Mets' Pete Alonso takes no offense to Atlanta fans cheering after he was hit by a pitch
Pete Alonso of the Mets rounds second base during the fifth inning against Atlanta at Truist Park on Monday in Atlanta. Credit: Getty Images/Alex Slitz
ATLANTA — After another game at Truist Park, another hit by pitch, and another round of cheers in response from Atlanta fans, Pete Alonso was OK with that.
He got plunked in the side by a first-pitch fastball from righthander Bryce Elder in the fourth inning of the Mets’ 3-2 loss Tuesday night.
As they did when Alonso got hit on the wrist in June — a drilling that landed him on the injured list — Atlanta fans cheered.
Alonso, caught jawing at Atlanta pitching earlier in that June series, said he had no reason to believe Elder hit him on purpose and he took no issue with the fans’ reaction. Home fans usually don’t cheer when a player on the other team gets hit.
“That means you’re doing something right,” Alonso said, likening boos on the road to cheers at home. “It’s fine. That’s just away fans doing their job. Atlanta, it’s a great environment to play here. It’s super fun. They always do a great job of packing it out. The fans are super involved. It’s a great environment to play. It’s super fun to play. It’s just friendly competition.”
Atlanta catcher Travis d'Arnaud, briefly Alonso’s teammate in 2019, asked if he was OK. Alonso said he was and patted him on the butt.
“Just a very sportsmanly gesture by him,” Alonso said.
Tylor Megill allowed three runs, eight hits and two walks in 4 2/3 innings. He and Buck Showalter spoke highly of the quality of his pitches afterward, with the manager saying that was “maybe his best fastball of the year” based on its movement and Megill’s ability to locate it.
Eddie Rosario hit a two-run homer in the second. Marcell Ozuna added a solo shot in the fifth.
The Mets totaled five hits, including Daniel Vogelbach’s two-run homer in the sixth. They put their first two runners on base in the ninth against Raisel Iglesias, but Francisco Alvarez grounded into a double play and Rafael Ortega grounded out to end the game.
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
