Mets roll to ninth straight win as Jose Quintana picks up 100th career victory
There will be no Jeff McNeil for at least the rest of the regular season, and there were no hits through the first 4 ²/₃ innings.
No problem for the Mets, who are doing everything right at the right time and have ascended into playoff position.
The Mets silenced the Reds behind excellence from Jose Quintana and their bullpen, needing just one big inning to run their win streak to nine with a 4-0 shutout at Citi Field.
On a crisp Saturday that felt like fall, the Mets moved a game ahead of the Braves for the final wild card spot.
The Mets had not enjoyed a winning streak this long since April 3-13, 2018.
Those games, in the early days of Mickey Callaway, meant a bit less than these.
“I didn’t realize it was nine straight. That’s awesome,” said Harrison Bader, whose sixth-inning homer broke through in what had been a scoreless game. “That’s kind of where we’re at. It’s just so zoomed in, so focused. Once it’s done, it’s on to the next.”
A difficult day for the team, which lost McNeil to a fractured wrist, gave way to yet another optimistic night for its playoff odds.
Carlos Mendoza’s group not only passed Atlanta but gained a game on the Diamondbacks, just half a game out of the second wild card spot.
A crowd of 34,048 had to wait an extra 66 minutes for action to begin after a rain delay and had to wait about another hour and a half for a sniff of offense, but it was the Mets bats that eventually awoke with a four-run sixth, which was three more runs than Quintana & Co. needed.
The Mets (78-64) are a victory away from a perfect homestand and a third consecutive sweep, finding ways to survive games in seemingly a different fashion each night.
Saturday their starter was impeccable, bullpen dominant, defense excellent and bats good enough.
Quintana, gunning for a playoff start in a crowded rotation, was terrific for a third straight turn.
In holding the Reds to five hits and two walks in 6 ²/₃ scoreless innings, the 13th-year veteran became the first Colombian to win 100 games.
“That means a lot for me. Right now I have a lot of emotion,” said Quintana, who has rebounded from a swoon last month. “Can’t wait to see my family and say thank you for all the support.”
After a rough stretch in August, the lefty remained in the rotation because the Mets staff believed he would bounce back.
In his past three starts, he has pitched 18 innings and let up just one earned run, his ERA sinking to 4.09.
He was not perfect, but he was when he needed to be.
Cincinnati batters went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position against Quintana, who leaned on his infield. A diving Jose Iglesias (suddenly the everyday second baseman) smothered a sharp ground ball from Ty France that jump-started a second-inning double play.
An inning later, it was Francisco Lindor who speared a hard-hit Jonathan India ground ball in the hole and spun for a throw to second to begin another double play.
“That was unbelievable,” Mendoza said of the slick plays. “After that, Quintana basically just took over.”
The 35-year-old pitched into the seventh and left to a standing ovation, handing a bit of trouble to Adam Ottavino.
The righty entered with a runner on second and kept him there, striking out Will Benson. Strong work from Danny Young (whose ERA is down to 2.70) and Edwin Diaz (pitching in a third straight game) closed the door.
Mets pitching has been brilliant through this nine-game stretch, letting up 15 earned runs in 82 innings (1.65 ERA), which has taken pressure off bats that have been adequate.
The Mets did not reach base against Reds starter Jakob Junis until there were two outs in the fourth and did not get a hit until there were two outs in the fifth.
The breakthrough arrived in the sixth.
With Junis gone, the Mets attacked the bullpen.
The second pitch Sam Moll threw to Bader was cracked into the visiting bullpen in right-center for the go-ahead home run.
The superb center fielder has lost time recently amid a deep slump, entering play 2-for-42 in his past 21 games.
Perhaps this was the blast that would get Bader going.
It did manage to get the Mets bats going.
Four of the next six hitters reached base, including an RBI single from Pete Alonso and two-run double from J.D. Martinez.
“It’s been a tough sample size for me individually,” said Bader, who added: “This is so far beyond and bigger than any individual.”
The Mets are playing solid, winning baseball, which keeps translating to wins.
“It feels like it’s a different guy every day,” Mendoza said. “And that’s what good teams do.”
