The Mets got back in the win column on Tuesday night with a 2-0 win over the Philadelphia Phillies.
Here are the takeaways…
– Kodai Senga was the best he’s been in a Mets uniform on Tuesday night, giving the Phillies’ hitters nightmares all game with his ghastly ghost forkball. The Japanese pitcher went a career-high seven innings and allowed just one hit with no walks and struck out nine on an even 100 pitches (66 strikes).
Senga retired the first seven batters to face him before allowing a single to Kody Clemens and then retired the next 14 to face him, including fanning six of the last nine.
– However, he did have some help defensively in the fourth inning. With one out and the game still a scoreless tie, Senga left a 1-2 cutter in the middle of the plate and Nick Castellanos put a charge into it towards the center-field wall. Brandon Nimmo got a great jump off the crack of the bat and timed his jump perfectly, reaching just beyond the wall and robbing Castellanos of a home run.
Nimmo immediately celebrated by punching the air with his fist while Senga threw his arms up in appreciation for his center fielder’s spectacular catch.
– Leading off the next half-inning, Francisco Lindor cranked a solo shot off Ranger Suarez, who had also been dealing on the mound, to drive in the game’s first run. Lindor, who homered twice in Colorado, has gone deep in three of his last four games and now has 10 home runs on the season to go along with 40 RBI.
– The Mets scored an insurance run in the seventh inning off the bat of Eduardo Escobar, who poked a single through the infield that drove in Starling Marte. The team could have had more if not for Castellanos returning the favor on Nimmo and making a diving snag on Nimmo’s sinking liner to right field to end the inning.
– Adam Ottavino pitched the eighth inning and walked JT Realmuto to lead things off, but he was quickly erased on the base paths trying to steal second base. The initial call was safe, but was challenged by the Mets and overturned. Francisco Alvarez made a strong throw and Jeff McNeil made an acrobatic catch and tag on Realmuto before his hand hit the bag.
Ottavino finished the rest of the inning unscathed, which set the stage for David Robertson in the ninth inning. Robertson allowed a one-out single to pinch-hitter Josh Harrisonbut then induced a game-ending double play off the bat of Bryson Stott as New York took the first game of this three-game series with its NL East rival.
Highlights
What’s next
The Mets and Phillies continue their three-game series at Citi Field on Wednesday at 7:10 pm on SNY.
RHP Carlos Carrasco (1-2, 6.75 ERA) will face RHP Aaron Nola (4-3, 4.59 ERA).