PHILADELPHIA — It wasn’t the cleanest baseball game the Mets will play this year. But the Amazin’s offense overcame their bullpen headache, managing to leave their first road trip of the year on a high note.
Pete Alonso, Wednesday’s designated hitter for the Mets, had a banner day at the plate — one he enjoyed for the first time since his rookie season. His productive afternoon wound up being the difference for the club.
“I thought we did an excellent job of pouring it on all day,” said Alonso, who has nine RBI in two games as DH so far this year. “That’s what it takes to win these tough divisional games.”
Alonso drove in five of the Amazin’s eight runs in the Mets’ 9-6 win over the Phillies on Wednesday at Citizens Bank Park. He crushed a three-run home run in the sixth inning, giving the Mets a seven-run lead at the time, and went 3-for-5 with two doubles. Wednesday was the first time Alonso collected five or more RBI since Aug. 15, 2019 in Atlanta.
The Mets (5-2) head back to Queens after a successful trip against their division rivals. The team will enjoy an off-day on Thursday, before the home opener against the Diamondbacks on Friday at Citi Field.
“We played so extremely well this road trip, and I’m just so excited to play in front of Mets fans,” Alonso said. “It’s going to be a fun year and I can’t wait to get back to Citi.”
Though it seemed like Alonso busted open the game, the Phillies cut the Mets lead from 8-1 to 8-5 after a productive couple of innings against New York’s relievers. Sean Reid-Foley, Joely Rodriguez and Adam Ottavino combined to give up four earned runs on three hits and allowed three walks in the sixth and seventh.
So, the Mets’ seven-run lead diminished to a save situation, requiring their Mets closer in a game he had no business entering just a few innings prior. Edwin Diaz allowed a leadoff home run to Bryce Harper in the ninth, but then he retired the side to shut the door on the Phillies for the second straight game.
Max Scherzer’s second start of the year was laborious, but he battled his way through five innings and limited the Phillies’ damage. Kyle Schwarber, who has a career 1.106 OPS in 32 games against the Mets, went hitless in the three-game series.
“Our guys pitched him really well,” manager Buck Showalter said.
Mets pitchers combined to stifle his at-bats; Schwaber went 0-for-12 with seven strikeouts.
“When I needed to, I made big pitches, when runners were on base,” Scherzer said. “Together, we navigated that lineup pretty well.”
Scherzer walked Schwarber, Bryce Harper and Nick Castellanos in the first inning, putting himself in an early jam. But he managed to escape by striking out Jean Segura and inducing a groundout to Didi Gregorius. Though he settled down for the next two innings, his fourth inning was again a bit of a slog as he allowed a run on three hits.
But part of Scherzer’s speciality, and part of why he’s a once-in-a-generation pitcher, is his ability to prevent an inning from snowballing. So he dug deep, and grinded through his second outing of the season much the same way he did in his first.
Scherzer said the hamstring issue that materialized in spring training is finally 100% behind him. The veteran right-hander said he actually had his right leg underneath him on Wednesday, so he was trying to adjust to his returned, full strength.
“We’ve done all the good things here to start the season,” Scherzer said. “We’re doing good things on the mound, we’re doing good things at the plate. That’s how you win ballgames, playing team baseball, when everyone plays well together. That’s what it takes to consistently win – getting good pitching, good hitting and good fielding. When you get all three of those firing together, that’s when you can rattle off series.”
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