*Photo from AP News*
I get the feeling that Eduardo Escobar is pretty hard to beat at the plate right now. Escobar homered, Starling Marte added a homer of his own, and the New York Mets defeated the Texas Rangers with a 4-1 victory on Sunday in Queens.
After changing his belt to get out of a slump, Escobar woke up at the plate, homering in all 3 games of the Mets series against the Rangers this weekend. The Mets picked up the series win, and it's a welcome sign as they've only won 4 of their last 10 games.
Mets manager Buck Showalter said of Escobar that "I think sometimes you can want something too much. He’s just such a consistent human being, it’s surprising when you see him kind of go through some spells. You hate to see good teammates, good competitors, good competitors struggle like that. It’s painful. But through thick and thin, he hasn’t changed effort."
Starting the Mets off with a bang was Marte. In the first inning, he blasted a solo home run to center field, giving the Mets an early 1-0 lead. A few innings later, in the 3rd, Jonah Heim answered back for the Rangers, hitting a solo home run of his own to center field, getting the Rangers on the board and tying the game 1-1.
One inning after Heim tied the game, the Mets took the lead for good. First up was Jeff McNeil, doubling to right field, putting the Mets ahead 2-1 as Pete Alonso scored. With McNeil on, Escobar hit a two run home run to center field, making it a 4-1 lead for the Mets, which stood for the rest of the game.
McNeil said of Escobar's hot streak that "He's swinging the bat extremely well. I'm proud of him. He's doing some great things right now for us, putting some big swings on the ball. Just super happy for the guy and glad he's breaking out."
Getting the start for the Mets was Carlos Carrasco, who turned in a gem for the win. Carrasco allowed one run on 6 hits and one walk, striking out 8 hitters over 5 2/3 innings. Joely Rodriguez was the first man out of the bullpen, pitching 1 1/3 innings to nail things down in the short term. Adam Ottavino pitched a scoreless 8th inning, and Edwin Diaz picked up the save in the 9th inning.
Opposing Carrasco was Jon Gray of the Rangers, who got the loss after allowing 4 runs on 6 hits across 5 2/3 innings pitched. Brett Martin came out of the bullpen and finished off the 6th inning, giving way to Jose Leclerc to pitch the final two innings, getting a shutout appearance.
Rangers manager Chris Woodward said that "We just couldn't seem to get the big hit. And it’s not even about a big hit, it’s about quality at-bats, getting a good pitch to hit. Sometimes we're trying a little bit too hard, forcing the issue a little bit and swinging outside the zone. I thought Carrasco was really good today, but overall we just couldn’t get anything going."
Up next, the Mets hit the road for a Monday matchup against the Cincinnati Reds, with Taijuan Walker taking the mound. The Rangers face the Baltimore Orioles on Monday, with Dane Dunning getting the start.
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