Pinch HR lifts Mets by Phillies

NEW YORK — Wilmer Flores connected for a pinch- hit home run in the bottom of the 10th inning to give the New York Mets a 4-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies in the opener of a doubleheader Monday.

Asdrubal Cabrera also went deep for the Mets and hit an RBI double off the top of the right-center fence.

In the makeup of an April 2 game postponed by snow, Flores led off the 10th and nearly was hit on the arm by a pitch. He started toward first base and motioned toward the New York dugout to ask for a replay review when plate umpire Tom Hallion called ball three.

The call stood following the review — but Flores did one better. He drove the next delivery from Victor Arano (1-1) off the left-field foul pole for his fourth career game-ending homer and second this season.

That gave Flores 10 career walk-off RBI, breaking a tie with David Wright for the most in Mets history.

Smiling teammates hopped over the dugout railing and swarmed Flores at home plate.

Maikel Franco homered and Nick Williams had three hits for the Phillies, who stranded 12 runners and lost for only the third time in 11 games.

Tim Peterson ( 2- 1) pitched out of trouble in the 10th, and Robert Gsellman also escaped a big jam for New York. He entered with one out in the eighth after Seth Lugo walked the bases loaded, but Gsellman struck out pinch- hitter Jesmuel Valentin and retired Cesar Hernandez on a ground ball.

Cabrera hit a solo home run in the first and an RBI double in the third. New York also was handed a run when Phillies center fielder Odubel Herrera overran Jose Bautista’s single for an error, allowing Brandon Nimmo to score from first.

Williams and Rhys Hoskins each had a two-out RBI single off Mets starter Zack Wheeler in the first two innings. Franco tied the score at 3 with his 11th home run in the fourth.

Wheeler gave up seven hits and struck out eight in 42/ innings. All 3 three of his walks were to Carlos Santana.

Despite pitching pretty well lately, the right-hander is 0-5 in 13 starts since his last victory April 29 at San Diego. That’s the longest stretch without a victory for a Mets starter since 1998.

Phillies starter Zach Eflin gave up 3 runs and 5 hits in 5 innings. He was 6-0 with a 1.91 ERA in his previous 6 starts.

Mets right-hander Drew Gagnon will be called up from Class AAA Las Vegas to start tonight, his major league debut. The 28-yearold Gagnon, in the clubhouse before the game, is 1- 4 with a 4.67 ERA in 17 starts at Las Vegas.

“I found out, what was it, two days ago? I was kind of in disbelief,” he said.

“I was shocked. It didn’t hit me at the time, but I’m here now, so it’s real.”

Gagnon expects to have his parents, fiancee and three sisters in the crowd for his debut. With the Pacific Coast League on its All-Star break, he said he and his fiancee had a trip planned to the Grand Canyon that they suddenly had to scrap.

“We’re definitely going to rebook that,” Gagnon said.

Philadelphia also is expected to start a pitcher making his big league debut today. Kapler said the

team is likely to call up 22-year-old right-hander Enyel De Los Santos from Class AAA Lehigh Valley, where he is 9-3 with a 1.89 ERA in 16 starts.

Philadelphia recalled left-handed pitcher Hoby Milner from Lehigh Valley and added right-hander Jake Thompson from there as the 26th man for the doubleheader.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

ORIOLES 5, YANKEES 4 A slumping player on the worst team in the majors found his groove just in time to knock off the New York Yankees. Danny Valencia snapped an 0-for-25 skid with a three-run homer off CC Sabathia, and the host Baltimore Orioles snapped a six-game skid with a 5 victory in the opener of a doubleheader. Mark Trumbo also homered for the Orioles, who improved to 25-65 and temporarily stalled the Yankees’ pursuit of first-place Boston in the AL East. The Yankees were cruising with a 4-2 lead in the sixth inning when Sabathia (6-4) walked Trumbo and yielded a double to Jonathan Schoop. With the New York bullpen buzzing in an effort to get a reliever ready, Sabathia served up a 2-1 pitch that Valencia drove far over the center-field wall. The 37-year-old Sabathia is winless in his last nine starts against the Orioles since May 4, 2016. Giancarlo Stanton homered for the Yankees, who got the potential tying run to third base with one out in the ninth before Zach Britton struck out Kyle Higashioka and retired pinch-hitter Brett Gardner on a grounder. New York is 3-4 against the last-place Orioles this season. As an example of the Yankees’ frustration, left fielder Clint Frazier cracked his bat over his knee after his third strikeout of the game in the eighth inning. Mike Wright (2-0) struck out four in two innings of relief, Mychal Givens fanned two in the eighth and Britton followed for his second save. Recalled from Class AAA Norfolk to be the 26th man for Baltimore in the doubleheader, Jimmy Yacabonis allowed three runs over five innings in his second major league start. Stanton put the Yankees up 1-0 with his 22nd home run in the second inning. It was 3-0 before Manny Machado doubled and Trumbo connected in the fourth.

SUNDAY’S INTERLEAGUE

ANGELS 4, DODGERS 3 Shohei Ohtani’s pinch-hit home run in the seventh inning sent Andrew Heaney and the Los Angeles Angels over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Albert Pujols also went deep for the Angels, tying the score at 3 in the sixth. Justin Upton had a two-run single. Heaney (5-6) allowed only three hits and equaled a career high with 10 strikeouts in seven innings to help the Angels take two of three at home in the Freeway Series. He gave up an early three-run home run to Yasiel Puig, who later left with an oblique injury. Ohtani drove his first career pinch-hit homer a projected 443 feet to center field off reliever JT Chargois (2-2). It also was the Angels’ first pinch-hit home run of the season and Ohtani’s seventh in the majors. The two-way rookie star from Japan, unavailable to pitch lately because of an elbow injury, fouled a ball off his knee one day earlier and experienced soreness. Before the game, it was unclear if he would be able to come off the bench. Justin Anderson got Cody Bellinger to ground into a game-ending double play for his fourth save.