NY Mets: Carson Benge, first-round pick, talks about his trip to New York
Mets first-round pick Carson Benge talked about his first batting practice at Citi Field and his time in New York City.
NEW YORK – Even though Brandon Nimmo has been in a crisis for a month, he continued to speak openly about his problems at bat.
Twice, after two different games, Nimmo said he felt “terrible.”
There’s probably no better cure for this predicament than throwing a baseball, and Nimmo earned that brief reprieve on Friday night.
One night after sitting out a gastrointestinal virus, Nimmo hit a three-run home run off Marlins relief pitcher George Soriano into the second deck in right field, helping the Mets to a 7-3 victory in front of 32,311 fans at Citi Field.
“It was definitely a good feeling to help out tonight,” Nimmo said. “I just want to help us win and get into the playoffs so we can give it our shot and see if we can be that strong team and make our run. It was a good feeling. I worked hard and I don’t know, maybe I got some of those demons out of me because I was sick yesterday.”
Get the right game
Nimmo’s home run was part of a six-run frame during which Jeff McNeil hit a two-run home run and Francisco Lindor added an RBI triple.
The win was a relief not only for Nimmo, but for the rest of the Mets, who suffered a disheartening loss to the Athletics at the start of their nine-game home series. The comeback helped the Mets to a 63-59 tie and move one game back of the Braves, who held the final wild-card spot.
The offense has recently done its part after a slow series in Seattle, averaging 6.5 runs per game in the last two series.
“At the end of the day, I’ve been part of too many seasons where it came down to one game. So it doesn’t matter if it’s the game in April or the game in September, they all matter,” Nimmo said. “Tomorrow we come in, we’re trying to go 1-0 and that’s our mindset right now. We’re just trying to win every pitch and break it down to the smallest detail so we take care of the little things.”
All three teams chasing the Mets in the playoff battle – the Padres, Diamondbacks and Braves – lost on Friday. With identical scores of 69-54, the Padres and Diamondbacks are 5.5 games ahead of the Mets.
Brandon Nimmo’s breakthrough?
After Nimmo threatened to make it to the All-Star game with an OPS of .815, 16 home runs and 63 RBI in the first half, he was unable to find his stride after the break.
In the month since the Midsummer Classic, Nimmo had a batting average of .140/.269/.174 with three doubles, four RBIs, seven runs and 30 strikeouts in 23 second-half games through Friday night.
“I’m not feeling very well and the worse you feel, the more uncomfortable you feel,” Nimmo said. “Today is a step in the right direction. We’re working. We’re working every day to get better and be better in the game.”
Nimmo’s three-run hit was his first home run since July 10, when he had hit a home run in three straight games. Nimmo added an infield single late and finished the game 2-for-5 with two runs and three RBIs. He also reached first base on an error.
The outfielder has studied everything from biomechanics to sports science with hitting coaches Eric Chavez and Jeremy Barnes to achieve more consistency at the plate, and he seemed shocked to hear Carlos Mendoza say he felt Nimmo’s swing had better rhythm and timing before his home run.
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“When he’s not feeling good, when he’s going through a rough patch, he still wants to play because he knows he can help the team win a game in so many different ways,” Mendoza said. “Whether it’s on defense or by walking, that’s the type of player he is. He’s really consistent and one of our leaders.”
When the Mets turned things around in June and early July, Nimmo’s stormy streak was the catalyst. On Friday, he returned to that role, at least for one night.
Sean Manaea provides relief
After Thursday afternoon’s loss, Mendoza explained that adjustments needed to be made to the Mets pitchers, who had allowed 11 walks.
This unchecked control left its mark, as Mendoza had to use six pitchers, each of whom allowed a free baserunner. In the series, shortened starts by Paul Blackburn and Jose Quintana, who each lasted just four innings, put a strain on the bullpen.
Sean Manaea was responsible for both on Friday. The left-hander walked the game’s first batter, Xavier Edwards, who struck out 11, but then pitched seven innings, allowing three earned runs on five hits and one walk, and managing four strikeouts.
For Manaea, it was the third start in the last four games in which he pitched at least seven frames.
“I wanted to be aggressive against him when he went out in the seventh inning, and I told him that,” Mendoza said. “But we needed length, especially where we were in the bullpen and how much we were running those guys, especially this last time through the rotation where we didn’t have a lot of length.”
Mendoza sent Manaea out for the seventh inning despite his pitch count of 94. Manaea responded with a 1-2-3 inning, in which he scored the last out of his outing with a chopper to the right of the mound.
Manaea changed his approach in a tough inning, allowing three hits in the fourth, including an RBI double off the wall by Derek Hill. Hill scored on a ground ball to left on a narrowly missed double play. Then Burger hit a high fastball for a home run against Manaea in the fifth inning.
“In the fourth inning, they threw a couple of fastballs and did some pretty bad damage, so we had to deviate from our original game plan and started using my changeup,” Manaea said. “The more I threw it, the better I felt.”
