What began as a game Daniel Murphy would love to forget, ended in exhilaration when the veteran second baseman hit a clutch, game-tying, three-run homer with two outs in the ninth inning on Sunday.
The Mets fought back and came away with another dramatic 10-7 comeback victory against the Atlanta Braves, their 37th comeback win of the season.
Down to their final out and trailing 7-4 in the ninth, Juan Lagares doubled and Curtis Granderson drew a walk before Murphy blasted a hanger over the plate.
“I didn’t think I would hit a home run, but I was trying to. I was surprised,” said Murphy, who had four RBIs in the game and went 5-for-15 in the series.
Modest as always, Murphy credited his teammates for setting the stage for him to step up and redeem himself from a costly two-run defensive miscue earlier in the game.
“I fielded like garbage today,” Murphy explained. “I just didn’t play very well. I didn’t.”
“Just another great effort. Two outs, nobody on, tremendous at-bats,” a stunned and exuberant Terry Collins said after the game.
“They don’t quit! It doesn’t matter who’s in there, they all want to be part of it. Murph gets up there and you just have a sense that something big is gonna happen.”
Murphy, who is a free agent after this season, now leads all National League second basemen with 63 RBI.
Additionally, among all major league players with 400 or more at-bats, Murphy is the toughest hitter in MLB to strikeout, whiffing just 33 times in 441 at-bats.
