Just two nights after his grand slam broke open their 10-4 victory over the Miami Marlins, Mets slugger Pete Alonso came through again to carry a sleeping offense on Wednesday at LoanDepot Park.
Trailing 4-1 in the eighth inning and staring a second-straight series loss to start the season, Alonso crushed a 2-2 fastball from Marlins reliever Calvin Faucher 415 feet to center field to tie the game.
“I was fighting off some really tough pitches there,” Alonso said. “He came at me with his best stuff and he located some good ones, especially early in the count, but I was able to just stay in control and let the ball show up where I wanted it to.”
It was one of three balls that Alonso hit on Wednesday night that left the bat at 113 mph or quicker — a night in which he went 3-for-4 with two doubles to go with his second homer of the year and four RBI.
“When he’s doing that, getting the barrel and making contact, we know the power is real,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “First at-bat today, smoked a ball in the game. Then that homer in the eighth was pretty impressive. You see him take walks, laying off some tough pitches. When things are going his way, that’s what we see.”
After the Mets defense came through with game-saving plays at the plate in the eighth and ninth innings, Alonso got the offense going in the 11th when he led off with a walk. Brandon Nimmo singled to load the bases before Jesse Winker drew a walk to put the visitors ahead. Mark Vientos’ fielder’s choice brought in one more — just enough for Huascar Brazoban to close out a 6-5 win.
“I’m just happy I was able to come through for the team right there,” Alonso said. “Today was obviously a really important game for us.”
Alonso, who is coming off a career-worst season that hindered his free-agency experience over the winter, has come out firing in 2025. He has a 1.090 OPS through five games with two home runs and eight RBI, accounting for 36.3% of all Mets runs scored this season.
It is barely keeping New York’s offense afloat in the early goings, but perhaps it will be the spark plug that gets last year’s confidence back in the clubhouse.
“There’s a lot of guys from last year that know how to do this. This is a talented bunch,” Alonso said. “For us, we never think we’re out of any game. That’s one of the great characteristics about this club. That’s just a testament to the character of every single one of these guys. We don’t give up until the last out’s made.”
