Mets beat Cardinals again behind Kodai Senga's strong outing, Pete Alonso's two RBIs

Pitching plus defense is the formula.

Tried and proven over the decades, it still has value, even in an era of analytics and launch angles.

Look no further than the Mets, who employed it to great effect in their 3-0 win over the Cardinals on Saturday afternoon at Citi Field.

“The team is playing great ball,” Pete Alonso said after the Mets’ fourth shutout win of the season, which is tied with Milwaukee for the second-most in baseball. “We’re playing as a unit.”

Kodai Senga and three relievers held the Cardinals to three hits in front of an announced sellout crowd of 42,339. The Mets have taken the first three games of the four-game series and are 14-7.

“Defensively, offensively, pitching staff, everybody’s doing a phenomenal job so far. It’s team baseball,” Alonso said. “That’s what it’s all about and our record shows because of it.”

The Mets managed eight hits against Matthew Liberatore and John King.

All of the runs the Mets would need came in the third inning. Luisangel Acuna led off with a double to center and scored on Juan Soto’s two-out single. Alonso followed by hammering Liberatore’s 94-mph four-seam fastball to center for an RBI double.

Given a slim advantage, Senga kept the Cardinals at bay. He limited St. Louis to three hits in 5 2⁄3 innings, walking two and striking out four. He lowered his ERA from 1.06 to 0.79 and hasn’t allowed a run in his last three starts.

“Senga just came out throwing all of his pitches with incredible conviction,” Alonso said.

Brett Baty replaced Mark Vientos at third base before the start of the fifth inning. The Mets said Vientos was experiencing “groin discomfort.”

After the game, Carlos Mendoza said Vientos is “day-to-day.”

Vientos believed the discomfort occurred while he was chasing Nolan Arenado’s foul ball in the fourth inning.

“Not concerned at all,” Vientos said. “I just didn’t drink enough water . . . felt a little tweak.”

Baty, who has been splitting time at second base with Acuna, kept Senga’s shutout bid intact by throwing out Thomas Saggese at home with one out in the fifth.

Saggese led off the inning with a double and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Senga struck out Nolan Gorman for the first out before Yohei Pozo smashed a hard shot at Baty, whose strong, accurate throw home resulted in the second out.

Senga then got Victor Scott II to pop out to Brandon Nimmo to end the inning.

Senga issued a leadoff walk to Lars Nootbaar and gave up a single to Willson Contreras to start the sixth. With runners on first and second and no one out, Brendan Donovan hit a grounder to Acuna that he turned into a 4-6-3 double play

After Senga hit Arenado with a pitch, he was replaced by Reed Garrett, who got Alec Burleson to ground to Acuna to end the threat.

“[My fielders] bailed me out,” Senga said through an interpreter. “I don’t really feel like my pitches are getting them out. They’re making contact and my fielders are doing a great job.”

Liberatore (1-2) nearly matched Senga pitch for pitch. The St. Louis lefty held the Mets to two runs and six hits in 6 2⁄3 innings before being replaced by King. Liberatore struck out six, walked one and threw 100 pitches.

The Cardinals (9-12) have dropped three straight games and four out of five.

A.J. Minter replaced Garrett for the eighth and loaded the bases with two outs before inducing Burleson to ground out to Francisco Lindor to end the inning.

Alonso gave the Mets some breathing room by crushing a 443-foot homer to left with one out in the eighth. Edwin Diaz recorded his fifth save with a perfect ninth.

“He’s locked in,” Mendoza said of Alonso, who received “MVP!” chants from the crowd after the homer. “He’s got conviction. He’s got a plan. He’s executing.

“ . . . He’s dictating at-bats. He’s ready for his pitches. He’s not missing them and he’s taking his walks when they don’t want to pitch to him. He’s a dangerous hitter.”