A one-run lead isn’t sufficient for the Mets’ bullpen, and Edwin Diaz gave up the tying run making an attempt for a four-out save within the high of the eighth inning. However after the Mets took again a one-run lead within the eighth, Ryne Stanek was in a position to defend it for the save (two), serving to safe a 3-2 win to salvage a collection in opposition to the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday afternoon at Citi Area.
Stanek wasn’t anticipating being referred to as on for the save within the ninth since Diaz had thrown 16 pitches, however he began to sense that the Mets might make one other change after the nearer blew solely his second save of the season. Stanek’s instinct proved right.
“You just kind of stay as ready as you feel like you need to be,” the setup man mentioned. “It’s great. It’s where you want to be, and you want to be pitching in those situations.”
However the true hero of the day was catcher Luis Torrens, who went 1-for-4 with a fielder’s alternative RBI, catching all 9 innings and taking a number of foul tricks to the physique and the masks.
“Just another day at the office,” Torrens mentioned. “Whenever you help the team, you always feel good, and it’s special getting the game-winner. I think that’s the most important thing, [anytime] you can help the team, it’s good.”
“He’s tough as nails,” added left-hander David Peterson. “I mean, he wore a couple bad ones today. The perseverance and the focus that he has is very commendable.”
The Mets didn’t get any massive hits, however they had been advantageous on the basepaths, utilizing their legs to make the singles depend, taking two off of left-hander Andrew Abbott over his six-inning begin. They did the identical in opposition to left-hander Brent Suter and right-hander Tony Santillian within the backside of the eighth to push the tying run throughout. Suter (1-1) walked Juan Soto and gave up a one-out double to Jeff McNeil.
Cincinnati then went to the bullpen to have Santillian face catcher Luis Torrens with runners on second and third. Torrens despatched a grounder to McLain at second, and Soto ran on contact, beating the throw house.
“That was the read, the contact was on, but you’ve got to be able to execute it,” mentioned supervisor Carlos Mendoza. “And he did.”
McLain’s throw was on the road and Stephenson had good positioning along with his foot on the plate, however Soto was midway down the road by the point McLain was in a position to discipline the ball. He managed to eliminate it rapidly, however Soto slid in head first behind Stephenson safely.
“The primary lead, and then the timing of the secondary allows him to get a great jump on contact and score easy,” Mendoza mentioned. “It was a bullet right at the second baseman, but the way [Soto] executed it, that’s how you teach it.”
It was a tough begin to the sport for the Mets and Peterson. Mark Vientos began at first base rather than Pete Alonso and was unable to make a tricky choose, permitting leadoff man T.J. Friedl to achieve base. Second baseman Luisangel Acuña made a tricky play to cease a tough floor ball, however his throw to Vientos had a bit an excessive amount of juice on it, and he was charged with an error.
McLain and De La Cruz then hit back-to-back singles to drive in a run and provides the Reds an early 1-0 lead.
Peterson acquired Hays to floor right into a 5-4-3 double play, and Steer lined out to shortstop Francisco Lindor to finish the inning and stop additional runs from crossing.
AP Photograph/Heather Khalifa
Francisco Lindor, middle, throws on a double play within the fifth inning in opposition to the Reds on Sunday. (AP Photograph/Heather Khalifa)
“I felt good in the bullpen, got out there and felt a little out of sync at the beginning, and was able to kind of correct it,” Peterson mentioned. “I threw quite a few pitches in the first three innings and just wanted to be efficient going forward, and so just getting back to pounding the zone and attacking.”
Within the backside of the second, Peterson acquired the primary two outs earlier than loading the bases, however he struck out McLain to get out of the jam. From there, his outing was a lot smoother, with the massive lefty retiring the subsequent six straight and 11 of 12 to finish his outing.
The Mets scored one run within the backside of the third and one other within the fifth to provide Peterson a 2-1 lead heading into his last inning. Peterson held the Reds to at least one unearned run on 4 hits, walked one and struck out 4 in six innings, his second straight outing of six or extra innings and his twelfth this season.
“I thought he did his job,” mentioned Mendoza. “We’re not putting a number on him. I thought six innings, 93 pitches, I wasn’t going to try to steal outs with him today, with the righties he’s coming up [in the seventh inning]. We have our guys set up there and that was all there was to it.”
Alonso later entered the sport, taking up for Vientos at first base within the high of the seventh, after getting therapy on the jammed proper thumb that had him on the bench to start out the sport. He went 0-for-1 with a strikeout in his solely at-bat.
Initially Revealed: July 20, 2025 at 4:36 PM EDT
