The storyline of this game coming in was the matchup between friends, Taijuan Walker vs former friend Marcus Stroman. While Stroman’s outing was limited due to him returning from injury, he matched Walker for 4 and 1/3 innings before Walker extended the mantle by going six innings, giving up four hits and two walks while both good friends gave up one single solitary run.
But if there is something I truly believe about sports, even if nobody else does, is that the best storylines in sports are written by sports itself, and not by a producer in a windowless room with a pile of tapes and perhaps an inspirational poster hung up amidst the soundproofing (because you need soundproofing because your voice tends to carry!) And the story of this game became the Mets’ defense.
After Walker left the game at 1-1, Seth Lugo got out of a hairy jam, getting Christopher Morel to ground into a double play with runners on first and second to end the inning. Drew Smith then pitched a clean 8th to set it up for Adam Ottavino for his first appearance in five days. With the score still at 1-1 in the 9th, Ottavino struck out Seiya Suzuki but then hit Nico Horner to put runners on first and second with one out. It was then that Eduardo Escobar gave us the first scoop:
OH WOW!
TO THE 10TH! pic.twitter.com/lDLuQDBjrS
— SNY (@SNYtv) July 16, 2022
The Mets couldn’t score in the top of the 10th, but there was a key moment when ghost runner Dom Smith turned his ankle expanding his lead at second. J.D. Davis had to come in for him at second, and then to play first base. Nelson Velazquez stole third to start the bottom of the 10th, making Ottavino’s life impossible. But he struck out Patrick Wisdom and P.J. Higgins (full disclosure: I only know who P.J. Higgins is because he’s my bestie in Road To The Show) to get to two outs, and then the ball found J.D. in a do or die situation , which you knew it would … although you might have expected a different outcome (I sure did.)
WHAT A PLAY!!!!
TO THE 11th!!!! pic.twitter.com/DpUFa9iitV
— SNY (@SNYtv) July 16, 2022
Taijuan Walker says that people in the training room were screaming after J.D. Davis' big defensive play, but his clubhouse TV was behind so he didn't know what happened right away 😂 pic.twitter.com/H9hmSRSuNB
— SNY (@SNYtv) July 16, 2022
The Mets scratched out a ghost run off of Mychal Givens, the latest in a line of Cubs relievers/Mets potential trade targets in the top of the 11th on a Pete Alonso sac fly, and then Edwin Diaz came in for the bottom of the 11th. He predictably struck out the first two batters, but Morel stole third base which upped the level of difficulty for the final out:
DÍAZ SHUTS THE DOOR!
METS WIN! pic.twitter.com/mnlgmy7JXl
— SNY (@SNYtv) July 16, 2022
Maybe it wasn’t difficult for them, but it was definitely difficult for all of us watching as everything was so nip and tuck all game. But a W is a W, even if you didn’t see any W’s flying at Wrigley after game one.
Game two of the doubleheader is coming up soon, and with an 8:00 ET start, they’re going to have to clear out the crowd and take apart all the beer snakes. All sympathy to the Wrigley Field game crew. Also, hi Max!
Today’s Game One Hate List
Ramon De Jesus’ strike zone
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