Mets Scores & Recaps

Poor baserunning and Boston power lead to Mets defeat

A big inning was avoided, and the team never quite recovered.

By Brian Salvatore Sep 22, 2021, 8:00am EDT

The Mets/Red Sox game last night was a microcosm of the season thus far. It started off looking good, some adversity was overcome, the Mets struck early, and then the wheels fell off. A season of missed opportunities was condensed into 9 innings at Fenway Park in a 6-3 loss.

Marcus Stroman started off strong for the Mets, flashing a good slider and keeping the Sox’s potent offense quiet for the first two innings. In the third, Stroman ran into some trouble, loading the bases with no one out on a Jose Iglesias double, a walk, and a hit by pitch. But trouble was avoided via a 5-2-3 double play and then a pop up to end the inning.

The Mets took that momentum into the top of the fourth, where Boston starter Eduardo Rodriguez began to tire and falter. Three walks and a single led to the first run of the game. Michael Conforto then stroked a single to the left side to give the Mets a 2-0 lead, but Pete Alonso attempted to score from second and was tagged out ten feet before home plate, which wound up effectively killing the rally.

Stroman then entered a rough stretch where, over the course of six batters, stretched over two innings, he gave up five extra base hits, four of which would come around to score. In the bottom of the fourth, back to back doubles to Bobby Dalbec and Christian Vazquez led to the first Boston run of the night.

In the bottom of the fifth, after the Mets left two on base in the top of the inning, Kiké Hernandez and Xander Bogaerts homered, with a Kyle Schwarber double sandwiched in between. Stroman would finish the inning, but exit the game with his team down 4-2.

Miguel Castro and Brad Hand combined for a rough sixth inning which saw Castro hit Igelsias and walk Hernandez, while Hand walked Schwarber and allowed a two-run single to Bogaerts, putting the Sox up 6-2.

Pete Alonso would get slight revenge for his baserunning miscue in the top of the eighth, when he hit a laser past the Green Monster for a solo home run and cutting the Sox lead to three runs. The Sox used five relief pitchers to finish the game after Rodriguez’s exit, making the game feel extra long and frustrating.

Alonso’s home run would be the end of the Mets’ offense and, realistically, the end of their season’s relevance as well. The team will try to split this two-game series when Taijuan Walker takes the hill against Chris Sale tonight at 7:10pm.

Box scores

MLB.com

ESPN

-illar of the day

Kevin Pillar collected a hit and made the catch to end the tight-rope walk third inning, and Jonathan Villar didn’t get on base in his pinch hitting appearance, so this one goes to OF Doom.