Coby Mayo’s 11th-inning inside-the-park homer carries Orioles past Mets 7-5 at Citi Field

Four swings changed the shape of the night

The Mets opened with the cleaner early attack. Jared Young’s sacrifice fly in the first brought home Juan Soto for a 1-0 lead, Soto added an RBI single in the second, and Carson Benge’s solo homer in the third pushed New York in front 3-2. For a while, that looked like the formula: steady traffic, line drives, and enough contact to keep Baltimore’s pitchers working.

Baltimore’s answer was far more abrupt. Christian Encarnacion-Strand tied the game with a solo shot to left-center in the second, Jeremiah Jackson followed with another solo homer to center later in the inning, and the Orioles stayed close even while their offense kept disappearing between those moments. That contrast defined the game. New York produced more hits and more walks, but Baltimore kept finding the sort of contact that rewrites an inning instantly.

The starting pitching lines fit that pattern too. Sean Manaea struck out six in 5.1 innings and allowed only four hits, but half of those hits left the yard. Shane Baz worked four innings for Baltimore and gave up seven hits and three earned runs, yet the Orioles never let the game get away. From there, Baltimore’s relief corps became the quiet backbone of the result, covering seven innings and allowing only two runs, neither of them earned.

A tie in the ninth, chaos in the 11th

The game’s middle innings settled into a long pause before Pete Alonso broke it. His solo homer to left-center in the ninth erased the Mets’ 3-2 edge and turned a game New York had been nudging along into a fresh sprint. That swing mattered beyond the score. Baltimore had struck out 17 times by night’s end and managed only one walk; without the home-run threat, there would not have been much margin for survival.

Extra innings made the contrast even sharper. The Orioles went ahead 4-3 in the 10th when Encarnacion-Strand scored on a wild pitch, only for the Mets to answer in the bottom half when Marcus Semien doubled to left and brought home Benge. New York had its reply ready, which is why the 11th felt less like an extension of the game than a brand-new test of which team could land the decisive blow first.

Mayo settled that question in one play. His inside-the-park home run to left scored Leody Taveras and Dylan Beavers and opened a 7-4 lead that finally gave Baltimore separation. The Mets still scratched one back on Bo Bichette’s RBI single in the bottom of the 11th, scoring Francisco Alvarez, but by then the Orioles had finally built the cushion they had been chasing since the second inning. Mayo finished with two hits and three RBIs, the most forceful line in a game full of scattered offense.

Our take: Baltimore’s power bailed it out, and New York wasted the fuller box score

Our take: this was a terrific win for Baltimore and a mildly maddening loss for New York. The Mets out-hit the Orioles 12-8, drew five walks to Baltimore’s one, and got 17 strikeouts from their pitching staff. That combination usually points toward a win. Instead, four Orioles home runs overruled most of the rest of the box score. Baltimore’s hitters did not build many complete innings, but the swings from Encarnacion-Strand, Jackson, Alonso and Mayo were heavy enough to cover for a .200 team average and 12 runners left on base.

There is also a lesson here for both clubs. For the Orioles, the resilience is real, but 17 strikeouts and a .220 on-base percentage are not a comfortable way to live; even in a win, the offense asked its power to do nearly all the work. For the Mets, the more urgent improvement is converting traffic into finish. They left 24 runners on base and scored only five times despite 12 hits and five walks. Pair that with four home runs allowed, and the loss becomes easier to understand. Baltimore earned this one by being decisive. New York will look at the same game and see how much it let sit on the table.

Scoring moments

1. 1st Inning

   Young hit sacrifice fly to center, Soto scored, Bichette to third.

2. 2nd Inning

   Encarnacion-Strand homered to left center (389 feet).

3. 2nd Inning

   Jackson homered to center (416 feet).

4. 2nd Inning

   Soto singled to center, Ewing scored, Baty to second.

5. 3rd Inning

   Benge homered to right (368 feet).

6. 9th Inning

   Alonso homered to left center (414 feet).

7. 10th Inning

   Encarnacion-Strand scored on Duarte wild pitch, Henderson to second on wild pitch by Duarte.

8. 10th Inning

   Encarnacion-Strand scored on Duarte wild pitch, Henderson to second.

9. 10th Inning

   Semien doubled to left, Benge scored.

10. 11th Inning

    Mayo hit inside-the-park home run to left (410 feet), Taveras scored and Beavers scored.

11. 11th Inning

    Bichette singled to center, Alvarez scored.