Inside The Mets

Phillies Slugger Sends Warning to Mets After NLDS Game 3 Defeat

Philadelphia Phillies star Nick Castellanos sent a clear message to the New York Mets about Wednesday's NLDS game.

Grant Young

Oct 6, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos (8) reacts after hitting a walk off game winning RBI single against the New York Mets during game two of the NLDS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
Oct 6, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos (8) reacts after hitting a walk off game winning RBI single against the New York Mets during game two of the NLDS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
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With the New York Mets' dominant 7-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies during Game 3 of the NLDS on Tuesday, they are now one victory away from ending their NL East rival's season and advancing to the NLCS.

An undeniable factor of Tuesday's win was Citi Field's raucous home crowd. The stadium was sold out at 44,093 fans, all of whom seemed to be making their presence felt while willing their Mets squad to a decisive victory.

Now New York has an opportunity to finish Philadelphia once and for all at Citi Field on Wednesday. While Game 4 isn't necessarily a must-win for the Mets, they would surely rather end the series at Citi Field than have to travel to the Phillies' Citizens Bank Park for Game 5.

And this is the exact message that Phillies slugger Nick Castellanos echoed after Tuesday's game.

When asked by the media what the Phillies' approach is to prepare for tomorrow's game, Castellanos said, "I think instead of just flushing it and forgetting it, I think right now it's really important to embrace what the situation is," per SNY. "If we lose, we're going home. Baseball is over for us.

"And it's a great opportunity because if we're able to come in and scrape out a win here, I know that [the Mets] do not want to go back to Philly for a Game 5," he added.

Castellanos — who hit a walk-off against the Mets to win Game 2 of the NLDS — is surely right about that. Which is why the Mets will want to close the series at home on Wednesday.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers the New York Yankees, the New York Mets, and Women’s Basketball for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco, where he also played Division 1 baseball for five years. He believes Mark Teixeira should have been a first ballot MLB Hall of Fame inductee.

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