NEW YORK -- Two balls launched over the wall, one fired over an opponent's head and just like that, David Wright and the New York Mets are right back in this World Series.
Wright homered and drove in four runs, Curtis Granderson also connected and rookie Noah Syndergaard set a nasty tone at the start of a 9-3 victory Friday night against the Kansas City Royals that trimmed New York's deficit to 2-1.
Syndergaard's first pitch was a 98 mph fastball just off the inside corner and way over Alcides Escobar's head, eliciting a huge cheer from fans. The skinny shortstop went down to the dirt on his rear end and stayed there, legs splayed, catching his breath for several seconds.
"I feel like it really made a statement to start the game off, that you guys can't dig in and get too aggressive because I'll come in there," said Syndergaard, who alluded Thursday to having "a few tricks" up his sleeve for the leadoff man.
"My intent on that pitch was to make them uncomfortable, and I feel like I did just that. I know that for the past, I think every postseason game that Escobar has played in, he's swung at the first-pitch fastball, and I didn't think he would want to swing at that one."
Escobar, having a huge postseason, acknowledged he was caught off guard.
"I didn't like it one bit. He was saying yesterday that he had a plan against my aggressiveness. If that's the plan, I think that's a stupid plan," Escobar said. "I cannot fathom a pitcher would throw to the head a 98 mph pitch on the first pitch of the game."
Kansas City players spent the next few innings shouting at Syndergaard from the dugout.
"I think the whole team was pretty upset. The first pitch of the game goes whizzing by our leadoff man's head," Mike Moustakas said. "I think all 25 guys in that dugout were pretty fired up."
Shut down at the plate in Kansas City, the Mets broke loose and chased Yordano Ventura early during the first Series game at Citi Field. Aided by more unsteady fielding from a Royals team known for tight defense, New York got 12 hits from nine players.
Pitching on Halloween eve, Syndergaard recovered from a scary start and went six innings, giving the Mets the winning performance they didn't get from fellow young starters Matt Harvey and Jacob deGrom at Kauffman Stadium.
"He delivered," manager Terry Collins said. "He came through exactly as we expected."
Another rookie, hometown favorite Steven Matz, tries to pull New York even Saturday night in Game 4 when he faces 36-year-old Chris Young and the Royals.
After the Mets fell behind in the first inning, Granderson started the bottom half with a single and Wright hit his first World Series home run, recharging a packed crowd of 44,781 that included Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock and Dennis Miller.
"It's one of those memories, at least for me, that will stick with me for the rest of my life," Wright said.
The captain, who entered batting .182 without an RBI in his first World Series, added a two-run single on Kelvin Herrera's first pitch during a four-run sixth that broke it open.
Pinch hitter Juan Uribe, just back from a chest injury, had an RBI single in his first plate appearance since Sept. 25. Slumping slugger Yoenis Cespedes added a sacrifice fly.
"We were relentless tonight," Wright said.
In a matchup between two of the hardest throwers in the game, Syndergaard turned up the heat on a brisk night (52 degrees and windy) while Ventura lost some steam.
"He just wasn't sharp," Kansas City manager Ned Yost said. "Fastball velocity was down. Made a couple mistakes."
Syndergaard, who beat Cubs ace Jake Arrieta in the National League Championship Series, struggled early against a Royals lineup minus slugging designated hitter Kendrys Morales and was only a couple of batters from coming out of the game, Collins said.
But the 6-foot-6 right-hander aptly nicknamed "Thor" found his groove just in time and got stronger in the middle innings, when Harvey and deGrom faded in Kansas City.
Syndergaard set down 12 in a row, five on strikeouts, before loading the bases with two outs in the sixth. He retired Alex Rios on his 104th and final pitch, to the delight of fans who showed up in long, blond wigs and Viking helmets with replica hammers in their hands.
Hoping to rekindle the comeback spirit of 1986, when the Mets rallied from a 2-0 World Series hole to beat Boston for their most recent championship, the team played its highlight video from that year on the large scoreboard during batting practice.
Local boy Billy Joel sang the national anthem, same as 29 years ago at Shea Stadium, and Syndergaard grabbed everyone's attention with his first delivery to Escobar.
