Watch CBS News

Mets Beat Twins 3-2 After Surviving Tense 9th Inning

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Michael Conforto went 4 for 4 and drove in the go-ahead run with a two-out single in the fifth inning, giving the New York Mets enough to hang on for a 3-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday night.

Conforto even made the defensive play of the game, a graceful leaping grab at the top of the wall in left-center to end the third with a runner on and take away a potential homer from Nelson Cruz. Jonathan Schoop led off that inning against Steven Matz with a home run.

With Matz on a pitch limit, the Mets bullpen backed up the highlight reel created by Conforto with one hit allowed over the first four of five scoreless innings. Luis Avilán (2-0) picked up the victory.

Edwin Díaz survived a tense ninth for his 21st save in 25 attempts, retiring Cruz on a full-count foul popup with the bases loaded to end the game.

Luis Arraez entered mid-at-bat as a pinch hitter for the injured Schoop and turned an 0-2 count into a walk, and singles by Mitch Garver and Marwin Gonzalez dialed up the pressure on Díaz. But Cruz's foul ball on the seventh pitch of his at-bat, a 99 mph fastball, was well within the range of third baseman Todd Frazier to make a basket catch in front of the dugout.

Michael Pineda (6-5) allowed exactly one earned run for the fifth time in his last six starts, but a sloppy opening inning by the Twins put the hulking right-hander in an early hole. Robinson Canó put the Mets on the board with a sacrifice fly that scored Jeff McNeil, after a passed ball by Jason Castro put runners at second and third. Conforto then came home on a fielding error committed at second base by Schoop, who tried to backhand a two-out grounder up the middle but bobbled it.

Pineda finished six innings for the third straight turn, allowing six hits without a walk, but his wild pitch in the fifth allowed Amed Rosario to advance after a double. Conforto poked a single through the hole between third base and shortstop, putting the Mets on track for their third straight win.

Matz, who made two relief appearances the week before the All-Star break, started for the first time since June 29. He finished four innings in 68 pitches, after an RBI groundout by Max Kepler tied the game following a single by Eddie Rosario and a double by C.J. Cron to start the frame. Rosario and Cron both returned from the injured list before the game, a boost for this first-place Twins team that took a six-game lead in the AL Central over Cleveland into the night.

The Mets are in no such race, buried in the NL East amid a tumultuous season, but this three-time zone, 10-game road trip to start the second half is at least off to a decent start. Their streak of 11 straight road games with a home run ended, but they boosted their NL-worst road record to 20-32.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Mets: RHP Jacob Rhame, who was sent down in April after receiving a two-game suspension from MLB for throwing near the head of Philadelphia slugger Rhys Hoskins, was brought back up from Triple-A Syracuse to fill RHP Zack Wheeler's roster spot. Wheeler, one of the team's top trade candidates with the deadline two weeks away, went on the 10-day injured list because of shoulder trouble. He told reporters before the game he wasn't sure how many starts he would miss, and manager Mickey Callaway wasn't ready to name a temporary replacement for the rotation.

Twins: Schoop was removed after a long talk with manager Rocco Baldelli and athletic trainer Masamichi Abe, after he swung and missed at strike two and clutched his left side in discomfort.

UP NEXT

Mets: LHP Jason Vargas (3-5, 4.23 ERA) starts the two-game series finale on Wednesday afternoon. He's 0-2 with a 5.33 ERA in his last five turns.

Twins: LHP Martín Pérez (8-3, 4.26 ERA) takes the mound in the matinee, his first start in 12 days because of the rotation reset during the All-Star break.

(© Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.