The Mets had just just two hits through seven but the offense got going late.
Tonight’s game between the Mets and the Royals was delayed by about 81 minutes following a summer storm in Kansas City, and when it resumed, the sky was a majestic tint of orange. This seemed like a good omen for New York, who were coming off dropping two games to the Orioles on Thursday and were in search of any positive signs. In the end, it took until the calendar flipped to Saturday, but the Mets’ bats got going and busted out in a big way to guide the Mets to a much-needed 8-3 victory against the Royals.
Kodai Senga returned for the Mets and, while he navigated traffic on the base paths for much of his evening, gave the Mets a solid effort while limited to a pitch count of around 75 in his first start back after missing a month. He found himself in immediate trouble in the first, surrendering a single to Jonathan India and a double to All Star Bobby Witt Jr. He buckled down after this, striking out Vinnie Pasquantino on a ghost fork, then getting Maikel Garcia to line the ball back into his glove for the second out—a snap throw to third resulted in a brief injury delay when Ronny Mauricio stepped on India’s right hand—and finally striking out the scorching-hot Salvador Perez to end the threat. He ran into trouble again in the second with back-to-back two out walks, but India hit a sharp grounder that Mauricio snagged on a nice play to get the third out.
The Mets offense didn’t have many answers for Old Friend Michael Wacha in this one, but after a quiet first and second, they pushed a run across in the third. Luis Torrens got the party started with a line drive single and, after Tyrone Taylor sacrificed him over to second, Brandon Nimmo walked and Francisco Lindor singled to load the bases. Juan Soto, who came into the game 14-for-79 (.177) with RISP, struck out swinging for the second out—he fouled a ball off his leg and was in visible agony before returning to the box and striking out—but Pete Alonso picked him up by working an eight-pitch walk to bring the run across. Mark Vientos had an opportunity to help New York put up a crooked number, but he struck out swinging and took it out on his lumber by breaking his bat over home plate.
After working around singles from Pasquantino and Perez in the third but escaping unscathed, Senga recorded his lone 1-2-3 inning of the night in the fourth and, at 67 pitches, he was lifted by Carlos Mendoza in favor of Alex Carrillo to start the fifth. All told, Senga scattered four hits over four shutout frames while striking out four and walking two. He lowered his ERA to 1.39 and had an encouraging return to the mound after a prolonged injury absence. Carrillo responded with a quick, efficient, perfect fifth in which he threw eight of his nine pitches for strikes.
Kansas City went to their bullpen in the sixth, turning to Angel Zerpa to face Soto, Alonso, and Vientos, and he turned them aside with relative ease. Carrillo took the mound for the sixth and got Garcia to fly out to right before Perez singled with one out. After getting the second out, Nick Loftin hit a fly ball to left that Nimmo dove for and missed, which allowed Perez to score all the way from first to tie up the game. He struck out John Rave to hold the game at one apiece, but the damage was done. The Mets managed a one out walk from Mauricio in the seventh, which forced Zerpa out of the game, but Steven Cruz came in to retire Brett Baty and Torrens to end the inning.
Things unraveled for New York in the seventh when Huascar Brazobán entered the game in relief of Carrillo. Kyle Isbel led off with a single and was replaced on the base paths by Tyle Tolbert. Tolbert immediately ran for second on a steal attempt and was initially called safe, but was ruled out on replay review after it was deemed his hand came off the base while Jeff McNeil kept the tag on. That run of good luck would prove fleeting, as India followed with a single and Witt Jr. launched a two-run homer to give KC their first lead of the game. Pasquantino followed with a double to right. Brazobán recovered to retire Garcia and Perez, but the damage was done.
The Mets had their best shot to get back in this one in the eighth with the top of their order coming up against Cruz. Nimmo got the Mets their third hit when he grounded a single through the right side of the infield. Lindor followed that up with a four-pitch walking, bringing up the team’s two biggest bats in Soto and Alonso. Soto worked out a walk as well to load the bases, which ended Cruz’s night.
The Royals turned to Carlos Estévez, who famously surrendered the grand slam to Lindor in Game 4 of the 2024 NLDS. This time around, he kicked off his outing by striking out Alonso, which resulted in the team’s second bat break of the evening—this time in the form of Alonso snapping his lumber over his thigh. Vientos, who expressed his frustration earlier in the evening after failing to come through, played the hero this time around as he hit an opposite field, bases clearing double to help the Mets regain the lead.
With the lead back in their possession, New York turned to Reed Garrett, and he mercifully turned in a perfect eighth without so much as breaking a sweat to get the Mets to the ninth with a lead. The Mets added some much-needed insurance in the ninth, as Tyrone Taylor led off with a double, Nimmo walked, and then Lindor unloaded on a three-run home run to right center to put the Mets up by four. Soto followed that up with an opposite-field home run to make it 8-3. They turned to Chris Devenski in the bottom half of the frame, and he closed the game out without adding any further stress or agita.
The Mets will look to capitalize on their win as they play the Royals later today. Frankie Montas will aim to get back on track after two very rocky starts.
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Fangraphs.com
Big Mets winner: Mark Vientos, +33.4% WPA
Big Mets loser: Huascar Brazobán, -27.0% WPA
Mets pitchers: 41.3% WPA
Mets hitters: 8.7% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Mark Vientos bases-clearing double in the eighth, +44.0% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Bobby Witt Jr.’s two-run homer in the seventh, -28.3% WPA