The left-handed hitting outfielder was designated for assignment by the Diamondbacks last week after hitting .258 with a 76 OPS-plus (league average is 100) in 54 games this season.

Reddick, 34, who won a World Series with the Astros in 2017, provides another depth option for the Mets over the final two months of the season. Kevin Pillar, Albert Almora Jr. and Brandon Drury have served as experienced backup outfielders or injury replacements this year for the Mets’ starting outfield of Dominic Smith, Brandon Nimmo and Michael Conforto.

The Mets also have Khalil Lee, Mark Payton and Jose Martinez (who recently started a rehab assignment) as outfielders on their 40-man roster.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

It required some help from a Nationals roster that was dismantled at the trade deadline, but the Mets gladly accepted it as they snapped a four-game losing streak with an 8-7 comeback win Wednesday at Citi Field.

In the resumption of the game that began Tuesday night and was suspended in the second inning, the Mets erased a pair of three-run deficits to win their first game in a week.

Brandon Drury continued to come through in the clutch as a pinch hitter, blooping a single beyond a drawn-in infield in the eighth inning to score Jonathan Villar to put the Mets ahead — capturing their first lead since last Wednesday against the Marlins.

Villar had reached on an error earlier in the inning while trying to put down a sacrifice bunt. Instead, J.D. Davis, who led off with a double, came around to score the tying run as Nationals reliever Mason Thompson’s throw to first was wild. Villar advanced to second on the error and moved to third on James McCann’s swinging bunt.

Edwin Diaz closed out the win in the ninth as the Mets (57-55) won for just the second time in nine games. Marcus Stroman was set to start the nightcap against the Nationals (50-63), who traded away most of their useful pieces in a sell-off at the deadline.

Pete Alonso had narrowly missed out on tying the game in the seventh inning with a shot to left-center field. Instead he settled for an RBI double off the top of the wall, scoring Brandon Nimmo from first to get the Mets within 7-6.

But Alonso was stranded at second as Dominic Smith and Michael Conforto popped up to end the threat.

The suspended game resumed in the top of the second inning, with the Mets trailing 3-1.

Rich Hill, who was originally scheduled to start Thursday for the Mets, instead took the mound Wednesday for the resumption of the suspended game. The 41-year-old inherited a runner on first base, Riley Adams, who immediately moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by pitcher Paolo Espino. Adams came around to score on Victor Robles’ fly ball to left field, which Smith leapt for near the wall but could not catch. It was ruled a double, giving the Nationals a 4-1 lead.

The Mets began their comeback in the third inning off Joe Ross, who was replacing Espino, Tuesday’s starter. Nimmo led off with a double and scored on a single by Jeff McNeil to make it 4-2. Alonso then shot a single through the left side before Smith flew out to deep left-center field, allowing McNeil and Alonso to tag up to third and second, respectively.

Conforto came up next and hit a weak ground ball to first base, but it was enough to score McNeil to close within 4-3.

Davis then tied the game when he roped a two-out double to left field.

Hill had settled in after the second inning but was unable to record an out in the fifth. He issued a leadoff walk to Yadiel Hernandez before giving up a bloop single through the vacated right side to Carter Kieboom. Hill then went 3-0 to Luis Garcia, who got the green light and ripped a two-run double to the gap to put the Nationals up 6-4.

That spelled the end of Hill’s day. Jeurys Familia relieved him and allowed a single up the middle that pushed the Nationals’ lead to 7-4.

The Mets got one run back in the bottom of the fifth. Conforto hit a two-out single to right field, scoring McNeil all the way from first — aided by Juan Soto throwing to second base instead of home — to make it 7-5. Conforto was thrown out in a rundown trying to advance to second, though, ending the inning.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

The shortstop injured his left thumb while diving into second base on a steal in the fourth inning of a 2-0 loss to the Mariners. He was wearing a protective mitt on his right hand but dove in with his bare left hand and came up in pain.

“A little concerned about him right now,” manager Aaron Boone said.

Torres initially stayed in the game and went 3-for-4 but was pulled in the ninth inning for Tyler Wade after striking out in the bottom of the eighth.

“As the game went on, he just felt kind of the instability hitting,” Boone said.

As Luke Voit rehabbed a knee injury on his third injured list stint of the season, he also lost his starting job.

The Yankees first baseman was supplanted by Anthony Rizzo, whom the club traded for at the deadline. And with Giancarlo Stanton mostly glued to designated hitter, Voit was suddenly without an everyday role.

That changed for the time being on Sunday, when Voit returned to The Bronx to replace Rizzo, who will miss at least 10 days after testing positive for COVID-19. But Voit admitted it was “a little frustrating” to be replaced and subsequently hear his name in trade talks.

“It was a weird spot,” Voit said after going 0-for-4. “Obviously, glad he’s a part of the team. I get it, I haven’t been around a lot this year. I guess I was in the trade talks as well, and you never know what can happen there. But I’m wearing pinstripes today, and my job is to come to the field, work my butt off every day and play my heart out. Whenever my name’s in the lineup, I’m going to give it my all.”

