Mets Blow It Against Diamondbacks

This seemed like yet another easy win. Everything was clicking for the New York Mets, but baseball always finds a way to make things interesting.

Through the first three innings, there were base runners, but Caleb Smith and Marcus Stroman were making the pitches they needed to make. It also doesn’t help the cause when Jonathan Villar was picked off yet again.

In the fourth, Pete Alonso hit a two out single. Then, for that first time in well over a month, Dominic Smith homered.

Stroman did his part to keep it at 2-0 by continuing to shut down the Arizona Diamondbacks lineup. The Diamondbacks were so frustrated, they began jawing at Stroman, and like most baseball confrontations, it proved to be much ado about nothing.

The Mets would get Stroman’s back the best way they could. That’s by scoring runs.

Villar went right to work against Diamondbacks reliever Joe Mantiply. Villar then scored as the suddenly hot Francisco Lindor tripled him home.

After Alonso was walked, Smith hit a sacrifice fly to drive home Lindor giving the Mets a 4-0 lead. Alonso wasn’t able to move up on the play, which was unfortunate as Tomas Nido followed with an inning ending GIDP.

It didn’t seem to matter much. After all, Stroman was dealing, and the Diamondbacks have been reeling. However, that didn’t stop the Diamondbacks from responding.

The Diamondbacks led off the bottom of the sixth with two straight hits. Then, with one out, Pavin Smith pulled them to within one by hitting a three run homer. Suddenly, an easy 4-0 game was a tight 4-3 one.

Stroman was done after that sixth. What was once a dominant effort turned into merely just a good one. Still, allowing three runs on seven hits and no walks with std strikeouts was enough to get the win. The Mets bullpen assured he would get it.

Again, it wasn’t easy. Jeurys Familia came on to pitch the seventh, and he was greeted by Villar making an error to not only allow Nick Ahmed to reach, but to also take second.

Familia rebounded to get the next two out, but he would walk Ketel Marte. While the tying and go-ahead runs were on base, it’s important to remember we’re seeing vintage Familia this year. He proved that again by striking out Eduardo Escobar to get out of the inning.

Aaron Loup pitched a scoreless eighth, but Edwin Diaz could not converthis 10th save in many chances. It wasn’t entirely his doing.

After striking out Stephen Vogt, he allowed a single to Ahmed. Ahmed then took second when McKinney had a bobble fielding it. Ahmed would be at third with two out when Josh Rojas, the same player jawing at Stroman earlier in the game, hit a game tying single.

Things got dicey from there. Marte singled, and Rojas appeared set to go first to third. However, he slipped, but the Mets couldn’t take advantage as Jose Peraza couldn’t quite secure a throw from Mason Williams.

Diaz got out of the ninth with the game tied 4-4 when Escobar flew out. That meant we got Rob Manfred extra innings gimmick baseball.

Peraza was the designated runner, and James McCann pinch hit for Williams. McCann, who has corrected himself at the plate after his first base stint, hit a go-ahead RBI single off Alex Young to give the Mets a 5-4 lead.

McCann would be stranded there meaning Trevor May had no margin for error when he entered the game with a runner on second to try to earn the save.

May was an odd choice as he’s been fighting it of late, and he threw 26 pitches last night. There was also the fact Seth Lugo was just activated and available. Whatever the case, Luis Rojas went with May.

It was an easy first guess, and it cost the Mets. May issued a one out walk to Smith. Josh Reddick then hit a ball down the line which appeared foul but was ruled fair.

The ball got by Brandon Drury in right allowing the tying and game winning runs to score. The Mets tried to challenge to no avail.

The Mets will certainly want this one back. They blew a 4-0 lead and wasted opportunities to add insurance runs. Diaz blew his first save, and Rojas went to the exhausted reliever with the game on the line.

Overall, the Mets are and need to be better than this. They should be tomorrow.

Game Notes: Mets-Diamondbacks finale will be televised on YouTube. Billy McKinney has four straight games with an extra base hit.

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