Mets wait for Zack Wheeler, rock Phillies with 5-run 8th inning to win Game 1: Takeaways

The Philadelphia Phillies had everything going for them. They had extra rest from the bye in the first round. They had a raucous home crowd. They had one of the best pitchers in baseball at his very best. It wasn’t enough, however, as the New York Mets rallied in the late innings to defeat the Phillies 6-2 in Game 1 of the National League Division Series.

It’s possible that Zack Wheeler will never have a better start to the postseason for the rest of his career, if only because no one will have a better start to the postseason. Wheeler pitched seven innings, striking out nine and allowing just one hit, but a pair of All-Star relievers — Jeff Hoffman and Matt Strahm — came in in the top of the eighth inning and allowed five runs on a parade of singles. The Phillies couldn’t recover.

The Mets had something of a bullpen game, with Kodai Senga making just his second appearance of the year and his first since July 26. He allowed a leadoff homer to Kyle Schwarber, but settled down to complete two full innings, an encouraging development for the team. Mets’ rotation plans for the rest of the month.

The real pitching heroes of the game, however, were the Mets’ relievers. David Peterson, Reed Garrett, Phil Maton and Ryne Stanek allowed only four hits and one run in the last seven innings.

Game 2 of the series is scheduled for Sunday at 4:08 PM ET at Citizens Bank Park. Luis Severino will pitch for the Mets, and Cristopher Sánchez will try to keep the Phillies out of a deeper hole. – Grant Brisbee

Mark Vientos singles to drive in the first of five runs in the eighth for the Mets. (Eric Hartline/Imagn Images)

Kodai Senga was especially sharp

Senga’s shortened outing went largely well. New York got pretty much what it expected in its first start since July: two innings (31 pitches), one run, one hit, one walk, three strikeouts.

When Senga struggled last year, the problem often happened in the first inning (4.34 ERA, his highest of any innings). So it would always be interesting to see how he fared in a designed short start. Three pitches into the game, Senga allowed a leadoff homerun to Kyle Schwarber, but settled down from there. Senga’s velocity dipped a bit from last year, but he threw as much as 90 mph with his fastball and registered a few whiffs with his forkball.

In doing so, the right-hander showed that he should still be an option for the Mets later in this series, perhaps in a similar role in a decisive Game 5. In theory, Senga should be able to continue building his pitch count as the postseason run of the Mets continues. – Will Sammon

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Mets’ Kodai Senga allows leadoff HR to go two innings in Game 1

Mets had to be careful when using David Peterson

The Mets will likely want to use the left-handed Peterson out of the bullpen again in this series. That’s the guess as to why he didn’t stick around longer after relieving Senga. Peterson pitched three scoreless innings and the Mets held him to 50 pitches. The Phillies’ lineup features fearsome left-handed hitters like Schwarber and Bryce Harper. The Phillies had done damage in the regular season against Danny Young, the Mets’ only other left-hander in the bullpen. – Sammon

Zack Wheeler delivers a top performance

Zack Wheeler gave the Phillies everything they could want, but it wasn’t enough. (Bill Streicher/Imagn Images)

The fourth pitch Wheeler threw Saturday afternoon was 99 mph – harder than any fastball he had thrown in two years. Maybe that was the first sign of greatness. Maybe it was the fourteen swings-and-misses in his first three innings. Maybe it was the way he overcame the erratic command in the fourth inning with a 4-6-3 double play on a 97 mph fastball that grounded Jose Iglesias.

Maybe it was the way the Phillies pushed him further than any pitcher in this sport has gone in three previous postseasons. Wheeler’s final pitch, his 111th of the afternoon, was a 96.7 mph heater that Tyrone Taylor bounced to the shortstop. Wheeler threw more pitches than anyone in a postseason game since Tyler Glasnow threw 112 for the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 1 of the 2020 World Series.

Wheeler allowed one hit in seven scoreless innings. The Mets never reached third base against him. He now has a 2.18 ERA in 70 1/3 postseason innings. He has an ERA of 0.82 in Game 1s; this was the fifth time he threw a series opener. He is 34 and at the peak of his career. – Matt Gelb

The Phillies bats went silent – ​​again – at the worst time

Schwarber singled to shallow center with one out in the third inning. He had two hits, including a miraculous home run to start the game.

The next 19 Phillies batters failed to score a hit. Until the eighth inning, Schwarber was the only Phillie with a hit. They didn’t make solid contact in the middle innings against Peterson and Garrett. The scouting report on how to beat the Phillies has been clear for months. They are sensitive to off-speed pitches. They are aggressive. They will hunt. New York exploited all that.

It sucked the life out of the margins.

The Phillies said all week that they were pleased with their work as they waited for their opponent. It was focused. It had intensity. It was the right balance between rest and recovery.

“Obviously during the week people are thinking, ‘Oh, you’re going to lose this or that,’” Harper said before Saturday’s game. ‘I don’t see that. I just think it’s going out there and playing the game we know how to play.

Harper may not be wrong; the Phillies went through periods during the season where their lineup was beatable. Farewell is not an excuse. It happened again at the worst time. — Gelb

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(Top photo of the Mets celebrating after their Game 1 win: Eric Hartline / Imagn Images)