A year after leading the majors with 22 home runs, Voit played in just his 30th game of the season Sunday, though he said his current version is “the best I’ve felt in a long time.” He missed 34 games after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus in spring training and later sat out 23 more with a strained oblique.

Voit ended Sunday hitting just .232 with three home runs.

“It’s frustrating,” Voit said. “Obviously, I wanted to play. It’s going to be difficult, obviously, when [Rizzo] comes back. But whenever I was in the minor leagues, too, they told me I was playing for 29 other teams. So I’m just glad to be back and healthy. I want to do whatever I can to help this team win. Whether that’s on the bench or playing first or DHing, whatever. I don’t know. It’s a weird spot, for sure.”

Luis Severino (Tommy John surgery, groin strain) made his second rehab start Sunday with Double-A Somerset, throwing four perfect innings and striking out five on 48 pitches. Boone said the right-hander will likely have at least one more rehab start before rejoining the Yankees.

3B Gio Urshela (strained hamstring) has a “good chance” of being back in the Yankees lineup on Wednesday — the first day he is eligible to come off the injured list, Boone said.

RHP Nick Nelson was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. … 1B Chris Gittens (sprained ankle) began a rehab assignment with Somerset..

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

On Sunday, their offense stayed dormant for a full nine innings. 

The Yankees had plenty of chances to change that but could never come up with the big hit, snapping their five-game winning streak with a 2-0 loss to the Mariners in The Bronx. 

Missing one of their big bats in Anthony Rizzo, who tested positive for COVID-19 after Saturday’s game, the Yankees mustered six hits, went 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position and left 11 men on base. 

The Yankees twice brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth inning, but DJ LeMahieu grounded out and Aaron Judge struck out looking to end the game. 

Luke Voit, who was activated off the injured list before the game to replace Rizzo, had a rough first day back. He went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts, leaving the bases loaded in the third inning and stranding two more runners with a pop-out in the fifth. 

The Yankees (61-50) lost for only the third time in their last 13 games, missing a chance to complete the sweep and wasting five more shutout innings from rookie right-hander Luis Gil. 

The Mariners (59-54) finally broke the scoreless stalemate in the eighth inning off Lucas Luetge. After Abraham Toro reached on a fielding error by third baseman Rougned Odor and Luetge walked Mitch Haniger, Kyle Seager roped a ground-rule double to right field for the 1-0 lead. 

Luetge came back to strike out the next two batters — including Jarred Kelenic, who was ejected for arguing the call — but Cal Raleigh followed with a single to left field. Two runs appeared to score but the Yankees challenged the second and got the call reversed — a strong throw from Joey Gallo nabbed Seager at the plate — to keep the deficit to 2-0. 

Gil, who dazzled in his MLB debut Tuesday with six shutout innings against the Orioles, was called back up Sunday to make another start in place of Gerrit Cole (COVID-19). The 23-year-old wasn’t quite as efficient in his second start, but still came through with five shutout innings on two hits and two walks while striking out eight.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

Anthony Rizzo became the fourth Yankee to test positive for COVID-19 in the past week, joining Gerrit Cole, Jordan Montgomery and Gary Sanchez.

The 32-year-old first baseman, who learned of the positive result back after Saturday’s win in The Bronx, is feeling some symptoms but is doing “alright,” according to manager Aaron Boone.

Rizzo in June said he had not received the vaccine because he was waiting on more data. Boone declined to say whether Rizzo has been jabbed.

“He’s obviously been terrific for us in every way,” Boone said. “Obviously a little bummed out, but hopefully a chance to get rested up and well and be back hopefully sooner rather than later and back to impacting us.”

In nine games with the Yankees since coming over from the Cubs, Rizzo was batting .281 (9-for-32) with three home runs and an RBI in each of his first six games.

The Yankees activated Luke Voit (knee) off the injured list to take Rizzo’s spot on the roster.

Voit, who had lost his first base job while on the IL with the Yankees trading for Rizzo, was in the starting lineup for the series finale against the Mariners.

Voit had gone on the 10-day IL — his third stint of the year — coming out of the All-Star break.

“Really excited to see Luke Voit back here today,” Boone said. “He’s here ready to go. Obviously we know how impactful Luke can be. Looking forward to seeing him in the middle of our lineup today.”

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

Their latest came Saturday in The Bronx, where they overcame a three-run deficit to beat the Mariners 5-4 for their fifth straight win — including four straight come-from-behind victories.

The Yankees (61-49) clinched the series win over the Mariners (58-54) — who had arrived in The Bronx on Thursday just one game behind the Bombers in the AL wild-card standings — using late rallies each time. Joey Gallo and Brett Gardner delivered the winning hits in the first two games before the Yankees used a less dramatic approach — with some help from the Mariners — to complete their comeback Saturday.

