That's a wrap
Syndergaard bent but didn’t break, David Wright had the huge night he needed to restore confidence, and in the end, it was a laugher in Flushing as the Mets showed themselves capable of beating a Kansas City team that showed some cracks.
Now southpaw Steven Matz, the local product who grew up a Mets fan on eastern Long Island, gets the ball as he bids to help New York tie this World Series at two games a piece. The 6’10” Chris Young, himself a former Met, gets the ball for KC who will look to rebound from a rough night in NYC.
We’ll be back with more live coverage of the World Series on Saturday, but for now, wherever you are, thanks for reading, and good morning, good afternoon and goodnight.
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Royals 3-9 Mets, Final
Ground ball to third - David Wright has it, throws over to Duda at first, and the ball game is over!
New York have cut KC’s lead in half, and we have ourselves a World Series!
Gordon - check swing - did he go? Yes indeed. Two down, and Kendry Morales steps up to pinch-hit for the pitcher. The familiar “Let’s go Mets’ chant is heard loud and clear here in the Valley of the Ashes, where New York have risen in Game 3.
Perez grounds up the middle - Flores closes in on the ball, makes the stop, spins and fires to first to get the molasses man running to first! A nice play, but anybody else on the planet is safe, to be fair.
Regardless, the Mets are two outs away.
Murphy whiffs, inning over. Mets closer Jeurys Familia, who was last seen giving up a game-tying home run to Alex Gordon in Game 1, heads in to try and put away the Royals in the ninth.
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Here’s a Kris Medlen sighting - the former Braves reliever has pitched just one inning these playoffs, now he’s on in mop-up duty.
He gets Granderson to line out, right back to him, which is convenient. Wright strikes out swinging to end what has been a banner night. Now Murphy, hitless in four at-bats is at the plate.
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Clippard saws away Moustakas’ bat as the ball pops back to the reliever and that will do it for the Royals are done in the eighth.
Now Hosmer hits it hard but right at Cespedes in center field. Two down.
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By now the Royals are more than likely thinking about tomorrow, but Cain has to bat anyway because they have six outs left.
He pops to shallow left - Flores steps back to make the play. One down.
Kirk is k’d, which has a nice ring to it. Side retired, and here comes Tyler Clippard to pitch the eighth for New York.
Ex-Phillies reliever Ryan Madson is on now, and Travis d’Arnaud greets him with a single to left.
Then Lagares gives it a ride to the warner track before Gordon tracks it down for the first out. Here’s Flores who grounds to third - Moustakas fires to secnd for one, not in time on the throw to first.
Flores is on thanks to a fielder’s choice. Two down, one on and Kirk Nieuwenhuis is getting set to pinch-hit for the pitcher.
Addison Reed is in...the dugout after a quick inning. Orlando pops to second, Escobar skies to first, Zobrist bounces to Duda: he tosses to Reed to retire the side.
That’s a shut-down inning.
Syndergaard is done - he weathered an early storm, gave up six hits over two innings, then settled in and got stronger. He retired 12 straight before getting surviving a sixth inning, bases loaded threat. The Royals swung, and missed and Syndergaard was big-time in what remains a must-win situation for New York.
Here’s the line:
6IP 7H 3R 3ER 2BB 6K 0HR
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Duda is the ninth Mets batter to hit here in the sixth inning. He steps in with Wright on second, Murphy on second.
Duda is caught looking, inning over, but not before the Mets score four.
Is that a crooked number? More like a lot of right angles.
RUN! Royals 3-9 Mets, bottom 6th
Cespedes lifts a sac-fly to left field, it scores Granderson who tags up and the Mets tack on one more.
First and second with one out and Murphy at the plate, and Herrera, suddenly looking exceptionally human, walks the Mets second baseman.
Now the bases are loaded again as Cespedes looks to break out.
Oh, by the way, for the Royals, Paulo Orlando is now in the ninth slot, while the pitcher slot moves to eight as Rios left the game...
RUNS! Royals 3-8 Mets, bottom 6th
Wright knocks a single to center field! Flores scores, Uribe scores - now a throw to second, Granderson slides back safely, and the Mets captain drives in his third and fourth runs of the ballgame!
Wright is able to answer his critics with a huge night in Queens as New York open up a five-run lead!
