Mets pivotal road trip opens with big win vs. Wild Card rival
SAN DIEGO -- |A|
Over the past two |B|
months or so, the |C|
Mets have almost exclusively |D|
faced teams that could |E|
exert relatively little influence |F|
on their season. Every |G|
game counts the same |H|
on paper, or so |J|
the cliche goes. But |K|
with the exception of |L|
a July 25-28 series |M|
against the Braves, the |O|
Mets have spent their |P|
days playing either American |Q|
League clubs or those |R|
ranking near the bottom |S|
of the National League |U|
standings. In that sense, |V|
the rest of the |Y|
season began in earnest |Z|
Thursday night at Petco |A|
Park, where the Mets |B|
played the first of |C|
seven consecutive road games |D|
against the Padres and |E|
Diamondbacks -- two of |F|
the three clubs they |G|
trail in the NL |H|
Wild Card race. If |J|
the Mets have designs |K|
on engineering another run |L|
up the standings, perhaps |M|
now might be the |O|
ideal time? “Yeah,” manager |P|
Carlos Mendoza said when |Q|
asked about the gravity |R|
of this stretch. “We |S|
know.” One game into |U|
such a consequential week |V|
of schedule, the Mets |Y|
are meeting the challenge. |Z|
Their 8-3 win on |A|
Thursday at Petco Park |B|
kept them within 1 |C|
1/2 games of the |D|
Braves for the final |E|
Wild Card slot and |F|
pulled them within 4 |G|
1/2 games of the |H|
Padres, who sit second |J|
in the race behind |K|
the Diamondbacks. Fresh |L|
off his first shutout |M|
in six years, Luis |O|
Severino held the Padres |P|
scoreless into the fifth |Q|
inning and allowed just |R|
one run on the |S|
night. Severino pitched the |U|
entire time with a |V|
lead thanks to back-to-back |Y|
doubles from Francisco Lindor |Z|
and Mark Vientos to |A|
open the game, and |B|
the Mets touched Dylan |C|
Cease for two more |D|
runs on a pair |E|
of one-out hits, a |F|
passed ball, and a |G|
Jeff McNeil RBI single |H|
in the fourth.
