MILWAUKEE — Pete Alonso had a rough start to what might have been his final game with the New York Mets, but everything changed with one powerful swing. The slugger emerged from a slump by hitting a three-run homer off closer Devin Williams in the ninth inning, leading the Mets to a 4-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers in the deciding game of their NL Wild Card Series.
This monumental hit made Alonso the first player in Major League history to hit a go-ahead homer when his team was trailing in the ninth inning or later of a winner-take-all postseason game. “It’s just something you practice in the backyard as a kid,” Alonso remarked. “You go through those scenarios as a little kid: All right, you’re in the playoffs down by a few runs. Words can’t explain. This is just unreal.”
With this win, Alonso and the Mets advance to the best-of-five Division Series, set to begin Saturday in Philadelphia against the NL East champion Phillies.
The evening took a tense turn for Alonso after the Brewers took a 2-0 lead in the seventh with homers from Jake Bauers and Sal Frelick. Milwaukee was poised to extend their lead with runners at second and third and two outs when William Contreras hit a foul pop-up that Alonso could not catch against the protective netting. However, the rally would stall as Edwin Díaz struck out Contreras to end the inning.
In the ninth, the Mets were down by two when Francisco Lindor walked and Brandon Nimmo singled, setting the stage for Alonso. The 29-year-old has hit 226 home runs in six seasons with the Mets, including a record 53 in his rookie year of 2019. Despite struggling near the end of the season and lacking an extra-base hit since a homer on September 19, Alonso’s teammates encouraged him, saying he was just one swing away from breaking out.
As the impending free agent approached the plate in the ninth, he understood it might be his last at-bat in a Mets uniform. He made it count, launching a 3-1 changeup from Williams over the right-field wall. “As soon as I hit it I was like, ‘Oh yeah, nobody’s catching that,’” Alonso stated.
Emotions ran high as Alonso celebrated, even making a “chef’s kiss” gesture as he rounded first base. The Mets added an insurance run and closed out the game. His teammate Nimmo reflected on the weight of pressure that Alonso had likely been feeling during his slump and the emotional release of finally coming through for the team.
During the post-game celebration, Alonso humorously introduced a “playoff pumpkin,” a prop he and his wife found at a farm near Milwaukee. “Nothing’s more fall than playoff baseball and pumpkins,” he joked.
With his crucial homer, the Mets are poised to continue their postseason journey, potentially extending their run well into Halloween.