Alonso, Pham slug Mets to much-needed series win

NEW YORK -- In an 8-4 win over the Giants at Citi Field on Sunday night, the Mets did something they hadn’t done since June 1 against the Phillies: New York won a series, taking the rubber game against San Francisco.

New York has won two consecutive games, and now heads to Arizona to play a three-game series against the D-backs starting on Tuesday night.

“It feels great,” Mets outfielder Tommy Pham said about the series win. “I hate hearing it’s been that long. We’ll take this series win and take it to Arizona, and go from there.”

It was a bullpen game for the Giants, and the relievers faltered after San Francisco took a 1-0 lead in the top of the third. With left-hander Alex Wood on the mound, the Mets took the lead, scoring three runs of their own.

With the bases loaded, Pete Alonso, fresh off being named to the National League All-Star squad, walked to bring Francisco Alvarez home, tying the score at 1. Jeff McNeil reached on an infield single to second baseman Thairo Estrada that allowed Brandon Nimmo to score, and when shortstop Brandon Crawford dropped Estrada’s throw, Pham came home to score as well.

New York added two more runs against the Wood in the following frame, as Mark Canha homered and Nimmo came home on an RBI double by Pham to give the Mets a 5-1 lead. Pham went 3-for-4 with two doubles and a walk on the night, raising his batting line to .295/.362/.530.

San Francisco wouldn’t give up easily. In the seventh, the Giants cut their deficit to one against reliever Jeff Brigham, with Blake Sabol, entering as a pinch-hitter, mashing a two-run homer, and former Met J.D. Davis lining an opposite-field RBI double.

But the Mets answered back, adding an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh and two more in the eighth. Alonso, headed to the Home Run Derby next week in addition to the All-Star Game, highlighted the scoring with a two-run homer off right-hander Ryan Walker. Alonso ended up going 2-for-4 in the game. It was only his second multihit game since June 1, and his first homer since June 25.

The way manager Buck Showalter saw it, after a 10-for-66 (.152) June that Alonso would like to forget, the slugger needed a game like this one.

“He beats himself up, because he takes on the responsibility of how much his teammates depend on him,” Showalter said about Alonso. “It’s hard doing the things he spoils us with. … You feel with good hitters like him, somebody is going to pay down the line. He remembers it, too.”

Alonso said he is grateful to have Showalter as a person to talk to on a regular basis. They often talk by phone or text late at night when Alonso feels down.

“It’s always great talking ball with Buck, because he has had so many players that have been in the game a long time,” Alonso said. “He is a great guy to shoot the breeze with, and then also talk about baseball. He has been around a lot. He is basically like a walking baseball encyclopedia. He has seen and done a lot in this game. Good guy to kind of pick his brain.”

Mets relievers Brooks Raley, Adam Ottavino and David Robertson were able to stop the bleeding by shutting down San Francisco in the last 2 1/3 innings of the game, stabilizing the game after Brigham allowed three runs.

“It was hard-fought. [The Giants] are playing as good as anybody,” Showalter said. “We talked about it before the series, that we have a chance to get some traction against a really good team that is at the top of its game, and see if we can do something with it.

“We were fortunate that Michael Conforto wasn’t available. He makes them even better. Mike Yastrzemski wasn’t here. We have people we don’t have here [too]. It’s part of the gig.”