New York Mets vs. Chicago Cubs Pick Center

Alonso, Ottavino lead Mets in DH opener; Cubs 8th L in row

Sat, Jul 16, 2022
MLB News (AP)

CHICAGO (AP) - Pete Alonso hit a sacrifice fly in the 11th inning after Adam Ottavino worked out of a tricky jam, helping the New York Mets beat the Chicago Cubs 2-1 on Saturday in the opener of a day-night doubleheader.

The Cubs lost their eighth in a row.

Alonso, who also drove in New York's first run in the fourth, came up with runners on the corners and no outs in the 11th. He lofted a medium flyball to right against Mychal Givens (5-1), and Luis Guillorme scampered home with the go-ahead run.

All-Star closer Edwin Diaz then got three outs for his 20th save for the NL East leaders.

Chicago had five hits, one more than the Mets. The Cubs had a chance to close it out in the 10th, but Ottavino (4-2) retired three in a row after pinch-runner Nelson Velazquez stole third.

Patrick Wisdom struck out swinging and P.J. Higgins looked at a called third strike. Rookie Christopher Morel then hit a grounder to third, and Eduardo Escobar made a great stumbling stop and throw to first for the out in a close play.

New York got another solid performance by Taijuan Walker, who pitched six innings of four-hit ball. The right-hander is 4-0 with a 1.80 ERA in his last seven starts.

Cubs right-hander Marcus Stroman pitched 4 1/3 innings of one-hit ball against his former team. It was Stroman's second start since coming off the injured list.

Cubs manager David Ross was ejected by umpire Ramon De Jesus after the second inning. It was unclear why Ross was thrown out, but each side had issues with De Jesus' strike zone at various points.

Ross also was ejected from the series opener. Friday afternoon's game was postponed by rain, leading to the doubleheader.

New York jumped in front on Alonso's double in the fourth, a liner into the gap in right-center that drove in Francisco Lindor from first. Alonso's 15th double this season gave him 75 RBIs, snapping a tie with David Wright for the franchise record before the All-Star break.

Chicago got its only run in the bottom half. Nico Hoerner reached on a fielder's choice, stole second and scored when Frank Schwindel beat a shift with a bouncer into center for an RBI single.

MAKING MOVES

The Cubs brought up left-hander Steven Brault from Triple-A Iowa. Right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. was sent down, and right-hander Matt Swarmer was designated for assignment.

Brault, 30, signed a minor league contract in March. He missed the first three months of the season with a left triceps strain.

Right-hander Anderson Espinoza served as the 27th man for the Cubs for the doubleheader, and right-hander Yoan Lopez was the 27th man for the Mets.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Mets: RHP Jacob deGrom (stress reaction, right scapula) is slated to throw live BP on Tuesday in Florida. The two-time NL Cy Young Award winner pitched four innings of one-run ball in a rehab start for Triple-A Syracuse on Thursday. ... 1B Dominic Smith departed after he appeared to hurt his lower left leg while scrambling back to second as the automatic runner in the 10th. He was replaced by J.D. Davis.

UP NEXT

Right-hander Max Scherzer (6-1, 2.15 ERA) starts the second game for New York, and left-hander David Peterson (5-2, 3.48 ERA) takes the mound in Sunday's series finale. Left-hander Drew Smyly (2-5, 4.43 ERA) starts for Chicago in the nightcap, and right-hander Adrian Sampson (0-1, 3.33 ERA) pitches on Sunday.

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Jay Cohen can be reached at https://twitter.com/jcohenap

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