The Mets rallied again to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-3 in the series opener on Monday night at Citi Field.
Here are some takeaways…
– Adrian Houser took the ball for New York and he ran into some early trouble but fared much better than his last outing against the high-powered Braves. After a perfect first inning, Pittsburgh put two baserunners on in both the second and third innings, but the right-hander did well to escape the threats without any damage.
Houser got through the next two innings unscathed, but the Pirates finally made him pay for a leadoff walk in the sixth, as Ke’Bryan Hayes came around to score the first run of the game on an Andrew McCutchen RBI single. Drew Smith has been solid so far this season, but he entered in relief of the righty and allowed two more runs to score on an RBI single and sacrifice fly.
– The Mets’ offense was held down over the first few innings by veteran left-hander Martin Perez, but as has been the case all season, they battled back right away. After Francisco Alvarez drew a bases loaded walk and Jeff McNeil brought in a run with a sacrifice fly, DJ Stewart came off the bench and tied the game with a double.
Following his dreadful hitless start to the season, Stewart has now come up with a handful of clutch hits and is 5-for-11 with two doubles, two homers, seven RBI, and four walks.
– Brooks Raley pushed his stretch to seven consecutive scoreless outings to start the season by striking out a pair in the seventh, followed by Adam Ottavino, who is in the midst of a scoreless streak of his own.
– It was Harrison Bader who played hero again, cracking a go-ahead two-run double to give the Mets the lead for the second straight day in the bottom of the eighth. After catching the Pirates by surprise with a stela of third, the speedster scored the third run of the inning on a Brandon Nimmo infield single.
– For the second straight day, Edwin Diaz came on in the ninth and retired the Pirates in order to lockdown the team’s third straight victory and his fourth save of the season.
– After showing some positive signs at the plate over the weekend, Francisco Lindor enjoyed a nice day, reaching base three times with two hits and a walk. He did, however, ground out with a man on second to fall to 0-for-15 on the season with runners in scoring position.
– Mets manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters pregame that Brett Baty was in the lineup against the tough left-hander because he trusts him in such situations, and the youngster responded by reaching base twice.
MVP of the Game: Harrison Bader
Just like he did on Sunday afternoon, Bader was able to come through in a big spot for the Mets and delivered the game-winning hit. The outfielder is now riding a five-game hitting streak and he’s quietly batting .304 on the year.
Highlights
Upcoming schedule
The Mets and Pirates continue their three-game set at Citi Field on Tuesday at 7:10 p.m.
Pittsburgh is yet to announce a start, but lefty Jose Quintana will take the ball for New York.
Source Agencies
