Francisco Lindor, who doubled in his previous AB, hit a grand slam home run in the bottom of the sixth inning to propel the Mets to a 4-1 win over the Phillies Wednesday at Citi Field. The victory gave the Mets the NLDS win and vaults them into the NLCS against either the Dodgers or Padres, with San Diego looking to clinch later tonight.
The Mets had bases-loaded situations in both the first and second innings but were unable to capitalize, which made the Lindor slam even more gratifying. The Mets had eight hits and six walks in their eight turns at bat. They should have had more runs than they did but that’s what happens when you go 3-15 with RISP and two of those hits were of the infield variety and didn’t score runs.
Jose Quintana pitched another strong game, even if he only went 5.1 IP. With better defense, he may not have allowed a run. With runners on second and third, Quintana induced a soft grounder to third base. Mark Vientos charged and it looked like it was going to be a bang-bang play at the plate. But Vientos couldn’t get a throw off and the run scored.
Quintana got thru five innings with just the one run allowed and it looked like he was done. But Carlos Mendoza brought him back for the sixth because Bryce Harper was due up first. Harper hit a double and Mendoza brought in Reed Garrett, who got two strikeouts wrapped around a walk before Mendoza called for David Peterson to face a lefty.
Peterson got the final out in the sixth.
That extra-long frame, with two pitching changes, might have contributed to the Mets’ big inning. The Phillies went to the pen and kept the reliever in who finished out the fifth inning. He loaded the bases before the visitors went to the pen and Lindor greeted the new reliever with the key hit of the game. The pitch was 99.4 mph and Lindor connected with a 109.5 exit velocity and the ball traveled 398 feet.
Peterson pitched the seventh and eighth innings, too, and allowed just one hit while keeping the Phillies scoreless. But with a 3-run lead and a save situation, Mendoza went to Edwin Diaz.
And it was not an easy ninth inning, as Diaz walked the first two batters he faced. Diaz recovered to strike out the next batter he faced and the following hitter flied out to center for the second out, with the runner taking third base.
That brought Kyle Schwarber to the plate. All series long, the pro-Philadelphia announcers kept talking about the HR bat of Schwarber. And it’s not that they’re wrong. It’s just that Schwarber also brings a lot of strikeouts to the table and that was never mentioned. Until the ninth, when it was noted that Schwarber had fanned in six of eight PA against Diaz.
And Diaz got Schwarber swinging to send the Mets to the NLCS.
Just finished watching all the highlights as unfortunately, I had to catch the game on the radio tonight. I know he makes an awful lot of money, but does anyone still want to void the Lindor trade and the $34 million plus a year that he makes?
Another two walk near heart attack from Diaz, but he stepped up. As did Q, Garrett and Peterson, who has become a strong bullpen piece in the playoffs.
They won five out of seven games against the Padres this year while losing four of six against the Dodgers. Don’t care who they play. Excited for the next round.
Dear God:
Please grant me the blessings that Carlos Mendoza has so all my head scratching moves work out. Thank you in advance.
With love,
Kostas
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Of course I am happy for the win and happy for my team, but Diaz needed 23 pitches to get out of the ninth inning and Peterson had only thrown the same amount to pitch 2.1 innings. Is there a law that a gassed and erratic Edwin Diaz has to come in for the save when the other guy is absolutely rolling? Hope Mendoza’s magic dust doesn’t run out.
Leaving the bases loaded in each of the first two innings was asking for trouble, but Quintana is locked in and carried the weight until another player capable of the weight can take over. That was Lindor. Remember the back injury? Think it healed in ten days? He is the beast!
So happy. Sunday night feels like a month away. If they come to LA I’ll try to get to a game and join the chat from the stadium as I’m in Santa monica. At this pt I’m not concerned with facing any team. We ve got the juice.
LGM
For those of us that realized that Candelita can’t hit the curve on the outer edge, good news via MLB.com:
“McNeil, who has been sidelined since Sept. 6 due to a fractured right wrist, expects to be ready to go when the NLCS begins in either Los Angeles or San Diego. The team successfully petitioned Major League Baseball to let him play in the Arizona Fall League on Friday and Saturday.
So long as McNeil comes out of those games without issue, both he and manager Carlos Mendoza said, the Mets will activate him when they release their NLCS roster on Sunday.”
How sweet it is. Of course, in typical Met style, grueling to watch with over anxious at bats and close out pitching, but the bottom line is what matters – they’ve bounced out two divisional champs. They were many contributors. They closed it out at home. Their biggest boys stepped up. They can now catch their breath and set up their pitching. Congratulations, enjoy the moment, and let’s keep it going. The Mets are still a flawed bunch with weaknesses, which makes this run even better. There’s not a team still in it that the Mets can’t take 4 of 7 from.
Tremendous night at Citi Field, two actually. The crowd Wednesday was insane all night, more reserved last night until the Lindor HR ignited the place. Diaz is trying to kill me but I’m tougher than he thinks I am – and alls well that ends well.
Striking out Schwarber, up as the tying run, was a fantastic ending. Or more a continuation, not an ending at all.
Don’t know which of those announcers is talking when… but my favorite numbskull moment was the insightful: “He does all of his thinking in his head.”