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The Mets’ four days in Hollywood felt positively Lynchian, and the early part of their Friday didn’t start out very feel-good either. Reports surfaced that the team is ready to accept the reality of the standings and be sellers at the trade deadline, while their opening day shortstop apparently requested a trade after losing his job to the Mets’ once and (sadly) future shortstop. So then the Mets turned around and put it all together for one rare and pleasant day, pounding out 20 hits on their way to an easy 11-4 victory.
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The Mets got off to a quick start thanks to a clutch two-out Wilmer Flores RBI single in top of the first, but the Giants answered right back on a Brandon Belt RBI double in the bottom of the inning.
The Mets unloaded in the top of the second inning. Lucas Duda led off with an opposite field double—the first of five doubles in the inning. After a Jose Reyes pop out, Seth Lugo helped his own cause with a double down the left field line. A Curtis Granderson sacrifice fly plated Lugo, and after a Yoenis Cespedes home run, three more doubles from Flores, Michael Conforto and Travis d’Arnaud gave the Mets some rare early breathing room.
Seth Lugo was efficient early, and when the Mets added three more in the top of the sixth to extend the lead to 10-1, it didn’t seem to matter much when Lugo tired in the sixth and allowed three runs of his own.
A Lucas Duda home run in the top of the seventh rounded out the scoring, as the Mets won their first game in San Francisco after a nightmarish four days in Los Angeles. Every Met starter had at least one hit in the blowout except for Reyes (who did walk twice).
Saturday the Mets will look to win back-to-back games for the first time since June 11th and 12th behind reigning National League Player of the Week Jacob deGrom.
SB Nation GameThreads
Amazin’ Avenue
McCovey Chronicles
Box scores
Win Probability Added
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Big winners: Seth Lugo, +11.6 WPA (+13.6 batting, -1.8 pitching!), Yoenis Cespedes, +10.7% WPA, Wilmer Flores, +9.6% WPA
Big losers: Jose Reyes, -4.1% WPA
The aw3s0mest play: Yoenis Cespedes two-run home run in the second inning, +15.1%
The sux0rest play: Yoenis Cespedes pop-out to shortstop in first inning, -5.9%
Total pitcher WPA: 0.1% WPA+
Total batter WPA: 49.9% WPA+
GWRBI!: Yoenis Cespedes