"It was the only location he missed all night," Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer said. "No one in here is stupid. We know what he said."
Escobar led off Game 1 with an inside-the-park homer on Harvey's first pitch. This time, the American League Championship Series MVP wound up whiffing on a 99 mph heater. Yet the Royals hardly looked intimidated as they scored three runs in the first two innings.
They ran themselves out of a chance at a bigger inning when Alex Gordon was thrown out at third by rookie left fielder Michael Conforto, the safe call reversed following a replay review.
Syndergaard was a little shaky fielding his position but helped himself at the plate. He singled leading off the third ahead of Granderson's second homer of the Series, a line drive off Ventura into the front row of seats in the right-field corner.
That put the Mets ahead to stay at 4-3, making it the first World Series game with three lead changes in the first three innings, according to STATS.
UP NEXT
Royals: Young won the opener in relief Tuesday, throwing 53 pitches and striking out four over three hitless innings. "My body feels fine," he said. "I'm not worried about bouncing back." The 6-foot-10 Princeton product, who has overcome a string of substantial injuries, went 5-9 in 24 starts for the Mets from 2011 to '12.
Mets: Matz made all of six major league starts during the regular season, and his World Series assignment is storybook stuff. The 24-year-old lefty from Long Island grew up a Mets fan about 50 miles from Citi Field. He planned to sleep at his parents' home Friday night and commute to the ballpark, just as he has done for much of his rookie season. "We're on off hours, so there's not much traffic. It's not too terrible," Matz said. "It's been pretty awesome to be able to do that."
Wright homered and drove in four runs, Curtis Granderson also connected and rookie Noah Syndergaard set a nasty tone at the start of a 9-3 victory Friday night against the Kansas City Royals that trimmed New York's deficit to 2-1.
Syndergaard's first pitch was a 98 mph fastball just off the inside corner and way over Alcides Escobar's head, eliciting a huge cheer from fans. The skinny shortstop went down to the dirt on his rear end and stayed there, legs splayed, catching his breath for several seconds.
"I feel like it really made a statement to start the game off, that you guys can't dig in and get too aggressive because I'll come in there," said Syndergaard, who alluded Thursday to having "a few tricks" up his sleeve for the leadoff man.
"My intent on that pitch was to make them uncomfortable, and I feel like I did just that. I know that for the past, I think every postseason game that Escobar has played in, he's swung at the first-pitch fastball, and I didn't think he would want to swing at that one."
Escobar, having a huge postseason, acknowledged he was caught off guard.
"I didn't like it one bit. He was saying yesterday that he had a plan against my aggressiveness. If that's the plan, I think that's a stupid plan," Escobar said. "I cannot fathom a pitcher would throw to the head a 98 mph pitch on the first pitch of the game."
Kansas City players spent the next few innings shouting at Syndergaard from the dugout.
"I think the whole team was pretty upset. The first pitch of the game goes whizzing by our leadoff man's head," Mike Moustakas said. "I think all 25 guys in that dugout were pretty fired up."
Shut down at the plate in Kansas City, the Mets broke loose and chased Yordano Ventura early during the first Series game at Citi Field. Aided by more unsteady fielding from a Royals team known for tight defense, New York got 12 hits from nine players.
Pitching on Halloween eve, Syndergaard recovered from a scary start and went six innings, giving the Mets the winning performance they didn't get from fellow young starters Matt Harvey and Jacob deGrom at Kauffman Stadium.
"He delivered," manager Terry Collins said. "He came through exactly as we expected."
Another rookie, hometown favorite Steven Matz, tries to pull New York even Saturday night in Game 4 when he faces 36-year-old Chris Young and the Royals.
After the Mets fell behind in the first inning, Granderson started the bottom half with a single and Wright hit his first World Series home run, recharging a packed crowd of 44,781 that included Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock and Dennis Miller.
"It's one of those memories, at least for me, that will stick with me for the rest of my life," Wright said.
The captain, who entered batting .182 without an RBI in his first World Series, added a two-run single on Kelvin Herrera's first pitch during a four-run sixth that broke it open.
Pinch hitter Juan Uribe, just back from a chest injury, had an RBI single in his first plate appearance since Sept. 25. Slumping slugger Yoenis Cespedes added a sacrifice fly.