With their 31st comeback win of the season, the Yankees inched closer to the final playoff spot in the American League, getting within one game of the Athletics (who played Saturday afternoon against the Rangers) for the final wild-card spot.

After Aroldis Chapman landed on the injured list before the game with left elbow inflammation, Jonathan Loaisiga recorded the save with a perfect ninth inning.

The Yankees entered the sixth inning trailing 4-1, then made their move.

Giancarlo Stanton started the rally with his second single of the day before Rougned Odor went down to one knee to hook a two-run home run to the short porch in right field. The 328-foot homer (which Stacast said had an expected batting average of .030) knocked former Met Chris Flexen out of the game.

Friday’s hero, Brett Gardner, flew out for the first out, but the Mariners to serve up a gift on the next at-bat. Gleyber Torres pinch-hit for Tyler Wade and hit an innocent fly ball to right field. Mitch Haniger stumbled while trying to backtrack on the dirt and failed to catch the ball as Torres reached third on the error.

Kyle Higashioka, who left seven men on base Friday night in an 0-for-5 effort, pinch-hit for Rob Brantly and smoked a ground-rule double to left field to tie the score 4-4.

After DJ LeMahieu singled to put runners on the corners, he used some heads-up baserunning to put the Yankees ahead. Anthony Rizzo hit a grounder to first base, where Ty France stepped on the bag and went to turn a double play. But LeMahieu got into a pickle, allowing Higashioka to score from third for the 5-4 lead.

With the lead in hand, Clay Holmes struck out the side — all of them looking — on 11 pitches in the seventh inning. He then got the first out of the eighth before fellow trade-deadline acquisition Joely Rodriguez entered to finish the scoreless frame.

After Andrew Heaney gave up four home runs in four innings in his Yankees debut Monday, he got tagged for four runs through two innings Saturday — including another homer — before settling in. He narrowly avoided a grand slam in the second inning that would have given the Mariners a 7-1 lead, and instead lasted six innings on 109 pitches.

Heaney’s rebound saved a bullpen that used nine relievers to get through Friday’s bullpen game.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

The Yankees placed the closer on the 10-day IL Saturday with left elbow inflammation, calling up Nick Nelson to take his spot in the bullpen before continuing a series against the Mariners in The Bronx.

Chapman threw 30 pitches Thursday against the Mariners and struggled with his fastball command. He recorded his seventh straight save but flirted with disaster first, allowing a walk and a single to bring the go-ahead run to the plate before getting out of it with a deep fly ball to left field.

The left-hander was one of only two relievers who did not pitch in Friday’s bullpen game, as nine arms combined for a 3-2 win.

Chapman’s absence comes at a time when the Yankees, while chasing a playoff spot and playing their best baseball of the season, are already missing Gerrit Cole, Jordan Montgomery and Gary Sanchez because of COVID-19 protocols.

After a strong start to the season, Chapman went through a brutal stretch from June to early July in which he got tagged for 14 earned runs over 5 2/3 innings with nine walks to six strikeouts. He had begun to get his season back on track since then, though Thursday’s dicey save hinted that something might be off.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

The Yankees waited until the very last pitch to send them into euphoria.

Brett Gardner delivered the final blow, smacking a walk-off single in the 11th inning to secure the Yankees’ fourth straight win, 3-2 over the Mariners.

Joey Gallo started the bottom of the 11th inning on second base. Gleyber Torres popped up before the Mariners intentionally walked Rougned Odor for the second time in three innings to bring Kyle Higashioka to the plate. The catcher, starting in place of Gary Sanchez (COVID-19), sent a jolt into the crowd with a deep fly ball to left field, but the ball hooked foul. Higashioka then struck out four pitches later.

But Gardner, who had entered the game as a pinch-hitter in the eighth before scoring the runs that tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of that inning and at 2-2 in the 10th, sent the crowd home happy.

In their eighth walk-off win of the year, the Yankees (60-49) improved to a season-high 11 games over .500 with their ninth win in their last 11 games.

Albert Abreu — the third-to-last pitcher left in the Yankees bullpen — entered for the top of the 11th inning and retired the side in order, leaving the automatic runner in second. He helped himself on the final out, running to cover first on a grounder and field a throw from Odor in shallow right field.

The Mariners took a 2-1 lead in the 10th inning off Chad Green. J.P. Crawford led off with an RBI single, scoring automatic runner Tom Murphy from second. The Yankees limited the damage, though, in part thanks to a strike-’em-out, throw-’em-out double play from Higashioka, nailing J.P. Crawford attempting to steal second after Matt Haniger whiffed.

The Yankees were down to their last out in the bottom of the 10th until Giancarlo Stanton redeemed himself and tied the game. Stanton, who had killed the eighth-inning rally in which the Yankees tied the game at 1-1, lined a single to right field to score Gardner and knot the game at 2-2.

But Gallo, who hit a towering go-ahead home run for the Yankees on Thursday night, couldn’t repeat his heroics, striking out to end the inning.

