Rays’ Wendle hits 3 of team’s 8 doubles in rout
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Joey Wendle hit three doubles and a single, keying two big innings that sent the Tampa Bay Rays past the New York Mets 12-5 Saturday.
Yandy Diaz, who had two of Tampa Bay’s eight doubles, and Randy Arozarena each had three hits.
Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso and Jose Peraza each homered for the Mets, who have lost two in a row at Tropicana Field after a seven-game winning streak.
Wendle had an infield single that set up a run in the first and doubled to spark a five-run fourth that made it 6-4. He hit a two-run double in a six-run eighth that broke open the game.
Rays starter Shane McClanahan (1-0) got his first major league win. The 24-year-old lefty, who last October became the first pitcher in major league history to debut in the postseason, gave up four runs on six hits while striking out seven in5 ⅓ innings.
Peraza’s three-run homer, his first of the season, put the Mets up 3-1 in the second. Alonso made it 4-1 in the third with his sixth homer of the season and first in 16 games.
Willy Adames hit a two-run double in the fourth off Joey Lucchesi (1-3). Pinch-hitter Austin Meadows drove in the final run of the inning with a double off Sean Reid-Foley.
Lucchesi (1-3) gave up four runs in1 ⅔ innings following Drew Smith, who worked two innings in his first major league start. Smith gave up one unearned run on two hits while striking out three.
McNeil sits again: Jeff McNeil was out of the lineup Saturday against the Rays, though he was available off the bench, leading the Mets to use James McCann (batting .200 entering the series) as their designated hitter in the
interleague matchup.
McNeil was pulled out of Tuesday’s game against the Orioles with body cramps. He didn’t play Wednesday, the Mets were off Thursday and he DH’ed on Friday. So the second baseman should’ve been plenty rested Saturday.
Instead, the handful of reasons
Luis Rojas offered for McNeil’s absence from the Saturday lineup included giving him a day to rest after the previous night game. The manager also said McNeil was benched because the Rays had a left-hander on the mound in Shane McClanahan.
McNeil has played in 14 games (12 at-bats) this season against lefties. Though it’s a small sample size, he’s actually hitting better vs. southpaws (.333 batting average, .889 OPS) than he is in 29 games (89 at-bats) against righties (.221 BA, .659 OPS).
Rehab assignments set: J.D. Davis (left hand sprain) was expected to come off the injured list this weekend, but the Mets instead will send him on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Syracuse. He’s been on the IL since May 2.
Seth Lugo (right elbow surgery) is inching closer to his return to the Mets relief corps. He is expected to beginarehabassignmentwithSyracuse in the next few days and could “potentially join the team a little later this month,” per Rojas. Lugo underwent surgery for loose bone chips in his right elbow in February.