Lindor Powers Mets’ Aces Past Cardinals 7-3

The New York Mets hosted the St. Louis Cardinals at Clover Park in St. Lucie, FL on Sunday afternoon. Strong performances from Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer, and Francisco Lindor led the way to a 7-3 Mets’ victory. 

DeGrom took the mound for his second appearance in spring training, quickly making an impact by striking out Dylan Carlson on a check-swing. He followed that up by striking out Cardinals’ designated hitter Lars Nootbar. After giving up a base-hit to Harrison Bader, deGrom regrouped to strike out his third batter of the inning to retire the side.

DeGrom pitched three strong innings, following up his successful first outing last Tuesday. DeGrom’s final line read three innings pitched, five strikeouts, four hits allowed, zero walks, and one earned run. The lone run came in the third inning after a Carlson lead-off double, and a Bader single that just got past the glove of Lindor.

The Mets’ bats provided some early support by driving in three runs in the bottom of the second inning. Pete Alonso led off by ripping a double off the glove of left-fielder Alec Burleson. After a Robinson Cano ground ball that allowed Alonso to advance to third base, Eduardo Escobar brought in the first run with a sacrifice fly. A two-out walk from Travis Jankowski gave Tomas Nido the opportunity to drive one deep to right-center field for a two-run home run. In the third inning, Lindor hit a line-drive shot to right-field to make the Mets’ lead 4-1.

Scherzer took over for deGrom in the fourth inning, also making his second appearance in exhibition play. It only took Scherzer eight pitches to finish a 1-2-3 inning. Scherzer allowed one earned run via a double off the bat of former Mets’ catcher Ali Sanchez shortening the Mets’ lead to 5-2. After back-to-back hits to start the seventh-inning, Scherzer settled down to allow no further damage in the inning.

The Mets would add to their lead in the seventh. Lindor hit a towering two-run homer over the left-field wall, his second home run off the day. This expanded the Mets’ lead over the Cardinals to 7-2.

A lead-off solo home run from Cardinals’ prospect Anderson Tejada in the ninth inning off of Scherzer cut the Mets lead to 7-3. Scherzer would allow nothing further after setting down the final three Cardinals’ hitters in order. His final line read six innings pitched, seven strikeouts, three hits allowed, one walk, and two earned runs.

The Mets’ offense as a whole had a terrific day. Arguably the strongest they have been all spring. As a team, the Mets tallied 12 hits, seven runs, drew three walks, and struck out only seven times. Eight different players contributed hits.

Player of the Game: Francisco Lindor

Lindor would finish the day by going 3-for-4 with two home runs and a single. He drove in three runs and scored two of his own. He also made a nice play in the field that saw him leave his feet to glove a large infield hop. He then made a laser of a throw to help ensure the inning did not become more threatening. Overall, he continued his strong start in spring training.

On Deck:

The Mets’ next game will take place on Tuesday night at 6:40 PM ET against the Miami Marlins at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium, in Jupiter, FL. Mets’ newly acquired starting pitcher Chris Bassitt is expected to make his first formal spring start.