This is McKrazy.
Jeff McNeil had only hit five home runs before the All-Star break, but upon his return he was a power-hitting sensation.
On Tuesday, he hit his fourth home run in five games since the break to give the Mets a lead they held on to in a 3-2 victory over the Yankees in the Bronx.
McNeil hit a two-run homer off former teammate Michael Tonkin in the sixth inning to break a 1–1 tie.
“Happy Jeff,” was the nickname given to McNeil by Francisco Lindor the previous day in Miami, but McNeil had a beaming smile on his face as he rounded the bases.
“It was a good day. Any day you can go home from the stadium happy is a good day,” McNeil said.
After Pete Alonso batted first in the sixth inning, hit a double and advanced to third base with one out, McNeil came to bat and held his own against Tonkin despite being down 1-2.
After working a full count, McNeil smashed a 93 mph fastball over the fence in right-center field. McNeil fouled off four pitches in the at-bat.
“I try not to try too hard in those at-bats. I try to hit the ball higher because it draws the infield,” McNeil said. “Sometimes the pitcher throws a good pitch and I don’t have the right pitch to hit it, so I’ve got to fight.”
The inning before, McNeil created a traffic jam on the bases that nearly turned disastrous.
In the top of the fifth inning, with McNeil on second and Luis Torrens on first after consecutive singles, Tyrone Taylor hit a ball to the left that Alex Verdugo hit into the fence for the out.
McNeil had fallen back to second base to tag up, and Torrens had to slow down to avoid getting past him. McNeil stopped at third base, loading the bases.
“if [Verdugo] “If they catch the ball and you’re not on third base, that’s a problem,” McNeil said. “So you’ve got to be safe there.” [Verdugo] “He put his glove up. I thought the ball was going to go in his glove. It was just one of those plays that just happens in baseball.”
McNeil eventually scored, tying the score at 1-1 with one out and Lindor being hit by a pitch.
However, neither Brandon Nimmo nor J.D. Martinez were able to lead the Mets.
McNeil believes the key to his turnaround was a decision he made before the All-Star break to hit hard, rather than hit for position.
McNeil had a terrible OPS of .591 in the first half of the season.
“I feel like he’s getting back to the ability that we all know him to be,” manager Carlos Mendoza said, “but now he’s hitting the ball and making an impact. He’s confident in his swing. He’s catching good balls and making good swings.”
