Hustle and jinx lead to thrilling NY Mets win over the Phillies

Baseball has a funny way of turning the simplest moments into the loudest headlines. One minute you’re watching a routine grounder and a breezy stat line, the next you’re in the middle of a Broadway twist ending with Citi Field as the stage. Monday night’s win over the Philadelphia Phillies had a little of everything: a dramatic performance, pure hustle, and the kind of jinx that could make a witch doctor blush. What looked like a walk in the park turned into a partial nailbiter, but for the New York Mets, it was the kind of chaotic charm that’s starting to feel oddly familiar.

Before Monday’s game, the Mets were dealt a tough blow: Jose Siri is expected to miss 8-10 weeks with a left tibia fracture. That leaves more playing time in centerfield for Tyrone Taylor and it didn’t take long for him to make the most of it.

The NY Mets continue to find a spark from unexpected places, and on Monday night, Tyrone Taylor provided the latest jolt.

In the bottom of the seventh, with the Mets clinging to a narrow lead, Taylor delivered the kind of effort that doesn’t show up in the box score but changes everything. After a one-out single by Luisangel Acuña and a walk from Brett Baty, Taylor chopped a 2-2 pitch to third. It had “inning-ending double play” written all over it until Taylor turned on the jets. He beat the throw by a step, kept the inning alive, and flipped the script.

Two pitches later, Francisco Lindor made the Phillies pay, launching a 0-1 fastball over the right-center wall for a three-run homer. It was a momentum swing fueled by hustle, something Taylor’s brought from day one, and now, with added opportunity, he's turning effort into impact.

The hustle from Taylor and the sudden twist in Kranick’s outing weren’t the same kind of moment but both were crucial in shaping the night for the NY Mets.

Max Kranick had been nothing short of automatic for the Mets this season. Entering Monday night with a 1.35 ERA and a WHIP that looked like a typo at .45, Kranick made quick work of the seventh inning. But then came the eighth, and it wasn’t the first hit that caused the trouble; it was the Mets broadcast booth.

After Kranick got the first out, legendary play-by-play caller Gary Cohen, ever the casual observer, noted that Kranick’s WHIP had dipped to a ridiculous .40. Up until that point, it seemed like Kranick was invincible. But, as it often goes in baseball, the game had other plans. From that moment on, Kranick gave up a hit in the eighth, and then three more hits and three runs in the ninth. Turns out, the only thing powerful enough to derail Kranick’s amazing start to the season was a classic announcer jinx.

In the end, the Mets’ win was a perfect blend of grit, a jinxed stat line, and just enough drama to keep fans on the edge of their seats, proving once again that in baseball, anything can happen... especially when Gary Cohen’s watching.