Mets 7, Cubs 6 (Citi Field)
Mets Record: 16-15
Mets Streak: W1
Last 10: 4-6
WP: Danny Young (1-0) LP: Daniel Palencia (0-1)
Seat on the Korner: Francisco Lindor
We select the star of the game and virtually invite him to a Seat on the Korner, just as Ralph Kiner used to do for his studio postgame show on WOR-channel 9 broadcasts in the early decades of the Mets.
Today's Seat on the Korner goes to Francisco Lindor, who didn't even start the game after exiting last night with flu-like symptoms. Lindor showed up to work well enough to convince Carlos Mendoza to let him pinch hit for Joey Wendle in the sixth, where he drove in two with a double to bring the Mets within one. The Mets needed Lindor again in the 11th inning, when he stepped up to the plate with two on and none out down a run, and he delivered a walk-off two-run double to send the Mets' faithful home happy.
Need to Know
Prior to the game Mets' manager Carlos Mendoza announced that Brooks Raley will not return from the injured list as originally planned due to lingering soreness in his left elbow. The plan is to take it slow with Raley.
The Cubs continued to run wild against the Mets, swiping four more bases on the afternoon. The Mets have allowed 41 of 42 stolen base attempts to be succesful for a league-worst 2.4% caught-stealing rate.
Brandon Nimmo picked up the rest of the Mets' offense, going 2 for 4 with a double and two RBIs, including the game-tying hit in the sixth inning.
The Mets secured a series split against the Cubs this afternoon, snapping a streak of two consecutive series losses.
The Mets wrapped up their seven-game home stand with a 3-4 record.
Edwin Diaz worked the ninth and tenth innings with the Mets' bullpen short-handed, marking his first two-inning appearance since August 4, 2022.
Christopher Morel hit his second homer of the series off Adrian Houser in the fifth inning, a three-run shot to make it 4-0 Cubs.
Pete Alonso's slump continued as he went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts and left four men on base. Over the course of the home stand Alonso went 1-for-24 with one home run, three RBI and eight strikeouts.
Danny Young made his major league debut and allowed an unearned run in the 11th inning to pick up his first big-league win.
ESPN's Kiley McDaniel reported during the game that the Mets are planning to call up top prospect Christian Scott to make his major league debut on Saturday.
Turning Point
While Lindor's game-winner is the obvious answer, we'll go to the top of the inning for the turning point. With two outs and two runners on, Mike Tauchmann singled to right field. The Cubs sent Nick Madrigal home but Starling Marte threw a bullet to the plate to Omar Narvaez, who tagged Madrigal out to keep the deficit at just one run. This marked the second consecutive extra inning that Marte and Narvaez had connected to nail a Cubs' runner at home, keeping the inning from getting out of control and buying time for the Mets to put a rally together in the bottom of the frame.
Three Keys
Is Time Running Out For Adrian Houser?
Despite a strong start to the day, Houser turned in another mediocre effort when he ran out of gas in the fifth inning, giving up four runs on four hits while walking four and leaving the Mets in another big hole. The promotion of Scott raised speculation that he was taking Houser's place in the rotation, which Mendoza temporarily quelled by telling the media after the game that the team would operate with a six-man rotation, a move that makes sense with the Mets in the middle of a stretch where they will play 39 games in 41 days. Houser's job is safe for now but his 8.16 ERA is not going to play with Tylor Megill, David Peterson and Kodai Senga all working their way back from injuries.
Pete Crow-Armstrong's Adventures With Umpiring
In a truly unusual sequence, former Mets' farm hand Pete Crow-Armstrong burned them with an RBI double in the sixth inning to plate Chicago's fifth run. The play ended with Crow-Armstrong narrowly beating a throw to second base and being ruled safe even though only his batting helmet, which he had taken off during the play, was touching the bag and his hand, which you can see below. SNY's Steve Gelbs spoke to MLB officials during the game and they indicated Crow-Armstrong should have been ruled out, costing reliever Dedniel Nunez a few extra pitches.
The Mets did get a break of their own later in the game, however, as Crow-Armstrong roped a hit into right field but couldn't stretch it into a double after running into the first base umpire. Umpire interference wasn't called, perhaps evening the score for the Mets with the officials.
The Offense Is Still A Work In Progress
Despite the final tally of seven runs, the Mets' offense still hasn't truly woken up. Six of the Mets' eight hits came from three players (Nimmo, Lindor and Harrison Bader collected two a piece) as Alonso, Jeff McNeil, Brett Baty and Narvaez went a combined 0-for-17 with two walks (both by Baty, who scored two runs). The Mets' season appears to go as their offense does so expect plenty of peaks-and-valleys until the team can get more consistent production from their lineup.