Mariners lefty Marco Gonzales had stymied the Yankees for 6 ²/₃ shutout innings, giving up just three singles and two walks. He left the game with Torres on second base — only the third Yankee to reach there all night — in the seventh inning, but Joe Smith entered from the bullpen and retired Higashioka to keep the pinstriped goose egg intact.

The Yankees tied the game in the eighth inning, but wasted a chance for much more. Former Rays closer Diego Castillo took the mound for Seattle and began by walking pinch-hitter Gardner and DJ LeMahieu. He then hit Anthony Rizzo on the leg with a pitch to load the bases with no outs, bringing the packed house to its feet.

Judge came through with a fly ball smoked to left field, though he settled for a sacrifice fly that tied the score at 1-1.

Stanton then let the air out of the building, grounding the first pitch he saw into an inning-ending double play — the Yankees’ league-leading 103rd twin-killing of the season.

Zack Britton threw a quick top of the ninth inning to give the Yankees a chance to win it in the bottom of the frame.

They threatened to do so, as Torres roped a one-out double and the Mariners intentionally walked Odor. But Higashioka and Gardner both popped out against Drew Steckenrider to send the game to extras.

On a day that was supposed to be Jordan Montgomery’s turn to start — before he tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday — the Yankees went to a bullpen game instead. A parade of nine relievers got the job done, combining for 11 innings in which they allowed just two runs (one earned) on nine hits and one walk.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

After a quiet first week since the Yankees landed him in a trade, Gallo had his coming-out party Thursday night in The Bronx. With some help from the short porch in right field, the slugger boomed a towering three-run homer in the seventh inning to lift the Yankees to a 5-3 win over the Mariners.

Gallo’s first homer as a Yankee — capping off a huge night that also included a pair of doubles that keyed prior rallies — looked like it might never come down, but when it did, it barely scraped over the wall.

The 331-foot Yankee Stadium special, hit off former Mets reliever Paul Sewald, turned a one-run deficit into a two-run lead as the Yankees (59-49) opened a critical four-game series against a fellow AL wild-card competitor in emphatic fashion. They moved to a season-high 10 games over .500 with their eighth win in the last 10 games.

The Mariners (58-52) arrived in The Bronx one game behind the Yankees in the wild-card race, with both teams trailing the Athletics for the final spot. With the win, the Yankees got within 1 ½ games of the idle A’s.

Gallo put the finishing touches on his night by catching a fly ball on the warning track in left field to help Aroldis Chapman — who allowed three-ball counts against all five batters he faced — to escape the ninth inning with runners stranded at the corners.

Gallo’s moonshot came a half-inning after former Mets prospect Jarred Kelenic had also visited the short porch to give the Mariners a 3-2 lead with a solo homer off Chad Green.

Entering the day, Gallo was 2-for-23 with two doubles in six games as a Yankee, watching as fellow trade-deadline acquisition Anthony Rizzo made an instant impact in every game. But Gallo joined the party on Thursday, going 3-for-4 with three clutch extra-base hits.

The left fielder had doubled in the second inning, moving Giancarlo Stanton to third so he could score on a sacrifice fly by Gleyber Torres for the 1-0 lead.

After the Mariners went ahead 2-1 on Nestor Cortes Jr. (five innings, two runs), Gallo led off the fourth inning with another double and eventually scored on a swinging bunt by Kyle Higashioka to tie the game.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

Gary Sanchez became the third Yankee to test positive for the virus this week, joining Gerrit Cole and Jordan Montgomery, manager Aaron Boone announced Thursday.

The 28-year-old Sanchez didn’t feel great leaving the stadium Wednesday night, according to Boone, and a rapid test Thursday came back positive.

The Yankees were awaiting the confirmation from a PCR test, but had Rob Brantly up from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in time to begin a series against the Mariners.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

But then home plate umpire Tom Hallion called strike two and gave LeMahieu another chance to come through in the clutch with his bat instead.

LeMahieu delivered, drilling a single up the middle to break a tie game in the seventh inning and send the Yankees to a 10-3 win over the Orioles on Wednesday night in The Bronx.

Jameson Taillon continued a strong run on the mound with a season-high 10 strikeouts in 6 ¹/₃ innings, leaving the game with a 3-3 tie before LeMahieu opened the floodgates to lift the Yankees (58-49) to their third straight series win. They won for the seventh time in their past nine games, keeping pace with the Athletics on Wednesday to stay two games back of the final playoff spot in the American League.

After a rough July, in which he had just three multi-hit games, four extra-base hits and six RBIs, LeMahieu is quickly making up for it in August. He went 3-for-5 with a double and four RBIs Wednesday, giving him back-to-back multi-hit nights, three extra-base hits and five RBIs over the last two games alone.

Soon after LeMahieu put the Yankees ahead 4-3 with his RBI single in the seventh, Giancarlo Stanton broke the game open with a bases-loaded bloop down the right-field line. Stanton’s double, which came off the bat at 74.5 mph for the king of exit velocity, cleared the bases and gave the Yankees a 7-3 lead.

