CINCINNATI – One thing about major-league hitters, is they know how to hit a fastball – sometimes even very good ones, and Mets prospect Jonah Tong learned that plenty Saturday night.
Tong, who only allowed eight homers in 57 minor-league games, served up three in his second major-league start, and the Mets’ bats stayed quiet as they fell to the Reds, 6-3 at Great American Ballpark. The homers were the only hits he gave up, and all came on his fastball, which he used heavily in the early innings before mixing in more changeups and curveballs.
Still, Tong, who made his MLB debut with only two Triple-A games to his name, kept the Mets in it: He allowed four runs and three hits with four walks and six strikeouts over six innings. The Mets offense, though, which had been humming of late, stalled against Reds righthander Brady Singer.
Francisco Lindor went 3-for-4 but was caught stealing twice, trying for second in the first and for third in the fifth. The Mets went 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position and left 10 on base.
The Mets biggest threat came in the ninth, when Lindor doubled off Emilio Pagan with one out and Juan Soto singled to place runners at the corners; Lindor scored on a wild pitch to draw the Mets within 6-3. But Brandon Nimmo and Pete Alonso both struck out swinging.
Tong, meanwhile, let up two runs in the second, after Spencer Steer worked a two-out walk to bring up Sal Stewart, the Reds’ No. 4 prospect playing in his fourth major-league game. Stewart blasted a high fastball 412 feet over the outstretched glove of a leaping Cedric Mullins in center for his first career home run.
The Mets loaded the bases with one out against Singer in the third. The righthander issued back-to-back walks to Mullins and Lindor to bring up Soto, who hit a ground ball that was knocked down by a diving Elly De La Cruz but couldn’t be converted for the out, extending Soto’s on-base streak to 15 games. Brandon Nimmo’s sacrifice fly to left drew the Mets to within one.
Tong, though, gave up another homer to lead off the bottom of the third – this one to Matt McLain, who slammed a letter-high fastball into the first row in right center. They added another solo shot in the fourth, when Austin Hays homered on a grooved fastball, hitting 392 feet to left to put the Reds up 4-1.
Singer, meanwhile, allowed one run and four hits with four walks and five strikeouts over six.
Jared Young’s leadoff solo homer of Scott Barlow made it 4-2 in the seventh. Soto also stole a base that inning, putting him one shy of the 30-30 club; it was his ninth steal in 13 games and with his 37 homers, it puts him well within shooting distance of becoming only the 16th player to put together a 40-30 season.
Ryne Stanek loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the inning before letting up an RBI single to TJ Friedl. Kevin Herget walked in another run to make it 6-2.
Laura Albanese is a reporter, feature writer and columnist covering local professional sports teams; she began at Newsday in 2007 as an intern.