Jacob Stallings hits starting grand slam as Pirates rally to 6-point deficit, beat Mets

One night after his swear-filled exchange with pitcher Marcus Stroman led to a bench clearance scrum, John Nogowski heard a chorus of boos from New York Mets fans every time he stepped forward. ‘plate.

His last was a mixture of cheers and taunts.

The first baseman came at bat with the Pittsburgh Pirates behind two, runners first and second and the chance to be a hero. He fielded a single to a third to charge up the bases, setting the stage for an epic comeback.

Jacob Stallings hit a starting grand slam as the Pirates made up for a six-point deficit to a 9-7 victory on Saturday night in front of a season-best crowd of 27,222 at PNC Park.

It was the third Grand Slam in PNC Park history.

The Pirates (36-56) recovered from a 6-0 deficit with a five-run eighth inning, thanks to a three-run home run from Wilmer Difo. But the Mets (47-42) took a 7-5 lead in the ninth when center-back Brandon Nimmo quickly calmed the crowd by hitting a solo homer in the center.

All the late-game fireworks eclipsed the punches of JD Davis, who spent two months on the sidelines with a sprained left hand and vowed upon his return that he would kick the ball when the opportunity would present itself.

With star shortstop Francisco Lindor placed on the injured list, Davis had his chance. Davis beat the cleanup as the Mets moved two-time Home Run Derby champion Pete Alonso to the No. 2 hole in the lineup.

As promised, Davis delivered a bang. Not just one, but two.

Davis hammered a pair of two-run homers on Pirates right-hander Wil Crowe. Davis (3 for 4) scored for the first time since April 25.

Crowe escaped the first three innings without giving up a point, thanks to a trio of double plays.

The first inning ended with Bryan Reynolds catching Jeff McNeil’s ball in the middle, then throwing Brandon Nimmo first. The second saw Davis hitting a starting single followed by Dominic Smith hitting in a 6-4-3 double play. In the third, Alonso struck in a double play with Luis Guillorme on the third base.

Crowe was unlucky in the fourth. After McNeil got a hike, Davis hit a first pitch shot 410 feet down center to give the Mets a 2-0 lead. Alonso scored to start the sixth, and Davis punched a four-seam fastball 402 feet right to make it 4-0.

Tyler Megill (1-0) kept the Pirates scoreless for six innings, although he allowed six hits and struck out only two. The Pirates got their only extra base hit when Adam Frazier scored a brace in the first round. They blocked two runners in the third and fourth innings.

The Mets added two more runs on reliever Kyle Keller in the seventh after Guillorme caught a mistake on third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes and scored on a double down cross from batter Travis Blankenhorn for a 5-0 lead. McNeil scored a single to score Blankenhorn for a 6-0 lead.

The Pirates rallied in the eighth, when Reynolds started with a walk and Ben Gamel followed with a single right from Seth Lugo. Nogowski doubled up on the left to score Reynolds for 6-1.

That put the runners in second and third place for right fielder Gregory Polanco, who was reinstated from the injured list on Saturday and walked to load the bases. After Stallings came out second, Kevin Newman beat a double play throw for a field single. Difo hit a blast from 412 feet to the right for his second straight game with a home run to bring the score to 6-5. Alonso then flew Frazier a hit on warm ground at first.