Swarzak succeeds with post-Familia save
Jeurys Familia’s trade to the Athletics last weekend left a void the Mets hope their key bullpen addition from the offseason can help fill.
Mission accomplished for Anthony Swarzak on Wednesday, with two shutout innings for the save in the Mets’ 6-4 victory over the Padres at Citi Field.
“Results aside, I felt like that was as close as I was to myself since my Opening Day here,” Swarzak said.
The right-hander, who arrived on a two-year deal worth $14 million, has been among the Mets’ biggest disappointments this season. First there was an oblique injury that cost Swarzak two months, but his performance since returning has been underwhelming: In 19 appearances he is 0-2 with a 6.75 ERA for the season.
Robert Gsellman was needed to get the Mets through the seventh inning, and Seth Lugo had pitched two innings Tuesday night, leaving Swarzak in the closer’s role. “There’s nothing but opportunity in this organization right now and I definitely want to do the best that I can to take advantage of that,” Swarzak said.
➤ Phil Evans, who delivered a pinch-hit RBI single in the fifth that tied the game, spent a few weeks at Triple-A Las Vegas battling a MRSA infection that swelled his right leg. With regular antibiotics ineffective against the bacteria, Evans received treatment intravenously.
“If it [the bacteria] got into the bone, it would have been real bad,” Evans said. “My leg was the size of my quad, all the way down to my foot.”
Evans said he might have contracted the infection through a mosquito bite that he scratched or an ingrown hair in the whirlpool.
➤ Brandon Nimmo initially appeared to rob San Diego’s Austin Hedges of a homer in the fifth inning, reaching above the left-field fence for the catch. But instant replay showed the ball hitting a panel behind the fence and the call was overturned, giving Hedges a home run.
Nimmo said he thought the ball hit the panel, but he wasn’t sure.
“All I knew was that I had the ball in my glove, so I was going to play it like I caught it,” Nimmo said. “I thought I heard it hit the metal, but I wasn’t 100 percent sure. It didn’t take much [to overturn it].”
➤ Jose Bautista’s homer was the 339th of his career, moving him into a tie with Dave Parker, Boog Powell and Tino Martinez for 99th place on the all-time list. … Kevin Plawecki delivered a run-scoring single and is 14-for-49 (.286) with nine RBIs in his last 17 games, dating to June 19.