The Mets battled back to capture a dramatic 5-4 victory over the Brewers on Thursday night, but they may have lost starting pitcher Tylor Megill in the process.
It was a dramatic finish to an eventful evening.
The Mets got going from the jump as Mark Canha worked Brewers’ starter, Aaron Ashby, for an eight-pitch walk, grinding out a victory in a way that felt symbolic for the game as a whole. Ashby then hit Brandon Nimmo with a first-pitch fastball and, two batters later, Jeff McNeil laced a single up the middle to put the Mets on the board first.
Megill, who was making just his second start since returning from a biceps injury, looked like he was going to be able to hold that lead for the long haul. Through the first three innings, he faced the minimum number of hitters, striking out five and allowing just one baserunner. His fastball was touching 98, and the slider had some sharp bite, getting five whiffs on
However, in the fourth inning, his night took a turn for the worse. Christian Yelich jumped on a 1-0 fastball and hit it 105.6 mph out to left-center-field. Megill bounced back to strike out Willy Adames, but Rowdy Tellez laced a fastball into right and then the trouble really began.
Megill seemed to battle with his command against Luis Urias. After getting ahead 0-2, he bounced a few sliders and threw fastballs into the left-handed batter’s box. He bounced the first breaking ball to the next hitter, Andrew McCutchen, and kept picking off to first base. Megill seemed visibly uncomfortable, slowing his pace considerably and eventually working the walk.
The next pitch from Megill would be his last of the night. He threw a 92 mph fastball when he had been sitting at an average of 96.4 mph all night. Even though the pitch went for a strike, Megill immediately turned towards the centerfield wall in frustration. He waived off the throwback from Tomas Nido and called the trainers out, leaving the game with right shoulder comfort.
Head coach Buck Showalter said after the game that Megill would “get some imaging to find out what the deal is with his shoulder” but that the right-hander was also just “thinking about the team and that he couldn’t present his pitches as well as he’s capable of.
Obviously, with Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer still on the injured list, the Mets will be “hoping for some good news,” as Showalter put it, on the results from Megill’s imaging on Friday.
In the aftermath of the injury, Chasen Shreve came on and allowed all three inherited runners to score, and it looked bleak for the Mets, down 4-1 and potentially losing Megill to the injured list, again.
But the team continued to battle. They scratched a run across on two hits and a walk in their half of the fourth and then responded with a big inning of their own in the fifth. After Nick Plummer worked a leadoff walk, Mark Canha crushed a first-pitch fastball 400 feet for a game-tying home run.
Canha would finish the night 1-3 with a home run, two RBI, a walk, a hit by pitch, and a stolen base.
The Mets bullpen held firm, tossing five shutout innings in relief of Tylor Megill, striking out nine and walking none. Seth Lugo was particularly impactful, pitching two scoreless innings while allowing just one hit and striking out four batters.
The Mets offense threatened in the 7th before breaking through in the 8th. A single by J.D. Davis lead off the inning and then Tellez threw Luis Guillorme’s slow roller into left field trying to get Davis out at second, setting the Mets up with runners on first and third and nobody out.
After Tomas Nido struck out, Nick Plummer hit a groundball to first base. Tellez snagged the ball and looked pinch-runner Starling Marte back to third – or at least he thought he did.
When Tellez threw to second to get the lead runner out, Marte broke for home, crossing the plate with ease to give the Mets a 5-4 lead.
The Brewers continued to shoot themselves in the foot in the top of the 9th. After Hunter Renfroe lead off with a single to center, Jace Peterson struck out, and then pinch-hitter Tyrone Taylor blooped a ball down the rightfield line for a double.
Despite there being just one out in the inning and the top of the lineup coming up, Brewers’ third base coach Jason Lane decided to waive Renfroe around third, but the relay from Plummer to Pete Alonso nailed the Brewers right fielder at home for the second out of the inning.
“We got lucky there,” said Edwin Diaz after the game. “I would have had to face Yeli with one out and men on third and second, but the situation changed. After two outs I said, this game is mine.”
Three pitches later Diaz punched out Yelich, and the game was over.
Diaz earned his 13th save of the season and lowered his ERA to 2.05. Drew Smith was awarded the win, his first of the year, after pitching a scoreless 8th inning, while Brent Suter was saddled with the loss after allowing the one unearned run in his lone inning of work in the bottom of the 8th.
The Mets will now have the Marlins come to town for a four-game series that begins tomorrow night at 7:05 with Carlos Carrasco taking the mound against Pablo Lopez.
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