Mets play spoiler on Beltran's big day (and perhaps Howie's last day)
Mets 10 Phillies 3 (Citi Field, Flushing, NY)
Mets record: 71-84
Mets streak: Won 2
WP - Jefry Yan (2-1)
LP - Andrew Painter (3-10)
Seats on the Korner: Carlos Beltran and Howie Rose
We select a Star of the Game and virtually invite him to take his Seat on the Korner — just as Ralph Kiner did on WOR-TV Channel 9 during the early days of the New York Mets.
Continuing the tradition of Rheingold Beer sponsoring Kiner’s Korner, this season every seat is proudly presented by The Main Event Restaurant & Sports Bar.
With locations in Plainview and Farmingdale, The Main Event features 80+ HD TVs, fresh daily seafood, and Black Angus certified steaks—so you never have to choose between great food and the big game.
Carlos Beltran's number 15 reached the rafters today as it was retired in a pre-game ceremony. Beltran played the better part of 7 seasons with the Mets, putting up a WAR of 31.1 (most of any team) and an OPS of .869 with 149 HRs and 559 RBI in 839 games. Beltran was also a five-time All-Star, a three-time gold glove, and a two-time Silver Slugger winner as a Met. So, who else would the seat be occupied tonight?
Because of tomorrow's impending all-day rain, Howie Rose's final game as the voice of the Mets might have been tonight. Howie once said that he felt that the Mets were created just for him. All I can do is to thank him for sharing the Mets with me, and all of us.
Need to Know
Before the game, Carlos Beltran was inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame along with having his number retired in a pre-game ceremony. Beltran became the 38th person to be inducted into the Mets HoF.
Carson Benge's three hits (including his 19th homer of the year) broke the all-time Mets rookie record for this with 156, eclipsing Pete Alonso to break the record. The record-breaking hit was a swinging bunt down the third base line in the 8th.
The Mets scored 10 runs or more for the 18th time this season. Only the Cubs have done it more in the National League. Despite this, the Mets are 13th in the N.L. in runs scored.
Christian Scott went 4 and 2/3's innings, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk while striking out seven. One of the runs was an inherited runner that was driven home off of Jefry Yan, who ended up as the winning pitcher.
Brett Baty's single in the 5th inning gave him an on-base streak of 13 games, a season high.
Brooks Raley faced the Mets for the first time since being traded to the Phillies in August. He gave up two runs on two hits and two walks and did not record an out.
Dedniel Nunez pitched a 1-2-3 8th inning tonight in his first back-to-back appearance of the season.
Turning Point
The Phillies had inched their way to a 3-1 lead in the top of the 5th. But the Mets came right back in the bottom of the frame. After Andrew Painter walked Marcus Semien and gave up a single to Brett Baty, Francisco Alvarez turned the game on its ear.
It was Francisco's 16th homer of the season.
Three Keys
Raise it, and Put it In The Books
Here's the moment where Carlos Beltran's number 15 entered the rafters ...
And here's the part of today's speech where he addressed Mets fans ...
There are many moments that defined Beltran's Mets career, (mostly) good and (sometimes) bad. But the one that probably crystallized Beltran's special talents happened in Houston ...
While the day started with Howie Rose acting as the customary Master of Ceremonies for Beltran's number retirement/Mets HoF induction, it might have ended with Rose's final game as the radio voice of the New York Mets. With the weather report being dicey on Sunday, it's entirely possible that Sunday's game against the Phillies not only gets rained out but never gets played. That would mean that Rose's season and career could be over. With that in mind, this was Rose's final (maybe) call in his career ...
And here are Howie's final remarks tonight in the event that this is it ...
The Operative
If the roles were reversed and Brooks Raley went from Philadelphia to New York and couldn't get a Phillie out while giving up two runs, we'd all be calling him a Philly spy.
Maybe that's just me? Okay.
But if the Phillies flame out of the playoffs because they dropped to the 6th seed, Philadelphia will probably find a way to blame us for sending a lefty operative to embed themselves with the enemy and implode them from the inside.
I'm okay with that.
The Blood Returns to the Knuckles
There was a hairy moment for the Mets in the 7th. Cionel Perez returned from injury to start the inning, and while he got the Phillies' two best hitters (Kyle Schwarber on a ground out, Bryce Harper on a strikeout), those sandwiched a walk to Trea Turner. Then after a wild pitch and a single to Luis Arraez, Perez was replaced by Jonathan Pintaro. Pintaro walked Alec Bohm, who had already driven in two runs, to load the bases for Bryson Stott. Pintaro had a king sized out to get, and he got it.
The Mets would put the game away in the 8th with a big inning against Orion Kerkering.
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