On Tuesday afternoon, DJ Stewart grabbed the first baseman’s mitt and got extra reps in his natural corner outfield position.
Stewart wants to prove he’s as valuable as possible to a team that has more than a few bats worth keeping.
If he could slide to first base every once in a while and spell Pete Alonso, perhaps he might have found the separator skills that would ensure he sticks in the major leagues.
Or, if his bat proves powerful enough, anything he brings to the defense could be a bonus, like enjoying a hot dog.
Stewart survived what could have been a suspension day on Tuesday afternoon as the Mets defeated the Cubs in a four-game game in front of a packed crowd of 22,880 fans at Dollar Dog Night at Citi Field. He hit a game-winning 3-run home run in a game won by 2. .
The Mets (15-14) fell over .500 and were tied for the fourth straight game against a slugger whose roster spot was in jeopardy.
Mark Vientos was called to perform this weekend when Starling Marte was placed on the bereavement list.
The power bat hit enough balls (including the game-winning home run on Sunday) that the Mets will likely keep Marte in the majors after he returns, rather than using a bench bat like Stewart as an option. There was speculation that.
Marte returned to the club and the Mets chose to keep Stewart, who quickly rewarded him.
The Mets and Cubs were tied 1-1 until the 5¹/₂ innings, but Chicago’s defense gave Stewart a chance that he didn’t waste.
The Mets’ threat began with J.D. Martinez hitting an innocuous ground ball to shortstop Dansby Swanson, who spiked the throw to first base, allowing Martinez to reach it.
With two outs, Tyrone Taylor singled, putting out two runners on Stewart.
The second pitch Stewart saw — a cutter from reliever Adbert Alzolay — he sent an estimated 388 feet to the right and watched it travel.
Stewart dropped his bat and remained in the batter’s box, praising the second-deck shot that was his fourth home run of the year and improved his OPS to .849.
Like the Mets fans who ate (or at least bought) 44,269 hot dogs, according to the team, Stewart saw an opportunity and made the most of it.
Last season, the former first-round pick rose to prominence on a helpless Mets club and became a rare bright side in the second half.
He brought a hot bat to the season despite sporadic playing time, only as a right fielder in Tuesday’s lineup as Marte was away from the team for several days.
Stewart was able to make his presence felt with just one swing.
The Mets didn’t need much else on offense on a strong but short night from Sean Manaea.
As a trend, the left-hander has allowed just one run, but by the fifth inning, his problem has been his pitch count (92 pitches), which continues to increase due to too many walks (4 pitches).
The only run Manaea allowed was in the second inning, when they had two walks and a single, leaving the bases loaded with one out.
Miguel Amaya hit a sacrifice fly, but Manaea responded by striking out Alexander Canario, one of his three strikeouts on the night.
Through six starts, Manaea’s ERA remains at 3.07, but in just 29¹/₃ innings, or less than five innings per start.
Since his debut on April 1st, Manaea has been given one out in the sixth inning.
The Mets’ four relief pitchers allowed one hit and one run in four innings.
After Edwin Diaz pitched for the second consecutive day, Jorge Lopez made his first save of the season.
The Mets provided early support to their pitching staff, with additional help from the Cubs’ defense.
Francisco Lindor singled in the first inning to take the lead, but Patrick Wisdom’s throw from first base to second base went into the outfield.
Lindor stole base, stole third base on an error, and then scored on Alonso’s sacrifice fly.
Mets fans were able to cheer and felt much better than they felt later in the night.
