The New York Mets beat the Texas Rangers on Wednesday night by a score of 6-5 as D.J. Stewart won the game in the ninth inning with a walk-off hit by pitch.
In addition to that, Stewart also hit two home runs, giving him nine for the season, and he had four RBIs in the win.
It’s a hot streak for Stewart, who is doing something the Mets haven’t seen since 2016.
DJ Stewart is the 1st Mets player with 8+ HR in a 13-game span since Neil Walker in April 2016
Stewart is in his first year in New York after spending parts of five seasons with the Baltimore Orioles.
He’s played in 36 games for the Mets and made an offensive impact, mainly due to injury to Starling Marte and the trading away of Mark Canha and Eduardo Escobar.
The 29-year-old is hitting .279 this year, above his career average of .222.
When the DJ Stewart Game was over, the Mets had stolen a 6-5 win from the Rangers at Citi Field on Wednesday, where 23,849 chanted a name, they did not know a few months ago.
“It was awesome,” Stewart said of the serenade. “It’s been a tough year for us as a team, but you enjoy those little moments.”
The Mets had blown an early three-run lead and were down two when Stewart went to work in the eighth. His second home run of the night, a two-run shot, tied the game.
“There’ll be some crime-scene tape in right field Friday,” manager Buck Showalter said after the Mets (61-73) avoided a sweep and won for the second time in their past eight games. “Poor wall. The wall lost.”
The Mets survived until the bottom of the 10th when they loaded the bases against Aroldis Chapman.
The former Yankee drilled Stewart with a 96-mph fastball to give the Mets a welt and a win.
Stewart, a first-round pick of Showalter’s Orioles in 2015, is mounting an argument that he is a late-blooming prospect worth watching.
He hit well at Triple-A Syracuse, watched the Mets disassemble at the trade deadline, and has come up and performed quickly.
Stewart scored eight home runs in the past 13 games, boosting his OPS to 1.015.
Maybe this is a flash that will die down.
Stewart himself acknowledged that “streaks like this don’t always last.” But he and the Mets will enjoy it as long as the ride continues.
“I love New York,” Stewart said. “I enjoy being here. My family enjoys it. I’m hoping I do enough to stay here.”
After the win, the Mets are 61-73 for the year.
The loss dropped the Rangers to 75-58, and they are 1.0 games back in the race for the American League West crown.
The Mets will be off on Thursday before taking on the Seattle Mariners for a series beginning Friday.