"We were relentless tonight," Wright said.
In a matchup between two of the hardest throwers in the game, Syndergaard turned up the heat on a brisk night (52 degrees and windy) while Ventura lost some steam.
"He just wasn't sharp," Kansas City manager Ned Yost said. "Fastball velocity was down. Made a couple mistakes."
Syndergaard, who beat Cubs ace Jake Arrieta in the National League Championship Series, struggled early against a Royals lineup minus slugging designated hitter Kendrys Morales and was only a couple of batters from coming out of the game, Collins said.
But the 6-foot-6 right-hander aptly nicknamed "Thor" found his groove just in time and got stronger in the middle innings, when Harvey and deGrom faded in Kansas City.
Syndergaard set down 12 in a row, five on strikeouts, before loading the bases with two outs in the sixth. He retired Alex Rios on his 104th and final pitch, to the delight of fans who showed up in long, blond wigs and Viking helmets with replica hammers in their hands.
Hoping to rekindle the comeback spirit of 1986, when the Mets rallied from a 2-0 World Series hole to beat Boston for their most recent championship, the team played its highlight video from that year on the large scoreboard during batting practice.
Local boy Billy Joel sang the national anthem, same as 29 years ago at Shea Stadium, and Syndergaard grabbed everyone's attention with his first delivery to Escobar.
"It was the only location he missed all night," Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer said. "No one in here is stupid. We know what he said."
Escobar led off Game 1 with an inside-the-park homer on Harvey's first pitch. This time, the American League Championship Series MVP wound up whiffing on a 99 mph heater. Yet the Royals hardly looked intimidated as they scored three runs in the first two innings.
They ran themselves out of a chance at a bigger inning when Alex Gordon was thrown out at third by rookie left fielder Michael Conforto, the safe call reversed following a replay review.
Syndergaard was a little shaky fielding his position but helped himself at the plate. He singled leading off the third ahead of Granderson's second homer of the Series, a line drive off Ventura into the front row of seats in the right-field corner.
That put the Mets ahead to stay at 4-3, making it the first World Series game with three lead changes in the first three innings, according to STATS.
UP NEXT
Royals: Young won the opener in relief Tuesday, throwing 53 pitches and striking out four over three hitless innings. "My body feels fine," he said. "I'm not worried about bouncing back." The 6-foot-10 Princeton product, who has overcome a string of substantial injuries, went 5-9 in 24 starts for the Mets from 2011 to '12.
Mets: Matz made all of six major league starts during the regular season, and his World Series assignment is storybook stuff. The 24-year-old lefty from Long Island grew up a Mets fan about 50 miles from Citi Field. He planned to sleep at his parents' home Friday night and commute to the ballpark, just as he has done for much of his rookie season. "We're on off hours, so there's not much traffic. It's not too terrible," Matz said. "It's been pretty awesome to be able to do that."
8:07PM,EDT,October 30,2015
Citi Field, New York, New York
Citi Field, New York, New York
| View: Play-By-Play | Pitch-By-Pitch | Inning: All | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| Kansas City - Top of 1st | SCORE | |
|---|---|---|
| Noah Syndergaard pitching for New York | KC | NYM |
| Escobar struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| Zobrist doubled to deep center. | 0 | 0 |
| Cain reached on infield single to third, Zobrist to third. | 0 | 0 |
| Hosmer grounded into fielder's choice to first, Zobrist scored, Cain out at second. | 1 | 0 |
| Moustakas grounded out to pitcher. | 1 | 0 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 1st | SCORE | |
| Yordano Ventura pitching for Kansas City | KC | NYM |
| Granderson reached on infield single to second. | 1 | 0 |
| Wright homered to left (392 feet), Granderson scored. | 1 | 2 |
| Murphy popped out to shortstop. | 1 | 2 |
