Senga Silences St. Louis, Scolding Hot Alonso Adds Insurance as Mets Blank Cards Again
Under the glare of an 83-degree April sun, the Mets pitched their way to a third straight win, taking down the Cardinals 3-0 on Saturday afternoon at Citi Field. Kodai Senga set the tone with five and two-thirds innings of tightrope-walking, scoreless brilliance, while Pete Alonso continued his MVP-caliber campaign with a double and a no-doubter.
Senga’s (Scoreless) Saturday
Senga’s command wasn’t razor-sharp, but the forkball bailed him out more than once. He danced through danger in the second after a walk and double, freezing Nolan Gorman on three straight splitters before inducing a routine flyout to center.
A leadoff double and wild pitch in the fifth set up another mess, but Senga fanned Gorman again and then got a perfect read from Brett Baty, just inserted into the game for Mark Vientos, who exited with groin discomfort, who fired home to cut down a run on contact. Luis Torrens held the tag like he was guarding a safe.
Reed’s Relief
In the sixth, a Francisco Lindor-Luisangel Acuña double play nearly got Senga out clean again, but a hit-by-pitch to Arenado ended his day after 5.2 innings. Reed Garrett came in and casually got the final out like he’d been waiting for it all afternoon, slashing Senga’s ERA to a pristine 0.79 while he himself remains scoreless.
Soto Sizzling
Juan Soto got the Mets on the board in the third with a clean RBI single to score Acuña, followed by Alonso lacing his ninth double to plate Soto for a 2-0 edge. Matthew Liberatore kept the Mets quiet otherwise, working into the seventh with six strikeouts.
Alonso’s Sixth Homer Seals the Deal
Alonso tacked on an eighth-inning exclamation point with his sixth homer of the year—an opposite-field shot to the Party City deck. He’s now slashing an impressive .356/.474/.746 with a 1.220 OPS and 23 RBI for 2025, and he is truly on a tear.
Oh my god Pete Alonso destroyed this baseball
113.4 mph off the bat and 443 feet to the second deck pic.twitter.com/J7wWjdixI8
— Joe DeMayo (@PSLToFlushing) April 19, 2025
A.J. Minter walked a tightrope in the eighth with three free passes but escaped, and Edwin Díaz shut the door with two strikeouts and his fifth save.
First Place Mets Are 8-1 at Home
The Mets improve to 14-7 behind another all-around team win. Vientos exited early but told reporters postgame he wasn’t overly concerned. Meanwhile, Baty extended his hit streak to six games and delivered with the glove in a pivotal spot—another productive day for the next man up.
Happy Birthday Mr. Met
In front of a festive crowd of over 42,000, Mr. Met celebrated his birthday in style. Fans received a special Empire State Building bobblehead, and the beloved mascot even clinched victory in the newly introduced Five Boroughs Mascot Race, edging out his borough-themed competitors in front of a packed house.
Looking Forward to Sunday Sweep
The Mets will go for the sweep on Sunday as they wrap up their series against St. Louis, riding momentum from dominant pitching, timely hitting, and a surging crowd energy that’s starting to feel like midseason.
With the rotation locked in and the lineup clicking around Alonso and Soto, New York has a chance to cap off a statement weekend at Citi Field before welcoming their rival Phillies to town.
