The Mets have made it a trend in recent years to sign players after they’ve made names for themselves in the Bronx. They currently have five former Yankees on the roster, plus manager Carlos Mendoza, who spent 13 years with the team across town in various capacities, including as Aaron Boone’s bench coach.
So when the Mets used four of those former players to beat the Yankees 6-3 on Saturday night at Citi Field, it wasn’t so much the revenge of the pinstripes as much as it was revenge against the pinstripes Saturday night at Citi Field. The Subway Series is tied 1-1.
It was a moral victory of sorts, coming one night after the team’s best starting pitcher, right-hander Clay Holmes, suffered a fractured fibula in the loss. The Mets (19-26) are battered, bruised and broken — literally and figuratively — right now, desperate to gain ground in the standings before it’s too late.
“Last night was tough for all of us in there in the clubhouse, but we came back today and there was a better understanding of the situation,” Mendoza said. “The reality is that we’ve still got a job to do. We’ve got 26 big players that are more than capable of turning this thing around, even though we’ve been facing a lot of adversity. So to go out there, play a game like that and get the job done, it’s fun to watch, and it’s good to see it from the boys.”
Boone keyed in on one of his former players, specifically, in the fifth inning, Juan Soto, but it was the player behind him he should have been more concerned about.
With one on and one out in the fifth inning and the Mets up by one, the Yankees replaced right-hander Jake Bird with left-hander Brent Headrick to face Soto, with Mark Vientos right behind him. Clearly, the Yankees wanted the matchup against the left-handed Soto, but Vientos has historically hit left-handed pitching hard. Headrick threw sinker after sinker, trying to get Soto to ground into a double play, but the Yankee-turned-Met drew a walk instead.
History then repeated itself when Vientos took an 0-1 splitter and drove it into the left field corner to score two, giving the Mets some much-needed separation on the scoreboard.
“I think I do get pitched differently with Juan in front of me,” Vientos said. “It’s also fun to be up close and see him do his thing. He’s been doing a heck of a job.”
So, too has Vientos. His 14 RBI this month are tied for third in the NL and fourth in baseball. Vientos has come out of his slump, benefiting from seeing pitches behind Soto and playing every day. Initially, the Mets considered him a platoon player, penciling him into the lineup as a DH to face lefties. But then Jorge Polanco was injured early in the season, and the Mets had no choice but to use Vientos at first base.
“He knows he’s playing every day, he knows he’s batting cleanup, and he’s kind of getting settled there,” Mendoza said. “He doesn’t have to worry about whether he’s going to be in the lineup or not, or whether he has to get two or three hits in order for him to be there again.”
In the third, the Mets capitalized on a wild pitch by left-hander Carlos Rodon, one that he tried — and failed — to field on his own, resulting in two runs scoring. It pulled the Mets ahead of their crosstown rivals, 2-1.
Rodon struck out the 8-9 hitters to turn the lineup over, with catcher Luis Torrens battling him for 10 pitches before striking out for out No. 2. It worked out for Carson Benge, who was able to see all of those pitches. He drove a slider over Aaron Judge’s head in right field for a double. Bo Bichette and Soto walked to load the bases, then Rodon bounced a pitch to Vientos off the backstop, fielded it off the bounce and threw it well past home plate.
Benge and Bichette came home easily.
An RBI double by Brett Baty chased Rodon (0-1) from the game in the bottom of the fourth.
Then came the Vientos double in the fifth to increase the Mets’ lead to 5-2. Those runs proved useful when Benge dropped a fly ball in the top of the seventh, allowing a run to score for the Yankees, who loaded the bases with no outs, forcing the Mets to go to the bullpen.
Out came Luke Weaver, one of the many former Yankees, to hold the lead. Mendoza saw an eager, aggressive pitcher in a critical situation. The rest of the team saw the same pitcher as always.
“I don’t think he was extra fired up; I think that’s who he is,” Soto said. “That’s what he brings to the table every time.”
Weaver deftly got out of the jam, then helped his own cause in the eighth with a 3-6-1 double play.
“Unicorn stuff,” Soto said.
“He’s more athletic than I thought,” added Vientos.
Closer Devin Williams, who spent last season in the Bronx, shut the door on the Yankees (28-18) with his sixth save of the season.
To the victors go the spoils, or in this case, to the victors go the closers (current and former), the slugger and the skipper.
