OPENING STATEMENT
Mets amaze behind Syndergaard, big bats in emphatic first victory
On a 1-to-10 scale, the opening of the Mickey Callaway era was probably close to a nine on Thursday, with one point given for each run scored by the Mets.
A day that started sadly, with the passing of Mets icon Rusty Staub at age 73, ultimately wrought sunshine for the sellout crowd of 44,189 at Citi Field in the form of a 9-4 victory over the Cardinals.
With Staub’s No. 10 from his second stint with the club etched behind the pitcher’s mound, the Mets pounded Cardinals ace Carlos Martinez, allowing Callaway to become the first Mets manager to win his debut with the team since Jeff Torborg in 1992.
“What a ballpark,” Callaway said. “All of us coaches were sitting there going, ‘Man, this is something special.’ It came alive, and it was really, really fun to see.”
The impressive opener was air freshener for a club looking to shed the stench of 90 losses last season.
“You get a blank canvas every year,” Jay Bruce said. “There is a lot of optimism and a lot of hope. As far as this room goes, there is a ton of talent in here, too. If we can stay healthy and continue to pull from the same end of the rope all year, I think we are going to be in good shape.”
There was no shortage of big offensive performances. Start with Yoenis Cespedes driving in three runs on a 2-for-5 day, but Brandon Nimmo, Kevin Plawecki and Adrian Gonzalez each reached base four times and Amed Rosario delivered a two-run single in the fifth.
“It was an amazing atmosphere,” Nimmo said. “Before the game, the ‘Let’s go Mets!’ chants were going around, I just had adrenaline coursing through my veins. All emotions were on high. I just couldn’t take the smile off my face.”
Noah Syndergaard became the first Mets pitcher to reach double-digits in strikeouts (he struck out 10) on Opening Day since Pedro Martinez in 2005, but allowed four earned runs on six hits over six innings. Jose Martinez’s solo homer in the sixth closed the scoring against Syndergaard, who was removed at 85 pitches with the Mets leading by four runs.
“[Syndergaard] was nice and relaxed,” Callaway said. “He wasn’t overthrowing at all and he just made pitches.”
Robert Gsellman, Anthony Swarzak and Jeurys Familia combined for three innings of scoreless relief behind Syndergaard.
Carlos Martinez encountered early trouble and was knocked out in the fifth. Over 4 ¹/₃ innings the right-hander, who threw 90 pitches, was charged for five runs, four of which were earned, on four hits and six walks.
Martinez departed following Gonzalez’s RBI double that gave the Mets a 4-3 lead. Matt Bowman entered and allowed a tworun single with two outs to Rosario that extended the Mets’ lead.
Cespedes fell behind 0-2 in the count against Martinez with the bases loaded in the second before golfing a slider to left field for a two-run single that gave the Mets a 3-2 lead. Cespedes, batting in the No. 2 hole, delivered Plawecki and Rosario.
“I just have to focus when I have two strikes,” Cespedes said. “Mostly when I have runners on base I have to focus more.”
Yadier Molina hooked a 97-mph fastball off the left-field foul pole in the second to put the Mets in a 2-1 hole, though Syndergaard recorded all three outs with a strikeout in the inning.
The Mets scored an unearned run in the first when first baseman Jose Martinez airmailed a throw to second base attempting to get the lead runner. Nimmo, who was hit by a pitch leading off, scored on the play.
“With Carlos, he’s as talented as it gets,” Bruce said. “But I think, as you saw, the wheels can start falling off sometimes and you have to just let it happen. Really stick to your approach and capitalize on mistakes.”