Mets slugger Pete Alonso angered after Pirates' Johan Oviedo hits him with pitch
New York Mets' Pete Alonso gestures to Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Johan Oviedo after he was hit by a pitch during the first inning of an MLB baseball game at Citi Field on Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
The Mets and Pirates had a benches-clearing incident in the first inning on Sunday after Pete Alonso was hit on the left elbow pad by a 96-mph fastball thrown by Pittsburgh’s Johan Oviedo.
Alonso jawed at Oviedo as the benches and bullpens emptied. There was a lot of angry milling but no punches were thrown. Both benches were warned, much to the chagrin of Mets manager Buck Showalter.
Four Mets were hit by pitches on Saturday night and the team has been hit an MLB-high 102 times this season. The MLB record is 105 by the 2021 Reds.
But that wasn’t all that rankled Alonso. On May 5, 2021, Oviedo — then pitching for St. Louis — hit Alonso in the hand, eventually sending him to the injured list.
“He hits me again [with] a non-competitive pitch,” Alonso said after the Mets’ 7-3 victory.
Alonso said his message to Oviedo on the field was to “throw in the zone. I mean, he throws hard and it’s unsafe to throw that hard not knowing where it’s going. We got hit a lot this series. I don’t like guys potentially throwing hard and hurting us, especially this late in the year.”
Arms on the way
Max Scherzer said he is ready to be activated from the injured list to face the Brewers on Monday in Milwaukee. Scherzer has been out since Sept. 4 with left oblique irritation.
Showalter said Tylor Megill is expected to be activated from the IL as soon as Monday. Megill has been out since June 17 with a right shoulder strain.
Drew Smith is scheduled to be activated off the IL “possibly Tuesday,” Showalter said. Smith has been out since July 25 with a right lat strain.
Also, reliever Mychal Givens is on the COVID-19 IL and can be activated at any time once he is cleared. So the Mets will have some roster decisions to make.
Red-hot Smith staying at Syracuse
Dominic Smith is on a hot streak for Triple-A Syracuse, but Showalter said the Mets have no immediate plans to call him up.
“His name always comes up,” Showalter said. “We talk about everybody from time to time. We talk about those things. I understand he’s been doing well lately. I like Dom. I still like Dom . . . He’s a good man. I think he’s going to get the opportunity he wants in the near future. Could be here. Who knows?”
Smith, 27, was batting .282 with nine home runs (one each on Friday and Saturday) in 195 Triple-A at-bats going into Sunday. He hit .194 with no homers in 134 at-bats for the Mets.
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.