Runners at the corners, one down...
Granderson hits it back to the pitcher - Morales should go to second, but instead he freezes then looks everywhere he can possibly look, throws the ball away, Zobrist backs it up, an the end result is either an e-1 or a fielder’s choice, that loads up the bases for David Wright!
Yost comes to get Morales, and here is Kelvin Herrera warming up.
RUN! Royals 3-6 Mets, bottom 6th
Uribe delivers a single to right! It’s a two-strike opposite field base hithit - Lagares scores on a two-strike opposite field hit, and the Queens crowd salutes their man one more time.
That’s another winning move for Terry Collins right there.
Morales has Flores behind in the count 1-2 but the next pitch grazes Flores in the leg!
That means it’s first and second with one out, and for the first time in the playoffs, Juan Uribe steps in as a pinch-hitter. The crowd acknowledges the Mets good luck charm with a standing ovation, knowing that Uribe seems to win the World Series every five years.
The Royals meet at the mound to discuss the approach...
d’Arnaud leads it off for New York and Morales induces a bouncing ball to short - Escobar has it, throws to first, one down.
Now Juan Lagares pops off the bench to pinch-hit in place of Michael Conforto, and he promptly cements his place in the lineup tomorrow night by blasting a single to left field! That will raise his limited WS batting average (are we still allowed to mention batting average?) to .429
Here comes Flores...and while we wait, we hear that the Queens crowd tonight is a ballpark record of 44,781, which makes sense, this being kind of the biggest game the place has ever seen.
OK, I never gave you Yordano Ventura’s line, so, better late than never, right?
3.1IP 7H 5R 5ER 0BB 1K 2HR
Not what Yost and the Royals were looking for, and yet Ventura was still surprised to be lifted after just 53 pitches.
Meanwhile, Franklin Morales, who some of these Mets saw when the lefty pitched with the Colorado Rockies, enters the game replacing Luke Hochaver, who threw a scoreless inning.
Rios grounds to short - Flores fires to first - side retired! The Royals strand three and Syndergaard survives late-inning pressure.
It looked like Gordon was set to go ahead 3-0 before a check swing is ruled a strike. Then Syndergaard blows a pitch off the bat of Gordonm into d’Arnaud’s glove and suddenly it’s 2-2. That call changed the at-bat.
How will it end?
Now a ball in the dirt and Gordon lays off. It’s 3-2, Gordon flies a foul ball into the left field corner and off the side wall...that was close.
Next pitch is low, ball four! The bases are loaded and the Mets have a decision to make, and it’s stick with Syndergaard to face Rios!
Perez draws a walk, so a harmless inning turns into a situation, and now Dan Warthen, Mets pitching coach, and the rest of the infield gather on the mound for a chat.
When they finally disperse, Alex Gordon steps to the plate in a huge spot.
Bullpen in action or New York: Bartolo Colon and Niese are working.
Syndergaard is ahead in the count once again, and then reaches back and launches an exploding high fastball past Cain - that’s 11 straight Royals retired now for Noah!
Those are real swings and misses, and Syndergaard is getting stronger and stronger as the game moves ahead.
Hosmer steps in - left handed batter and he swings and misses at a low ball that’s foul-tipped straight into the glove of d’Arnaud! Six strikeouts now for Syndergaard. Moustakas is next - can he break through for KC?
Somewhat - a line shot on the ground - Murphy extends to make the grab but can’t hold on and there is no throw! It’s a base-hit, and it ends Syndergaard’s stretch of 12 straight hitters retired.
Now Salvador Perez steps in as the tying run....
Duda is in the hole 1-2...and wait a minute...where is Marlin’s man? I can’t see him anywhere. We’ll figure this out in a bit, stand by.
Meanwhile Duda is caught looking and so Cespedes is stranded at first.
The Mets can’t put KC away, they’ve only left three runners on, but they’re all in the last three innings.
Luke Hochevar (hoe-chayver, like shaver, like flavo(u)r, is in for the Royals. He was the first overall pick nine years ago and started the season on the DL post-Tommy John surgery, and he’s since become a major part of the Royals bullpen
He starts off by striking out David Wright with a slider high.
One down and here is Murphy, who hits a roller off a changeup: Hochevar has it, throws to first, two down.
