Alvarez, Bullpen Lift Mets Over Angels
Welcome back, Francisco Alvarez. Playing in his first game in exactly a month, the catcher’s key double in the eighth inning, and six innings of one-run ball from the bullpen helped lift the Mets to a come-from-behind, 7-5 victory over the Los Angeles Angels Monday at Citi Field.
Alvarez’s double to right, which was catchable but misplayed by Chris Taylor, put runners on second and third with one out in a 5-5 game.
ALVY pic.twitter.com/VSYq39abMB
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Ronny Mauricio followed with a sharp grounder to third. Yoan Moncada‘s throw home was dropped by Logan O’Hoppe for an error, and Brett Baty scored the go-ahead run.
Brandon Nimmo added an insurance run with a sacrifice fly, scoring Alvarez, who went 1-for-2 with two walks and two runs scored in his return from Triple-A Syracuse.
Juan Soto tied the game with a two-run single in the seventh, evening a game the Mets had once trailed 4-0.
The Angels pulled starter Tyler Anderson after he gave up a single to Luisangel Acuña that put runners on first and third with nobody out in the seventh. The Mets trailed 5-2.
Reliever Reid Detmers hit Nimmo to load the bases, which brought up Francisco Lindor, battling through an 0-for-24 slump. He didn’t break the hitless streak, but drove in a run with a ground out that forced a runner at second. Lindor then stole second, setting the stage for Soto’s game-tying hit.
Starter Kodai Senga was hit hard. He lasted only three innings – his shortest start of the year – and gave up four earned runs on four hits. He walked three and struck out five. The Angels (49-51) broke Senga’s streak of allowing three earned runs or fewer at 31 starts. The only longer run in Mets history was by Jacob deGrom, who went 40 starts.
O’Hoppe, a Long Island native who starred at St. John the Baptist High School in West Islip, hit a solo homer in the second and the Angels added three runs in the third on a Taylor Ward two-run double and a Jo Adell RBI single. Mike Trout scored from first on Ward’s double when Lindor’s relay throw sailed over Alvarez’s head. A good throw would have made it a close play at the plate.
Brett Baty hit a two-run homer off Tyler Anderson in the fourth to bring the Mets within 4-2.
Kevin Herget pitched well in relief of Senga, keeping the Mets (57-45) in it with 2 1/3 innings of scoreless work. But Ward struck again with an RBI single that gave the Angels a 5-2 lead and chased Chris Devenski in the seventh. Huascar Brazobán (2/3 of an inning) and Brooks Raley (one inning) turned in scoreless outings.
Edwin Díaz struck out the side in the ninth to earn his 20th save.
The crowd gave Alvarez a nice ovation when he came to the plate in the second inning for his first at-bat since June 21 when he was sent down after posting a .652 OPS in 123 at-bats and struggling defensively. He grounded out to second.
“I think being down in Triple-A, I think what helped me was I learned how to be patient,” the 23-year-old said through an interpreter before the game. “I just continue to work hard, continue to do what I need to do, and just put in the time to eventually get back to the big leagues.”
“We’re all proud of him,” manager Carlos Mendoza said pre-game, “because it’s not easy to do, but that’s part of what big-league players go through at times. You’re gonna face challenges and there’s gonna be adversity whether it’s at this level or in the minor leagues, and he handled it like a pro and here he is.”
President of baseball operations David Stearns said Alvarez returned to Queens quicker than he thought.
“We wanted to see how he was going to respond to the challenge that we gave him when we sent him down. I’ve seen this go both ways. I’ve seen players sulk and ask, ‘Why is this happening? Why me?’ And then I’ve seen players turn the corner and look to get back and look to work and look to work with the instructors in a less pressurized environment. And from day one, when Alvy was there, that’s what he did.
“He worked extremely hard. I think he understood and recognized that the way he was performing at the major-league level on both sides of the ball was not who he was, and he took the opportunity away from the bright lights and the cameras and the pressure of a major-league environment to work, and he improved very rapidly.”
Stats of the Game
The bottom four hitters in the lineup (Mark Vientos, Baty, Alvarez and Acuña) went 4-for-12 with a home run, double, two RBIs, three walks and five runs scored. Lindor’s 16th steal was the 19th consecutive stolen base by the Mets. New York leads MLB in stolen base percentage.
Player of the Game
Alvarez went 1-for-2 with a double, two walks, a run scored and he threw out a runner stealing with the help of a nice tag by Lindor. Honorable mention to Baty, whose 11th homer was his second in three games and first against a lefty this season.
On Deck
Frankie Montas (2-1, 5.03 ERA) has thrown more innings against the Angels than any other team in his 10-year career. He’s 4-3 with a 2.57 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 85 strikeouts in 77 innings pitched vs. Los Angeles. Right-hander Kyle Hendricks (5-6, 4.88 ERA) has fared well vs. the Mets in his career too. The 35-year-old is 4-1 with a 2.75 ERA in seven starts. Game time is 7:10 p.m. ET on SNY.
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