Francisco Lindor delivers another statement moment on an electric night
The shortstop recorded a historic walk-off home run to help the gritty Mets grind out a win against the Cardinals on a special night in Queens...
What’s up with the Mets? ⚾
The Mets walked-off the Cardinals in a dramatic 5-4 win at Citi Field on Friday night (box | highlights)
SS Francisco Lindor hit his 250th career home run in the bottom of the ninth to lift the Mets to a second straight victory - his first walk-off homer as a Met
RF Juan Soto snapped a 0-for-12 skid with an RBI single that tied the game in the fifth - he finished 1-for-3 with a walk
3B Mark Vientos homered for the second straight game - a 371 feet bomb after an eight-pitch at-bat
LHP David Peterson battled all night on the mound, allowing three earned runs on seven hits with no walks while striking out nine
RHP Max Kranick, RHP Ryne Stanek and RHP Huascar Brazobán delivered out of the bullpen, combining for just one run allowed on one hit with no walks and six strikeouts
Injury Updates 🏥
C Francisco Alvarez (fractured left hand) went 0-for-5 with a run scored for Double-A Binghamton on Friday night
Who’s Hot? 🔥
RHP Ryne Stanek is yet to allow a run this season, throwing 7.1 scoreless innings of relief with nine strikeouts
RHP Max Kranick has now allowed just two earned runs in 13.1 innings this year, walking none and striking out nine
2B Brett Baty is now riding a five-game hitting streak after going 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored on Friday - he’s hitting .368/.400/.579/.979 over that span
1B Pete Alonso - who hit his first triple since 2023 on Friday - leads all National League hitters in offensive WAR (1.5), slugging (.710), and OPS (1.175)
Who’s Cold? 🥶
LF Brandon Nimmo batted sixth on Friday - his lowest place in the lineup since 2021. He’s hitting just .185/.241/.333/.575 over his last seven games
DH Jesse Winker went 0-3 on Friday, and is now hitting just .184/.238/.368/.607 on the year
Stats of the Day 📊
SS Francisco Lindor became just the fifth shortstop to hit 250 career home runs in Major League Baseball. He’s the 254th player overall to achieve that milestone, and the first to accomplish it on a walk-off
3B Mark Vientos’ home run came on a pitch 4.14ft above the ground - the third-highest pitch a Mets player has homered on in the pitch-tracking era (2008). The others were Amed Rosario (4.17 ft), and Robinson Cano (4.16 ft) (H/T Sarah Langs)
New York became just the sixth team to earn multiple walk-off wins in 2025
The Mets have now started the year 7-1 at home - the sixth time in franchise history the Mets have started 7-1 or better
The lineup recorded multiple triples in a game for the third time this season - the most such games in the majors
Mets pitchers now have double-digit strikeouts in 11 games this year, tied for the fourth-most such games through the team’s first 20 games of a season. And their 15 strikeouts on Friday were their most in a game this season
Finally, Mets pitchers have combined for a total of 194 strikeouts this year - tied for the sixth-most strikeouts through the team’s first 20 games in franchise history
Play of the Game ⭐️
How could it not be Francisco Lindor’s walk-off heroics?
The Mets had shown a boatload of resilience all game long, trailing at multiple points but finding a way to come back every single time.
And, stepping to the plate to leadoff the bottom of the ninth, Lindor had a chance to play the role of hero. Again.
He did just that, blasting what was a milestone home run into the stands as Citi Field erupted.
Lindor’s heroics led to what was a second straight win, on a night where the bats came up clutch time and time again.
If the Mets are to enjoy another magical run to the postseason, Lindor will be at the heart of that success. Just as he was at the center of a special night on Friday.
Down on the Farm 🌾
RHP Brandon Sproat (No. 1 prospect, Triple-A): 6.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
LHP Zach Thornton (High-A): 6.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 8 K
3B Jacob Reimer (No. 21 prospect, High-A): 2-for-3, 2 R, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 1 3B, 1 HR
SS Colin Houck (No. 30 prospect, Single-A): 1-for-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 HR
BOX SCORES
Single-A STL | High-A BRK | Double-A BNG | Triple-A SYR (GM 1 | GM 2)
Today’s Game 🗓️
Match-up: Mets (13-7) vs. Cardinals (9-11)
Where: Citi Field - Flushing, NY
Starters: RHP Kodai Senga (2-1, 1.06 ERA) vs. LHP Matthew Liberatore (1-1, 3.93 ERA)
When: 4:05 PM EDT
Where to Watch: FOX
Francisco Lindor shows once again just how important he is to these Mets…✍️
You could have been forgiven for thinking there were hints of 2024 in the air on Friday night.
