Mark Vientos finds redemption as the Mets rally to beat the Cardinals
Harrison Bader tied it with an RBI single, and Mark Vientos won it with a two-run homer in the 11th inning
What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets rallied with two outs and down to their last strike to score three runs in the 11th and defeat the Cardinals 4-2 on Sunday afternoon (box)
José Quintana started for the Mets and was brilliant, allowing just a run over eight innings and becoming the first Met starter this season to throw a pitch in the seventh or eighth inning
Edwin Díaz and Reed Garrett supported Quintana’s effort, striking out four over two innings combined and only allowing the ghost runner to score in the 11th inning
Down to their last strike in the 11th, Harrison Bader plated DJ Stewart (ghost runner) to tie the game at 2-2, and then Mark Vientos - who just a day before was recalled from the minors - hit a game-winning, two-run home run
Francisco Lindor also homered in the sixth inning
The Mets went jut 1-for-16 with runners in scoring position and left ten runners on base in those 11 innings
The Mets earned their second walk-off win of the season and their first against St. Louis since May 19, 2022 (Pete Alonso walk-off homer). Their 25 walk-off wins since 2021 are tied with the Rockies for the seventh-most in the majors during that span.
They are 18-7 in extra-inning games since 2022, the best mark during that span
Roster Moves 🗞️
Optioned LHP Josh Walker to Triple-A Syracuse
Selected the contract of LHP Danny Young from Triple-A Syracuse
Injury Updates 🏥
INF Joey Wendle was sick on Sunday and unavailable
LHP David Peterson (recovery from hip labrum surgery) began a rehab assignment with Single-A St. Lucie
Down on the Farm 🌾
LHP David Peterson (Single-A St. Lucie): 2 IP, 5 K
RHP Christian Scott (Triple-A SYR): 4.2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER (HR), 2 K
OF Luisangel Acuña (Triple-A SYR): G1: 1-for-3, 2B, R G2: 2-for-4, HR, 3 RBI
RHP Blade Tidwell (Double-A BNG): 6.2 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 9 K
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (14-13) vs. Cubs (17-11)
Where: Citi Field - Flushing, NY
Starters: RHP Luis Severino (2-2, 2.67 ERA) vs. RHP Jameson Taillon (2-0, 1.69 ERA)
When: 7:10 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY
Redemption for Mark Vientos… ✍️
It wasn’t pretty, but wins are wins, right?
Even if it seems like all is lost. After all, Harrison Bader and the Mets were down to their last strike, one pitch away from being swept at home for the second time in the season’s first month.
It would’ve been especially maddening considering the Mets had an uncountable number of opportunities against Lance Lynn and the Cardinals bullpen all afternoon, stranding a small army on the base paths and seemingly finding every possible gap in their lineup when such opportunities arose.
But thanks to José Quintana, Edwin Díaz and Reed Garrett on the mound and one clutch hit from Bader with two outs and two strikes in the 11th, the Mets were afforded an opportunity to squeak out a game they just needed to have to avoid being swept by a team that doesn’t usually hit the ball very well and doesn’t pitch particularly well either.
And that chance was put in the hands of Mark Vientos.
Vientos, as we all know, was all set to make the team out of camp as one of the club’s designated hitters before David Stearns and Steve Cohen was able to pull the trigger to bring in JD Martínez. Suddenly, Vientos’ path to a roster spot was blocked and he found himself back in the minor leagues. We all know how he felt about the move, to a point Martínez sought out Vientos at Clover Park upon his arrival and was seen speaking to and perhaps consoling Vientos on the field during batting practice. But instead of sulking when the season started, Vientos earned his way back onto the roster in relative short order this past weekend, hitting .302/.388/.535 with five home runs and 22 RBI in 86 plate appearances for Triple-A Syracuse.
So, here he was. A chance to prove he belonged, prove his bat had matured to become a productive major league hitter and, just maybe, he can eventually find his way onto the diamond on occasion as a corner infielder.