Gleyber Torres notched his second RBI of the night with a double to cap off the seventh-inning rally before LeMahieu came through with a two-run double in the eighth.

Taillon built on a strong July and continued to thrive, pitching into the seventh inning and giving up only three runs (two earned). He had retired 10 straight batters before issuing his only walk of the night in the seventh inning, ending his night.

But Jonathan Loaisiga came on to keep the 3-3 game intact, getting out of the inning with a double play before the Yankees took the lead in the bottom half.

Making just his second career start at Yankee Stadium — the other coming as a Met in 2015 — Matt Harvey held the Yankees hitless through three innings.

But Anthony Rizzo, who drew a 13-pitch walk in his first at-bat after fouling off four balls that were hit deep enough to be home runs, finally straightened one out for the Yankees’ first hit in the fourth inning. The first baseman crushed a solo shot to right-center field, his first homer at Yankee Stadium as a Yankee. It made him the first player in franchise history — since the RBI became an official stat in 1920 — to record an RBI in each of his first six games with the team.

Rizzo’s homer also snapped a 21 ²/₃ innings scoreless streak for Harvey.

The Yankees then cut the deficit to 3-2 when Aaron Judge singled on a bloop to right field and later scored on a single by Torres. They tied it in the fourth off Cesar Valdez as Kyle Higashioka doubled and came around to score on LeMahieu’s single.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

Coming off a dismal loss and the news of two starting pitchers testing positive for COVID-19, the Yankees dusted themselves and enjoyed a laugher, crushing the Orioles 13-1 on Tuesday night in The Bronx. 

Led by two-hit nights from DJ LeMahieu, Anthony Rizzo, Giancarlo Stanton, Gary Sanchez and Gleyber Torres — after the entire lineup mustered just three total hits Monday — the offense exploded for a season-high in runs on 15 hits to provide Luis Gil plenty of cushion in his MLB debut. 

The 23-year-old Gil, called up earlier on Tuesday to start for the COVID-19-positive Gerrit Cole, hardly needed all the support, firing six shutout innings for a strong first impression. The right-hander gave up just four singles and a walk while striking out six on 88 pitches. 

The Yankees (57-49) won for the sixth time in eight games — and 16 out of 24 — including a 4-1 mark since adding a trade-deadline haul headlined by Rizzo and Joey Gallo. 

On a day when they learned Jordan Montgomery would join Cole on the COVID-19 injured list, putting a dent in their rotation as they chase a playoff spot, the Yankees got nine innings from a trio of pitchers who were still in Triple-A on Monday night. Stephen Ridings and Brody Koerner joined Gil in making their MLB debuts Tuesday, with Ridings striking out three and Koerner tossing two innings to close out the win. 

The Yankees gave Gil a lead to work with in the second inning. After Sanchez singled with two outs, he scored from first on a double to the gap by Torres. 

Gil responded with a quick third inning before the Yankees piled on with five runs in the bottom of the frame. 

Greg Allen got the rally started when he was hit by a pitch and came around to score on LeMahieu’s double to the gap. Rizzo came up next and continued to produce in his new uniform, lining a single up the middle. LeMahieu stopped at third, but Cedric Mullins’ throw from center field hit second base and bounced away, allowing LeMahieu to score for the 3-0 lead. 

After Aaron Judge singled, Stanton lined another single up the middle to plate Rizzo. Sanchez then roped a double to left field to make it 5-0 and chase Orioles starter Alexander Wells from the game. 

Torres capped off the big inning with a sacrifice fly, which put the Yankees ahead 6-0. 

Stanton padded the lead in the fourth when he cracked a three-run home run — his first since July 20 — to make it 9-0. 

After the Orioles scratched across a run in the top of the eighth on Koerner, the Yankees finished off the blowout with four runs in the bottom half. Tyler Wade ripped a two-run double, Rizzo grounded out to notch an RBI in his fifth straight game as a Yankee and Judge hit a solo homer.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

A day after Gerrit Cole tested positive for the virus, Jordan Montgomery also tested positive for COVID-19, general manager Brian Cashman said Tuesday on WFAN.

Both pitchers are expected to be out at least 10 days unless they test negative twice before then.

The Yankees also had six players test positive for COVID-19 coming out of the All-Star break — including Aaron Judge, Gio Urshela and Kyle Higashioka — and seven members of the coaching and support staff test positive in May.

Cole, who was scheduled to start Tuesday’s game against the Orioles, will be replaced by prospect Luis Gil. It was not immediately clear who would take Montgomery’s spot in the rotation, though Nestor Cortes Jr. remains an option.

The Yankees also have Domingo German (shoulder inflammation) on the 10-day injured list and Corey Kluber (shoulder strain) and Luis Severino (Tommy John surgery, groin strain) on the 60-day IL.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

Right-hander Luis Gil, the Yankees’ No. 6 prospect per MLB.com, will be called up to start Tuesday against the Orioles in The Bronx, the team announced. Gerrit Cole was originally scheduled to start but tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday.

