Wilmer Flores led off the 11th inning with a double and scored on a one-out sacrifice fly by Todd Frazier on Saturday, allowing the New York Mets to even their three-game series with the San Francisco Giants with a 2-1 victory in San Francisco.
The loss cost the Giants a half-game in both the National League West and NL wild-card races in their longshot bid to reach the postseason.
Neither team had scored since the fifth inning before Flores hit reliever Hunter Strickland's fourth pitch to deep left field to put the potential go-ahead run in scoring position in the 11th.
After Jay Bruce's ground ball advanced Flores to third, Frazier came through with his fly ball to medium-deep left field, easily scoring Flores with the difference-maker.
Left-hander Jerry Blevins (2-2), who stranded Hunter Pence at second base to end the bottom of the 10th, was credited with the win. Closer Robert Gsellman threw a 1-2-3 bottom of the 11th for his ninth save.
Strickland (3-4), the sixth Giants pitcher, took the loss.
Both starting pitchers left a 1-1 game and neither got a decision.
Mets left-hander Steven Matz allowed only one hit through three innings before Evan Longoria homered to left-center to open the fourth. It was Longoria's 15th of the season.
Matz went seven innings, allowing three hits. He walked one and struck out a career-high 11.
Four New York pitchers struck out a total of 16 in the game.
The Mets wasted an opportunity against Giants starter Derek Holland after Amed Rosario tripled with two outs in the third inning. Holland escaped damage by getting Flores to line out to center.
The Mets drew even against Holland in the fifth after he'd taken a two-hit shutout into the inning. Tomas Nido produced the run with a one-out double, scoring Brandon Nimmo, who had drawn a walk.
Holland was pulled after six innings, having allowed four hits. He walked three and struck out three.
The Mets out-hit the Giants 7-3.
Nido had two hits for New York, which improved to 2-3 on its nine-game trip.
Austin Slater collected two of the three hits for the Giants, who had opened the series on Friday night with a 7-0 win.
--Field Level Media
NY Mets | San Francisco | |
Steven Matz | Player | Derek Holland |
No Decision | W/L | No Decision |
7.0 | IP | 6.0 |
11 | Strikeouts | 3 |
3 | Hits | 4 |
1.29 | ERA | 1.50 |
NY Mets | San Francisco | |
Tomas Nido | Player | Austin Slater |
2 | Hits | 2 |
1 | RBI | 0 |
0 | HR | 0 |
3 | TB | 2 |
.500 | Avg | .400 |
Team | Hits | HR | TB | Avg | LOB | K | RBI | BB | SB | Errors |
NY Mets | 7 | 0 | 11 | .189 | 8 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
San Francisco | 3 | 1 | 6 | .086 | 8 | 16 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 |