Mets Stumble Against Rockies
In Denver, Craig Kimbrel made a notable appearance Thursday—almost. He didn’t manage to record an out until he faced the fifth batter, and by then, the Mets’ hopes for a sweep had slipped away.
On that day, the once on-fire Mets’ batting lineup struggled, and Kimbrel’s bases-loaded home run in the eighth inning tied the game against the Rockies. However, Jake McCarthy’s grand slam sealed a 6-2 defeat for the Mets at Coors Field, cutting their winning streak to three games.
Kimbrel was selected just a day after the Mets had to exhaust their bullpen, focusing on relief following Christian Scott’s brief outing. He threw a 94 mph fastball, which McCarthy connected with near the right-field foul pole; replay confirmed the home run, leaving the Mets in a tough spot against the Rockies.
The Mets are set to begin a three-game series in Arizona, having fallen to a 4-2 record on their recent road trip.
Kimbrel started a rally after allowing singles to TJ Rumfield and Troy Johnston before walking Willi Castro, which loaded the bases. McCarthy capitalized on the second pitch thrown to him.
As for the Mets’ offense, they managed only one hit in nine chances with runners in scoring position.
Scott, the right-handed pitcher, was ejected after throwing 82 pitches in his third game against the Rockies. He completed four innings, yielding one earned run while striking out six and allowing three hits and two walks.
This marked Scott’s second start during a road trip for the Mets. Last week, he limited the Angels to three earned runs over five innings, leading to a Mets victory.
The Mets initially took a 2-0 lead in the second inning, thanks to a two-run hit from Jose Quintana. Andy Ibáñez added a run with a sacrifice fly, and Tyrone Taylor’s RBI single extended their early advantage.
Austin Slater’s lead-off single, combined with a walk to Marcus Semien, sparked the rally that led to the earlier runs. Unfortunately, the momentum didn’t last long.
In the third inning, Juan Soto’s one-out triple didn’t lead to any runs, as Bo Bichette’s walk and Mark Vientos’ ground out resulted in an inning-ending double play.
Scott’s fourth inning saw him allow an RBI hit to Castro, narrowing the Mets’ lead to 2-1. Tyler Freeman’s bunt single and Johnston’s walk added to the pressure, but Scott struck out McCarthy to limit the damage further.
Quintana pitched 5.3 innings, giving up just two earned runs on five hits, two walks, and registering two strikeouts. Scott was ejected after walking Edouard Julien, leaving Huascar Brazoban to close out the fifth.
Brazoban allowed a significant RBI double by McCarthy in the sixth inning, tying the game at 2-2. Austin Warren subsequently walked Kyle Kalos to load the bases but managed to strike out Brett Sullivan to escape without further damage.
In the seventh inning, Soto came up to bat with two runners on but popped out for the final out. Warren also dealt with Mickey Moniak, who he walked, before inducing a double play to end the inning.
