The Mets haven’t spent much time searching for answers at the plate this season. Just in the last 15 games, their lineup has amassed 87 runs for nearly six on average, and their whopping 148 total hits has almost produced a laudable double-digit average. Suffice to say, they’re clicking on all cylinders.
While the constant has been crossing home at a high rate, the variable has been the method of choice. Yes, there was a handful of timely home runs and extra-base knocks in the Mets’ 9-3 road win over the Cardinals on Friday night, but some of their successful at-bats required some patience and persistence.
Of the 17 hits that New York stockpiled against St. Louis, seven of them came with two strikes in the count. The most important one arrived in the fifth inning, when Pete Alonso demolished an 0-2 changeup from Sonny Gray that landed in the center-field bleachers for a go-ahead, two-run homer. The clutch 417-foot blast gave the Mets a lead that they didn’t relinquish.
Brandon Nimmo didn’t need to fall behind in order to launch his seventh long ball of the season. He led off the seventh inning by swinging at a first-pitch sinker, bumping the Mets’ lead to 7-3. But when asked about the team’s two-strike approach after the game, the veteran outfielder aptly labeled that strategy as “controlled aggression.”
“It’s just trying to look for your pitch and be ready at any time. Whether that’s the first pitch or last pitch of the at-bat, or an 0-2 count, whatever it is. Just being ready. It’s something that we’ve talked about — even through the organization, but especially here in the big leagues — trying to always be ready and you’re never out of an at-bat.”
Each player in the Mets’ lineup collected at least one hit on Friday, and it was Nimmo and catcher Francisco Alvarez who tied for the team lead with three apiece. The scoring spree helped them improve their first-place record to 22-11, and dating back to last season, they’ve won nine straight games against the Cardinals. It’s never happened before.
Smack in the middle of New York’s offensive outburst is Nimmo, who’s sticking to his process and reaping the benefits of a late-April and early-May hot streak. Sure, his .229 batting average isn’t up to snuff. But quality at-bats are always noticable, and Mets manager Carlos Mendoza believes that Nimmo is finally being rewarded for his discipline.
“He’s been locked in. Again, a good hitter who’s finally getting results,” Mendoza said after the win. “I don’t think he’s doing anything differently. Now the ball is falling, the power is right there. Not suprised by it.”
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