Mets 11 Marlins 2 (Citi Field, Flushing, NY)
Mets record: 72-85
Mets streak: Won 1
WP - Joey Lucchesi (4-0)
LP - Braxton Garrett (9-7)
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.
Pete Alonso reached base five times and his two run dinger in the first inning got the Mets off on the right foot.
Francisco Lindor had a two run homer of his own, and his four RBI absolutely gives him a share of the seat for Game 1 of the Mets doubleheader against the Marlins ... an 11-2 victory.
Need to Know
This game was rescheduled from Tuesday as the field was deemed unplayable last night.
Pete Alonso's two run homer in the first inning was the 192nd of his career. Alonso is now tied for 4th with Howard Johnson on the Mets all time home run list.
Francisco Lindor's two run homer in the third inning was his 28th of the sesaon, and he's now two dingers away from a 30-30 season.
Mark Vientos' tow run homer in the 6th was his 9th HR of the season and third against the Marlins.
For the third time this season, Joey Lucchesi pitch into the 7th inning, going six shutout innings before giving up two runs in the 7th (one of them inherited by Trevor Gott.) Lucchesi became the first Mets pitcher to pitch nine or more starts and not lose a game.
Braxton Garrett gave up four runs in four innings and 77 pitches. The Marlins pulled him early presumably with an eye towards getting him to pitch in the last game of the season on short rest if the game means something, with the rainout pushing this game back a night.
Ronny Mauricio made his first major league appearance at shortstop at the end of the blowout.
The Mets are now 8-3 against the Marlins this season.
Turning Point
The Mets had given up a couple of runs in the 7th after Lucchesi gave way to Trevor Gott. With the Marlins being the team in playoff contention, that might have been enough to get them going.
But leading off the 7th, Jorge Soler couldn't catch up to Brandon Nimmo's pop-up with two outs in the inning, and it all unraveled from there. After back to back singles from Mauricio and Alonso to load the bases, Francisco Lindor put the game away.
Three Keys
Pitching ...
Joey Lucchesi, at the very least, has proved that he should have a role for the Mets in 2024. Whether it's as a regular starter or swing guy, there isn't much more he could do. He faced a team battling for the playoffs for the second straight time, and somehow still baffled them for six innings.
And he did it with a sore back after getting into an accident last night on Roosevelt Avenue!
Defense ...
Most notably: Jeff McNeil.
That was in the first. He also made a nice running catch in the top of the 7th with the Marlins rallying that saved that inning from being worse. But he did drop a fly ball right afterwards to give the Marlisn their second run of the inning. The play after that was a comebacker to Trevor Gott who almost threw it away. But Francisco Lindor saved him by scooping the throw up on a short hop for the second out and keep the Marlins at two runs. Without those two plays, it could have been an entirely different inning and game.
... and Pete Alonso.
Pete Alonso was hitting .235 with 17 homers on fastballs in his first 97 games, but the last 52 games see him with a .283 average and a .698 slugging percentage off fastballs.
Mets fans should be happy that his early season struggles are way, way back in the rear view, and can be attributed in part to the injury he suffered when Charlie Morton hit him on the wrist with a pitch.