The New York Mets lost a tough one to the Seattle Mariners Monday night, dropping the series opener 3-2 in 10 innings to fall to 26-34 this season.
There were six total in this game and four of them were home runs. Mariners third baseman Colt Emerson homered to right in the third inning and was answered by Mets first baseman Jared Young’s second homer of the year to center in the fifth.
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Mets second baseman Marcus Semien stayed hot and hit his second homer in as many games to take a 2-1 lead in the sixth before Mariners first baseman Josh Naylor evened the score at 2 with a blast of his own. The only run scored that wasn’t a result of a home run was the walk-off single off the bat of Mariners second baseman Cole Young.
The Mets pitched a great game, headlined by left-hander Sean Manaea pitching five innings in bulk relief. He allowed the solo homer to Emerson but struck out four in five dominant frames. Mariners ace right-hander Emerson Hancock threw six two-run innings with no walks and seven punchouts.
New York had a streaky May, but ended the month 16-12 after going on a four-game winning streak. A series win over the American League West’s top team would be huge for a Mets team that trails the Miami Marlins by a half-game in the National League East, and young right-hander Jonah Tong will get the ball to start for New York against Seattle’s Logan Gilbert.
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Tong, 22, was recalled by the Mets after the team designated legendary closer Craig Kimbrel for assignment May 22. Although Tong had been dealing with control issues and his mechanics in Triple-A Syracuse, his strikeout numbers were undeniable which resulted in him coming up for New York.
He threw three scoreless no-hit innings and allowed just a walk with two strikeouts in his first appearance against the Marlins the same day he was recalled. Tong earned his first win of the season against the Cincinnati Reds after he tossed 3.2 innings and allowed an unearned run on three hits and four walks with one strikeout.
Gilbert has had a solid season thus far, posting a 3-4 record with a 3.69 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 69 strikeouts through 12 starts (68.1 innings). While he has been rocked a few times this season, Gilbert has scoreless outings in three of his last four starts.
Gilbert last worked against the Athletics and pitched six five-hit innings with two walks and six strikeouts.
First pitch is at 9:40 p.m. EDT on MLB.TV and regional sports networks.
