What’s up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets cruised past the Phillies in their penultimate 2026 matchup, 10-3 (box)
RF Carson Benge became the Mets’ new rookie hit king after tallying his 156th hit of the season with an RBI infield single; he also hit his 19th homer en route to securing his 12th three-hit game of the season - he is one home run shy of a 20/20 season
Benge’s record-setting hit came at the tail end of a four-run rally sparked by a leadoff single from 2B Marcus Semien that also saw RBIs from SS Francisco Lindor, LF Juan Soto, and 3B Bo Bichette
After losing the lead in the top of the fifth, C Francisco Álvarez snatched it right back with a three-run homer in the bottom of the frame
1B Brett Baty’s recent hot streak continued with another two-hit day; Baty drove in a run and scored another two
RHP Christian Scott put forth an encouraging effort on the bump, allowing three runs on six hits with seven strikeouts and a walk over 4.2 innings of work
The Mets’ bullpen was stout behind Scott, with all of LHP Jefry Yan, LHP Cionel Pérez, RHP Jonathan Pintaro, RHP Dedniel Núñez, and RHP Tobias Myers combining for 4.1 scoreless innings of relief
Roster Moves 📰
LHP Cionel Pérez activated from 15-day IL
RHP Cameron Weston optioned to Triple-A Syracuse
Injury Updates 🏥
RHP Devin Williams (right shoulder strain) threw two live BP sessions in the last few days, ahead of an anticipated activation early next week; his appearances will be scripted once he’s healthy
Play of the Game ⭐️
A hit’s a hit!
In the midst of a rally in the bottom of the eighth, Carson Benge stepped into the box with the bases loaded, one out, and the Mets up by six runs, 9-3. On the first pitch he saw from Philly reliever Orion Kerkering, a 95 mph fastball up in the zone, Benge checked his swing and, it appears, accidentally made contact.
The ball meandered up the third-base line, staying fair the whole way as Francisco Lindor came in to score the Mets’ 10th run of the day.
The dribbler was Benge’s 156th hit of the season, breaking Pete Alonso’s standing rookie record from 2019.
The Just Mets Podcast 🎙️
ICYMI: On the latest midweek edition of The Just Mets Podcast, Andrew and Rich MacLeod debated the response to Pete Alonso’s return to Citi Field.
SUBSCRIBE: YouTube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify
Down on the Farm 🌾
SS Zack Short: 2-for-3, 2B, R, 3 RBI, BB
CF D’Andre Smith: 1-for-5, HR (walk-off), R, 2 RBI
BOX SCORES
Triple-A SYR
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (71-84) vs. Phillies (85-70)
Where: Citi Field - Flushing, NY
Starters: RHP Jonah Tong (2-1, 3.43 ERA) vs. LHP Cristopher Sánchez (17-6, 2.93 ERA)
When: 1:10 PM EDT
Where to Watch: WPIX
Carlos Beltrán’s number retirement 👏🏻
On Saturday, the Mets retired Carlos Beltran’s no. 15 and became the 38th player in franchise history to be inducted into the club’s Hall of Fame.
Watch his number retirement ceremony below.
Steve Cohen speaks 🗣️
In the fourth inning of yesterday’s game, team owner Steve Cohen joined Gary, Keith, and Ron in the SNY booth to talk about Pete Alonso’s historic homer in Queens and where the team is headed in the near future.
During his appearance, Mr. Cohen spoke on a variety of topics, including the possibility of adding additional front office executives.
“It doesn’t have to be a GM,” he said “It could be other ways to support David and the front office. And I think the whole point is getting more opinions in the front office and people who are pretty, pretty good at evaluating talent, or people who’ve been in those positions before in the front office, in a high position in the front office, and help David out and help the team out as far as getting different points of view.”
Watch the full interview here.
Cohen also joined the great Howie Rose in the WFAN booth for an in-depth conversation about where the organization is headed in 2027.
Carson Benge - a special homegrown player ✍️
On July 14, 2024, the Mets took Oklahoma State two-way player Carson Benge with the 19th overall pick in that year’s draft.
On September 19, 2026, Benge etched his name into team history, forever cemented alongside one of the most beloved Mets of all time.
I’m going to keep my thoughts relatively brief today, because what I have to say here I’ve said ad nauseam throughout the season: this guy is a very special baseball player.
