Pete Alonso and Jonathan Villar each hit an RBI-single in the eighth inning to give the New York Mets a 4-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday in the first game of their doubleheader.
Dominic Smith hit an early two-run homer for the Mets, who won the first game of a four-game series between opponents from NL-East in extra time. Both games of the single-admission twinbill, booked to make up for Monday night’s rain at Citi Field, were scheduled for seven innings in accordance with a rule change introduced during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.
With the Mets reduced to one run, Alonso led off the bottom of the eighth with a single off of Hector Neris (0-1), who scored on running back Francisco Lindor from second base. It was New York’s first hit since the second inning.
Jeff McNeil defeated a potential double-play ball, Michael Conforto walked and an infield single by James McCann loaded the bases with one out.
Villar, who remained pinch-runner in the seventh inning and stayed in to play third base, threw a full-count pitch to left midfield over left fielder Andrew McCutchen’s head and played superficially hoping to cut the winning run .
Helped by McCann’s pass, the Phillies led 3-2 in the top of the eighth against Trevor May when McCutchen scored from the third on a two-out single by Didi Gregorius in the infield.
May (1-1) eliminated Jean Segura with two running backs in scoring position to finish with his first win for the Mets.
Philadelphia was tied at second place in the sixth inning after Rhys Hoskins had received his first walk of the season, starting against reliever Miguel Castro. Hoskins moved on a single by Bryce Harper who beat the change and moved to third base on a groundout. He scored when Segura beat a dribbler to third base with an infield-single on a 0-2 pitch.
For the Mets, Jonathan Villar 1-1, with an RBI.
For the Phillies, Jean Segura 4-2, with an RBI.
OAKLAND 7, ARIZONA 5
PHOENIX (Neth.) – Jed Lowrie tied the score with a three-run homer in the seventh inning, Seth Brown hit a solo-homer in the next inning and the Oakland Athletics beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-5 on Tuesday-evening.
Oakland rallied from five points down to a Diamondbacks who appeared poised for their third win in four games.
Carson Kelly hit a three-run homer in the second inning and Arizona scored two more runs in the third. Zac Gallen struckout eight batters in his season debut and gave up a run in four innings.
That run was produced by a solo home run by Stephen Piscotty.
The Arizona bullpen looked fine, but collapsed in the seventh inning.
For the Athletics, Ramón Laureano 5-1 with a run scored.
Before the Diamondbacks, there were no Dominicans.