Mets takeaways from 7-2 win over Cardinals, including a big night for role players

Jonathan Villar, Kevin Pillar, and Tomas Nido all played well

5/6/2021, 3:11 AM
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The Mets used a makeshift lineup to split Wednesday's doubleheader in St. Louis, taking the nightcap 7-2.

Here are a few key takeaways …

- Making just his third career start, Miguel Castro was called upon by Luis Rojas to be the opener for game two. Castro got into a bit of a jam by allowing a leadoff single to Tommy Edman and a walk to Nolan Arenado, but he got out of the inning by getting Paul DeJong to fly out to left.

- In the top of the second, the Mets put two men on base on a single from Dominic Smith and a double from Kevin Pillar. After two flyouts that weren’t deep enough to score the run, Smith was able to score on a wild pitch from Johan Oviedo. On the next pitch, Tomas Nido walloped a hanging slider for a two-run home run to left, giving the Mets a 3-0 lead.

- Jordan Yamamoto replaced Castro in the bottom of the second, looking to give the Mets some innings. Yamamoto allowed a two-out double to Ali Sanchez, which was followed by a single up the middle from Oviedo, but Sanchez was gunned out at home plate thanks to a great throw from Pillar to Nido, who blocked the plate and applied the tag.

- Jonathan Villar padded the Mets’ lead in the top of the fourth, hitting his first home run with the team, a solo shot that he took the opposite way to left field.

- Yamamoto pitched into the fourth inning, but he was pulled for Aaron Loup with a runner at third and two outs. Loup allowed an RBI single to Dylan Carlson and another single to Edman, but he forced a Matt Carpenter flyout to end the inning with the Mets still up 4-1.

- With two on and two outs in the fifth, Pillar dunked a single into right field, just out of Edman's reach, giving the Mets a 5-1 lead. The hit was Pillar's fifth of the series.

- In the top of the seventh, the Mets tacked on some insurance. After loading the bases with no one out following walks to Pete Alonso and Michael Conforto and a Smith single, Pillar drove in his fourth run of the series with a fielder's choice, making the score 7-2.

- The Mets patched together their bullpen to get through the seven innings, using Castro, Yamamoto, Loup, Trevor May, Robert Gsellman, and Jeurys Familia. Mets pitching only struck out two hitters in seven innings, but they also only walked one.

Highlights

What's next

The Mets and Cardinals wrap up their four-game series on Thursday with a 1:15 p.m. start time. Taijuan Walker will face John Gant in the series finale.

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