Mark Vientos and Brandon Nimmo led another late comeback for New York, helping the Mets score five runs in the eighth inning against two All-Star relievers to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 6-2 on Saturday in Game 1 of the National League Division Series.
“It puts pressure on the other side right away,” Nimmo said. The Mets struggled against Phillies ace Zack Wheeler, managing only one hit while trailing 1-0 after seven innings.
Once Wheeler left after nine strikeouts and an impressive 30 swings-and-misses over 111 pitches, the Mets took advantage against losing pitcher Jeff Hoffman and reliever Matt Strahm in the eighth.
Staying true to New York’s October spirit, the Mets had to rally not just on the scoreboard but also mentally during each important at-bat.
Francisco Alvarez started with a single against Hoffman, followed by three straight batters reaching base after being down 0-2. Francisco Lindor walked, and Vientos came through with a tying single. Nimmo then hit a go-ahead single off Strahm, putting the Mets ahead 2-1.
Pinch-hitter J.D. Martinez added an RBI single, and both Pete Alonso and Starling Marte contributed sacrifice flies in the eighth, giving the Mets a 5-1 lead that energized the dugout.
Nimmo added another RBI single in the ninth. All eight of New York’s hits—seven in the last two innings—were singles.
After the final out, Mets fans gathered behind the dugout, chanting “Let’s Go Mets! Let’s Go Mets!”
The Mets showed their ability to win late, having scored 18 runs in the eighth and ninth innings over the past six games. New York joined the 1980 Phillies and 1999 Mets as the only teams to win consecutive playoff games after trailing in the eighth inning or later.
“One of the things we’ve talked about is just finishing the game all the way to the ninth inning,” Vientos said. “And the game is never over until the ninth. We’ve kind of been running with that mentality, I feel like the past week in Atlanta. Then the last game in Milwaukee we kind of showed that and it’s giving us more confidence for that.”
The Phillies were left in shock as they headed into Sunday’s Game 2 after wasting Wheeler’s great performance.
Citizens Bank Park, once a place of excitement during Red October, has turned into a tough spot for the Phillies in the last two seasons. Last year, they had a 3-2 series lead in the NLCS but lost Games 6 and 7 at home to Arizona.
Kyle Schwarber hit a homer off Kodai Senga’s third pitch, sending it into the second deck in right field. This homer extended his playoff record for leadoff homers to five.
At 425 feet, the homer—a “Schwarbomb,” as fans in Philly like to call it—went farther than all the other hits from an underperforming offense combined.
Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, Nick Castellanos, and the rest of the power-hitting lineup could not add any runs against Senga and four Mets relievers.
Senga was a surprising starter for New York after pitching only 5 1/3 major league innings this season due to shoulder and calf injuries. He went two innings in his second start of the year, throwing 31 pitches. The right-hander struck out three and walked one; Schwarber’s homer was the only hit he allowed.
David Peterson, who earned his first career save in the Wild Card Series against Milwaukee, kept the Mets in the game with three innings of scoreless relief. Reed Garrett pitched two perfect innings for the win.
“Our bullpen, I don’t know if they’ve gotten enough credit over the last few games,” Nimmo said. “We wouldn’t be in that situation if big old Peterson doesn’t come in, do his thing. Unbelievable.
He just closed the game in Milwaukee and now he’s coming in to throw multiple innings for us. Something he’s never been asked to do. He just comes in and does it perfectly.”
The Mets were excited to have Friday off after a hectic week that included a doubleheader on Monday in Atlanta and three intense games in Milwaukee.
“It was much needed,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “Intense games, the traveling, the back-and-forth, doubleheader, celebrations, and just everything that we went through. So being able to get here and have kind of like a reset day for everyone was really good.”
The reset came from — no, not from a playoff pumpkin — but a pitching staff that struck out eight batters and quieted Phillies fans who had been waving their red rally towels excitedly since they received them at the gate.
“We’ve got to do little things, and big things will happen; move runners, get on base,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “We had nine or 10 baserunners. That’s not going to score many runs.”
