Game 4 of 162
Mets 5 - Marlins 1 (LoanDepot Park, Miami)
Mets record: 3-1
Mets streak: Won 2
WP - Kodai Senga (1-0)
LP - Trevor Rodgers (0-1)
Seat on the Korner: Kodai Senga
We select the star of the game and virtually invite him to a Seat on the Korner, just as Ralph Kiner used to do for his studio postgame show on WOR-channel 9
broadcasts in the early decades of the Mets.
After 11 seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball, Kodai Senga made his MLB debut and overcame a difficult 1st inning to earn the win for the Mets. Senga allowed one run and three hits with three walks and eight strikeouts in an overall impressive 5.1 innings. Senga looked nervous when his highly-anticipated debut got off to shaky start. He threw 36 pitches, allowed a run and left the bases loaded in the first (more on that below) but proceeded to retire 15 of his final 17 batters. His "Ghost Fork" was an absolute game changer, an untouchable pitch Sunday.
Need to Know
*The Mets took their first series of the season, winning three of four on the road against the Marlins.
*Buck Showalter used his fourth different lineup in as many games. Tim Locastro made his first start in left field. Tommy Pham started in center and batted leadoff.
*Pham had a big afternoon. The veteran right-handed hitter led the game off with a sharp single against Rodgers. He then crushed a 433-foot two-run home run in the 5th inning and ripped an RBI double in the 7th. Pham was 3-for-4 with his first homer as a Met, 3 RBI, a walk, stolen base and run scored.
*Locastro was hit twice by pitches and scored two runs.
*Senga became the 14th player from Japan to play for the Mets, most in the major leagues. The most recent Japanese player to play for the Mets was outfielder Nori Aoki in 2017.
*Eduardo Escobar looks lost at the plate. The third baseman was 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. He's 1-for-16 with seven Ks to start the season.
*The Mets head to Milwaukee for a three-game series against the Brewers that starts Monday afternoon. They'll be happy to leave Luis Arraez behind. The Marlins second baseman had two more hits against the Mets on Sunday and was 9-for-16 in the series.
Turning Point
Senga looked anxious, pacing in the Mets dugout when his teammates batted -- and scored two runs -- in the top of the 1st inning. Two batters into his MLB debut, Senga had allowed the Marlins to cut the Mets lead in half. Two walks followed and Senga faced a bases loaded jam without having a retired a batter. Senga then struck out Yuli Gurriel -- so badly fooled by the Ghost Fork was the Marlins first baseman that his bat flew out of his hands to the third-base dugout. Jesus Sanchez also struck out on a 3-2 pitch. And the inning closed on a strong defensive play in right by Starling Marte, who chased down a well-struck line drive toward the line by Jon Berti. Senga collected himself after the difficult opening frame and dominated Miami's hitters until being lifted with one out in the 6th, after throwing 88 pitches.
3 Keys
Jeff McNeil had the at-bat of the game in 1st inning
The Mets loaded the bases with two outs against Marlins left-hander Taylor Rodgers in the 1st inning. Rodgers then got ahead of Jeff McNeil 1 and 2. McNeil fouled off a couple tough pitches, including one when he lunged to slap it foul. The scrappy second baseman then tapped a slow roller to the first base side of the mound and busted it down the line. McNeil beat Rodgers' throw and collided with Gurriel, allowing two runs to score and give the Mets a lead they didn't relinquish. Everything about this at-bat was just so Jeff McNeil.
Bullish on the bullpen, again
Mets relievers tossed another 3.2 scoreless innings Sunday. Dennis Santana got the final two outs in the 6th and John Curtiss pitched a spotless 7th. Stephen Nogosek made his season debut and struggled with his control but pitched two scoreless innings, inducing an important double-play ball in the 9th inning. The Mets bullpen allowed one run over 13.2 innings in this series.
Off and running
Pham stole second in the 8th inning. The Mets stole one base in each game of the series and were successful on four of five attempts overall. Marte, who said he plans to steal more bases this season, swiped two bags this weekend. It appears Showalter wants to add a new wrinkle to the Mets offense by running more often, using the bigger bases and new rules regarding pickoffs to their advantage.
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