The Mets continued to swing hot bats and routed the Yankees 12-2 at Citi Field on Wednesday night to sweep this two-game Subway Series. In doing so they climbed back to .500 for the first time since they were 18-18 back on May 7.
Here are some takeaways…
1. Francisco Alvarez led the way with his scorching-hot bat, going 3-for-3 and hitting a two-run home run and an RBI double, continuing the tear he has been on since June 17.
In the eight games since then he is 15-for-27, raising his batting average from .217 to .313, and during that stretch, the Mets’ catcher has three home runs, five doubles, and nine RBIs.
As such Alvarez and Mark Vientos, age 22 and 24 respectively, are helping transform an offense that looked feeble for most of the first two months of the season. After his two-home run night on Tuesday, Vientos went 1-for-3 with two walks and two RBIs on Wednesday.
2. By scoring 12 runs on Wednesday the Mets continue to be perhaps the hottest-hitting team in the majors this month. They’ve won 11 of their last 13 games and in those 11 wins, they’ve scored a whopping 76 runs, including 21 in the two games against the Yankees. In addition to Alvarez, Harrison Bader and Tyrone Taylor also hit home runs on Wednesday. For Bader, it was his second in as many nights.
3. Sean Manaea pulled something of a Houdini act to get through five shutout innings, repeatedly escaping trouble with the help of three ground-ball double plays. As a result, he was able to throw five shutout innings, despite issuing five walks in addition to giving up two hits.
Most impressively, the left-hander pitched out of a bases-loaded situation in the first inning, just as David Peterson had on Tuesday night. After walking Juan Soto, Aaron Judge, and JD Davis with one out, Manaea got the slumping Alex Verdugo to ground into a routine 4-6-3 double play.
Through five innings Manaea had thrown 77 pitches and likely would have gone at least one more inning but the rain delay ensured that his night was done. With five shutout innings, he has allowed a total of four runs in his last three starts, lowering his ERA from 4.30 to 3.89.
Danny Young and Adam Ottavino combined to pitch the sixth and then former starter Adrian Houser tossed three scoreless innings to finish the game and secure the first save of his career.
4. Yankees’ rookie Luis Gil was the surprise sensation of the season for two months but he hasn’t been so unhittable lately, especially in his last two starts. Coming off his only true clunker, when he lasted only 1.1 innings against the Baltimore Orioles, Gil struggled with his command Wednesday night and was knocked out in the fifth inning, charged with five runs in 4 1/3 innings.
The big hit Gil gave up was a two-run home run to Alvarez but he had traffic on the bases all night, giving up four hits, four walks, and a hit-by-pitch. He threw 87 pitches and his ERA, which was 1.82 after his June 4 start, rose to 3.15.
5. Aaron Judge continued his power tear, hitting his second home run in the two games of this Subway Series, and his 30 of the season. Judge hit his 30 off Mets’ lefty reliever Danny Young in the Yankees’ 82nd game of the season, putting him just around on a pace to challenge his American League record of 62 home runs that he set in 2022. In that season he also hit his 30 in the Yankees’ 80 game, though it wasn’t until July 6 because of the lockout-delayed start to the season.
MVP of the Game: Francisco Alvarez
The Mets’ 22-year-old catcher went 3-for-3 with a home run and a double, accounting for three early runs that sent the tone for an easy win.
The home run was Alvarez’s 30th of his young career. Hall of Famers Johnny Bench and Pudge Rodriguez are the only catchers to hit their 30th at a younger age.
Highlights
Upcoming schedule
The Mets close out their homestand with a three-game set against the Houston Astros starting on Friday at 7:10 p.m.
Lefty Jose Quintana (3-5, 4.58 ERA) looks to build off his second straight strong start against breakout right-hander Ronel Blanco (8-2, 2.34 ERA).
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