After all, the never-say-die attitude that was the rocket fuel behind the Mets’ magical run to the 2024 NLCS was on full display against the Cardinals at Citi Field.
The Mets were down 2-0 after four innings. The bats were struggling once again, while the Cardinals were doing their best to chip away at a very effective David Peterson.
But, not to be deterred, this lineup summoned inspiration from the recent past to haul themselves right back in it. A resurgent Brett Baty scored on a Tyrone Taylor RBI triple. Juan Soto, who entered the game mired in an 0-for-12 slump, received a standing ovation before his at-bat in the fifth inning, and he responded in kind by tying the game with an RBI single.
As St. Louis continued to land punches, the Mets continued to respond with body blows of their own. Mark Vientos homered for the second straight night to make it a tied game yet again. Luis Torrens then came up with another clutch hit to score Brandon Nimmo and give New York its first lead of the night.
It only took until the bottom of the eighth inning for that to happen.
However, the real hero of the night was Francisco Lindor. The man who was at the very heart of a truly special run in 2024 was the beating heartbeat of the first special night of the 2025 season.
Mired in his own struggles to start the year, Lindor has never wavered from who he is as a person and as a player. Despite getting off to another slow start, while also committing an unusual four errors in the field, the star shortstop has continued to give everything he’s got to the Mets.
And, of course, when the lights are at their very brightest, you can always rely on Lindor to deliver.
Just as he came up with a litany of clutch hits and big moments in 2024, Lindor stepped to the plate in the bottom of the ninth on Friday with a chance to etch his name in Mets lore once again.
Given his penchant for rising to the occasion, we should have expected something special from Lindor. He blasted a walk-off home run into the sky to give the Mets their second consecutive victory and cap what had been a truly memorable night at Citi Field.
More importantly, Lindor became just the fifth shortstop to hit 250 career home runs. He’s also the 254th player overall to achieve that milestone, and the first player to do it on a walk-off.
It was Lindor’s third career walk-off home run, but his first with the Mets. And it is one that will live long in the memory.
In typical Lindor fashion though, the shortstop was keen to talk about the team effort behind a dramatic win. He dished out praise to Peterson for gutting out a solid start, Max Kranick for being untouchable (again), and Taylor, Soto, Torrens, and Pete Alonso for all coming up with clutch hits.
Lindor has never been one to bask in the glow of his own achievements.
Now, granted, a regular season win over the Cardinals in April probably won’t mean much in the grand scheme of things. That goes without saying. However, Friday night will no doubt hold a special place in many a Mets’ fan heart given the historical significance of Lindor’s walk-off heroics.
The game also served as another reminder as to just how important Lindor is to this organization, both on and off the field. He is the unofficial captain, the leader, and the heartbeat of this entire franchise. He is the straw that stirs the drink for this team.
And, on a night when the spirit of the 2024 team was alive and well, it was Lindor who came through and delivered in the biggest way possible.
Just like he always does when the lights are at their brightest and the stakes are never higher.
Around the League 🚩
The Rays called up OF Chandler Simpson, considered the fastest man in baseball after he stole 104 bases in 110 games last year
Yankees INF Jazz Chisholm received a one-game suspension and was fined for violating MLB’s social media policy for tweeting during a game
There was a pitching duel in Texas as RHP Jacob deGrom struckout seven and allowed just one run in seven innings, but RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto was better, striking out 10 in seven scoreless innings as the Dodgers shutout the Rangers, 3-0
A total of 16 runs were scored in the eighth - yes, you read that right, as the Cubs beat the D-Backs, 13-11, in a wild one at Wrigley Field
SS Trevor Story hit a pair of three-run homers to help the Red Sox beat the White Sox, 10-3
The Yankees shutout the Rays, 1-0, and won their fifth consecutive game thanks to six scoreless innings from LHP Carlos Rodón
RHP Zack Wheeler struckout 13 and 1B Bryce Harper finished with a two-run home run and a walk as the Phillies beat the Marlins, 7-2
Really nice work with these daily posts! Aside from Lindor's heroics, Mendoza is pushing all the right buttons even when it doesn't work out. When Marte pinch hit for Winker, Mendoza knew the lefty would be lifted and Marte would face a RHP. Marte had a good swing in making an out. Pinch running Acuna for Vientos was also the right move. Wish Acuna would've held the base on his attempted steal of third in the 8th but you have to like the overall aggressiveness by the manager and his team. Being able to move Baty to 3B and Acuna to 2B is valuable. Knowing when to do it is why Mendoza is one of the best managers. Keep up the good work.
Winker smoked the ball after Alonso triple but right at the fielder. Can’t put a better swing than that. He’s a professional hitter and those hits will start to fall.