Showing signs of life, the Mets looked like the team that went to the World Series last year and beat the Marlins, 2-1 in extra innings last night.
Having won seven of their last nine games and eager to catch the Marlins for that second elusive wild card spot, the Mets are looking like the team that will not die.
The Mets were able to chase Marlins star Jose Fernandez out of the game and got to the bullpen. Lightning-in-a-bottle Jose Reyes doubled, went to third on a deep fly ball to left field and scored the tying run on a wild pitch by Marlins reliever A.J. Ramos.
In the bottom of the tenth, Yoenis Cespedes went down and scorched a homerun into the centerfield seats off Marlins losing pitcher Nick Wittgren. He knew it when he hit it, Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto knew it and dropped his head when the ball left Cespedes’ bat, the fans knew it and erupted, and Gary Cohen, as calm and stoic as he normally is, screamed, “It’s outta here” when the ball landed in the seats. The Mets players, gathered at home plate and waiting for Cespedes, showered him with bubble gum containers filled with Gatorade.
The Good
Rafael Montero, who has not started a game for the Mets since 2015, managed to get out of early struggles and gutted through five innings of shut-out ball.
The Mets “Who are These Guys?” starters and bullpen pitchers – certainly not the starting staff we thought we would have way back in April – pitched admirably, with a nod to Josh Smoker, who was pitching in the independent leagues last year and now finds himself in Queens. Smoker gets his first big-league win, having pitched a scoreless 10th, and pounding the glove as he strikes out Realmuto for the third out.
Granderson singled, his first hit since (it feels like) June.
Jose Reyes. As Mets manager Terry Collins said in the post-game press conference, “he brings the attitude to play every day.”
The Bad
Jay Bruce, who did manage to make contact but lined a zinger to Marlins first-basemen Rojas. His batting average for the season is .246 but since joining the Mets, he is hitting somewhere in the buck-fifty range. Let’s hope there is no “JB” (lest we forget Jason Bay) curse.
The Ugly
Travis. Travis. Travis.
…and the Hair
Mets pitchers and front men for the Mets Hair Club for Men (Syndergaard, deGrom and Gsellman) did not start tonight’s game. But happy 24th birthday (24? I got shoes older than that) to the Mets VP of the Hair Club for Men, Noah Syndergaard.
