USA Today Sports
The San Diego Padres and New York Mets met at Citi Field for Game 1 of a crucial three-game series as the postseason looms
It was Roberto Clemente Night for the New York Mets. Mets players had the option to wear a No. 21 uniform with no last name on it. Players like Juan Soto and Francisco Lindor wore the famous No. 21 in honor of Clemente. Lindor is the 2025 Roberto Clemente Award nominee for the Mets, while Joe Musgrove is the nominee for the Friars.
For a team that has been struggling as badly as the Mets have as of late, they certainly needed the performance they showcased on Tuesday night in Game 1. The Mets’ bats were scorching hot, as they attacked San Diego Padres‘ starter Michael King early with four home runs and eight runs scored in 3.0 innings pitched.
King did not have his stuff in this game, and it cost the Padres before they could really begin to settle down in New York. The Mets jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first inning. King almost got out of a tough jam as he turned a double play in the first. However, the Mets managed to score four more runs in the inning thanks to a double from Jeff McNeil and a 2-run shot from Brett Baty.
Jackson Merrill smashed a solo home run in the second inning off of Mets’ starter Clay Holmes for the first run of the contest for San Diego.
In the bottom half of the second inning, Lindor and Pete Alonso also hit solo homers off King. Those home runs sparked a home run derby in Queens. Jake Cronenworth followed with a solo shot in the third inning, and then King was removed from the contest after he allowed his 4th homer, this time to Cedric Mullins, who the Mets traded for at the MLB Trade Deadline a little over a month ago.
“Some good and some bad execution that they made him pay for,” Manager Mike Shildt said postgame about King’s outing. “He came out very aggressively, and they were coming out swinging the bat; some balls were over the plate, and they put up a big crooked number. I was pleased with his numbers talking to Ruben, but it comes down to execution.”
Kyle Hart replaced King and would go on to pitch two clean innings. The Padres bullpen pitched well in relief of King, not allowing a run for the rest of the contest.
The offense just never came alive for the Friars in this one. Freddy Fermin did hit a solo home run late in the contest, but that would be it for the Friars. SD finished with seven hits to the Mets’ 10.
San Diego aims to bounce back in Game 2 on Wednesday night. Nick Pivetta will toe the slab for the Padres while David Peterson starts for the Mets.
Chris is a graduate of the University of San Diego. He is the former Sports Editor for the USDVista newspaper. Chris has covered the San Diego Loyal, and now covers San Diego State Men’s Basketball. He also contributes regularly about the Padres. Chris is an athlete and is a huge fan of San Diego sports.
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