Mets 8 Diamondbacks 3 (Chase Field, Phoenix, AZ)
Mets record: 69-63
Mets streak: Lost 1
WP - Sean Manaea (10-5)
LP - Brandon Pfaadt (8-7)
Seat on the Korner: Sean Manaea
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 Mets starter Sean Manaea, who notched his 10th win, the most for a Mets pitcher, with a strong outing. Manaea has been close to unhittable since studying fellow lefty Chris Sale and dropping arm angle. But let him tell you about that as he takes a seat.
Need to Know
The Mets win snapped the Diamondbacks' six-game win streak, but they failed to gain ground on the Braves, who beat the Twins in extra innings.
The Mets now lead the Diamondbacks, 3-2, in the season series.
The Diamondbacks entered the game with 20 wins and an .800 winning percentage since July 29, the best in baseball.
Pete Alonso's homer in the second was his 220th, tying him with Mike Piazza for third on the Mets' all-time list.
Francisco Alvarez' RBI single in the six-run fifth snapped an 0-for-17 streak.
Luis Severino takes the mound against the Diamondbacks' Tuesday against Eduardo Rodriguez. In a mild surprise, the Mets said David Peterson will start Thursday's matinee againsr Ryne Nelson. There had been some thought that Tylor Megill would be recalled to make the start; instead, he is expected to take the mound against the White Sox Friday. Peterson will be pitching on regular rest and facing a team that has more problems against lefties than righties.
Turning Point
It would be easy to pick one at-bat in the six-run fifth and call that the turning point, but I think it really came in the seventh. Reed Garrett replaced the tiring Sean Manaea. The Diamondbacks, who score the most runs in MLB, has already put three on the borard via home runs, and were threatening after Garrett gave up an embarrassing infield single to Kevin Newman and a more subsranial one to Jose Herrera. We've seen the Mets blow too many big leads this year, and the vibes were bad. But then Garrett bore down and got Geraldo Perdomo to pop out to Mark Vientos to end the inning. Big exhale. (Honorable mention to Danny Young, who struck out Joc Pederson to end the eighth, also with a runner in scoring position).
Three Keys
Masterful Manaea
Sean Manaea cruised through six strong, one-hit innings before tiring in the seventh and yielding two home runs. Manaea struck out 11, walked none and continued to demonstrate why he has become the ace of the staff. The Mets have had five games in which the starter has struck out 10 or more -- four of them by Manaea.
Balls Slither Through Diamondbacks' Defense
The Diamondbacks boast one of baseball's best defenses, but you'd never know it from the way they played early in the game. In the second, second baseman Kevin Newman whiffed on pitcher Brandon Pfaadt's throw on a potential inning-ending double play ball. Jeff McNeil then hit into a fielder's choice that scored J.D. Martinez. In the fifth, shortstop Geraldo Perdomo let a very fieldable ball go under his glove. Mark Vientos was given a hit, but it easily could have been an error; Francisco Alvarez scored on the play. Perdomo was charged with an error later in the inning on an Alvarez grounder that scored Martinez. How unusual was Perdomo's inning? He entered the game with only one error in 59 games since he returned from the IL June 11, tied for the fewest among shortstops. Add in bases loaded hit by pitch and a walk, and you get a six-run inning.
The MVP Drive Continues
Francisco Lindor was named National League Player of the Week earlier in the day, and followed it up with two more hits, including his 35th double of the year. Lindor entended his on-base streak to 25 games and continued to make his case for MVP votes.
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