Still, Vientos hasn’t been granted a start since his return. He has simply been a late game replacement for Brett Baty in each of his first two games. Perhaps that’s a telling sign of where all of this could go between Baty and Vientos, but that’s going to be up to both to re-compete for the job at third base again.
But that’s more of the same for Vientos, who has found himself endlessly competing for relevance with the Mets over the last couple of years.
So, up he came in the 11th inning, perhaps merely lucky to be up at all thanks to Bader’s clutch two-out, two-strike hitting to plate the tying run in the at-bat before him. Lefty Matthew Liberatore was being asked by Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol to complete a lengthy outing for a depleted bullpen and had gotten him nine outs leading up to Bader’s at-bat, and he just was not able to get the tenth. With Bader on, Liberatore tried to sneak a high fastball by Vientos with a 1-2 count, but it bled into the top of the zone and Vientos didn’t miss, sending it over the centerfield fence for a game-winning, two run homer which allowed the Mets to avoid what would’ve been a very bad weekend for the club.
Small sample sizes are always to be taken with a grain of salt. And of course, Vientos has four at-bats since his return from the minor leagues. But so far so good for the 24-year-old bat-first Vientos. Maybe he can earn his way onto the diamond at some point. Again, it is interesting he has been used as a late-inning replacement for Baty (it’s not as if Baty is lighting up the scoreboard these days, for what it’s worth).
Still, that homer must have felt a little like redemption for Vientos, an, “I’ll show you what I’ve got” moment for him which should be rewarded with additional playing time over the next few days. The Mets offense is very Jekyll and Hyde and quite frankly, could use a boost beyond Martínez. Vientos does make the Mets more righty-heavy but look, offense is offense and the Mets should look for it wherever they can find it.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t talk about Quintana and what was truly a magnificent performance on the mound yesterday. He is the first Met this season to pitch in the seventh or eighth inning and he showed Mendoza the kind of bulldog he is when he asked to face Willson Contreras with two outs in the eighth inning. It looked as though Mendoza was coming to take Quintana out of the game, so much so that Adam Ottavino started walking in from the bullpen. But no, Mendoza trusted the veteran lefty who had efficiently gotten himself through the first 23 outs of the game with only one run allowed, and he fanned Contreras on his change-up which served as a mystical yo-yo all afternoon long for the St. Louis hitters.
Quintana induced six swings-and-miss with his off-speed pitches on Sunday, looking like a throwback pitcher who depended more on keeping hitters off balanced rather than missing bats. Quite honestly, it was fun to watch and perhaps some of these evaluators should examine what makes Quintana successful so to keep these pitchers from going down with so many arm injuries during this max-velocity era.
It’s certainly not hard to figure out what makes Quintana good. Of course, I’m sure many of them look at Quintana and say, “why would anyone ever sign a guy who only throws his fastball 90 mph?”
Seems silly, considering he is seemingly the poor man’s Tom Glavine, who just so happens to be in the hall of fame.
Also, hat tip to Reed Garrett again who has been nothing short of amazing for the Mets over the first month of the season. I mentioned this last week - he along with Tyrone Taylor, to me anyway, have been the co-MVP’s of the team over the first 27 games of the season. He has struck out a whopping 47.4 percent of the batters he’s faced so far this season, an obviously unsustainable pace but nonetheless proof of his worthiness for a late-inning role in this bullpen.
Who would’ve thought a month ago their best reliever would be Garrett? Good for him.
Onto the Cubs who are no slouch. They’re coming in with a 17-11 record although they’ve been mediocre on the road.
Around the League 🚩
The Yankees pounded out 15 runs thanks to homers from Aaron Judge, Anthony Rizzo and Anthony Volpe in their 15-5 win over the Brewers
Framber Valdez returned from the injured list, gave the Astros five quality innings, and helped Houston sweep the Rockies in Mexico City with an 8-2 win
The Marlins fell to an NL-worst 6-23 with their 11-4 loss to the Nationals
The Blue Jays salvaged the final game of their three-game series with the Dodgers with a 3-1 win behind Kevin Gausman’s seven-inning outing on the mound
I call the extra innings runner at second base the ‘Manfred Man’.
Nice comeback win but need to win series.