Starling Marte hit a solo home run, double, single and drove in two runs and the New York Mets scored seven runs in the ninth inning to rally past the host Philadelphia Phillies 8-7 on Thursday.
Francisco Lindor added a two-run home run and Pete Alonso and Jeff McNeil had two hits apiece.
Brandon Nimmo ripped a two-run single with two outs in the top of the ninth to tie the game at 7 before Marte delivered the game-winning RBI double one batter later.
In the past 25 seasons, the Mets had been 0-330 in games they were trailing by at least six runs in the ninth inning.
Adonis Medina (1-0) earned his first career win, doing so against his former team, with 2 2/3 scoreless innings in relief. Edwin Diaz picked up his sixth save in a perfect ninth with two strikeouts.
Mets starter Taijuan Walker was let off the hook after lasting only four innings and allowed nine hits and seven runs, six earned. Walker, who hadn’t surrendered a run in seven total innings heading into this matchup, struck out two and walked two.
Bryce Harper hit a home run, double, knocked in two runs and scored twice for the slumping Phillies, who have lost four in a row.
Nick Castellanos homered and drove in three runs and Jean Segura contributed three hits for the Phillies. Odubel Herrera and Alec Bohm added two hits each for Philadelphia, which had 12 total.
Phillies starter Aaron Nola had a stellar start spoiled by the bullpen. Nola gave up just three hits and one run with seven strikeouts and one walk in seven strong innings.
Closer Corey Knebel (0-2) suffered the loss and was charged with four hits and three runs in 2/3 of an inning.
The Phillies jumped out to a 4-0 in the bottom of the first inning highlighted by an RBI double from Harper and RBI singles from J.T. Realmuto and Segura.
Castellanos had RBI groundouts in the first and second for a 5-0 advantage.
In the fourth, Harper and Castellanos launched back-to-back solo homers for a 7-0 lead.
Marte hit a solo homer with two outs in the sixth to close within 7-1.
Castellanos was hit by Medina on the hand in the sixth and left the game. According to the Phillies, X-rays were negative and Castellanos will be re-evaluated on Friday.
McNeil singled with two outs in the seventh, but was stranded when Mark Canha struck out on Nola’s 101st pitch.
Lindor snapped an 0-for-18 slump with a two-run homer off James Norwood in the ninth.
Canha added an RBI infield single and J.D. Davis had a pinch-hit RBI double to get within 7-5.
–Field Level Media