Mets sweep first series of season with 9-4 win over Tigers, hit 5 home runs

Have the New York Mets turned around their disappointing season?

That’s surely overreacting after a three-game winning streak. Especially when the Mets (18-25) still hold last place in the National League East, 12 games behind the first-place Atlanta Braves (30-13). The Mets are also 6.5 games back of a wild-card spot, with six other teams ahead of them.

However, they did complete their first three-game series sweep of the season with a 9-4 win over the Detroit Tigers on Thursday. Nolan McLean allowed three runs with seven strikeouts over seven innings, improving his record to 2-2. And rookie A.J. Ewing hit the first home run of his MLB career.

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Ewing’s shot was one of five homers the Mets hit on Thursday, with Brett Baty, Mark Vientos, Juan Soto and Marcus Semien also going deep among 10 hits off Tigers pitching.

Though the Mets completed their first series sweep of the season, it’s not their first three-game winning streak of the season. They’ve actually had three such streaks this year, highlighted by winning four consecutive games during the third week of the season. That surge put them in first place by a half-game for one day. It’s been a long decline since then.

Soto batting 2-for-5 on Thursday seemed particularly encouraging after he left Wednesday’s game upon fouling a ball off his right ankle, causing fans and media to wonder whether or not he suffered a serious injury.

But his RBI single off Tyler Holton in the fifth inning put the Mets ahead 4-3. And he led off the seventh by lifting a changeup from Brenan Hanifee to pad the Mets’ lead to 8-3. Soto had two multi-hit games in the series with Detroit.

Prior to New York taking the lead, Tigers manager A.J. Hinch was ejected in the fourth inning for arguing an out call at third base. Gage Workman appeared to beat out a tag by Baty. Replay showed that Workman got his hand on the base before Baty caught a relay throw from MJ Melendez and swiped down with a tag. However, the call on the field was upheld.

“We won in a lot of different ways,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said after the game. “We swung the bat well, we created traffic, we ran the bases well, we got timely hitting. The pitching was outstanding.”

Winning three consecutive games might give the Mets some confidence before they host the New York Yankees for a three-game, “Subway Series” weekend set. Wins in seven of their past 10 games is a better subject than facing their cross-town rivals, who currently have the second-best record (27-17) in the American League (and fourth-best in MLB).