ALL ABOARD THE 7 TRAIN!
Frazier ties it with a 3-run bomb in 9th, Conforto wins it as Mets keep rollin’
Some of the Mets’ biggest critics refused to believe their 13-1 run was legitimate until they played against an above-average team. Those critics conveniently ignored the
Mets’ two-game sweep of the
Twins during that 14-game stretch. Regardless, the Mets knew they still had to prove their drive was authentic when they hosted the Nationals for a three-game series on Friday night.
Marcus Stroman made his Citi Field debut and pitched aggressively, but one bad inning hurt him. Pete Alonso launched his 38th home run of the year off Stephen Strasburg to further emphasize that the Mets are dead serious about their push to the postseason. Justin Wilson gave up a go-ahead two-run homer to Met-killer Anthony Rendon in the seventh. Then, Todd Frazier silenced the critics with
a game-tying three-run home run to left field off Sean Doolittle in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Michael Conforto walked it off with an RBI single to right field that scored Juan Lagares for a thrilling come-frombehind 7-6 win against the Nationals on Friday night. The Mets stormed out of the dugout and engulfed Conforto in a victorious mob in center field. Even Dominic Smith used his knee rover to wheel onto the field on one leg. The crowd exclaimed a deafening cry of relief and emotion as Conforto, shirtless after Alonso ripped off his jersey, completed an on-field interview.
“(That was) an in the moment decision,” Alonso said. “I was just happy, didn’t know what to do so I ripped his jersey off.”
By the end of a tug-of-war battle against Washington, the Mets (60-56) persevered to tip the scales in their favor. The Mets capped off Friday night on a seven-game winning streak and a 14-1 run. The Mets are a halfgame behind a Wild Card spot, trailing only the Cardinals and Brewers. Representing baseball’s hottest team that can’t seem to slow down, the Mets own a Major-League best .769 winning percentage since the All-Star break.
“Today was probably the most fun I’ve had up here in the big leagues,” Conforto said. “What a game. To go down twice, to come back, answer right back, it was special. The stadium was packed. It felt like playoffs. The atmosphere was amazing. We fed off of that.”
“When guys’ shirts come off, it’s probably a pretty good day,” Mets manager Mickey Callaway said.
The Citi Field crowd roared as fans howled their emotion after every pitch. It was the type of energy that demanded competitive action, and the Mets countered with gusto that all began with Stroman.
The righthander matched a season-high seven strikeouts as early as the third inning. Stroman yelled, clapped and hopped in celebration throughout his 6-plus inning start. He brought an energy that Mets fans had so far only seen from Alonso this season. He finished his second Mets start having given up four earned runs on nine hits with three walks and nine strikeouts on 108 pitches.
“I can’t put it into words,” Stroman said of the crowd’s energy. “I want to pitch every single game like that. It felt honestly like a playoff atmosphere.”
Stroman spiraled in the fourth inning when he faced the Nationals a second time through the order.
He gave up four consecutive hits in the fourth, including an RBI triple to Anthony Rendon and a two-run homer to Juan Soto, for a 3-0 Nationals lead. Pitching coach Phil Regan was forced to walk out of the dugout in an attempt to calm the righthander down. Whatever Regan said worked. Stroman induced a double-play ball and a groundout to end the inning and stop the bleeding.
The Mets used three of their best hitters to answer the Nationals right away in the bottom of the inning. Jeff McNeil worked a leadoff walk and Alonso scored him on a tworun shot to left field. The crowd was still chanting “MVP” for Alonso when J.D. Davis dug into the box. On the fifth pitch of the at-bat, Davis went back-to-back with Alonso and skied a solo shot to left field that tied the game at 3-3.
“It was like magic out there,” Alonso said. “There’s no other way to describe it. Fans packed this place out. It was rocking.”