Jeurys Familia was flawless yet again as he saved his fourth straight postseason game for the Mets last night, leaving them just one win away from their first World Series since 2000.
Familia came in and retired all three batters he faced in the 9th inning, and he now has the opportunity to close out all four games in the NLCS against the Chicago Cubs.
Lost in all the Murphy magic and Mets starting pitching has been the brilliance of Familia this postseason. He now has allowed just two hits in 8.2 innings pitched this postseason and he is perfect in his save opportunities. Familia may get the opportunity to get his sixth save on Wednesday night, which would give the Mets the National League title and send them somewhere they haven’t been in 15 years – the World Series.
“Obviously this year, we’ve had our struggles, but I can’t stress enough again just teammates, the atmosphere in the clubhouse, the people around you, it’s really put me in a good place, which is why I think I’ve succeeded this year. And I’m thankful to God and the team for giving me the opportunity to step into this role,” Familia said through an interpreter.
His historic regular season has carried over into this year’s postseason, as he now has extended the Mets postseason saves record to five. Previously it had been held by Armando Benitez, Tug McGraw, and Billy Wagner, who all recorded three postseason saves.
As a whole the Mets bullpen has been extremely solid this entire postseason, and there is now a serious level of confidence when the Mets have any kind of lead after the 7th inning.
Even though the lights have gotten a little brighter for Jeurys Familia in these crucial postseason games, he goes after these games the same as he would in the regular season, and attributes part of his success to his teammates
“I’ve had the good fortune of being around many veterans such as Bartolo and LaTroy Hawkins, so I’ve talked to them a lot about what this experience is like,” said Familia.
“I also just talk a lot with all of my teammates in general, and they’ve really built up my confidence. They’ve really helped build up my confidence, I can’t stress that enough.”
He credited veteran right-hander Bartolo Colon specifically as a mentor and friend.
“Bartolo the last two years we hang, he’s one of the guys that helps me not just in baseball, but as a person, too, to be a better person. I’ve got an opportunity to be close to him and learn from him because he’s been in baseball a long time. I just try to ask him whatever question I have about baseball or life, I ask Bartolo. For me he’s like another brother.”
An absolute beast on the mound but so humble in real life. Don’t change anything Jeurys.