Manager Aaron Boone said Monday night that Nestor Cortes Jr. would likely start in Cole’s place, but the Yankees instead are going with Gil. Tuesday will be his first taste of the MLB.

The 23-year-old Dominican Republic native, who hadn’t pitched above High-A before this year, began the season with Double-A Somerset and recorded a 2.64 ERA across seven starts.

By the middle of June, he was promoted to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he had a 5.64 ERA through eight starts — which included throwing the first six innings of a no-hitter on July 21.

Gil’s most recent start for the RailRiders last Tuesday was the worst of his season (at either level), as he gave up six runs on two hits, four walks and two hit batters in 1 ⅓ innings while throwing 54 pitches.

He was scheduled to start again Sunday for the RailRiders but the game was rained out before an off day Monday.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

After Dominic Smith tied the game in the ninth inning with the Mets down to their last strike, Drury won it for them in the 10th on a walk-off single to complete the comeback in a 5-4 win over the Reds at Citi Field.

Drury, in the lineup for the slumping Michael Conforto, scored automatic runner Kevin Pillar from second and improved to 11-for-15 since being recalled from Triple-A on July 24, setting off a wild celebration on the field.

Edwin Diaz flirted with danger in the top of the 10th. He allowed the automatic runner to take third with a wild pitch and then walked Jesse Winker with no outs. But he came back to strike out Kyle Farmer and Joey Votto before getting Tyler Naquin to fly out to end the frame.

The Mets (55-48) snapped a two-game skid on a night when Baez, acquired from the Cubs before Friday’s trade deadline, debuted with a two-run homer in the sixth inning.

Baez had a chance to play hero in the ninth, coming to the plate as the game-winning run with a runner on first and no outs. Luis Guillorme, who pinch-ran for Jeff McNeil, moved to second on a wild pitch during Baez’s at-bat, but Heath Hembree rebounded to strike out Baez on a slider outside the zone with a full count.

Hembree then struck out James McCann before the Reds called on lefty Sean Doolittle to face the left-handed hitting Smith.

But Smith has hit lefties well this season and continued that trend, poking a single to center field to score Guillorme from second and tie the game at four.

Baez’s two-run homer in the sixth inning got Citi Field on its feet and chanting his name — leading to his curtain call — but it could have been even bigger. One batter earlier, Jonathan Villar had gotten picked off second base for the first out of the inning. It loomed large as Baez’s 412-foot shot to left field only cut the deficit to 4-3 instead of tying the game at four.

Making his second start for the Mets since being acquired in a trade from the Rays, Rich Hill largely cruised through the first three innings before running into trouble in his final two innings. He gave up four runs — all of them coming with two outs — across five innings. The 41-year-old lefty has now allowed seven runs in his first 10 innings as a Met.

With a runner on first and two outs in the fourth inning, Hill got hurt with two strikes. He walked Aristides Aquino on a full count before his 2-2 pitch to Eugenio Suarez got crushed into the second deck in left field for a three-run home run that put the Mets into a 3-1 hole.

The Reds threatened for more as Hill followed by hitting his second batter of the night and giving up a double to Shogo Akiyama. But Dominic Smith saved Hill and the Mets from further damage, stranding the runners at second and third with a sliding shoestring catch in left field to end the inning.

The Reds tacked on another run in the fifth inning as Farmer crushed a solo shot off Hill for the 4-1 lead.

Votto nearly entered the record books in the eighth inning off Seth Lugo. He roped a long fly ball to right field that hit off the top of the wall, just narrowly missing what would have been a home run in an eighth straight game — which stands as the MLB record by Don Mattingly, Ken Griffey Jr. and Dale Long.

Instead, Votto settled for a single that put runners on the corners with no outs. Lugo came back to strike out the next two batters before Aaron Loup relieved him and got out of the threat by picking off a runner.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

The club’s big trade deadline prize arrived in Queens less than 24 hours after being dealt by the Cubs and jumped right into the Mets’ playoff chase, batting cleanup and playing shortstop in his Citi Field debut against the Reds.

Wearing a bright orange Mets shirt, Baez took early batting practice Saturday afternoon to familiarize himself with his new home and was looking forward to embracing the big stage.

“It’s just the way that I play,” Baez said. “I play the same way and I’m the same guy every day. I try to bring that energy to the team, to the clubhouse. There’s not much to say, I just gotta be me, go out there and compete and play hard.

“I know New York’s got great fans. I’ve been seeing it from the other side. Hopefully they’re really excited to have me because I’m really excited to help the team and bring my energy here.”

Baez will play predominantly shortstop until his longtime friend, Francisco Lindor, returns from his oblique injury — potentially by mid-to-late August — at which point he could move around the infield. That figures to include a heavy dose of second base, with manager Luis Rojas calling the idea of Lindor and Baez up the middle “mind-blowing.”

