The Mets were able to avoid a disastrous deficit in the World Series by powering past the Royals 9-3 in Friday's Game 3 at Citi Field in New York. They now trail the best-of-seven series two games to one.
Led by David Wright, the Mets' lineup produced 12 hits in the rout. They extended their lead with a four-run sixth inning that saw nine batters come to the plate.
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Wright, who entered 2 for 11 in the World Series, went 2 for 5 with a home run and four RBIs. Curtis Granderson also homered, and he and Travis d'Arnaud had two hits apiece.
Mets rookie Noah Syndergaard pitched six strong innings, allowing three runs on seven hits while striking out six. "Thor" is now tied for second all time with 26 strikeouts by a National League rookie in postseason history, trailing only Cardinals pitcher Michael Wacha’s 33 in 2013.
Here are our five takeaways from Game 3:
1. Yordano Ventura struggles again. The Royals' opening day starter remained winless this postseason after allowing five runs on seven hits over 3 1/3 innings. According to Inside Edge, Ventura averaged 93.3 mph with his fastball, the lowest speed of any start in his career. Ventura, who signed a five-year contract extension worth $23 million in April, owns a 6.43 ERA this postseason.
2. Thor was clutch in biggest moments. Syndergaard settled in after allowing three runs in the first two innings, striking out five of seven Royals batters through innings 4-6 as he retired 12 in a row. He ran into trouble in the sixth after walking two and allowing an infield single but was able to get Alex Rios to ground out with the bases loaded to end the inning without harm.
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3. Alcides Escobar is turning into Mr. October. The ALCS MVP has hit safely in 13 consecutive postseason games this season, the second-most all time in a single postseason. With his single in the second, Escobar recorded his 40th career postseason hit, the second-most in franchise history behind Hall of Famer George Brett (45). He is batting .322 in the postseason in his career.
4. The Mets continue to blast homers at home. Citi Field isn't known for being a hitter's park but the Mets sure have enjoyed the long ball at home this October. They have hit at least one home run in every home game this postseason. With two more Friday, New York has hit 17 home runs during the playoffs.
5. Daniel Murphy used all his magic in the previous series. It may get swept under the rug because the Mets won, but MLB's hottest postseason hitter has been anything but in the World Series. Murphy, who set the world ablaze by homering in six straight postseason games, is hitting just .154 (2 for 13) against the Royals. In fact, he has more strikeouts (five) than base knocks (two).
What's next: Game 4 on Saturday in New York (8:07 p.m. ET, Fox). Chris Young (11-6, 3.06 ERA in the regular season) will take the hill for the Royals despite throwing 53 pitches in relief in Game 1. The Mets will turn to rookie southpaw Steven Matz (4-0, 2.27 ERA in regular season) as they look to even the series. In his last outing, against the Cubs in the NLCS, Matz pitched 4 2/3 innings, allowing one run on four hits while striking out four.