PHILADELPHIA _ Fighting for their postseason lives, with their season on the line, the Mets were dealt perhaps the most unfortunate blow imaginable in a crucial game: The National League Cy Young frontrunner, their best player, departed due to injury after two subpar innings (by his standards, at least).
The Mets' starting pitching, for the most part, has been poor. Their offense has often folded with men in scoring position. They've made countless baserunning blunders and too many defensive miscues.
Jacob deGrom's excellence has been their lone constant.
So, how would they react without it?
In a stunning twist, the Mets did not back down or shrivel. They showed toughness and fight, guts and grit.
They overcame a three-run deficit, tied the game late, untied it even later and beat the Phillies, 5-4 at Citizens Bank Park.
The savior: J.D. Davis, who crushed a two-run home run off former teammate Zack Wheeler that brought the Mets within a run in the sixth inning, then blasted a two-out, eighth-inning double that scored the tying run.
The hero: Andres Gimenez, the 22-year-old rookie who singled to drive in Amed Rosario, the go-ahead run, in the top of the ninth.
The Mets, faced with adversity, responded admirably. This season, they've been criticized for their lack of energy and overall lackluster play.
Their road to the postseason is still difficult, but this comeback victory kept them breathing.
