Stock Market Crashes, Gas(ser) Brice Soars In Brew Crew 8-1 Rout of Mets

Brewers 8 Mets 1 (Citi Field, Flushing, NY)

Mets record: 60-73

Mets streak: Lost 1

WP - Robert Gasser (4-5)

LP - Robert Stock (0-3)

Seat on the Korner: Robert Gasser

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.

Tonight's Seat on the Korner goes to Robert Gasser. For his unexpected but enormous effort, Robert Gasser gets the virtual seat next to the late, great Ralph Kiner on the Korner. Gasser wasn’t supposed to take the ball in the first inning, but after a 106-mph comebacker sent Dustin May to an early exit, he stepped in and gave Milwaukee exactly what it desperately needed—innings and zeros. Gasser covered nearly six innings, allowing just one run and keeping the Mets from turning an early injury into an advantage. With the Brewers already short on pitching and in the middle of a brutal stretch of 16 games in 16 days, his performance was anything but routine. And for his efforts, Gasser leaves with a virtual stack of Getty Gas(ser) gift cards—because sometimes the best way to save the day is to simply fill up the tank.

Need to Know

• Tonight's game was the second of a 6-game homestand for the Mets (1-1 vs. Milwaukee, 3 vs. Houston)

• Even with the loss last night, the Mets are 13-7 (.650),  since August 4 which is one of the best records in baseball over that span.  

• Brewers starting pitcher Dustin May's night lasted exactly one pitch,his first pitch of the game came screaming back at him at 106 mph off the bat of A.J. Ewing. May was able to remain in the game long enough for the play to be completed, but ultimately left after the scary comebacker.

• Sal Frelick was a major part of Milwaukee's offensive attack. Returning from a shoulder injury, he doubled in the sixth and had three hits and walk and drove in two in the game.

• Robert Stock made his fifth start of the season and has logged 20 ⅔ innings his ERA took a dramatic rise from 5.40 ERA to 7.40 after giving up 7 earned runs over a very rocky 4 innings of work.

• Stocks 4 innings included the Brewers tagging him for six consecutive singles in the second inning, its first such inning since 1998, according to MLB.

• The squirrel returns, no not Jeff McNeil, A real squirrel scampered onto the field in the fourth inning, briefly stopping play and immediately becoming the most popular attraction at Citi Field. The Brewers' broadcast even gave it an “iso cam.” Considering the Mets were trailing 4-0 at the time, you couldn't really blame the fans for paying attention.

• A.J. Ewing provided some excitement in the third. Ewing singled, stole second and then stole third, his 20th and 21st of the season, giving the Mets a runner 90 feet away—but New York couldn't cash him in. The 21 steals ties Ewing with Gregg Jefferies for third most by a rookie, Mookie Wilson holds the record with 24.

• Dedniel Núñez continues to make strides since his recall as he took over and retired the Brewers in order in the ninth.

Turning Point

With the Mets trailing 4-0 with plenty of ball game left, you thought just maybe they could mount a comeback.Then Brice Turang stepped to the plate in the top of the fourth and completely but and end to that . Turang launched a 408 foot three-run homer with Garrett Mitchell and Cooper Pratt aboard, taking the Brewers from a 4-0 lead to a 7-0 advantage.

Three Keys

The Stock Market Crashed

Robert Stock entered the night with an opportunity to give the Mets some length. Instead, the opening bell rang and Stock opened and immediately went into free fall. Stock survived the first inning, but Milwaukee absolutely hammered him in the second, producing six consecutive singles and four runs before the Mets could stop the bleeding. He ultimately lasted just four innings and was charged with seven runs on 10 hits. The Mets were playing from behind almost before they had a chance to settle into the game, and when you're down 4-0 in the second inning, the margin for error gets pretty darn small.

No Return on the Mets' Investment

The Mets actually had opportunities. They put two runners on in the second, got Ewing to third base in the third after a single and two stolen bases, and finally scored in the fourth when Alvarez singled home Baty. The Mets' offense wasn't completely dormant—they had 9 hits and 2 walks by the end of the night—but they simply couldn't string enough of them together to make a difference as they were 1-7 with runners in scoring position.

Portfolio Diversification

When the Mets' original defensive alignment started falling apart, they had to move some money around—and Brett Baty and Christopher Morel became the portfolio managers. Baty began the night in left field but shifted over to third base in the fifth inning after Bo Bichette was forced to leave with a bruised left foot after fouling a pitch off it. Morel, meanwhile, came off the bench and took over in left. Later, Baty moved again, this time from third to shortstop, while Morel shifted from left to third and Cristian Pache entered the game in left. What made Morels night interesting is that the Mets have a long and occasionally strange history of turning outfielders into infielders and infielders into outfielders. Last night, Christopher Morel added a new chapter, becoming the first player in Mets history to make his debut at both positions for the club in the same game. He had already made his Mets debut earlier this month—the distinction is that Wednesday was his first time playing leftfield and third base for the Mets, checking both boxes in one night.