Cespedes, hitting .083, shows signs of breaking out of his World Series slump with a two-out single to center, and now Duda is up with a runner on and the shift on...
Raul Mondesi, that son of Raul Mondesi, makes his debut in the World Series, which hasn’t happened since Alaska was attached to Russia. Pinch-hitting for Duffy, he strikes out swinging, the fourth strike out of the game and Syndergaard’s eighth consecutive batter retired.
Now Escobar strikes out - that’s three k’s across the last four KC batters...which reminds me of a Yost pre-game quote.
A reporter asked Yost:
“You guys have done a great job of not striking out. How do you keep it going?”
Yost says:
“Don’t strike out” which is some incredible insight. He also said he likes managing in the AL because “it’s easier.”
Back to the game: Zobrist flies to right and Granderson is running right - he sticks out his glove and makes the catch, on the move to end the fifth. Syndergaard’s recovery continues - with 75 pitches in the can, he could potentially get through seven innings.
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On the heels of Ned Yost telling Joe Buck that he "let's his players play", he brings in a reliever to face the opposing pitcher. #LGM
— Tommy Dee (@ThomasCDee) October 31, 2015
It’s really kind of amazing, but Syndergaard had already singled so...there’s that I guess.
It’s the biggest at-bat of the game, no question - and the Royals are able to get a key out: Granders flies out lazily to center field and the lead stays at two.
The Mets fail to add-on, and that has a way of coming back later.
Syndergaard shows bunt, gets ahead in the count, but eventually is called out on strikes. That’s the second out, and now Granderson, who had that big home run in his last at-bat, steps in.
Now Flores pops out in foul ground for the first out of the inning. Here comes Ned Yost....that’s going to be all for Ventura who is chased after just 53 pitches!
Here comes Danny Duffy, a southpaw, to face Syndergaard with runners at the corners and one out now.
RUN! Royals 3-5 Mets, bottom 4th
Royals pitching coach Dave Eiland is out for a chat with his man, then Salvador Perez also whispers into the ear of Ventura as he gets set to face Conforto.
Pitch, and ball gets away to the backstop but Perez has it quickly enough to prevent the runners from advancing.
Conforto, hitting .048 in the World Series, hits a chopper to the right side, that will scorre a run, and now it’s a foot race - Conforto (very slow) beats Hosmer and is safe!!
Duda scores, d’Arnaudto third, and the Mets have runners at the corners and no outs.
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Duda starts it off with a base hit to left - a ball that looked like it was cued and had all sorts of English on it.
Now d’Arnaud with a smash down the line, that’s a fair ball! Gordon into the corner to get it, Duda heads to third and the Mets catcher is in with a double.
Second and third with nobody out here for Michael Conforto, who has to find a way to take advantage of a shaky Yordano Ventura right now!
Thor takeover - Perez grounds out to third, Gordon caught looking. That’s the first Royals strikeout since Escobar was k’d to start the game.
So two easy outs which makes one wonder, is Syndergaard settling down some?
Sure looks like it, and he’s using more breaking stuff now then he did earlier. Syndergaard is ahead in the count 1-2 before Alex Rios rolls to short - Flores fields it easily and throws over to Duda at first to retire the side, finishing off an 11-pitch inning.
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They are still standing in Queens, even after Wright grounds out to third.
Now the crowd are chanting “Murphy, Murphy”, and that can mean only one thing: the NY crowd are very perceptive.
Murphy is at the plate, but he breaks his bat, producing a roller to the right side - Zobrist has it, throws to first in time. So after the homer, two quick outs, ahd here is Cespedes, who makes it three quick outs.
He bounces to third and the inning over, a big one for New York.
HOME RUN! Royals 3-4 Mets, bottom 3rd
Granderson - a line drive home run that just squeaks over the wall in right field!
The apple is up and so are the Mets!
Syndergaard leads off and lines a single to right! When the Mets weren’t hitting back before the deadline, their pitchers were something of an offensive source, now Thor stands on first with Granderson coming to the plate....
Syndergaard misses on a 2-2 pitch and now the count is full. Then Cain skies a fly ball in the infield - who wants it? Wilmer Flores does.
