Heroes, zeros and the inside pitch from the Mets’ 6-5 win over the Yankees on Friday afternoon in the Subway Series in Queens:
Hero
Jeff McNeil smoked a two-run homer off Luke Weaver with two outs in the bottom of the seventh that gave the Mets the lead for good.
McNeil, showcasing his flexibility by playing second base, made an outstanding diving catch on DJ LeMahieu’s gentle liner that looked destined for right field as a single with one out in the top of the ninth inning.
Zero
Weaver, who performed exceptionally well last year and at the beginning of this season until a hamstring injury benched him, has conceded a home run and several runs in each of his past three games.
And they’ve all come in defeats.
Unsung hero
Can a player with a $765 million contract fly under the radar? Perhaps not, yet McNeil’s late-game brilliance eclipsed Juan Soto’s strong start, which was crucial in keeping the Mets competitive.
He homered in the bottom of the first to tie the game and doubled and scored in the third to begin to put his past miserable Subway Series showing in The Bronx behind him.
Key stat
4 Consecutive losses in which the Yankees have allowed at least six runs and three homers.
Quote of the day
“I think if you back us into a corner, we’re gonna fight our way out of it.’’
— Reed Garrett
