Game 30 of 162
Tigers 6 - Mets 5 (Comerica Park, Detroit)
Mets record: 16-14
Mets streak: Lost 1
WP - Tyler Alexander (1-0)
LP - Adam Ottavino (0-2)
SV - Alex Lange (4)
Seat on the Korner: Eric Haase
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.
Eric Haase’s Wednesday heroics earned him his first, and likely last, Seat on the Korner. Haase doubled his RBI count on the season, knocking in five runs including a go-ahead two-run single in the 8th inning. Haase also opened the scoring with a three-run homer in the bottom of the first inning.
Need to Know
After a surprisingly strong start to the season, Joey Lucchesi labored through his 3rd outing, allowing 4 earned runs on 5 hits over 4 innings of work.
Tommy Pham, who entered the contest mired in an 0-17 slump, recorded three hits one of which being a 110 MPH laser over the right-field wall.
Francisco Lindor and Mark Canha joined in on the home run fun, with round-trippers of their own coming in the 2nd and 5th inning, respectively.
Mets reliever Jimmy Yacabonis rebounded from a couple of shaky outings with 3 innings of shutout baseball.
The Mets have a short turnaround as they return to Comerica Park for the nightcap of the doubleheader.
Turning Point
With the Mets four outs away from taking the first leg of the doubleheader, Eric Haase, who had already scorched New York with a 3-run homer in the first inning, had other plans in mind. With two outs and runners on 2nd and 3rd, Haase punched the first pitch he saw from Ottavino into the right-center field gap, plating both the tying and go-ahead runs. This proved to be the difference in the ball game as the Mets were left to scramble for 1 run with only 3 outs to play with. Detroit closer Alex Lange shut the door in the 9th inning and secured the Tigers’ 11th win of the season.
3 Keys
Home run barrage
The Mets and the Tigers combined for 5 home runs on the afternoon. Adjustments to the dimensions at Comerica Park were made this past offseason in an attempt to increase the ball park's home run rate.
Ottavino concerns
Coming off a one-week layoff, Ottavino was far from his sharpest self. After striking out Akil Baddoo to open the bottom half of the 8th inning, the wheels began to come off. Ottavino gave up two singles and also hit a batter en route to his second loss of the season.
Baty time
Brett Baty made his 2nd start of the season vs a left-handed pitcher. Baty, who had been giving way to Eduardo Escobar when the Mets faced a southpaw, has seemingly taken hold of the starting third basemen position with a batting average of .333 and OPS of .915.