Nine Is Fine For Mets As They Roll By Reds

 

Jose Quintana fires one in early in his outing on Saturday evening. Photo by Jason Schott.

The Mets shutout the Cincinnati Reds, 4-0, on Saturday evening at Citi Field, their ninth straight victory as they close in on a Wild Card berth.

The Mets improved to 78-64, a season-high 14 games over .500. To put where they stand into perspective, they are now 54-29 - an astonishing 25 games over .500 - since they were 24-35 on June 2. 

They are now in possession of the final Wild Card spot, one game up on the Atlanta Braves (77-65), who lost 9-5 to the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday night. 

The Mets also have made up significant ground on the San Diego Padres (81-63) and Arizona Diamondbacks (79-64) for the top two Wild Card berths, remarkable because it seemed they had those in hand a few weeks ago. Since then, the Mets split a four-game set in San Diego and took two of three in Arizona a week ago.

Jose Quintana was superb, as the lefty threw 6 2/4 shutout innings, as he scattered five hits and two walks, while striking out six. The left-hander is now 8-9 on the season, and he lowered his ERA (earned run average) to 4.09.

This was the second out of three starts that Quintana has had a scoreless outing. Nearly two weeks ago, on Sunday, August 25, he shut out San Diego for 6 1/3 innings, in which he scatted four hits and two walks while not recording a strikeout in a 3-2 Mets win. They are the only scoreless outings of his season.

The Mets defense stepped up for Quintana. In the second inning, Spencer Steer led off with a walk, and he was erased in a double play started by second baseman Jose Iglesias. That would be doubly huge as Quintana then gave up a pair of singles before striking out ex-Met Amed Rosario to get out of it.

Ty France hitting into a double play in the second inning against Jose Quintana. Photo by Jason Schott.

Then, in the third, after Jake Fraley led off with a single, shortstop Francisco Lindor started another double play. Elly De La Cruz then struck out to end the frame.

Cincinnati starter Jakob Junis matched Quintana for the first five innings, as he shutout the Mets, and allowed just one hit and one walk, with five strikeouts.

Sam Moll came on for the Reds in the bottom of the sixth, and like most times when a team responds to seeing a new pitcher on the mound after a dominant starter exits, the Mets went to work.

Harrison Bader blasted a home run to right center field to open the frame, his 11th of the season. Then, Lindor walked and Brandon Nimmo was hit by a pitch, and that ended Moll's outing.

Carson Spiers came on next, and he got Mark Vientos to hit an infield pop-up for the first out of the frame. 

Pete Alonso then lined one up the middle to bring in Lindor and make it 2-0 Mets. Spiders next got Jesse Winker to fly out to left field for the second out. 

J.D. Martinez then laced a double to left field to bring home Nimmo and Alonso and the Mets suddenly were up 4-0. That gives the Mets designated hitter 68 RBI on the season.