One down now for the left-handed Hosmer, facing that wind, which is blowing in hard.
Hosmer does that Royals thing where he fouls one off, fouls another one off, a nidge and a nudge, and finally, a ground ball to the right side. Duda has it, flips to Syndergaard who is covering the bag, and that’s the second out.
Now here’s Moustakas at the the plate....and he hits a harmless little pop up towards second base. Flores comes across from short and makes the catch.
Syndergaard with what is by far his best inning, slicing through the meat of KC’s BBQ’d bating order. It helps his pitch count somewhat: he’s at 53.
Travis d’Arnaud leads off against Ventura, his loose pants flapping in the blustery Queens mound. d’Arnaud works the count full before lifting a ball to center where Cain awaits to put it away.
One down for kid Conforto, who grounds meekly to third where Moustakas gobbles it up before throwing over to first for the second out.
That leaves it for Wilmer Flores, who lines to right meaning he has not driven in a run in some 67 at-bats (gulp).
That’s an easy, carefree inning for Ventura.
On to the third we go....
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Get this, Zobrist pops up! True story!
Inning over.
This may sound silly, but it could have been worse because KC have six hits in the first two innings and only three runs, while Syndergaard, clearly frustrated with the events, has thrown 38 pitches through two frames.
More to come, stay with us!
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The Mets must feel like they're playing a fighting game and losing to someone who's never played and is just mashing buttons. @LengelDavid
— NightOfTheHunterFelt (@HunterFelt) October 31, 2015
....and it’s ANOTHER Royals hit...the lead off man Escobar has himself a single to center. That brings out pitching coach Dan Warthen for a chat with his man. He says to Noah ‘whatever you do, don’t let him run on you’.
So Escobar immediately steals second, and is in scoring position with the dangerous Ben Zobrist at the plate.
RUN! 3-2 Mets, top 2nd
Ventura’s sac bunt movs Rios to third, before Syndergaard throws a pitch that Mets catcher Travis d’Arnaud can’t handle! Rios comes home and the Royals have the lead!
So much for that statement swing by Wright...meet the Mess.
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RUN! Royals 2-2 Mets, top 2nd
Wrong...Rios makes it three straight Royals hits - the knock to left send Perez to the plate, tying up this game.
It’s not all negative - Alex Gordon is tagged on the head by Wright and while the ruling on the filed was safe, replay officials on Park Avenue call him out.
So now there’s one out and Rios stands at second with the pitcher Ventura coming to the plate. That’s a huge reversal right there.
Alex Gordon punches another Royals base hit, this time it’s to right field! The Royals left fielder hit that one on the screws and now Syndergaard is in something we call a little bit of a situation. Two on, no out: at least Alex Rios is up, right?
Syndergaard breaks Salvador Perez’ bat, not once, but twice. The Venezuelan is jammed but is strong enough to manage to bloop a single into left field.
Thor looks angry, you don’t want to see him when he’s angry...or is that the other guy.
Upper deck confetti has been replaced by bubbles, West Ham style.
It doesn’t help Murphy, Cespedes or Lucas Duda for that matter. Murphy bounces to short, the Cuban is caught looking, before Duda grounds out because he is very slow...Hosmer misplays the ball but Zobrist has his back - the Royals second baseman throws to first, in time to beat the sliding tortoise.
Inning over: a brighter frame for NY.
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HOME RUN! Royals 1-2 Mets, bottom 1st
Orange and blue confetti flies, that’s because Wright has gone deep over the Great Wall of Flushing, as those with chronic back problems, and Mets fans rejoice, all at the same time. It’s a two-run shot, and just like that, New York are up.
And that’s what they have to do, hit Royals starting pitching. If you cannot hit Royals starting pitching you can’t win the World Series.
Now David “Babe” Murphy steps in.
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So now Yordano Ventura, the same pitcher who was almost sent down by KC during the season, only to be saved by an injury, faces Curtis Granderson. The Mets table-setter hits a shot deep into the shift in shallow right field - Zobrist has it and throws wildly to first, pulling Hosmer off the bag.
New York have the lead runner on for David Wright...
It’s 1-2 to Mike Moustakas, who bounces back to the pitcher: Syndergaard has it, firest to first and the inning is over. But it’s a rough one for the home team.
