New York Mets Home Opener at Citi Field, 2025.
Photo by Gabrielle Raucci, On NJ Sports

Even in the Rain, These Mets Don’t Melt: Recapping the Storybook Sweep at Citi Field

The New York Mets returned from their Opening Day road trip to chilly temperatures, rain, and some uncertainty after some hard-fought wins and close-game losses. But on their home turf of Citi Field, the Kings of Queens erased every ounce of skepticism with a shutout sweep of the Toronto Blue Jays.

A three-game punch that opened with Pete Alonso’s thunder pivoted on Jesse Winker’s (and Francisco Lindor’s) bat and closed with bullpen dominance in what looked like frictionless cold-weather composure.

This was a weekend of win-no-matter-what baseball, and with the energy (and temperature), it felt almost like a playoff run.

Here’s the series breakdown.

Friday: Pete Set the Tone, MeGill Set the Table

Final: Mets 5, Blue Jays 0

Tylor Megill continues to be efficient, composed, and flat-out dominant.

He tossed 5.1 shutout innings against a potent Blue Jays lineup, allowing just two hits while working the top of the zone with a lively fastball and keeping hitters off balance with a well-spotted slider.

His extension down the mound was exceptional, giving his pitches extra life and deception, especially late in counts. Through two starts, he owns a 0.87 ERA, and it’s not a fluke. Megill is “inevitable” and has put in the work to be one of the Mets’ most reliable arms.

My Girl Sing-Along, The Best Tradition in Baseball

One of the best traditions in baseball was back in full voice this weekend: every time Francisco Lindor stepped to the plate, Citi Field echoed “My Girl” by The Temptations. It’s been his walk-up song for some time now, but there’s something about hearing 40,000 fans sing it in unison that never gets old—a perfect anthem for the Mets’ heartbeat and de facto captain. 

Alonso’s Home Run and Heartfelt Homecoming

Pete Alonso’s first swing back in Queens was a thunderous welcome home—a first-inning home run that wasn’t just early fireworks—it was a laser diagnosis of his locked-in state. On a 1-2 count, Kevin Gausman challenged him with a low and away 95 mph fastball vulnerably out of the zone.

Alonso stayed on it and launched it 377 feet into right field, capitalizing on his now refined and frankly exemplary plate disciple.  It was the fourth time in his career he’d homered on a two-strike pitch outside the zone.

 
After launching his two-run shot, he stepped out of the dugout for a curtain call—a moment of pure connection between the face of the franchise and the fans who never stopped believing he’d be back in orange and blue.

Soto SZN Loading

Juan Soto drove in Lindor (a sentence I will never get tired of typing) on an RBI double to right field in the bottom of the sixth—it was his first hit at Citi Field as a Met.

 

Mason Fluharty intentionally walked Alonso with Soto already at second, allowing Brandon Nimmo and Starling Marte to cash in with an RBI double and sac fly, turning a 3-0 lead into a 5-0 ballgame.

In relief, Reed Garrett, A.J. Minter, and Max Kranick combined for 3.2 no-hit innings.

The Mets held it down–Soto’s electric introduction, Alonso’s heartfelt homecoming, and bullpen shutdown truly set the tone for this series.

Saturday: Girl Dad Jesse Winker’s Wheels Ignite Walk-Off

Final: Mets 3, Blue Jays 2

Griffin Canning continues to put on a Cy Young campaign. He pitched four complete innings with only three walks and one run and punched out six. Despite a shortened outing, he truly looked solid early on, mixing his pitches well and escaping a pair of jams with poise before a couple of hits given up to Alan Roden and Bo Bichette had Carlos Mendoza calling on José Buttó.

Thank You, John Schneider, For Yanking Chris Bassitt

The Blue Jays’ pitching was pretty effective in keeping the Mets’ bats flat through the middle innings. Chris Bassitt retired nine in his six-inning outing, and New York collected only four hits in his start. Jesse Winker’s piping hot bat can allot for two off Bassitt in his 3-4 total night.

He doubled off him in the second on a 2-2 count 83 mph changeup to left field, but the Mets couldn’t capitalize on it just yet.

In the fourth, Winker pulled another base hit, a triple to center field on a sweet-spot four-seamer from Bassit, but he couldn’t be brought in to break up a scoreless game. Up until this point, the Mets had gone 0-10 with RISP.

Already with a double and triple in his pocket, Winker (again, I know) stepped in for his fourth at-bat in the eighth inning to deliver his biggest swing of the night. Turning on a 1-2 hanging curveball from Brendon Little, he crushed the ball 361 feet to right for a two-run triple that tied the game.

 

Díaz’s First Narco Entrance of 2025

 

Having entered the game to relieve José Buttó in the sixth, Huascar Brazobán held it down for an additional 2.1 innings to keep things from unraveling and, more importantly, the Mets within striking distance.

