October 30, 2015, Queens, NY If he were a stock, you might dump some of your existing stocks just so you could by more. At 23 years of age and being in his rookie season, Noah Syndergaard might be the most promising pitcher on a pitcher-domiant team. While his stat line wasn’t the stuff of Sandy Koufax, it was more than good enough to give the New York Mets a convincing win for their first home game in what sports marketer Kyle Greene calls, “The World Serious” (not Series). The Mets held serve in a quasi “must-win” game and find themselves down 2-1 by defeating the Kansas City Royals, 9-3. The win guaranteed that baseball will be played in November.
David Wright hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the first off of Kansas City Royals starter Yordano Ventura. Wright also drove in two more runs in the sixth inning when the Mets blew the game wide open.
The Royals did their damage early scoring a run in the first and then adding two more in the second to go up 3-2. Syndergaard seemed shaky and destined for a short stint.
Curtis Granderson blasted a two-run homer giving the Mets a 4-3 lead, and they never looked back. Syndergaard got over whatever jitters he might have had and didn’t allow another run.
The Mets probably believe to a man they should be up 2-1 rather than down 2-1. With two games left at Citi Field, the Mets would appear primed to split at the very least. Chris Young takes the hill for the Royals, and Steven Matz will start for the Metropolitans. Game time is 8:07 p.m. tomorrow, and the game will be aired on Fox. Check your local listings.
Professor Clifford Benton can be reached at @cliffordbenton.