| Céspedes struck out looking. | 1 | 2 |
| Duda grounded out to second. | 1 | 2 |
| 2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Kansas City - Top of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Noah Syndergaard pitching for New York | KC | NYM |
| Pérez singled to shallow left. | 1 | 2 |
| Gordon singled to right, Pérez to second. | 1 | 2 |
| Rios singled to left, Pérez scored, Gordon thrown out at third, Rios to second advancing on throw. | 2 | 2 |
| Ventura sacrificed to pitcher, Rios to third. | 2 | 2 |
| Rios scored on d'Arnaud's passed ball. | 3 | 2 |
| Escobar singled to center. | 3 | 2 |
| Escobar stole second. | 3 | 2 |
| Zobrist flied out to center. | 3 | 2 |
| 2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Yordano Ventura pitching for Kansas City | KC | NYM |
| d'Arnaud flied out to center. | 3 | 2 |
| Conforto grounded out to third. | 3 | 2 |
| Flores lined out to right. | 3 | 2 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Kansas City - Top of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Noah Syndergaard pitching for New York | KC | NYM |
| Cain popped out to shortstop. | 3 | 2 |
| Hosmer grounded out to first. | 3 | 2 |
| Moustakas popped out to shortstop. | 3 | 2 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Yordano Ventura pitching for Kansas City | KC | NYM |
| Syndergaard singled to right. | 3 | 2 |
| Granderson homered to right (347 feet), Syndergaard scored. | 3 | 4 |
| Wright grounded out to third. | 3 | 4 |
| Murphy grounded out to second. | 3 | 4 |
| Céspedes grounded out to third. | 3 | 4 |
| 2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Kansas City - Top of 4th | SCORE | |
| Noah Syndergaard pitching for New York | KC | NYM |
| Pérez grounded out to third. | 3 | 4 |
| Gordon struck out looking. | 3 | 4 |
| Rios grounded out to shortstop. | 3 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 4th | SCORE | |
| Yordano Ventura pitching for Kansas City | KC | NYM |
| Duda singled to shallow left. | 3 | 4 |
| d'Arnaud doubled to left, Duda to third. | 3 | 4 |
| Conforto reached on infield single to first, Duda scored, d'Arnaud to third. | 3 | 5 |
| Flores fouled out to first. | 3 | 5 |
| Duffy relieved Ventura. | 3 | 5 |
| Syndergaard struck out looking. | 3 | 5 |
| Granderson flied out to center. | 3 | 5 |
| 1 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Kansas City - Top of 5th | SCORE | |
| Noah Syndergaard pitching for New York | KC | NYM |
| Mondesi hit for Duffy. | 3 | 5 |
| Mondesi struck out swinging. | 3 | 5 |
| Escobar struck out swinging. | 3 | 5 |
| Zobrist flied out to right. | 3 | 5 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 5th | SCORE | |
| Luke Hochevar pitching for Kansas City | KC | NYM |
| Hochevar relieved Duffy. | 3 | 5 |
| Wright struck out looking. | 3 | 5 |
| Murphy grounded out to pitcher. | 3 | 5 |
| Céspedes singled to center. | 3 | 5 |
| Duda struck out looking. | 3 | 5 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Kansas City - Top of 6th | SCORE | |
| Noah Syndergaard pitching for New York | KC | NYM |
| Cain struck out swinging. | 3 | 5 |
| Hosmer struck out swinging. | 3 | 5 |
| Moustakas reached on infield single to second. | 3 | 5 |
| Pérez walked, Moustakas to second. | 3 | 5 |
| Gordon walked, Moustakas to third, Pérez to second. | 3 | 5 |
| Rios grounded out to shortstop. | 3 | 5 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 6th | SCORE | |
| Franklin Morales pitching for Kansas City | KC | NYM |
| F. Morales relieved Hochevar. | 3 | 5 |
| d'Arnaud grounded out to shortstop. | 3 | 5 |
| Lagares hit for Conforto. | 3 | 5 |
| Lagares singled to left center. | 3 | 5 |
| Flores hit by pitch, Lagares to second. | 3 | 5 |
| Uribe hit for Syndergaard. | 3 | 5 |
| Uribe singled to right, Lagares scored, Flores to third. | 3 | 6 |
| Granderson reaches on fielder's choice to pitcher, Uribe safe at second. | 3 | 6 |
| Herrera relieved F. Morales. | 3 | 6 |
| Orlando in right field. | 3 | 6 |
| Wright singled to center, Flores and Uribe scored, Granderson to second. | 3 | 8 |
| Murphy walked, Granderson to third, Wright to second. | 3 | 8 |
| Céspedes hit sacrifice fly to left, Granderson scored. | 3 | 9 |
