Francisco Lindor breaks out of slump as Mets defeat Reds, 3-1
The Mets (3-6) defeated the Cincinnati Reds (5-4) 3-1 on Sunday afternoon to earn their first series win of the season.
Here are a few key takeaways...
- Sean Manaea, coming off a fantastic Mets debut against the Detroit Tigers, once again got off to a good start, getting through the first three innings unscathed. He finally got in some trouble in the fourth with the bases loaded and no outs, but he managed to get out of the mess having allowed just one run.
Manaea went 5.0 innings, allowing one earned run on just three hits. He struck out six and walked two, lowering his season ERA to 0.82.
- Francisco Lindor broke out of an 0-for-24 slump in the first inning, ripping a double over the third base bag. Lindor’s first extra-base hit of the season proved big for the Mets, as he came around to score when the Reds threw the ball away on a ricochet play in the infield. Not only did Lindor break his hitless streak, but the Mets scored their first first-inning run of the season.
Lindor wasn’t done there. In the top of the fourth, the Mets shortstop smacked his first home run of the year, a solo shot over the wall in left field to put the Mets up 3-0.
- The Mets did a nice job of playing small-ball early in the game. In the second inning, they loaded the bases on a walk and back-to-back bunt singles by Tyrone Taylor and Jeff McNeil. But they scored just one run out of it, a Brandon Nimmo hit-by pitch, as Lindor grounded into a double play to end the threat. Similarly, in the third inning, the Mets loaded the bases with one out on a walk and two singles, but they failed to score.
A day after the bullpen allowed seven runs in three innings, the bullpen was asked to go four innings on Sunday and hold a two-run lead. Jorge Lopez, Brooks Raley, and Adam Ottavino pitched scoreless frames in the sixth, seventh and eighth, respectively, leading to Edwin Diaz entering in the ninth. Diaz picked up his second save of the series, striking out two in a 1-2-3 inning.
Highlights
Who was the MVP?
Lindor, who entered the game with just one hit in 31 at-bats.
Not only was it a multi-hit day for Lindor, but if this truly is the veteran breaking out of his early slump, that would be great news for the Mets.
Next up
The Mets head to Atlanta for a four-game series with the Braves, beginning on Monday at 7:20 p.m. on SNY.
Julio Teheran makes his Mets debut against his former team, while veteran Charlie Morton goes for Atlanta.
