Game 17 of 162
Mets 8 - Dodgers 6 (Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles)
Mets record: 11-6
Mets streak: Won 5
WP - David Peterson (1-2)
LP - Alex Vesia (0-2)
SV - Adam Ottavino (2)
Seat on the Korner:
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.
It's not often you get the seat by getting one out. But it was a huge out as Smith came in for Brooks Raley, who was good in his own right by pitching 1 and 2/3's innings before giving up a bloop single to Freddie Freeman and a long double to James Outman. But Smith came into face Miguel Vargas with the tying runs in scoring position and struck him out on three pitches. In a game that had many turning points, Drew Smith prevented what might have been the final one.
Need to Know
Brett Baty made his return to the Mets by starting at third base and batting 8th. He had a great at-bat coming back from an 0-2 count and fouling three pitches off before giving the Mets a 5-3 lead with an RBI single in the 4th inning. The interesting aspect is that Dave Roberts made sure that lefties came in to face Baty later in the game. Baty is already getting respect.
David Peterson threw six innings and gave up six runs on seven hits while striking out six. The good news was that Peterson didn't walk anyone, and he threw 61 strikes out of 94 pitches. The bad news was that he gave up three homers ... two to Freddie Freeman and one to Max Muncy. They all came on three different pitches (sinker and slider to Freeman, fastball to Muncy), but the location was the same: down the middle.
Dustin May was similarly wild in the zone, giving up eight hits and five runs in 5 and 2/3's innings while only striking out one. While the broadcast booth noted how many curveballs May was throwing second time through the lineup, I noticed that the Mets were definitely getting to him early in counts, ambushing him and frustrating him.
The fun off May started with Daniel Vogelbach's first homer of the year in the second inning, which was a solid answer to Freddie Freeman's HR to make it 1-0. (He would also add another RBI on a groundout in the 4th.)
Turning Point
The Mets took the lead for good in the 7th. After Muncy's home run made the score 6-5 in the 6th, Alex Vesia gave up three singles to lead off the 7th and load the bases with nobody out. Phil Bickford came in to an impossible situation, but didn't help matters by balking a run home.
It was certainly an interesting call, because the booth surmised that Bickford's extra movement with his front foot was the reason that he got called for the balk, and that superfluous movements are no longer allowed under the new pitch clock rules. But the rule has always been that movements like that are not balks if they happen all the time, right?
So the bottom line is that the Mets tied the game, and everyone was confused. But the Mets would add the go ahead run on a productive out by Francisco Lindor, and an RBI single by Pete Alonso to make it 8-6.
Three Keys
When you look at a matchup like this, Dustin May vs David Peterson, you might think that this was one you'd have a tough time winning because May has been so good. It was certainly a different challenge for the Mets tonight, going from the A's starting staff to May. But the Mets approach to May was excellent, tagging him for five runs in his 5 and 2/3's innings, and for hitting well all game. Brandon Nimmo, Pete Alonso, and Jeff McNeil all had three hits. McNeil's night was especially important because he had a series to forget in Oakland.
Now after the Mets got those five runs off May, you might think that it would have been a shame if the Mets had such an effort off a good pitcher, and then lost. After Freeman's second HR to tie it and Muncy's HR to give the Mets the lead, that was in danger of happening. But then the Mets got the lead back off Vesia and Bickford, and then the bullpen went to work. Raley was terrific for five outs before giving up the two hits, and Smith's one out was gigantic. Adam Ottavino then came in for the ninth and set down the Dodgers 1-2-3. But not without some adventure ...
We talk about hitting streaks all the time. But Nimmo is on an all time defensive streak. Who knows where this game goes if the Dodgers get a runner on in the 9th. It could have gone south, quickly. Nimmo's defense has directly helped the Mets win two games now, thanks to his efforts in Oakland on Sunday and in the ninth inning on Monday.