Mets rookie kickstarts dramatic 9th-inning comeback as New York fights for postseason push

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Don't look now, but the New York Mets are not dead yet.

The Mets lost 15 games in the NL East standings in June thanks to their 7-19 record and the Atlanta Braves' 21-4 that month - but July has, although early, been much better to the Amazins.

The Mets were down to their final strike against the NL West-leading Arizona Diamondbacks and in danger of getting blanked on Wednesday night in Phoenix, but it was a rookie who kept them alive.

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Francisco Alvarez, #4 of the New York Mets, reacts after hitting a solo home run against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the ninth inning at Chase Field on July 5, 2023 in Phoenix. The Mets won 2-1. (Norm Hall/Getty Images)

Francisco Alvarez blasted an opposite-field home run, his 15th of the season, to tie the game at one - but the Mets did not want to go to extra innings.

Fellow rookie Brett Baty singled after Alvarez's homer, and then trusty veteran Mark Canha followed up with an RBI triple that gave New York a 2-1 lead.

The Mets' bullpen has been atrocious all season long without Edwin Diaz, but they were not letting this one go. David Robertson, a lone bright spot in the Mets' pen, relieved Kodai Senga after eight innings of four-hit, 12-strikeout ball and shut the Diamondbacks down in order to secure the win.

"It was super exciting. I did everything to celebrate that moment," Alvarez said through a translator. "Earlier, in that count, the umpire (Lance Barksdale) called a strike that I didn’t agree with. I had to keep battling there."

He added, "It’s really the adrenaline that heightens that moment for me. That’s my favorite part of the game.