Whether that turns into a double-play tandem for years to come with the Mets remains to be seen. Lindor signed a 10-year extension on the eve of Opening Day, after being traded from the Indians in the offseason, but Baez is currently set to become a free agent after this season.

“We’ll see how everything goes,” Baez said of his interest in playing for the Mets beyond the next two-plus months. “I’m obviously trying to get to know the other guys and trying to be as close as I can and learn from the guys and see what happens. … I know we’re in first place and hopefully we go deep in the playoffs and see what happens next year.”

Though Baez will have to wait a few more weeks to actually play next to Lindor, his excitement was hardly tampered. The duo began playing against each other as kids in their native Puerto Rico, then again as high schoolers in Florida before eventually being picked eighth (Lindor) and ninth (Baez) in the 2011 MLB Draft. They have remained close and were in frequent contact on Friday as the trade — which also sent pitcher Trevor Williams to the Mets for prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong — went down.

“I’m super excited. I couldn’t be happier,” Lindor said. “I’m going to be playing alongside a good friend of mine, a great person, a great baseball player and somebody that’s going to help us win. … I can’t wait for him to come out here and put up a show for everybody.”

In 91 games this season for the Cubs, Baez was hitting .248 with a 108 OPS-plus, 22 home runs, 13 steals, 15 walks and a league-leading 131 strikeouts. He had also been dealing with a recent heel injury, but Rojas said Baez described it as “nagging” instead of him being injured.

Baez said leaving Chicago was emotional — especially being part of the core that was traded away this week, along with Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant — after coming up with the organization and winning a World Series in 2016. But he also said he was ready to move on and help his new team chase another championship in New York.

“Very impressed with his demeanor,” Rojas said. “All he talks about is winning, so he comes right with our mindset. We’re all very excited that he’s here.”

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

Jacob deGrom, who has been on the injured list since July 15 with elbow inflammation, has further inflammation in his right arm and will be shut down for two weeks.

DeGrom had thrown a 36-pitch bullpen session on Thursday — his second light side session since originally being shut down — but it will be his last action until mid-August as the Mets will try to maintain their spot atop the NL East without him.

The two-time Cy Young winner was putting together a historically dominant season with a 1.08 ERA through 15 starts. He last pitched on July 7.

Before the elbow inflammation, deGrom had experienced multiple injury scares this season elsewhere in his body, though none of them proved to be as serious as this one.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

Brandon Drury came off the pine and delivered a pinch-hit, go-ahead home run in the seventh inning to send the Mets to a 2-1 win over the Braves at Citi Field.

Michael Conforto’s arm saved the game in the ninth inning. After closer Edwin Diaz allowed a leadoff double to Abraham Almonte, pinch-hitter Ehire Adrianza cracked a one-out single to right field. Almonte raced from second to home, but Conforto threw a strike to James McCann, who slapped on the tag for the second out.

Diaz then got pinch-hitter Pablo Sandoval to fly out to left field to secure the win.

Tylor Megill had set the stage for Drury’s homer, tossing 5 ¹/₃ strong innings of one-run baseball, and Jeurys Familia made sure it stood up by coming out of the bullpen to put out another fire in the eighth inning.

With the win, the Mets (54-46) evened the series two games apiece heading into Thursday’s finale and pushed their lead atop the NL East to four games over the Phillies and five games over the Braves (50-52).

Drury’s winning blast off Braves starter Max Fried was just the latest addition to his red-hot week. Since being called up from Triple-A Syracuse on Saturday, Drury is 6-for-6 with two home runs and two doubles. He was also 3-for-3 Tuesday after double-switching into the game in the fourth inning.

Overall this season with the Mets, Drury is 7-for-15 with three home runs as a pinch hitter.

The Braves had tied the game at one in the sixth inning on a solo shot from Austin Riley, the lone blemish on Megill’s night. Riley’s third homer in two nights snapped Megill’s scoreless streak at 17 ²/₃ innings, but the right-hander continued to impress and give the Mets some much-needed consistency.

Megill, who struck out six, walked one and gave up five hits, has now allowed one or no runs in each of his last four starts. The 26-year-old lowered his ERA to 2.04 in the first seven starts of his MLB career.

Seth Lugo relieved Megill and needed just three pitches to record the final two outs of the inning before Trevor May threw a scoreless seventh.

Aaron Loup entered for the eighth and gave up back-to-back singles before inducing a Freddie Freeman comebacker for the first out, which moved runners to second and third.

Luis Rojas then called on Familia, who once again delivered in a big spot. Familia struck out Riley on a sinker in the dirt before getting Dansby Swanson to ground out to end the threat.

Jeff McNeil had given the Mets a 1-0 lead in the third inning. He extended his career-high hitting streak to 15 games with a single through the left side, which scored Megill after the pitcher started the rally with a two-out single.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

Jerad Eickhoff, who last week was designated for assignment by the Mets for the second time this season, re-signed with the team on Tuesday and served as a punching bag for 3 ¹/₃ innings.