Though I was high on Benge coming out of spring training, I expressed concerns about a lack of discernible power in Grapefruit League play. He’s since gone on to hit 19 home runs in his first major league season (his previous college and MiLB high was 18), and he’s just a homer and a double away from a 20/20/20 season.
Looking at the numbers, Benge is arguably the most complete rookie position player the Mets have had so far this century. Pete Alonso’s prodigious power is very well documented, and plenty of former Mets youngsters have produced sensational numbers in their inaugural years — but if you do some digging, no modern MLB freshman to don a Mets uniform quite measures up to everything Benge offers on the ball field.
I’ll take it even further: provided he suits up for all of their remaining games over the next week, only Alonso will have played more games as a rookie than Benge since 1986. To have opened the season hitting just .136 and to be finishing it with one of the best rookie campaigns in franchise history…it really makes you wonder where he’d be if his first 20 games had gone even 50% better.
Not convinced? I’ll take it even further: stretching all the way back to 1962, only 21 Mets rookies have seen even 400 plate appearances in their debut seasons; Benge has had 622, and he’s the only one of that bunch to grade out positively on both sides of the ball (per FanGraphs Off and Def value); his base-stealing run value also grades out several levels above the rest of this select group.
Don’t get me wrong: the Wrights and Reyeses and Matsuis and Shinjos and Joneses and Strawberries of the bunch all had their days in the sun, deservedly so. But everywhere you look, someone left a little something to be desired, or saw a fraction of the action that Benge did. With consistent, sustained performance over a full season’s workload, it’s no surprise Benge’s WAR total reflects balanced value output, rather than being heavily skewed toward either the lumber or the leather.
Despite this year being so deeply mired in misery from just about the minute it started, it’s not an exaggeration to say that Mets fans were still blessed with one of the all-time great individual performances in franchise history. What’s that funny impression Silvio Dante does? “Just when I thought I was out…”
No matter who you ask, they’re likely impressed by Carson Benge. When asked after yesterday’s game what makes Benge such a difficult out, Christian Scott heaped praise on his plate approach, acknowledging that there really aren’t any holes in his swing: “You can’t really plan for that.” Amen.
Andy Green, meanwhile, simply smiled. “He’s just a baseball player, which is one of the best compliments you can give somebody…I think we should keep taking Oklahoma State kids.”
Benge better watch out, though — others around the club…less impressed these days, at least allegedly.
“He doesn’t impress me anymore,” Juan Soto recently offered. “He’s a superstar.”
As with the rest of the praise he’s received these past few months, Benge played Soto’s compliment off with his usual cool: “It means a lot.”
While he remains the underdog in the NL Rookie of the Year race, Benge has made it clear that he’s not just here to stay, but a cornerstone of the franchise’s next era. Alongside fellow young studs Scott, Nolan McLean, A.J. Ewing, and Zac Thornton, Benge’s impact upon arrival has hopefully given fans a sense of faith that this team’s immediate future won’t be as bad as the first month of this ridiculous season would have made anyone believe.
And if Jefferson Rojas keeps homering upstate? Oh baby, bring on 2027.
Around the League 🚩
On the same night they honored the 2001 World Championship team that beat the Yankees, the Arizona Diamondbacks walked off the Yankees, 5-3 (MLB.com)
Ronald Acuña Jr. hit a grand slam to push the Braves past the Astros, 6-3; Acuña has homered six times in September and is hitting .373 with a 1.129 OPS over his past 21 games
Padres rookie phenom Ethan Salas’ MLB career is off to a hot start: just two days after the 20-year-old logged his first multi-homer game, he got his first walk-off, a 10th-inning RBI single to beat the Marlins, 7-6
Freddy Peralta tossed 5.2 innings of one-run ball before the Rays walked off the Red Sox on an RBI single from Richie Palacios; Tampa Bay beat Boston 2-1
Angel Martínez also posted a four-hit day with two homers, three runs scored, and four RBI in a 12-6 Cleveland win, keeping the Guardians in sole possession of first place in the AL Central
So fitting that on the day the Mets greatest OF was honored (please don't come at me with that Wainwright nonsense), we saw Benge set a Mets rookie record for hits. Is he another Beltran? Perhaps. I just want him to be Carson Benge. There are great days ahead for this kid.