brought up Tommy LaStella. LaStella hit an inside fastball down the line in right a few feet inside the foul pole making it 6-1 after four innings.

As Keith Hernandez kept the viewers interested with some facts about San Francisco, the Mets were running up Logan Webb’s pitch count although the success wasn’t quite evident. In the fifth inning, the Mets bunched a Nido single, a Nimmo HBP on his shin guard, a Marte force out and a Lindor fly out to get Nido home and chop a run off the Giants’ lead with Webb having surpassed 90 pitches, so he was done.

But, in the lower half of the frame, Ruf led off with a sharp single to left field and Joc Pederson hit another home run, this one to dead center. 8-2 Giants and Buck Showalter was on the bullpen phone getting Stephen Nogosek up and throwing. In two starts against the Giants, Bassitt has allowed 13 earned runs.

Things were ho hum for a bit, and in the top of the seventh after the Mets made two quick outs Sterling Marte chopped one down the third base line, but beat it out for a two-out hit. Next up Francisco Lindor, and he made Marte’s hustle look better by hitting it over the right center field fence and cut the lead to 8-4. Marte’s continuous hustle down the first base line was a big factor in the Mets scoring three of their runs thus far.

The eighth inning brought Mets killer Tyler Rogers into the game but McNeil and Escobar opened the inning with singles. Next up Cahna, who took two perfect strikes but then got a pitch he could put good wood on and he did. A smoked liner in the third base hole was knocked down by the third baseman, Kevin Padlo, but he had no play. A bases loaded, no outs situation, brought Dom Smith to the plate and he hit a chopper up the middle that scooted through sending two runners home and Cahna to third. In an 8-6 game with the tying run on base, Luis Guillorme pinch hit for Tomas Nido. Guillorme hit a meek grounder to first base and Cahna trying to score was cut down. It appeared to be a base running mistake as there wasn’t a chance the Giants would turn two on that and Cahna was indecisive but had time to go back to third base but didn’t. So, the Mets lost the runner on third base and now had first and second with one out. Nimmo up next, and he hit a slow chopper that the third baseman Padlo couldn’t get an out on. Marte up next, and he hit a grounder wide to the left of the third baseman that Padlo again couldn’t field cleanly and everyone was safe with a run in: 8-7. Next up Lindor. Lindor hit a bullet grounder against the shift down the third base line into the left field corner that eluded Pederson and three runs scored as Lindor had a standup triple and the Mets had a 10-8 lead! Next up Pete Alonso, and he hit a rocket to deep center that was run down by Yastrzemski but Lindor tagged up and a seventh run scored in the eighth inning. As the Mets batted around, McNeil kept it going with a single and Escobar followed with his fourth hit of the night. So, two outs, two on, and Mark Cahna was up again, Mets up 11-8. Cahna however didn’t hit it to the third baseman but rather tried the shortstop and Crawford wasn’t going to give the Mets a break.

So, seven runs in and a lead, with Drew Smith coming in for the eighth inning. Smith got two quick outs, and after a single by Yastrzemski, Smith walked Ruf on four pitches bring up Joc Pederson as the tying run. Smith was squeezed on a couple of the those pitches, but a four pitch walk was inexcusable. Guess what Pederson did… a three run home run tying the game at 11-11. Drew Smith out, and Joely Rodriguez enters.

First batter Brandon Crawford banked a single off of Rodriguez and then Estrada parachuted a hit into short right center field. Then, a bizarre play: Luis Gonzalez hits a chopper up the middle that Lindor tried to field and tag the runner Estrada in one motion, but he dropped the ball as Estrada went around second to avoid the tag. But, Jeff McNeil backed up Lindor and appeared to touch second before Estrada tagged second, but the Mets didn’t challenge the safe call and the bases were loaded. A bad miss in my book, especially at this point in the game. Who’s job is it to identify challenges?

So, Showalter pulls Rodriguez and brings in Adam Ottavino. Ottavino struck out Kevin Padlo (he will need a shrink after this game) to end the chaos.

So, starting the ninth inning, Dom Smith hit a high fly ball into right center field – or “triples alley” in San Francisco – that bounced short of the wall and high up against it allowing Smith to get over to third. Travis Jankowski pinch ran and Patrick Mazeika hit a grounder back to the mound holding the runner. However, one of the Mets potential all-stars Brandon Nimmo hit a fly ball to left field bringing in Jankowski and giving the Mets a 12-11 lead going to the bottom of the ninth and Edwin Diaz entering the game.

So, who leads off? Wilmer Flores. First pitch fastball, base hit. Tying run and the Giants don’t have a pinch runner? Wow. Next up LaStella with a bad wheel and on a grounder to deep in the hole between first and second, the Mets we’re able to turn a double play! [In the post game, Diaz said that he felt the game was over after that DP. I’m sure millions of people felt the same.] So, all Diaz had to do was get the dangerous Mike Yastrzemski, but he was careful with the powerful lefty and walked him. Ruf spoiled that strategy with a base hit to left on a flat slider that had too much middle of the plate, bringing up… Joc Pederson.
first pitch: 101 down the pipe, takes a strike
Second pitch: 100 inside
Third pitch: 90 slider low and away but Pederson goes down to get it and singled to center tying the game

That gave the Giants a chance to win it with Brandon Crawford… and they did. Crawford singled to left field and Ruf beat the throw home giving the Giants the win.

The Mets and Giants combined for 15 runs in the last three frames and the Mets showed their ability to come back from a large deficit but Showalter may have gone too long with Drew Smith in the eighth inning by not going to Joely Rodriguez to face Pederson, and costing the Mets the three run lead. Showalter in the postgame said he was trying to use as few pitchers as possible with the uncertainty of Szapucki on the horizon for tomorrow’s game and he felt Drew Smith had one of the better fastballs he had this year. Too, if he went to Rodriguez, Kapler has Evan Longoria ready to hit for Pederson. Showalter also confirmed that Szapucki is starting Wednesday and the team needs to be ready to support him.

Not a crippling loss, but a euphoric win would have been awesome! They earned it.