Mets, Pirates' benches clear after Pete Alonso gets hit by pitch
Mets have been hit by 102 pitches this year, three shy of modern record
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The New York Mets are sick of tired of getting plunked.
On Saturday night, four Mets were hit by pitches — on Sunday, Pete Alonso was hit, and he was not happy.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Pete Alonso of the New York Mets is hit by a pitch during the eighth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Citi Field in New York on Sept. 15, 2022. (Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
He stared down Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Johan Oviedo, causing the benches to clear after some words were exchanged.
Both benches were warned after the exchange. There were no punches thrown or ejections, but the Mets certainly have an understandable gripe.
It was the 102nd time the Mets were hit by a pitch this year, by far the most in the majors. They could very well set the modern record, which is 105 by last year's Cincinnati Reds.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Mets have been magnets all season long, and manager Buck Showalter had met with MLB officials early on in the season, but it seems like it's mostly just bad luck.
At the time, Showalter placed blame on the sticky substance crackdown as well as changes to the baseball.
"Let’s be frank about it," Showalter said back in April. "Gripping a baseball, the pitchers took it too far with the Spider Tack and made it a pitching advantage with spin rate and everything, and now I’m not so sure we haven’t gone too far the other way. Trying to grip a baseball that’s been rubbed with mud in April and early May and October is real slick. The rosin just doesn’t do as much as you think. Somehow I think we’ve gone too far."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Pete Alonso (20) of the New York Mets yells at Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Johan Oviedo (62) after being hit on the hand by a pitch during the first inning at Citi Field, New York, on Sept. 18, 2022. (Michael Urakami/Getty Images)
"I’ve always pushed for a universal pitching rag behind the mound where guys can tap their fingers, and you won’t have guys getting hit nearly as much," he added. "I think a lot of hit-by-pitches are guys can’t grip the baseball.
"Let’s say everybody hit without batting gloves, pine tar and wraps around your bat. Because a pitcher is supposed to have his tool without gripping it, yet a batter can do whatever he wants to grip a bat; just doesn’t make a lot of sense."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Mets have been involved in several bench-clearing incidents this season stemming from hit-by-pitches, including the second game of the season when Francisco Lindor was hit in the mouth against the Washington Nationals.
Later in April, the Mets decided to retaliate and chase St. Louis Cardinals' Nolan Arenado with a high fastball. Although it didn't hit him, Arenado was heated and took offense.
New York Mets' Pete Alonso reacts after striking out during the fourth inning against the Chicago Cubs in New York on Sept. 14, 2022. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Mets lead the NL East by a game, but they are tied with the Atlanta Braves in the loss column.