Mark Vientos of the New York Mets knew exactly why the Los Angeles Dodgers chose to intentionally walk Francisco Lindor right before him to load the bases. Vientos decided to take it as a slight.
He got his revenge when he hit a grand slam in the second inning, leading the Mets to a 7-3 victory and tying the National League Championship Series at one game each.
Lindor had already hit a home run to start the game, ending the Dodgers’ 33-inning scoreless streak, but the Dodgers chose to face someone else.
“I feel like it’s just the praise for Francisco,” Vientos said. “You’ve got Francisco ahead of me, and he hit a home run earlier in the game. So they would rather take a chance on me than him. But I use it as motivation. I’m like, all right, you want me up, I’m going to show you, whatever.”
On a 95.1-mph fastball from Dodgers pitcher Landon Knack, Vientos hit his grand slam to center field after a long at-bat.
“I’m super proud that he stayed within himself and was able to execute,” Lindor said.
Vientos has quickly adapted this season, stepping up in May when Joey Wendle was let go and taking over at third base. His at-bat against Knack showed his talent, making him look like a postseason veteran.
The truth is that this is Vientos’ first playoff season, and he played in just his ninth playoff game on Monday. He now has 11 RBIs, just one shy of the club record held by John Olerud in 1999 and Curtis Granderson in 2005.
He has also recorded six multihit postseason games, tying the Mets’ record with Olerud (1999) and Todd Zeile (2000).
“Since he got here, he’s been doing some crazy things,” said Mets pitcher Sean Manaea, who allowed three runs (two earned) on two hits over five innings to earn the win in Game 2.
In 111 regular season games, Mark Vientos had an impressive performance with 27 home runs and 71 RBIs. He had a batting average of .266 and an .838 OPS.
His strong consistency began in June, where he hit seven home runs and brought in 17 RBIs. In July, he hit six home runs with 17 RBIs, followed by another six home runs and 15 RBIs in August, and six home runs with 14 RBIs in September.
Vientos may have saved his best for the playoffs, hitting three home runs in his last five games, including a two-homer game against the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 2 of the NL Division Series.
“I mean, I’ve been a sponge around all these guys, all these guys with experience, All-Stars,” Vientos said. “A lot of them are great players that I’m surrounded by, I’m very fortunate.
I ask a lot of questions. … I haven’t been in the postseason, and it’s just like, ‘Hey, how do I go about this?’”
He is especially thankful for the advice from veteran J.D. Martinez, who has played 39 postseason games and has 156 playoff plate appearances, plus a World Series title with the Boston Red Sox in 2018.
“He kind of like brings the guys together and kind of tells us, just to keep our emotions even-keeled, especially if the opponent goes up and we’re down or vice versa,” Vientos said. “The team that keeps their emotions like that the best are the ones that come out on top. So I feel like that’s what I’ve been focused on.”
Now the team is headed back home for Games 3, 4, and 5 of the series. During the regular season, Vientos hit 17 home runs and had 44 RBIs in 57 home games, compared to 10 home runs and 27 RBIs in 54 games on the road.
“The power is real,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “You didn’t see a big swing. It was, ‘Let me put it in play, let me stay in the big part of the ballpark.’ And he was able to drive that one.”
