The Mets entered Wednesday’s action in a three-way tie with the Giants and Cardinals for the first and second Wild Card slots in the National League. The Cardinals lost 11-1 to the Rockies earlier and the Giants had only just gotten under way with the Dodgers when the Mets appeared to have achieved victory by way of a walk-off home run from Yoenis Cespedes.
Braves center fielder Ender Inciarte had other ideas. Facing Jim Johnson, Cespedes ripped an 0-1 fastball to right-center field. Inciarte gave chase, reaching the wall just a few feet to the side of the 380 marker. He leaped and plucked the ball from beyond the fence, securing the 27th and final out of the ballgame. Victory, Braves.
#GameEnder pic.twitter.com/7xR88gnAMA
— MLB (@MLB) September 22, 2016
Inciarte went 0-for-5 at the plate. Despite a mediocre .736 OPS, he came into Wednesday’s action with 3.5 Wins Above Replacement according to Baseball Reference. A lot of his value comes from his defense, as he showed tonight.
The Giants, who are losing 6-2 to the Dodgers as of this writing, have a temporary half-game lead over the Mets and Cardinals now. The trio of teams will likely enter Thursday once again tied for both Wild Card slots.
