Mets Power! Homer Happy Mets rally from five runs down, beat Guardians as the offense comes alive

Three more home runs helped the Mets overcome another early, multi-run deficit to get the Mets back to the .500 mark at 23-23 for the year

Michael Baron

May 20, 2023

What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️

The Mets rallied again, this time defeating the Guardians 10-9 in a walk-off win in extra innings (Box)
RHP Carlos Carrasco was ineffective in his return from the injured list, allowing five runs over five innings to put the Mets in a deep, early hole
The Mets chipped away early against Cal Quantrill thanks to a couple of homers from their rookies - Francisco Álvarez hit a solo homer in the fifth and Brett Baty hit a two-run home run in the sixth
After Dominic Leone allowed two runs in the seventh, Pete Alonso hit a game-tying grand slam in the bottom half of the inning
Drew Smith allowed two runs in the top of the tenth inning with the ghost runner at second on a two-run home run from Gabriel Arias, but in the bottom of the tenth, Mark Vientos plated the ghost runner with a hit, Francisco Álvarez tied it with an RBI single, and Francisco Lindor won it with a single to center to plate Alvarez
The Mets earned their 13th comeback win of the year, fourth in their last at-bat, second walk-off win, their fourth win when trailing after six innings, and their third extra-inning win of the season
The Mets have hit ten home runs in their last four games after not hitting any in their previous five games

Who’s Hot 🔥

Pete Alonso has four home runs and 10 RBI over his last four games
Francisco Álvarez has two home runs and five RBI in his last nine plate appearances

Roster Moves 🗞️

Reinstated RHP Carlos Carrasco from the injured list
Selected the contract of C Gary Sánchez from Triple-A Syracuse
Optioned C Michael Pérez to Triple-A Syracuse
Optioned LHP Josh Walker to Triple-A Syracuse
Transferred OF Tim Locastro to the 60-day injured list

Injury Updates 🏥

José Quintana (rib surgery) has been cleared to begin throwing will begin a “touch and feel” throwing program
Tomás Nido (dry eye syndrome) began a rehab assignment with Single-A St. Lucie
OF Tim Locastro sprained his thumb while rehabbing from his minor back injury and could require surgery. There is now no timetable for his return

Today’s Game 🗓

Match-up: Guardians (20-24) vs. Mets (23-23)

Where: Citi Field - Flushing, New York

Starters: RHP Max Scherzer (3-2, 4.88 ERA) vs RHP Tanner Bibee (1-1, 3.22 ERA)

When: 4:10 PM EDT

Where to Watch: WPIX

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The youth movement has the good times rolling for the Mets ✍🏼

Yesterday looked like one of those typical 2023 games for the Mets, didn’t it?

No starting pitching early and yet another multi-run deficit for an offense which has generally been offensive all year long had another uphill battle on Friday.

This time, it was on the shoulders of Carlos Carrasco who was activated from the injured list for this start against his former club. But in a blink of an eye, it was 3-0 Guardians thanks to a three-run homer from Josh Naylor, and then 4-0 by the time the Mets came up to bat in the second.

By the time Carrasco was done with his five innings, he had allowed five runs to elevate his season ERA to 8.68 and raised more concerns as to whether or not he has something left to offer the Mets in his current role.

But that’s when the Mets offense went to work.

The Mets scratched across two runs thanks to a homer from Francisco Álvarez and an RBI single from Jeff McNeil in the fifth. Then in the sixth, Brett Baty powered the Mets to a run with a solo home run, and suddenly the deficit was down to two.

However, the Guardians responded with two more runs against Dominic Leone in the seventh and it just seemed like a case where the Mets wouldn’t be able to score enough runs thanks to their flawed pitching staff getting in the way.

But in the seventh, the Guardians woke up the Polar Bear.

Pete Alonso - who had already mashed one walk-off homer this week, came up as the tying run with the bases loaded against reliever James Karinchak, and unloaded an opposite field grand slam.

Just like that, the game was tied, the stadium was rocking, and there was actual hope the Mets could complete yet another improbable comeback. But who would ever think it could be so easy?

The Mets fell behind again by multiple runs in the tenth thanks to a two-run home run from Gabriel Arias.

But the now energy-fueled Mets offense immediately responded with RBI singles from Mark Vientos, Álvarez and Francisco Lindor to complete their comeback and steal another game for their third win in a row.

The Mets are at a point in their season - and with both the past and recent results to measure - where it’s hard to ignore the jolt their three big rookies have given them.

Álvarez has demonstrated above average defense in a small sample between his arm, pop speed and pitch framing abilities. And now, his bat - which has shown so much promise during his journey through the minor leagues - is starting to come around which is allowing him to evolve into a more complete player.

Vientos has come up with two clutch hits in the three days he’s been with the club, and while its difficult to figure out where he will play on the diamond, there is no reason for Vientos to be sitting in place of Daniel Vogelbach at this time, either.

Then there’s the sweet-swing Baty, who has quietly produced a 109 OPS+ over his first 27 games of the year and is slowly but surely providing stability for the Mets at third base. And in turn, the, “less is more” approach with Eduardo Escobar is netting the Mets more production overall from third base.

In short, the Mets need to be done picking their spots in general with their three prospects. They’re here, they’re playing meaningfully and they therefore need to be playing everyday, even if it’s at the expense of higher-priced veterans on the roster.

This youth movement has provided the spark and energy this lineup has been craving since last September.

Now, it would be remiss of me to not give Pete Alonso his props this morning. Without his power and presence, the Mets would be nowhere this week. He was in the right place and the right time again for the Mets in the seventh inning when he came up with the bases loaded against Karinchak, a power armed reliever who has given up far too many home runs in the first quarter of the year. It wasn’t Alonso’s most prolific home run, but this unicorn the Mets have always seems to seize the big moment and carry this offense on his shoulders.

Right now, Alonso is must-see TV whenever he comes to bat, and someone the Mets simply need to offer a career contract to.

Between Alonso’s power and the injection of youth, the Mets may have finally found a formula to make their offense competitive again.

Yes, it’s a small sample and time will certainly tell as the league adjusts back to their young players, but their potential is proving fruitful for the Mets as they look to course correct their 2023 season, and buy more time for a pitching staff which still needs to get on course.

Around the League 🚩

Manny Machado went on the injured list with a fracture in his hand after being hit by a pitch on Monday
Marcus Stroman and the Cubs blew out the Phillies 10-1 - Nico Hoerner led the offense with two doubles and four RBI in the win
The Cubs designated 1B Eric Hosmer for assignment on Friday
Multi-hit games from Matt Olson, Sean Murphy and Austin Riley led the Braves to a 6-2 win over the Mariners
Shane McClanahan fired seven shutout innings as the Rays beat the Pirates 1-0
The Orioles hit three home runs behind Kyle Gibson’s seven innings of one-run ball in a 6-2 win over the Blue Jays
Martin Pérez improved to 5-1 after allowing only two runs in seven innings as the Rangers beat the Rockies 7-2