Fastball

New York Mets Offense Joins Extremely Rare History as Team Evens Up NLCS

The New York Mets beat the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday to even up the NLCS at one game apiece. The longball played a historic role in the victory as well. Here's more.

Brady Farkas

New York Mets third baseman Mark Vientos (27) celebrates after hitting a grand slam home run in the second inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers during game two of the NLCS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Dodger Stadium on Oct 14.
New York Mets third baseman Mark Vientos (27) celebrates after hitting a grand slam home run in the second inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers during game two of the NLCS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Dodger Stadium on Oct 14. / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
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The New York Mets beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 7-3 on Monday afternoon to even up the National League Championship Series at one game apiece.

The Mets are now three wins away from advancing to their first World Series since the 2015 season. The Dodgers are three wins away from getting to the Fall Classic for the first time since 2020.

The Mets made sure to leave little doubt in this one, getting up 6-0 after just two innings. New York put on a powerful display that included a leadoff home run by Francisco Lindor and a second inning grand slam from slugger Mark Vientos.

That combination put the Mets in some rare baseball history, according to Sarah Langs of MLB.com:

the Mets are the 3rd team with a leadoff HR and a grand slam in the same postseason game, joining:

1996 ALDS G1 Orioles
1953 WS G5 Yankees (also vs Dodgers)

Lindor went 1-for-4 on the afternoon but also added a walk and two runs scored. He's hitting .235 for these playoffs after putting together a stellar regular season that is likely to see him finish second in the National League MVP voting. For the year, he hit .273 with 33 homers and 91 RBI. He also stole 29 bases.

As for Vientos, he went 2-for-5 with the homer and four RBI. He's hitting .378 for the playoffs at just the age of 24. This regular season, he hit .266 with 27 homers and 71 RBI.

The series will take an off-day on Tuesday as the teams shift to Citi Field. Game 3 is Wednesday at 8:08 p.m. ET.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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