Jesse Winker's homer with two outs in the top of the ninth inning Monday night snapped a tie and lifted the visiting Cincinnati Reds past the New York Mets 5-4 in the opener of a four-game series.

The Reds broke a two-game losing streak. The Mets have dropped four of five.

The two teams combined to strand nine runners without scoring between the fifth and the ninth innings before Winker homered well beyond the right field fence off Mets closer Edwin Diaz (0-1), who was scored upon for just the second time in 13 appearances this season.

The homer made a winner out of Raisel Iglesias (1-3), who tossed the final two scoreless innings for the Reds. Iglesias wriggled out of a two-on, two-out jam in the eighth before striking out the side in the ninth.

Reds starter Tanner Roark allowed four runs on four hits and four walks while striking out three over 3 2/3 innings. Mets starter Zack Wheeler gave up four runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out four over six innings.

The Reds raced to a 4-0 lead but nearly scored far more in the second, when Jose Iglesias (double), Tucker Barnhart (single) and Jose Pereza (double) each had RBI hits before Joey Votto was intentionally walked to load the bases with one out. Eugenio Suarez followed with a long fly to center, but it stayed in the park on a 51-degree night and was caught at the wall for a sacrifice fly.

The Mets cut the gap in half in the bottom of the inning when Michael Conforto led off with a double and scored on Wilson Ramos' one-out double. Ramos scored on Amed Rosario's single.

The Mets tied the score when Roark lost the strike zone with two out and nobody on in the fourth. After walking Juan Lagares, Roark gave up a single to Wheeler and walked Jeff McNeil and Pete Alonso, the latter on four pitches to force home Lagares. Wandy Peralta relieved Roark and promptly walked Brandon Nimmo on four pitches to force home Wheeler with the tying run.

--Field Level Media