Pete Alonso broke out with a big game on a golden night
Everything came up smelling like roses for the Mets on Tuesday night as their playoff chances increased
What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets cruised by the Nationals with a routine 10-1 win at Citi Field on Tuesday night (box)
The offense really stepped up and used a four-run third inning to take control of the contest
1B Pete Alonso had a monster night at the plate, going 3-for-5 with a home run, two runs scored and five RBIs
It proved to be a milestone night for SS Luisangel Acuña, hitting his first career Major League home run and finishing 3-for-5 with a double, three runs scored and two RBIs
C Francisco Alvarez also homered, while OF Tyrone Taylor went 2-for-4 with a double, a RBI and a stolen base
2B Jose Iglesias, leading off in Francisco Lindor’s absence, had another big night after going 3-for-4 with two runs scored
RHP Tylor Megill was money on the mound, allowing just one run on two hits with two walks and four strikeouts in six innings of work
The bullpen delivered once again as RHP Adam Ottavino, RHP Huascar Brazobán and LHP Alex Young combined for three scoreless innings with one walk and three strikeouts
The Mets’ record of 61-35 since May 30 is the best in baseball. They are also now 10-2 vs. the Nationals this year. They are 27-17-8 in series, 13-10-3 in series at home, 25-19 vs. the NL East, 34-22 since the All-Star break and have 38 comeback wins on the year
Playoff Race 🏁
The Braves, Padres and Diamondbacks all lost on Tuesday, making it an incredibly productive night for the Mets.
By beating the Nationals, and with Atlanta losing to the Reds, the Mets are now two games ahead of the Braves for the final Wild Card spot in the National League.
And, thanks to the D-backs being shelled by the Rockies on Tuesday, the Mets now own the second Wild Card spot by virtue of the tiebreaker. They are still 2.5 games behind the Padres for the top Wild Card berth.
There are 11 games remaining.
Per FanGraphs, the Mets have a 71.6% chance of making the postseason.
New York has the fifth hardest schedule in MLB the rest of the way.
Tiebreakers:
vs. ATL: 5-5
vs. ARI: 4-3 (finished)
vs. SD: 5-2 (finished)
Injury Updates 🏥
RHP Kodai Senga (strained calf) threw a bullpen session at Citi Field on Tuesday and went through fielding drills. Senga could return before the end of the regular season
Down on the Farm 🌾
SS Jett Williams (No. 2 prospect, Triple-A): 1-for-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 2B
OF Drew Gilbert (No. 3 prospect, Triple-A): 0-for-3, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB
3B Yolmer Sánchez (Triple-A): 2-for-3, 3 R, 5 RBI, 2 BB, 1 HR, 1 SB
OF José Azocar (Triple-A): 3-for-5, 3 R, 3 RBI, 1 HR, 1 SB
BOX SCORES
Triple-A SYR
Who’s Hot 🥵
Mets starting pitchers own a 1.90 ERA during the month of September. Overall, the pitching staff has a 2.27 ERA for the month of September
Pete Alonso is 9-for-20 (.450) in his last five games with two home runs, one double, two walks, four runs scored and six RBI
Jose Iglesias recorded three hits on Tuesday to extend his hitting streak to 11 consecutive games. He is hitting .425/.465/.475 with 17 hits and two doubles and eight runs scored during that span
Who’s Cold 🥶
J.D. Martinez went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts on Tuesday, and is now 3-for-36 in the month of September, hitting just .083. He hasn’t hit a home run since August 30.
Mark Vientos is now in a 3-for-38 slump and hasn’t hit a home run since Sept. 6. He also has just one extra-base hit in his last 10 games
Brandon Nimmo, who was out of the lineup on Tuesday, is hitting just .188/.290/.280/.570 since the All-Star break
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (83-68) vs. Nationals (68-83)
Where: Citi Field - Flushing, NY
Starters: LHP José Quintana (9-9, 3.91 ERA) vs. LHP DJ Herz (4-7, 3.70 ERA)
When: 7:10 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY
This is the version of Pete Alonso the Mets need right now… ✍️
Will the real Pete Alonso please stand up?
It is no secret that this year has been a struggle for the best power hitter the Mets have pretty much ever had.
While 33 home runs and 86 RBIs are still pretty impressive, something hasn’t felt right with Alonso all year and it’s certainly not up to his standard, as he put it earlier this week.
He hasn’t been able to take over and dominate games in 2024 as has been the case in previous years. Some of his underlying metrics have been trending in the wrong direction.
And, more importantly, Alonso has failed time and time again to come up with a big hit in the clutch.
As of writing this, the four-time All-Star is hitting just .235 with runners in scoring position and .214 with men on-base this year.
All in all, the 2024 version of Alonso isn’t the same one we’ve all gotten so much joy out of watching destroy baseballs and come up big in huge spots for most of his time in Queens.
However, the corner might have been turned.
In a night packed with juicy storylines, including Luisangel Acuña’s big homecoming and the Mets moving two games ahead of the Braves for the final Wild Card spot, Alonso looking more like his old self was arguably the most important and more sexier headline.
In going long for his 33rd home run of the year and finishing the night with five RBIs and two runs scored, Alonso put the Mets on his back and carried his team when it was needed the most.
With Francisco Lindor still out of the lineup with lower back tightness, it is imperative that others step up and help fill that void. It is also imperative that the team’s other big guns start playing to the back of their baseball cards more consistently. That includes Alonso.
And Tuesday was a step in the right direction for sure.
Alonso took over the ball game and did what was necessary to help his team secure a huge win and make some pretty significant strides in the race for a Wild Card spot.
After driving in just five runs in the first 14 games of September, Alonso recording five RBIs in one night on Tuesday was exactly the kind of statement game the Mets needed from their slugging first baseman.
If Alonso can take over more games between now and the end of the regular season, and deliver a few more statement moments, that would certainly help make the final push that little bit easier.
And, should the Mets reach the promise land of October baseball, they are going to need Alonso to return to being ‘The Guy’ if they are to make some serious noise in the postseason.
Tuesday was just one game, but it was a tantalizing reminder of just how important a player Alonso can be when he’s at his very best.
Around the League 🚩
Jose Altuve was ejected for ripping off his cleat and sock. but the Astros beat the Padres 4-3 in a wild night at Petco Park
The Diamondbacks now have an identical record as the Mets after being shelled 8-2 by the Rockies
The Braves hit three home runs but blew a 5-1 lead to lose to the Reds and fall two games behind the Mets for the final Wild Card spot in the NL
Shohei Ohtani homered again and now needs just two more home runs and two more stolen bases in order to reach the 50-50 club, although the Dodgers lost to the Marlins 11-9 in Miami
It was a most enjoyable evening all the way around!
Mets have two routes in at this moment -- the Padres a bit too far ahead to talk about three yet. Tiebreaker with Diamondbacks. Braves to be determined. [edited]
The Marlins outslugged the Dodgers, showing even they might give the Braves a fight. The Braves and Diamondbacks both have some tough opposition though the Braves have that Marlins series.
I think the route here is splitting the Phils series & then not having a replay of 2022 against the Braves.