NEW YORK (AP) — JJ Bleday hit his first career grand slam, Shea Langeliers reached base five times for the second time in three games and the Oakland Athletics rallied to beat the New York Mets 7-6 on Thursday in the longest nine-inning game since the pitch clock was instituted last season.
“It felt like the longest game in the pitch clock era,” Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said with a wry grin. The game, played on a hot and humid afternoon in which the first pitch temperature was 85 degrees, lasted 3 hours and 45 minutes — one minute longer than the previous mark set by the San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants in Mexico City on Apr. 29, 2023.
Mets, who have lost five of their last six. New York is two games behind the Atlanta Braves in the race for the third NL wild-card spot.
Jeff McNeil had an 11-pitch and a 10-pitch at-bat while Francisco Lindor also had a 10-pitch at-bat. It’s just the fourth time since 1988, when pitch counts began being tracked, that the Mets have had at least three 10-pitch at-bats in a game.
The Mets walked 11 batters, their most since New York issued 11 against Washington on Sept. 27, 2020. On Thursday, manager Carlos Mendoza and pitching coach Jeremy Hefner ran out of mound visits in the sixth inning.
The Mets lead the NL with 468 walks.
“It’s hard to win a baseball game when we give up (11) walks,” Mendoza said. “We’ve got to go back and make some adjustments quickly here so we can stop that.”
Mitch Spence gave up five runs in 2 2/3 innings for the Athletics. Quintana allowed four runs in four innings.
“When you get that support and you miss that ‘W,’ it’s hard,” Quintana said.
MOTORIN’
Max Schuemann had an amusing moment in the fourth when he raced from first to home on Daz Cameron’s foul ball up the first base line while Alonso and Torrens waited for the ball to stop rolling.
DON’T LIVE THERE ANYMORE
The Athletics, who’ll play the next three seasons in Sacramento while waiting for a stadium to be built in Las Vegas, finished their Oakland tenure with a 121-174 as a visiting team in New York.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Mets: OF Brandon Nimmo (stomach illness) didn’t play. … RHP Sean Reid-Foley (right shoulder) has been shut down for a few days after the ball didn’t feel right coming out of his hand during a rehab stint.
UP NEXT
Athletics: After a rare Friday off day for Oakland, RHP Osvaldo Bido (3-3, 3.92 ERA) is scheduled to start Saturday’s opener of two-game interleague series against the San Francisco Giants, who had not announced a starter.
Mets: A nine-game homestand continues Friday when LHP Sean Manaea (8-6, 3.44 ERA) opens a three-game series against the Miami Marlins, who will counter with RHP Roddery Muñoz (2-6, 5.67 ERA).
