Over the years, the Mets have not been particularly adept at supporting Jacob deGrom, who won consecutive National League Cy Young Awards despite a total of 21 wins in those two seasons.
Perhaps they were saving it all for this month. Two nights after the Braves broke a modern National League record with 29 runs and the Brewers scored 19, the Mets added to baseball’s blowout trend with an 18-1 win over the Blue Jays on Friday in Buffalo, N.Y. The Mets broke out for 10 runs in the fourth inning, relying on a Dominic Smith grand slam as they took advantage of multiple Blue Jays miscues on defense.
In doing so, the team gave deGrom more support than in any previous game in his career. The Mets also backed deGrom with 14 runs in his last start, marking the second time they have supported a pitcher with 14-plus runs in consecutive starts. Sid Fernandez was the beneficiary of the first such occurrence, back in 1992.
6️⃣ strong from de?. ? #LGM pic.twitter.com/vbwRR1Hx3o
— New York Mets (@Mets) September 12, 2020
“It’s been a long time coming,” outfielder Michael Conforto said. “For him to just go out there and be able to pitch his game and do his thing, it’s been great.”
The offense came from every corner of the box score. Conforto hit a three-run homer. Wilson Ramos — nicknamed “Buffalo” and playing in Buffalo — finished 3-for-5 with a homer, two doubles, four RBIs and four runs scored. Robinson Canó rapped out three hits.
No. 9️⃣ on the year for @mconforto8. ? #LGM pic.twitter.com/u8WfhnvUBR
— New York Mets (@Mets) September 11, 2020
The ? goes deep in Buffalo. #LGM pic.twitter.com/LlCG9lO9w3
— New York Mets (@Mets) September 12, 2020
But nothing was so impactful as what unfolded in the fourth. After the Mets loaded the bases with no outs against their ex-teammate Anthony Kay, J.D. Davis hit a grounder to shortstop, where Santiago Espinal fielded and threw home. Catcher Danny Jansen missed the catch, allowing a run to score.
Moments later, Smith crushed a 402-foot grand slam to right-center field and the Mets never looked back. They sent 14 men to the plate in the fifth.
4️⃣-run Dom ?! #LGM pic.twitter.com/SlnNZB3hfx
— New York Mets (@Mets) September 12, 2020
“I wanted them to keep scoring runs — score as many as they could,” deGrom said. “There wasn’t a time where I was like, ‘OK, this is enough.’ I wanted them to go out there and put together good at-bats, and keep scoring runs.”
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].