Starling Marte Leads Mets To 5-1 Victory In Game One

After a snow postponement on Friday, the Mets (27-14) and Rockies (18-20) played game one of a doubleheader Saturday afternoon. Before the game, the Mets reactivated Starling Marte from the bereavement list. Marte immediately made his return felt, hitting a two-run homer off the first pitch in his first at-bat. Marte’s homer helped the Mets on their way to a 5-1 defeat of the Rockies.

The Mets’ offense clearly enjoyed the Rocky Mountain air in Denver. After Marte got things started in the first inning, the Mets scored again in the second inning thanks to a Patrick Mazeika double with two men on. This gave the Mets a 4-0 lead.

Rockies’ starter Germán Márquez had a run in the fourth and fifth innings where he struck out four Mets in a row and retired six of seven batters. But the Mets’ hitters bounced back in the sixth inning, starting with a single by Luis Guillorme, which was his third hit of the day. Although Guillorme was erased on a fielder’s choice, the Mets tacked on another run thanks to back-to-back singles by Marte and Francisco Lindor.

Carlos Carrasco got the start for the Mets, his first ever at Coors Field. The Rockies had a lot of traffic on the bases, as Carrasco allowed eight batters to reach base in his 5 1/3rd innings of work. But, despite giving up seven hits and hitting one batter, Carrasco was able to keep the Rockies from scoring for the first five innings. He exited the game in the sixth inning with two on and one out.

Adam Ottavino came on in relief and got the second out of the inning via a fly ball to right. He then got José Iglesias hit a short ground ball that Mazeika fielded and threw to first. Iglesias was called out for the third out, and it seemed like Ottavino got through the inning unscathed. Unfortunately, the call was overturned on review. C.J. Cron scored from third on the play, giving the Rockies their first run of the game.

Drew Smith pitched the seventh for the Mets, setting down the side in order. Seth Lugo got the eighth inning. After giving up a broken bat single, Lugo would retire the next three batters, include striking out the final two. Even though he threw 20 pitches in the eighth, Lugo stayed on to pitch the ninth. He pitched a 1-2-3 inning, sealing the Mets’ victory.

Player of the Game: Starling Marte

Marte had a rough few days, with the unexpected death of his grandmother who raised him and the anniversary of his wife’s passing. He told reporters before the game that it was a difficult situation for him, and that playing baseball was going to serve as a distraction. And what a distraction it’s been so far.

Aside from his homer in the first inning, Marte also singled in the fifth inning and played solid defense in right field. Heartfelt condolences to Marte and terrific to see him play such a great game.