The Mets’ offense has not exactly been humming of late. Entering Saturday’s game against the Padres, they scored just five runs on seven hits in the past two games.
While those numbers would suggest the Mets lost both of those games, you’d be wrong. Instead, some magnificent pitching and timely hitting have helped the Mets, and it did so again in their 5-1 on Saturday.
“It’s fun. It becomes a matter of ‘some point it’s going to happen,'” Francisco Lindor said after Saturday’s game. “Right now it’s focused on the process and being prepared and we’re executing. Right now we’re riding a good wave. We’ll ride it as long as we can and find a new wave after.”
A wave is right. Saturday started like the previous two. Despite a lot of traffic on the basepaths, the Mets mustered just one hit over the first three innings and left seven men on base. However, the top of the Mets lineup (Lindor, Brandon Nimmo and J.D. Martinez) broke through in the fourth inning with two outs.
Lindor and Nimmo hit back-to-back doubles, and then Martinez launched a two-run bomb to give the Mets a nice lead, one they would not relinquish.
Despite things not going their way early, the Mets offense stuck with it until they finally broke through in that fourth inning. Martinez says there is a different confidence level in this group than there was before, which has led to these gutty wins of late.
“I feel like the guys have been feeling more confident,” Martinez said. “It’s one of those things… just go out there and play ball. Not worrying about winning or losing just play your game, it takes the pressure off of everybody.
“Today I felt like we had a lot of traffic on bases. When you get that much traffic on base, at some point you’ll get that one hit that will drive them all in. And that’s what happened today. Just have to keep chipping away, keep getting guys on and giving yourself the opportunity for someone to come up and get that hit.”
Martinez has been the one to get that hit of late. His walk-off home run on Wednesday gave the Mets the series win over the Marlins and then his two-run double on Friday was the difference in their series opener against the Padres.
Saturday, the veteran slugger launched two home runs and drove in three of the team’s five runs. In fact, he’s driven in seven of the team’s last nine runs.
“His ability to drive the ball the other way. When he stays right-center and driving the ball with authority that’s pretty impressive,” manager Carlos Mendoza said of Martinez’s hot streak. “That’s what makes him such a unique, special hitter. When he’s on it, he’s a dangerous hitter.”
Lindor praised Martinez’s consistency in his approach and his preparation, and believes that this hot streak has carried over to many other hitters.
“He’s a master at hitting. It’s fun to watch,” Lindor said. “Hitting is contagious. We all watch and learn. I’m glad he’s on our team.”
While Martinez and Lindor — who is hitting over .300 the last two weeks — continue to rake for the Mets, Mendoza believes the other batters are close.
“We have a lot of good players there,” Mendoza said. “We’ve got guys who are getting close. They have the ability to carry a team. Obviously, J.D. is doing that, Lindor is doing that but I’m pretty confident that some of the other guys will step up here pretty soon. I’m liking what I’m seeing from those guys too.”
Looking at the Mets lineup, you can see where it can improve. Nimmo was in a slump but has seemingly come out of it, picking up two hits each of the last two games, including that huge two-out double to put the first run on the board and a two-out single in the eighth to give the Mets more insurance.
Pete Alonso entered Saturday’s game mired in a 1-for-18 slump. He hit a double in this game while Jeff McNeil, the former batting champion who had just two hits over his last seven games, went 1-for-4 with a run scored.
“He’ll continue to grind. The one thing he’s not taking his at-bats to the field. He continues to make plays and into every pitch,” Mendoza said of McNeil. “When you’re playing baseball, you have to find ways to help your team win games. He’ll continue to grind and he’ll get through it.”
There are important bats who are asleep at the moment, but like Saturday this Mets team is patient and confident in themselves that they know it’ll come. Mendoza is especially confident because he’s seen it all year from this group.
“They’re resilient. When things are hard they find ways to get better and have fun. When you’re not winning it’s hard to put a smile on your face,” he said. “Support each other. Continue to get better on a daily basis and we’re seeing that now.”
Riding a four-game winning streak, the Mets will look to extend it to five and sweep the Padres on Sunday.
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