Outfielder Nick Plummer certainly deserved his shot on Sunday night at Citi Field just based on his patience — whether it was waiting for an opportunity to play with the Mets or waiting throughout the hundreds of miles traveled this season as a security blanket for the organization.
The 25-year-old has been a mainstay amongst the fringes of the team for most of the season.
He’s had multiple stints on the taxi squad, even traveling with the team for a few road trips while at home, his No. 16 jersey inhabited a locker at Citi Field despite not getting activated.
All the while, he’s experienced the carousel that is life between the majors and minor leagues, getting optioned down to the club’s minor-league affiliate in Triple-A Syracuse.
Chances in the big leagues are obviously fleeting — and Plummer’s story is just another example of that. So he made the absolute most of it when he was activated and put in the starting lineup on Sunday against the Philadelphia Phillies.
Down 4-3 in the bottom of the ninth and with a chance to sweep a three-game series from the Mets’ divisional rivals, Plummer cracked his first-ever MLB hit — a screaming solo home run into the second deck of the right-field stands off Corey Knebel to tie the game.
“It was cool just to be in there and start and get to play after coming up and down from Syracuse,” Plummer began. “[The home run was] pretty surreal, really no words… I just like to sit on whatever his best pitch is… I’m just going to react on it and react to everything else. Luckily, I put a good barrel on it.”
Eduardo Escobar walked it off with a game-winning single in the 10th inning to give the Mets a sweep, improve their 2022 record to 32-17, and open up an 8.5-game lead over the second-place Atlanta Braves atop the NL East.
The Phillies are 10.5 out down in third.
“I’m so happy for him,” Escobar said of Plummer. “It’s unbelievable. I’m so happy for Plummer, and hopefully now comes more.”
Plummer was selected in the first round by the St. Louis Cardinals back in 2015 and because he accrued six years of minor-league service time, he was granted free agency after a 2021 season in which he hit .280 with 15 home runs and an .894 OPS across Double- and Triple-A.
For a Mets team in search of natural outfield depth after the departure of Michael Conforto, they snapped him up.
“I knew coming over here after signing in free agency that this was going to be a winning ballclub,” Plummer said. “It’s really been great. For them to go out and seek me in the free agency market was a big compliment for myself — especially coming off my tenure with the Cardinals. Just to come over here and help the team win, you can’t ask for much more.
“A good memory and a good win.”