With the Mets in need of fresh arms, Eickhoff recorded only 10 outs while getting shelled for 10 runs by the Braves in a 12-5 loss at Citi Field.

In an important five-game series leading into Friday’s trade deadline, the Mets (53-46) have now lost two of the first three games to the Braves (50-51), who they are trying to push further down the standings in the NL East. Instead the Braves inched back to four games behind the first-place Mets.

The Mets had already asked their bullpen to handle a heavy workload of late, which was part of the reason why Eickhoff remained in the game as long as he did. Mets relievers were responsible for covering nine innings in Monday’s doubleheader, including all seven in the nightcap, a bullpen game.

Making his first start since July 19 — he was designated for assignment the next day and elected free agency, only to land back with the Mets on Tuesday — Eickhoff got tagged for three home runs and walked five batters (one intentional), all of which came around to score. He began his night by hitting the first batter he faced and it didn’t get much better from there.

The Braves scored two runs in each of the first three innings — including two-run homers by Ozzie Albies and Abraham Almonte — before delivering the knockout punch in the fourth to finally put Eickhoff out of his misery.

Braves pitcher Charlie Morton led off the inning with a single, followed by an Ehire Adrianza double. Eickhoff then struck out Albies before intentionally walking Freddie Freeman to load the bases and set up a potential double play.

But Eickhoff’s next pitch never even touched the ground, instead getting smoked to the left-field seats by Austin Riley for a grand slam that put the Braves up 10-1.

Dansby Swanson then rocketed another single off Eickhoff, at which point manager Luis Rojas mercifully pulled him after 80 pitches.

Yennsy Diaz relieved Eickhoff and threw the next 2 ²/₃ innings before Drew Smith (two innings) and Anthony Banda finished the game.

Jeff McNeil extended his hitting streak to a career-high 14 games in the fifth inning when he crushed a two-run homer off Morton to make it 10-3.

Riley answered back in the sixth inning with his second home run of the night, clobbering a Diaz changeup for a two-run shot that put the Braves ahead 12-3.

Brandon Drury, who was double-switched into the game in the fourth inning when Eickhoff came out, ripped a two-run home run of his own in the seventh inning off Edgar Santana to get the Mets within 12-5.

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce

What already looked like a long shot has turned into more of a Hail Mary, as the Nationals have notified the Mets that Scherzer, the three-time Cy Young Award winner who can be a free agent this winter, didn’t want to play for them, as first reported by SNY. Multiple sources indicate that the 37-year-old, who as a 10-and-5 player (10 years in the major leagues, five or more years with his current club) can fully control his destiny, would prefer to join one of the National League’s West Coast teams, particularly the Dodgers or Padres, by Friday afternoon’s trade deadline.

Even if Scherzer expressed more of an openness to joining the Mets, the Nats themselves were not keen on aiding their National League East rival, a second source said, nor did they see a fit with the Yankees on trade chips.

So the Mets will keep searching elsewhere. A scout of theirs attended Monday night’s Tigers-Twins game in Minnesota to watch impending free agent Michael Pineda start for the Twins. Another Twins right-hander, Jose Berrios, remains an intriguing option. But the Twins’ asking price for him would be hefty since he is under contract through 2022.

The Phillies appeared to take one possible Mets target off the table Tuesday when they reportedly agreed to a deal for Pirates lefty Tyler Anderson. But the deal reportedly hit a snag because of a medical hold-up with one of the two minor leaguers the Phillies were set to send back to Pittsburgh. Other free-agents-to-be like Rockies right-hander Jon Gray and Cubs right-hander Zach Davies could also be options ahead of Friday’s deadline.

Internally, the Mets are enjoying better news on the starting pitching front. Carlos Carrasco is in line to make his Mets debut Friday against the Reds at Citi Field, roughly three hours after the 4 p.m. trade deadline. Coming back from a torn hamstring, he will join the rotation with Taijuan Walker, Marcus Stroman, Rich Hill and Tylor Megill as the Mets wait for Jacob deGrom (forearm tightness) to return, with Noah Syndergaard (Tommy John surgery) a possible September addition.

“We’re pretty optimistic that he’s going to make that start for us Friday,” manager Luis Rojas said Tuesday, before hosting the Braves, as Carrasco threw a side session. “He’s in great shape, he feels great. Everyone is on the same page that he’s ready to make his start with us. So we’re set for Friday.”

Syndergaard also threw off the bullpen mound Tuesday, his first time off the slope since having his rehab assignment cut short in May because of elbow inflammation.

“I was looking forward to this day,” Rojas said. “He was too. He’s been pumped up. He’s been working hard and doing everything.”

The last time the Mets had five healthy starters — not including stopgaps like Tuesday’s starter Jerad Eickhoff, Robert Stock or Corey Oswalt — was June 30, when David Peterson strained his oblique. Since then, deGrom has also joined him on the IL, though he was scheduled to another light side session Tuesday as he continued to work his way back.

— Additional reporting by Joel Sherman

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce