Canha, Plummer help Mets to comeback win
NEW YORK — One of the only trouble spots for the New York Mets this season has been keeping their pitchers healthy.
Finding ways to win, however, hasn’t been a problem.
Mark Canha hit a two-run homer and the Mets threw out the potential tying run at the plate in the ninth inning Thursday night to preserve a 5-4 comeback victory over the scuffling Milwaukee Brewers.
After both starting pitchers exited with injuries in the middle innings, the Mets took advantage of a costly error by first baseman Rowdy Tellez to score the go-ahead run in the eighth.
J.D. Davis led off with a single against Brent Suter (1-1) and dashed to third when Tellez — Davis’ high school teammate — fielded Luis Guillorme’s grounder and made a wild throw into left field trying to get a force at second.
“It was a play that I make 1,000 out of 1,000 times and I got lazy and I cost my team the win,” Tellez said. “And that’s something that I’m going to have to roll with. I messed up.”
One out later, pinch-runner Starling Marte scored from third on Nick Plummer’s RBI groundout when Tellez threw to second and got the force this time.
Hunter Renfroe singled to start the ninth against Mets closer Edwin Díaz. After a strikeout, pinch-hitter Tyrone Taylor looped a soft double into shallow right field and Renfroe tried to score all the way from first.
Plummer tracked down the ball at the low retaining wall and made a one-hop throw to first baseman Pete Alonso, who relayed to catcher Tomás Nido in time for him to tag Renfroe in the face as he slid by.
“Really stoked that we made the play in time,” Alonso said. “That was huge, and then Sugar did his job shutting the door.”
Brewers manager Craig Counsell said he thought third base coach Jason Lane made the right call in sending Renfroe — even with one out and Christian Yelich up next.
“You’ve got to go. In their mind, they’ve got to go,” Alonso said. “Renfroe, he’s a really good baserunner. He was hauling around the bases and at that point you’ve got to do whatever you can to tie the game.”
With Taylor on third, Díaz struck out Yelich for his 13th save.
“We got lucky there because then I’ve got to face Yeli with one out, man on second and the situation changes,” Díaz said. “Two outs I said, ‘This game’s mine,’ so I just made my pitches.”
Drew Smith (1-1) worked a scoreless eighth. Jeff Mcneil and Nido had RBI singles for the Mets, who erased a 4-1 deficit and improved the National League’s best record to 42-23.
Yelich hit a leadoff homer in a four-run fourth for the Brewers that included Omar Narváez’s two-run single. Milwaukee lost two of three in the series and has dropped 10 of 12 overall.
“It’s my fault we lost,” Tellez said.