The Mets beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 2-1, on Sunday night to take three out of four from their division rival in the final homestand of the regular season. Brandon Nimmo crushed a tie-breaking solo homer in the sixth inning and then Edwin Diaz recorded the final six outs to secure the victory.
Pete Alonso called it a "gritty team win" and said Sunday's victory truly showed the character of the 2024 Mets.
"This was just such a gritty team win," Alonso said. "This is what our identity is. We fight and scratch for every pitch, every out. A game like today really shows the character and who we are, who the 2024 Mets are. This is a great team win."
Alonso, who is a pending free agent and could have played his final game at Citi Field on Sunday, received a standing ovation from Mets fans before his at-bats in the first and eighth innings. He said the gesture caught him off guard and that it felt like a movie.
"It’s really, really special," Alonso said. "That’s something that’s right out of a storybook for me. It’s truly remarkable to see and feel that reaction and appreciation from a packed house like that. It’s wild. It’s something you kind of hear about or read about or see in movies, but for me it was really special."
He added: “I just feel really blessed and very fortunate to be in this organization and come up through organization in this fantastic city. I feel very blessed."
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza spoke highly of the fans as well, noting the playoff atmosphere at Citi Field all weekend long helping push the team.
"Incredible. Like you said, playoff atmosphere," Mendoza said. "The crowd is into it, every pitch, every play, every inning, every at-bat. That’s what you dream of. You prepare, you work hard all year, all offseason to get to this position. But again, we got to continue to play well. We got to get on a plane tonight, off to Atlanta now. Hats off to our fanbase, because we felt it.”
Nimmo was also asked about the playoff atmosphere, and expressed how proud he is of everyone contributing to win.
"It's been unbelievable," Nimmo said. "I'm so proud of these guys. They are fighting every pitch. This is playoff atmosphere, playoff baseball. You see how much more every pitch means in these games, they carry so much weight. These guys are just rising to the challenge. It's a beautiful thing to see, I'm very, very proud of these guys."
He added: "That atmosphere out there tonight was unbelievable. This is what you play for. You've just got to enjoy the moment. It's gonna be a lot of fun in Atlanta."
Nimmo and the Mets understand that "the job's not done" and they need to continue playing strong against the Braves to make the postseason. New York is currently up two games on Atlanta in the Wild Card standings and would be able to clinch a playoff berth with a series win. With the playoffs in reach, Nimmo said the team's goal going forward is clear.
"One hundred percent," Nimmo said. "That's the goal, our goal is to be back here and playing playoff baseball in October. There's a lot of hoops to get through in order to do that. But there is no doubt that that is our goal. We have to take care of business and be present in the situation, otherwise it will not happen, but that is the goal: to bring October baseball and playoff baseball back here to New York."