Here come the Mets.
RUN! Royals 1-0 Mets, top 1st
Hosmer, a chopper to first - Duda throws to second base for one, then the throw back to first is late...and it looks like there was also some confusion between Thor and the Dude on the baf...two very different movie characters, so that does make some sense.
In the end, Zobrist crosses the plate and the Royals strike first. Exactly what the Mets were trying to avoid.
Lorenzo Cain, an excuse me swing, a little roller that Wright charges picks up and fakes a throw to first. Meanwhile, there’s no one covering third and Zobrist moves over.
Syndergaard should’ve had that ball and the Royals take bases when they’re gifted them, as always. So now it’s first and third with just one down and Eric Hosmer at the plate...dangerous times for New York.
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All this talk of swings and misses, or lack thereof in Game 2 - there’s been a few of those so far...but not on this full-count pitch to Ben Zobirst, which is launched to the deepest part of the park! That’s a double, and KC have a run out runner in scoring position!
Here’s something we didn’t see much of in games 1 & 2, a strikeout of a Royals batter. Escobar can’t keep up with that extra-sharp cheddar, and we have one down here in the top of the first inning.
First pitch
Ok, here we go, all the Mets hopes are in the right arm of the man they call “Thor” - Noah Syndergaard, who puts Alcides Escobar on the dirt with a fastball that goes all the way to the backstop, delighting this crowd of close to 45,000!
Meanwhile...
@LengelDavid Is it even legit to change the foul ground measurements during the middle of postseason?
— Ben Wright (@wrightben) October 30, 2015
Ben raises a good question. The answer is, when you are MLB, you can do whatever you want. You would think that in a ballpark that opened in 2009, you wouldn’t need fancy extra seating like they did at the Mets old Shea Stadium because ownership thought those luxury boxes were more like like favelas.
PS, they did not have additional new seating at KC because believe it or not, the foul ground is even smaller out there, and so it just wasn’t possible. Time for a new stadium I guess.
Mike Piazza just came out and threw out the ceremonial first pitch. I ran into him down on the field before the game, but we didn’t have a chance to catch up. I guess next time right?
The Mets have Yoenis Cespedes in center field, which is fine because the outfield here in Queens is smaller than the large swath of green at Kauffman Stadium. So there is less need for Juan Lagaras, who we are pretty sure should’ve been in CF during Game 1 when Alcides Escobar started the festivities off with a an inside-the-park homer. Anyay here’s the lineup.
1. Curtis Granderson, RF
2. David Wright, 3B
3. Daniel Murphy, 2B
4. Yoenis Cespedes, CF
5. Lucas Duda, 1B
6. Travis d’Arnaud, C
7. Michael Conforto, LF
8. Wilmer Flores, SS
9. Noah Syndergaard, RHP
New York are sticking with kid Conforto, mired in a deep slump with most of the other Mets.
The lineup for the Kanas City Royals is very similar...but without Kendry Morales, who is a victim of National League Rules:
1. Alcides Escobar, SS
2. Ben Zobrist, 2B
3. Lorenzo Cain, CF
4. Eric Hosmer, 1B
5. Mike Moustakas, 3B
6. Salvador Perez, C
7. Alex Gordon, LF
8. Alex Rios, RF
9. Yordano Ventura, RHP
Greetings from Queens where we are getting set for Game 3 of the World Series between the Mets and Royals - one note: the alternate press-box here, luckily, is indoors. And while it’s very warm, cozy and comfortable, I’d probably have a better taste of the game from the food court of the Galleria mall in White Plains.
So now that I’ve set the bar high, let’s go!!!
Right now the teams are being announced and the crowd is so loud I can barely hear it through the presidential style bullet proof glass.
So the Mets are down 2-0, and there are some desperate fans sitting in some very expensive seats, many of which went for over $1000. If New York don’t pull it out tonight, you may be able to pick some up tomorrow for $15. Inspiration for the downtrodden Mets people can find it from Roddy Piper, who delivered this message from the grave...or 1986, when they were down 2-0 to the Boston Red Sox.
So, can history repeat itself? Can New York tackle the Royals and try to get back in this series. Stay tuned...
David will be here shortly. In the meantime, here’s Sean Keeler on Johnny Cueto:
