<p>-
- Jeff McNeil's home run and sparkling defensive play carry Mets past Yankees in Subway Series</p>
<p>RONALD BLUMJuly 5, 2025 at 9:03 AM</p>
<p>1 / 5Yankees Mets BaseballNew York Mets' Jeff McNeil (1) celebrates with Brett Baty (7) after scoring on his two-run home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Friday, July 4, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — Jeff McNeil, arms clasped behind his back, tossed his bat and shouted toward the New York Mets dugout, starting up the first base line as his go-ahead, two-run homer in the seventh inning off Luke Weaver sailed into the second deck at Citi Field.</p>
<p>Twenty-five minutes later, the second baseman sprinted a half-dozen steps to his left, sprawled onto the outfield grass and with an outstretched glove angled toward the right-field corner snagged DJ LeMahieu's one-hopper. McNeil popped to his feet and threw to first for the second out of the ninth.</p>
<p>"The homer was sick," McNeil said after the Mets overcame a pair of two-run deficits to beat the New York Yankees 6-5 on Friday in the opener of this season's second Subway Series. "I love hitting homers. I don't hit that many. But at the same time, because I hit the home run, I think that play was a little bit bigger."</p>
<p>In a thrilling back-and-forth struggle on a sunny Fourth of July that included seven home runs, the Yankees wasted 2-0 and 5-3 leads and the Mets squandered a 3-2 advantage. The Mets won their third straight game after losing 14 of 17, while the Yankees lost their fifth in a row.</p>
<p>Both teams were in first place when their series in the Bronx began on May 16. The Mets were a big league-best 45-24 on June 12 and the Yankees 42-25, and then both plunged like skydivers. The Mets are 6-14 since and the Yankees 6-15.</p>
<p>With 13 pitchers on the injured list, the Mets gave 28-year-old right-hander Justin Hagenman his first major league start. Jasson Domínguez went deep leading off, ending a 32-game homerless streak, and Aaron Judge followed with his 32nd home run. Hagenman retired his next nine batters.</p>
<p>"All of New York here basically watching the game," he marveled.</p>
<p>Domínguez misplayed Brandon Nimmo's leadoff drive into a double starting the bottom half and Juan Soto followed with a two-run homer off Marcus Stroman.</p>
<p>"He's kind of getting the momentum right back," Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said about Soto's shot. "That was kind of like a setting-the-tone moment. OK, they punch, we're going to punch back. ... It's game on."</p>
<p>Soto went 1 for 10 with no extra-base hits in his Yankee Stadium return. He had three hits in this one, doubling in the third and scoring when Pete Alonso singled on a 108.3 mph scorching grounder off the glove of shortstop Anthony Volpe.</p>
<p>Cody Bellinger's homer tied the score in the fourth and Domínguez hit a two-run homer for a 5-3 lead in the fifth against Austin Warren. Brett Baty's sixth-inning homer against Ian Hamilton cut the margin to one.</p>
<p>Weaver relieved with two outs in the seventh and walked Alonso. McNeil worked the count full and figured he'd get a pitch at the bottom of the strike zone. He hit a no-doubt drive on the fourth changeup of the at-bat, his ninth home run this season.</p>
<p>Now 33 and a two-time All-Star, McNeil has been with the Mets organization since they drafted him a dozen years ago.</p>
<p>"He's a gamer, man, and he's always ready to go," Mendoza said. "He's a pretty important player for this roster."</p>
<p>Weaver has allowed homers in three straight appearances. After compiling a 1.05 ERA in his first 24 games, he has a 13.50 ERA in seven outings since returning from a strained left hamstring.</p>
<p>"I said I've been feeling good. That just might be a lie now. I don't know. It's hard to make sense of what's going on," Weaver said. "At this point I've got two options. I can sulk and feel bad for myself or I can foundationally grind and find a way to just be flat-out better."</p>
<p>Reed Garrett, who had a 15.00 ERA in his previous eight appearances, worked the eighth for a depleted Mets bullpen, getting three outs around a single. Garrett tried to avoid Mendoza when he got back to the dugout.</p>
<p>"I was trying to walk away so he couldn't take me out of the game," Garrett said.</p>
<p>With closer Edwin Díaz unavailable after pitching the previous two days, Mendoza let Garrett work the ninth.</p>
<p>Trent Grisham, pinch hitting for the slumping Volpe, flied out. LeMahieu followed with his looping one-hopper toward the hole that seemed destined to be a hit.</p>
<p>"He comes out of nowhere and just dives for the ball and really, really got me shocked," said Soto, who was charging in from right field.</p>
<p>"It's by you, you've got to just throw your glove at it and try to kind of scoop it," McNeil said. "I knew it was a big play because I knew Judge was up fourth that inning and we don't want him coming to the plate."</p>
<p>Five pitches later, Domínguez hit a routine grounder to McNeil. Garrett screamed and pumped a fist.</p>
<p>"I think we've shown a lot over the last month of just who we are as a team," he said. "I think if you back us into a corner, we're going to fight our way out of it."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>AP MLB: https://ift.tt/RBEicUj>
Source: AOL Sports
Source: AsherMag
Read More >> Full Article on Source: Astro Blog
#LALifestyle #USCelebrities