ARLINGTON, Texas — After two straight days of exploding to an early lead and reaching double digits scoring, the Mets altered the formula Tuesday night.
This time they went the rally route, exonerating Luis Severino following the staff ace’s rare clunker.
The Mets were methodical and scored five unanswered runs beginning in the sixth inning in a 7-6 victory over the Rangers at Globe Life Field.
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Pete Alonso stroked a go-ahead RBI double against Kirby Yates in the ninth, and Edwin Diaz recorded the final three outs as the Mets established a season high with their seventh straight win.
They will go for a second straight series sweep Wednesday.
“I love the way the guys are playing right now,” Brandon Nimmo said. “I love the way they are responding to adversity. Every bit of us could have been like, ‘We’re playing good baseball right now. We’ll get them again tomorrow.’ But the guys stayed on it and kept fighting until the very end.
“It’s a special place we’re in right now. Everybody is pulling for each other and we’re trying to be there for each other. It’s just that fight and you are trying to stay in the fight the whole game and be relentless and never give up.”
Francisco Alvarez’s two-run double in the eighth against David Robertson tied it before the Mets (35-37) got an unearned run in the ninth with help from a catcher’s interference by Jonah Heim.
The interference with J.D. Martinez at the plate wasn’t initially called, but the Mets challenged and won a replay review.
Alonso followed with a double to left that scored Nimmo, who had reached on a walk to begin the rally.
“Regardless of the deficit, we’re looking to put together quality at-bats and progressively chip away, because those big innings are tough to come by,” Alonso said.
After scoring 11 and 14 runs in their previous two games, the Mets returned to earth somewhat, but their hot bats hardly cooled.
Alvarez and Mark Vientos each had three hits on this night to lead the charge.
“I never felt we were out of that game,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “I think that was the feeling for everybody: We got down 6-2 , but there was a long ways to go.”
Severino entered with a 3.12 ERA following consecutive sharp performances against the Nationals and Marlins, but that number jumped to 3.52 on a night he allowed two homers.
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Overall he lasted 6 ¹/₃ innings, and surrendered six earned runs on eight hits with one walk and one strikeout.
Jake Diekman, Reed Garrett and Diaz combined to pitch the final 2 ²/₃ innings scoreless with only one hit allowed.
Diaz’s save was his second straight since returning from the injured list last week.
Vientos smashed a solo homer against Michael Lorenzen in the second that gave the Mets a 1-0 lead.
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Vientos’ blast left the bat at 113 mph and traveled 409 feet to left field, giving him six homers for the season.
The Rangers tied it 1-1 in the third on Corey Seager’s RBI groundout.
Severino threw a wild pitch that allowed Ezequiel Duran to reach third, otherwise the right-hander might have escaped the inning unscathed.
Duran singled leading off the inning, and Marcus Semien drew a one-out walk before Severino’s wild pitch moved runners to second and third.
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Vientos’ leadoff single in the fifth helped the Mets go ahead 2-1.
Alvarez followed with a single and after Jeff McNeil reached on a fielder’s choice Harrison Bader brought in Vientos with a ground out.
Seager’s RBI single in the fifth tied it 2-2 before Severino’s night completely disintegrated.
Josh Smith blasted a three-run homer and with two outs Wyatt Langford homered, placing the Mets in a 6-2 hole.
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Duran and Leody Taveras singled in succession to start the rally.
Nimmo answered for the Mets in the sixth with a leadoff homer.
It continued a surge for Nimmo, who entered with multiple hits in four straight games to tie a career high.
The Mets loaded the bases in the seventh and pulled within 6-4 on Francisco Lindor’s RBI fielder’s choice.
Lindor’s grounder to shortstop should have been an inning-ending double play, but Seager threw low to first base allowing Lindor to reach.
Robertson escaped the jam by striking out Nimmo.
Alvarez’s two-run double against Robertson with two outs in the eighth tied it 6-6.
Alonso and Starling Marte each singled in the inning before Vientos whiffed for the second out. Alvarez followed with a double to left-center.
After Alonso’s go-ahead double in the ninth, Diaz allowed a bloop single to Heim leading off the bottom of the inning.
But the ensuing batter, Duran, hit into a 6-4-3 double play.
Nimmo later hugged Jose Iglesias as a show of thanks for hanging in on pinch-runner Davis Wendzel’s slide into second base to complete the double play.
“It was like a quarterback standing in there and hitting a guy going through the middle for a touchdown pass,” Nimmo said. “[Iglesias] stood in there and took the hit.”
