Mets’ bats take the series opener against the Giants

Coming off series wins against the Marlins, Padres, A’s, and Dodgers, the Mets headed to San Francisco blazing through California and looking for their fifth-straight series win. And with a comfortable 9-4 win against the Giants, they are only one win away from making that happen.

The Mets and Giants both left runners on base without scoring in each of the first two innings as starters Sean Manaea and Kodai Senga pitched effectively early on. Senga settled in through the third and fourth innings, but Manaea sunk into a sticky-icky situation the second time through the order.

After Francisco Lindor lead off the fourth inning reaching first base via a hit-by-pitch, Pete Alonso piped a line drive home run to left field, giving the Mets a 2-0 lead. His ninth home run of the year allowed him to pass Dave Kingman on the franchise’s all-time home run list and keeps him on pace to finish the year with 72 home runs.

Engaging in a bit of mimicry later in the inning, Jeff McNeil and Eduardo Escobar put the next two runs on the board via a hit-by-pitch and a home run to left field, respectively. Escobar’s second home run of the season sailed a lot higher than Alonso’s, but it cleared the fence as Escobar waved his arms eastward to keep the ball in fair territory. A two-out RBI double from Brandon Nimmo gave the Mets a 5-0 lead and knocked Manaea out of the game, but the Giants didn’t wait long to spark a rally.

Blake Sabol broke the shutout with a home run to lead off the bottom of the fifth inning. LaMonte Wade Jr. put up the second solo shot of the inning two batters later, and Mike Yastrzemski brought the third run of the inning home with a two-out RBI single. Senga’s wild pitch on a 1-1 count to Wilmer Flores brought Michael Conforto home from third base before Flores mercifully ended the inning on a soft lineout to second base. When the smoke cleared, the Giants turned a five-run deficit to a 5-4 scoreline, knocking Senga out of the start and lifting themselves back into the game.

But the power hitting continued for the Mets. Jeff McNeil immediately got one run back in the top of the sixth inning by wrapping a home run around the right field foul pole, his first hit of the night and first home run of the year. Even soft-hitting Luis Guillorme experienced a contact high, sending a double to dead center for his first extra-base hit of the season. And with a taxed Giants bullpen putting him in a rough situation, Tristan Beck worked admirably in his major-league debut, striking out three batters and finishing the inning with the Giants only down 6-4. But that would not last.

Three-straight base hits from Mark Canha, Lindor, and Alonso to lead off the seventh inning extended the Mets lead to 8-4. Though Canha’s hit was a true double, both Lindor and Alonso took advantage of poor defense to advance to second base on their respective singles, which helped give Alonso his third and fourth RBI of the day and 19th of the season. And they weren’t done rolling in the seventh.

After a Daniel Vogelbach walk, McNeil ripped a single past shortstop Brandon Crawford to drive Alonso home for his second RBI of the day and the final one of the evening. Escobar’s hard hit threatened a tenth run, but his out to left field and Guillorme’s subsequent double play finished the inning.

A bullpen relay of Brooks Raley, John Curtiss, and Drew Smith cleaned up through the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings, highlighted by Guillorme and Lindor’s toasty double play to end the eighth. With the game well in hand, Jeff Brigham finished off the game with a 1-2-3 ninth and a 9-4 final score, giving the Mets a 6-1 record in California and a 13-7 record on the season. They will face the Giants again tomorrow at Oracle Park at 10:15 PM ET, with Joey Lucchesi set to start for the Mets and Anthony DeSclafani taking the hill for the Giants.

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What’s WPA?

Big Mets winner: Pete Alonso, +28% WPA

Big Mets loser: Kodai Senga, -9% WPA

Mets pitchers: +1.9% WPA

Mets hitters: +48.1% WPA

Teh aw3s0mest play: Pete Alonso home run, +19.7% WPA

Teh sux0rest play: Mark Canha double play, -7.3% WPA