Stroman chases down Soto

Marcus Stroman wasn’t at his sharpest in the opener of a doubleheader split against the Nationals on Saturday, but the right-hander did flash his tremendous athletic ability as the Mets pulled out an 11-9 win in which they blew a 9-0 lead.

The Mets gave Stroman immediate run support, plating seven runs through the first three innings while the Nationals struggled in the field. Stroman had given up two singles, a double and walked one heading into the bottom of the third, when he made a highlight-reel play that many pitchers wouldn’t even dream of attempting.

After getting the first out, Stroman walked Nationals star right fielder Juan Soto. With the Mets’ infield shifted to the right, Washington first baseman Josh Bell followed the walk with a hard-hit ball to shortstop Francisco Lindor (playing to the right of second base), who flipped it to third baseman Jonathan Villar covering second. But Villar bobbled it and Soto bolted to an uncovered third base.

Stroman then had the instincts to sprint to third, take a throw from second baseman Javier Baez and tag up Soto on a diving play for the second out of the inning. Yadiel Hernandez ended the third with a groundout to Stroman.

“I was stuck on the mound watching, I thought it was one of those inningending double plays,” Stroman said after the win. “As Soto broke, I thought for a second, I think I can beat him. Right in that moment I took off. And Javy threw a perfect lead pass. And I dove and got him. It was a pretty special play. I didn’t realize how cool it looked until I watched it afterward.”

The hustle play served as a reminder that Stroman won the Gold Glove in

2017 while with the Blue Jays.