Nimmo makes game-saving grab as Mets sweep A's

OAKLAND -- Brandon Nimmo played the hero with his bat on Saturday, driving in the winning run on a clutch double late in the game. On Sunday, he switched it up and kept the Mets alive with his glove.

Nimmo laid out for a pair of spectacular diving plays in center field, including a game-saving grab in the ninth inning. That set the stage for the Mets to retake the lead on a wild pitch from A's righty Zach Jackson in the top of the 10th, securing a 4-3 win and their first sweep of 2023.

"[When] you talk about this game today," manager Buck Showalter said, "you've got to start with what Nim did."

Nimmo's first web gem came in the second inning. He covered 98 feet over about five seconds as he hustled toward the right-field wall to chase down a hard-hit drive off the bat of A's utility man Aledmys Díaz, diving as he hit the warning track and snagging the ball.

"I was just trying to get to top speed and see if I could close the gap on it," Nimmo said. "Then it kind of just seemed to get held up just a touch for me, and that gave me just enough time to slide underneath it. … Game could have gone differently if that ball falls."

There were even higher stakes in the bottom of the ninth inning, as righty Jimmy Yacabonis had runners on first and second with one out. When A's third baseman Jace Peterson lifted a ball to the left-center gap, Nimmo was again able to track the ball down, preventing both runners from advancing.

"I knew I was going to have a shot at it, but it was kind of sinking and fading away from me," Nimmo said. "At the end, I just figured my only shot was laying out for it. Fortunately, I took a chance and came up with it."

Both pitchers on the mound for Nimmo's plays were thrilled by his efforts in the field.

"It was a ball that was tough to get to," starter José Butto said in Spanish through interpreter Alan Suriel. "I was excited, and I'm grateful to him for making that play."

Said Yacabonis: "Unreal."

With a trio of solo home runs from Tommy Pham, Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso backing a promising spot start from Butto, the Mets are off to a perfect start to their 10-game West Coast road trip.

"We could have just chalked it up and been like, 'Oh well, series win. We'll go get 'em in L.A.,'" Nimmo said. "But the guys fought back -- and Pete, in particular, obviously coming up huge there."

Alonso has been on a tear lately, hitting seven home runs in his last 10 games. He played an instrumental role in setting up New York's comeback on Sunday afternoon, cranking his MLB-leading eighth blast of the season a Statcast-projected 430 feet off A's closer Dany Jiménez in the top of the ninth inning to knot the game at 3-3.

The clutch shot, Alonso's 154th career round-tripper, helped him continue his climb up the Mets' all-time home run leaderboard, moving into a tie for fifth place with Dave Kingman. It was also Alonso's 88th homer on the road, which matches Carlos Beltrán's Mets tally for fifth-most in franchise history.

"He's just a consistent human being. Home, away, Spring Training -- Pete's the same guy who walks in the door every day," Showalter said. "Guys that have a real consistent mentality seem to do better on the road. … He can take the emotion out of an at-bat, and I think that's important on the road."

Alonso and the Mets will have to keep up their solid performances on the road, as they won't return to New York for another week. With a series in Los Angeles and another in San Francisco ahead of them, the Mets are looking to build off of what they accomplished in Oakland this weekend.

"To sweep somebody on the road, that's extremely hard to do," Alonso said. "Coming out here for two weeks is a pretty big challenge for us. We played really good ball this series, and hopefully we can continue to play great team baseball for the rest of the road trip."