Riding the momentum from the high-energy eight, closer Edwin Díaz debuted his first “Narco” entrance at Citi Field this season. He was truly electric in the ninth, shutting the door with three Ks. Of the 24 pitches he tossed, 15 of them strikes. 

Perfectly Positioned for a Classic Lindor Walk-Off

Then, in perfectly timed cinematic captainship, the first pitch—87 mph slider—Francisco Lindor lifted a sac fly to center for the Mets’ first walk-off of the season.

 

Miss Wren Winker, Certified Heart-Stealer

After delivering the game-tying triple and helping spark the Mets’ first walk-off win of the season, Jesse spoke to the media while holding his daughter Wren.

With the energy of a hard-fought comeback still hanging in the air, he reflected on the moment—a night full of emotion, clutch swings, and the kind of electricity that makes Citi Field feel like home in April—highlighting the lift that fan engagement provides during games, 

“They were loud all night. The countdown with the pitch clock is amazing. We’re gonna need them all year.”

 

While Jesse’s performance on the field was undoubtedly impressive, it was Wren who stole our hearts on Saturday night.

 

“I always tell people there’s two things I want to do. It’s be my daughter’s father and play baseball,” he said as she hugged him.

Sunday: Shutdown Relief, Just Enough Offense

Final: Mets 2, Blue Jays 1

David Peterson looked sharp and punched out three over 4.2 innings, with a command that bordered on flawless through the first four.

 

His fastball was up and away, and his slider dove down and off the plate. He walked five, but three came during his ill-fated and rather early final frame in the fourth. He exited after a double, two walks, and a hit-by-pitch.

Mets Manager Carlos Mendoza confirmed postgame that he’s physically fine, but his outing was cut short due to nausea.

Don’t Panic, Call for Kranick

Max Kranick entered the bases-loaded jam and got a foul popout to end it. 

 

Offensively, Alonso delivered his usual clutchness to move the guys around the bases. In the third, he stayed back on a 73 mph curveball from Bowden Francis and shot it back up the middle to score Hayden Senger, who had walked.

 

Brandon Nimmo followed with a sac fly to center on a 92.3 mph four-seamer—the game-winner.

Edwin Díaz, Lights Out

In his second appearance in as many nights. Díaz showcased why he’s one of the best closers in the league.

Tagging in after A.J. Minter’s 2K inning, He looked cool, calm, and collected, locked-and-loaded with a slider with bite and a fastball with carry. Díaz collected the final out, having gotten Vlademier Guerrero Jr. to ground out on a 99.1 mph slider to end it after working around two HBP.

 

Let’s Talk Bullpen

Reed Garrett, Max Kranick, and Huascar Brazobzán this season:

  • 18.1 IP
  • 0.00 ERA
  • 0.44 WHIP
  • 16 inherited runners
  • 0 scored

Max Kranick individually: 21 of 22 batters retired. He is the Reliever’s Reliever.

 This Mets bullpen has been nothing short of elite to open the season, and this series was their clearest statement yet.

José Buttó, Reed Garrett, Max Kranick, A.J. Minter, and Huascar Brazobán—the deepest bullpen the Mets have had in recent years—have consistently slammed the door, stringing together high-leverage zeros and giving the offense time to breathe—and strike.

Across the three-game sweep, they held the Blue Jays to just one run over 12.2 innings, stranding every inherited runner and controlling the pace of every late inning.

That dominance kept Toronto quiet long enough for the Mets’ lineup to cash in on late-game opportunities—whether it was Winker’s eighth-inning triple, Lindor’s walk-off sac fly, or Díaz finishing games with upper-90s heat and unhittable sweep.

They are the timekeepers, making sure the Mets are never running out of it.

Key Takeaways:

  • Mets outscored Toronto 10–3 over the weekend
  • Held the Jays to one run total in Games 1 and 3
  • Two comeback wins, One shutout
  • Bullpen allowed zero earned runs in 12.2 innings this series

 

While Juan Soto hasn’t fully caught fire in the box just yet— but the swings are getting louder, and the contact’s getting cleaner—his defense and baserunning have made significant impacts in many games thus far. There is no reason to believe he’s off to a cold start when every time he’s gotten something middle-in, he’s laced it.

 

Mark Vientos and Lindor both snapped out of early funks this weekend—Vientos with a much-needed single to break an 0-for-17 slump and Lindor with a walk-off sac fly and sharper ABs all around. 

 

Alonso is back to his opposite-field, no-chase, barrel-everything version, and it’s only a matter of time before we see Jesse’s #grillz in the clubhouse.

About the Author

Gabrielle Raucci
Lead Writer, New York Mets

Gabrielle Raucci is the New York Mets Lead Writer at ONNJ Sports, serving as your primary source for all coverage from Flushing, Queens—delivered with a touch of satirical humor. A native of the Hudson Valley, she studied Business and Marketing at Marist College.

With her experience in Minor League Baseball promotions, Gabrielle offers an insightful—often sarcastic—and entertaining perspective on Mets baseball as a lifelong fan.

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