Jeff McNeil and Pete Alonso lead Mets to defeat Blue Jays

Jeff McNeil left his fatigue in the dugout and scored a major batting for the Mets on Sunday.

Summoned to pinch the blow in the sixth inning after missing three straight starts with what had been described as left leg fatigue, McNeil fell behind with two quick strikes against former teammate Jacob Barnes. He worked the score hard and pulled off a two-run brace that was good for starting points in the Mets’ 5-4 win over the Blue Jays at Citi Field.

The Mets have won a second straight series and will now prepare for a five-game divisional clash that begins Monday with a double-stack against the Braves.

Manager Luis Rojas played in the sixth and won, choosing McNeil to nip Tomas Nido’s hit with two strikeouts and two runners on base after Pete Alonso had already hit an equalizer in the inning.

Although Trevor May allowed three straight hits to start the eighth, including an RBI single for Teoscar Hernandez that brought the Blue Jays down to 5-4, the Mets escaped with a header. Aaron Loup posted a critical strike, removing Cavan Biggio with goals loaded and Edwin Diaz made a scoreless ninth for his 21st save on 26 occasions.

Alonso’s two-run homerun in the sixth tied him at three. The blast was Alonso’s 11th in his last 24 games and the third since Friday, as he struck two to lead a win over the Blue Jays. Michael Conforto walked up the sleeve and moved up to second on wild ground before Alonso hit a shot in the left-field seats. On his return to the canoe, he hoisted the team’s new home run horse as part of the celebration.

In his Mets debut, Rich Hill lasted more than five innings and allowed three earned runs on five hits with two walks and one strikeout. The southpaw, who entered a trade with the Rays on Friday, faced the Rays for the second time in 14 days.

Hill loaded goals with no outs in the sixth before Seth Lugo stepped in and gave Bo Bichette a two-run single. The batter that followed, Teoscar Herandez, hit a Grounder on third base which JD Davis threw at home plate instead of attempting to throw a double play. The ball was dislodged from Tomas Nido’s glove as he applied the ball. tag, extending the Blue Jays lead to 3-1. But further damage was avoided when Lugo took out Randal Grichuk and took out Alejandro Kirk and Biggio in turn.

The rally had started as Hill entered his third time in the batting order. George Springer was hit by a pitch and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. scored in the center-right gap before Marcus Semien walked over to charge the goals. Hill had limited the Blue Jays to one base runner in each of the previous five innings.