OMG! New York Mets, Pete Alonso stun Brewers
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Francisco Castro, Contributor
- October 3, 2024
Pete Alonso hits three-run homer to eliminate Brewers
MILWAUKEE – As they soaked each other in champagne and beer late Thursday night, practically every Mets player sought a picture with the “OMG” sign that has served as a rallying cry this season.
Oh my God, indeed.
Drinks, cigar smoke and champagne filled the air during the raucous celebration inside the visitors clubhouse at American Family Field after the Mets stunned the Brewers in the ninth inning. Pete Alonso, who delivered the winning shot with a three-run homer in the ninth, even brought out a pumpkin after the 4-2 victory. Yes, a small pumpkin.
“It was loud,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “It was noisy. Zero extra-base hits since I don’t know when. As you watch that game unfold and we go into the ninth inning facing one of the best closers in the game. And I’m looking to my right and I see Pete Alonso, and I was like, ‘this could be it right here.’”
Pete Alonso overcomes slow start
The Mets trailed 2-0 heading into the top of the ninth inning. Brewers closer Devin Williams couldn’t close out Game 3 of the National League Wild Card.
Francisco Lindor greeted Williams with a leadoff walk in the ninth. One out later, Brandon Nimmo singled to right to put runners at the corners. Alonso took care of the rest with an opposite-field blast to right field to give the Mets a 3-2 lead. The Mets added another run in the inning, and the Brewers had no answer in the bottom of the ninth.
“It’s just been such a great ride all year,” Alonso said. “And I’m just happy I could come through for my team right there. It’s a really special moment.”
The Mets didn’t qualify for the postseason until the first game of a makeup doubleheader against the Braves on Monday. Now, they’re in the Division Series against the NL East rival Philadelphia Phillies.
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The Mets won the best-of-three Wild Card two games to one. Edwin Diaz, who pitched 1 ⅔ innings of scoreless relief, earned the victory. David Peterson picked up the save with a scoreless ninth.
Alonso had not had an extra-base hit since Sept. 19. Moreover, he was 0-for-3 in Game 3 and 1-for-8 overall in the AL Wild Card before his game-winning homer.
‘Unbelievable’
“In terms of Pete Alonso, unbelievable,” Mendoza said. “It’s one of those where it’s been hard for him the whole year. People talk about wanting more from Pete. And you look at his numbers, it’s a pretty good year.
“Obviously the standards and the expectations from him are like – he should hit 45, 50 homers every year. And it’s not easy. He’s still going to 30 something, and he’s going to hit .800 OPS.”
The Mets celebrated on the field and took a team picture in front of the mound. Then they went into the visitors’ clubhouse to pop some champagne.
Alonso paraded around the clubhouse with a small pumpkin. Many of his teammates smoked celebratory cigars. They had plenty of fun dumping champagne and beer on each other. A great majority of them took pictures with the “OMG” sign, which the team has adopted to go with Jose Iglesias’ viral sensation “Oh my God.”
“Just proud of Pete,” Iglesias said. “He’s been putting in a lot of time this series. It’s special. It’s a special moment for the team, special moment for the city, special moment for baseball. And it’s a special moment for ‘OMG.’ It’s a dream come true.”
Francisco Castro
Contributor
Francisco Castro is Our Esquina's Midwest correspondent. The native of the San Francisco Bay Area specializes in social media and content creation.
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