The most crucial point of the Mets‘ 2024 season is here.
With games against the AL-best Baltimore Orioles at home and NL Wild Card leaders San Diego and Arizona on the road, every game counts. Francisco Alvarez got a 3-0 fastball from Baltimore’s Seranthony Dominguez in the bottom of the ninth and made it count by crushing it over the fence.
The Mets walked off with a 4-3 win in the first game of a series against the Baltimore Orioles at Citi Field.
It was the first home run for Alvarez since July 26. The second-year backstop has been trying to break out of a slump and he broke out in a big way, sending the ball 421 feet to center field at 106.5 MPH.
David Peterson tossed seven innings to record his longest outing of the season and J.D. Martinez hit his 13th home run of the season.
Left-hander Trevor Rogers, a one-time Mets target at the trade deadline, took the loss with 4 2/3 innings of work. The Mets hit him right away, with Martinez teeing off on an 0-2 sinker in the first inning for a two-run homer.
After Starling Marte extended the inning with a two-out single and a stolen base, Rogers retired seven straight before a rocky fourth inning.
Pete Alonso led off with a double to left and Marte moved him over with a sacrifice bunt. Jose Iglesias struck out for the second out, but Alvarez walked to bring up Tyrone Taylor, who was playing in place of Brandon Nimmo.
Taylor poked one through the left side to score Alonso and give the Mets a 3-0 lead. Rogers retired Harrison Bader for the third out.
Peterson allowed an unearned run in the top of the fifth inning that was largely the result of his own missed pickoff throw to second. The left-hander looked sharp while Rogers looked shaky.
Rogers walked Francisco Lindor to lead off the fifth. He struck out Mark Vientos and Martinez, but then walked Alonso and the Orioles went to the bullpen for right-hander Colin Selby, who blanked the Mets over 1 1/3 innings before right-hander Keegan Akin did the same for two.
Peterson remained sharp through the sixth, retiring the heart of the Orioles order, but came undone in the seventh.
Ryan Mountcastle doubled to the left field corner and moved over to third on a ground ball. He struck out Colton Cowser and was nearly out of the inning, but then came Ramon Urias. A balk was called on his first pitch, scoring Mountcastle. His second pitch went over the left-center field fence for a home run.
Peterson struck out Jackson Holliday to end the inning and get through seven for the first time in nearly a year (September 28, 2023), but the damage was done. Urias tied the game at 3-3.
Jose Butto retired the side in order in the top of the eighth and Akin struck out the side in the bottom of the inning, falling behind 3-0 on Alonso before the slugger looked at three straight strikes.
Edwin Diaz kept the game tied with a scoreless ninth to earn the win (4-1). Dominguez (3-3) replaced Akin in the ninth and struck out pinch-hitter Jesse Winker. But Alvarez fittingly played the role of hero. The ball was gone the minute it came off the bat and the Citi Field crowd exploded.
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