Home cooking: Mets win Citi opener on bizarre hit by pitch
NEW YORK » With fans at Citi Field for the first time in 557 days, Michael Conforto and the New York Mets got some serious home cooking.
Even the umpire knew it.
Jeff McNeil launched a tying homer in the ninth inning on his 29th birthday and the Mets were handed the winning run on a disputed hit by pitch for a bizarre 3-2 victory over Miami in their home opener Thursday.
With the bases loaded and one out, a scuffling Conforto appeared to stick out his right elbow pad just enough to get it grazed by a 1-2 breaking ball from Marlins closer Anthony Bass that looked to be in the strike zone.
Plate umpire and crew chief Ron Kulpa at first signaled strike, then quickly ruled Conforto was hit by the pitch. Conforto headed to first base as Luis Guillorme scored and the Mets celebrated a fortuitous comeback win.
“That one there, makes a clear move to get hit, try to get hit. But for me I guess the tough part is, you can’t really tell on the replay if it hits him or not,” Miami manager Don Mattingly said. “And I guess the toughest part is, it’s just a strike. Kind of that simple. You would think all the replay we do, that you could say that ball’s a strike. I wonder what happens when they put the automated strike zone in?”
Mattingly and his players argued with Kulpa before the umps went to a video that lasted 58 seconds. The call was upheld.
“It’s one of those plays where it looked like the guy was hit,” Kulpa told a pool reporter. “The guy was hit by the pitch in the strike zone. I should have called him out.”
According to baseball rules, if a batter is plunked by a pitch in the strike zone, it’s a strike and not a hit by pitch.
According to replay regulations, whether the pitch was in the strike zone or the batter made any attempt to evade it is not subject to video review. Those are umpire judgment calls, and only whether the ball touched the batter is reviewable.
CUBS 4, PIRATES 2 » Jayy Baez hit a go-ahead two-run home run in the sixth inning in Chicago’s victory over Pittsburgh.
Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo also homered as the Cubs pounded out a season-high 11 hits against Tyler Anderson (02) and four relievers. Baez, Rizzo, Bryant and Jake Marisnick had two hits each to help Chicago raise its major league-worst batting average from .143 to .157.
ROCKIES 7, DIAMONDBACKS 3 » Jon Gray took a no-hit bid into the seventh inning and got his first win of the season, pitching Colorado past Arizona.
Gray (1-0) allowed three runners through six innings, helped in the sixth when third baseman Ryan McMahon made a barehanded grab of Tim Locastro’s grounder and threw out the speedy batter by a half-step.
RED SOX 7, ORIOLES 4 » Eduardo
Rodríguez won in his return from heart inflammation that caused him to miss the 2020 season, allowing three runs over five innings help Boston spoil Baltimore’s home opener.
A day after his 28th birthday, Rodríguez made his first big league appearance since Sept. 29, 2019, against the Orioles at Fenway Park.
D’backs’ Marte on IL
DENVER » Infielder Ketel Marte was placed on the 10-day injured list by the Arizona Diamondbacks on Thursday, a day after hurting his right hamstring against the Colorado Rockies.
Marte was injured in the sixth inning of the Diamondbacks’ 8-0 loss. He grabbed the back of his right hamstring while running to first base after hitting a grounder to third and had to be helped off the field.