| Duda struck out looking. | 3 | 9 |
| 4 Runs, 3 Hits, 1 Errors | ||
| Kansas City - Top of 7th | SCORE | |
| Addison Reed pitching for New York | KC | NYM |
| Céspedes in left field. | 3 | 9 |
| Lagares in center field. | 3 | 9 |
| Reed relieved Syndergaard. | 3 | 9 |
| Orlando popped out to second. | 3 | 9 |
| Escobar fouled out to first. | 3 | 9 |
| Zobrist grounded out to first. | 3 | 9 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 7th | SCORE | |
| Ryan Madson pitching for Kansas City | KC | NYM |
| Madson relieved Herrera. | 3 | 9 |
| d'Arnaud singled to left. | 3 | 9 |
| Lagares flied out to left. | 3 | 9 |
| Flores grounded into fielder's choice to third, d'Arnaud out at second. | 3 | 9 |
| Nieuwenhuis hit for Reed. | 3 | 9 |
| Nieuwenhuis struck out swinging. | 3 | 9 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, -1 Errors | ||
| Kansas City - Top of 8th | SCORE | |
| Tyler Clippard pitching for New York | KC | NYM |
| Clippard relieved Reed. | 3 | 9 |
| Cain popped out to shortstop. | 3 | 9 |
| Hosmer flied out to center. | 3 | 9 |
| Moustakas popped out to pitcher. | 3 | 9 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 8th | SCORE | |
| Kris Medlen pitching for Kansas City | KC | NYM |
| Medlen relieved Madson. | 3 | 9 |
| Granderson lined out to pitcher. | 3 | 9 |
| Wright struck out swinging. | 3 | 9 |
| Murphy struck out swinging. | 3 | 9 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Kansas City - Top of 9th | SCORE | |
| Jeurys Familia pitching for New York | KC | NYM |
| Familia relieved Clippard. | 3 | 9 |
| Pérez grounded out to shortstop. | 3 | 9 |
| Gordon struck out swinging. | 3 | 9 |
| K. Morales hit for Medlen. | 3 | 9 |
| K. Morales grounded out to third. | 3 | 9 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Kansas City Royals | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hitters | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | #P | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| Escobar SS | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 15 | .267 | .267 | .600 |
| Zobrist 2B | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | .267 | .313 | .467 |
| Cain CF | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 17 | .143 | .250 | .143 |
| Hosmer 1B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 16 | .182 | .267 | .182 |
| Moustakas 3B | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | .385 | .429 | .385 |
| Pérez C | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 15 | .308 | .357 | .385 |
| Gordon LF | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 21 | .300 | .500 | .700 |
| Rios RF | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | .222 | .222 | .222 |
Herrera P
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
Madson P
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
Medlen P
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
b-K. Morales PH
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .125 | .222 | .125 |
| Ventura P | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
Duffy P
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
a-Mondesi PH
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
Hochevar P
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | |
Orlando RF
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .250 | .200 | .250 |
| Totals | 32 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 140 | |||
| a-struck out swinging for D Duffy in the 5th b-grounded to third for K Medlen in the 9th | ||||||||||
| BATTING 2B: Zobrist (3, Syndergaard) RBI: Hosmer (5), Rios (1) S: Ventura Royals RISP: 2-5 (Rios 1-2, Zobrist 0-1, Hosmer 0-1, Cain 1-1) Team LOB: 5 | ||||||||||
| BASERUNNING SB: Escobar (1, 2nd base off Syndergaard/d'Arnaud) | ||||||||||
Game Information
| Stadium | Citi Field, New York, NY |
| Attendance | 44,781 (106.8% full) - % is based on regular season capacity |
| Game Time | 3:22 |
| Weather | 52 degrees, clear |
| Wind | 13 mph |
| Umpires | Home Plate - Mike Winters, First Base - Jim Wolf, Second Base - Alfonso Marquez, Third Base - Gary Cederstrom, Left Field - Mike Everitt, Right Field - Mark Carlson |
No comments:
Post a Comment