New York Mets’ Pete Alonso, right, is congratulated by Tommy Pham (28) after hitting a two-run home run against the San Francisco Giants during the fourth at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Thu Apr 20, 2023 (AP News photo)

New York (NL) 000 501 300. – 9 13. 0.

San Francisco 000 040 000 – 4. 7. 0

Time: 2:34

Attendance: 24,452

Thursday, April 20, 2023

By Lewis Rubman

SAN FRANCISCO–The Giant’s lopsided 9-4 loss to the Mets tonight came as no surprise

It’s been a trying three weeks for bay area baseball fans. The news of the cellar dwelling A’s contracting to buy a huge swath of Las Vegas real estate coincided with the extension of Oakland’s losing streak to seven games as San Francisco’s was halted at five.

So the deal, announced today, that sent Cal Stevenson to the Giants in exchange for cash smacked of a shifting of deck chairs on the Titanic. (Perhaps it’s worth mentioning that tonight was Cal Night at Oracle Park). The Giants also promoted Tristan Beck from Sacramento and placed Alex Wood on the 15 day IL.

The Giants hoped to stop or at least slow down the sinking of their hopes by sending ex-Athletic Sean Manaea to the mound against the visiting New York Mets, the team that replaced the Giants in 1962 after sneaking out of Coogan’s Bluff in the 1957-58 off season, along with the Dodgers, who escaped from Flatbush, just two years after winning the franchise’s first World Series championship.

Manaea went 50-41, 3.86 for Oakland from 1916 through 1921 and no hit the Red Sox on April 21, 2018. He was traded to San Diego in April of 2021 and signed with the Giants as a free agent in December 2022. Manaea was 8-9, 4.96 for the Padres and was took the mound this evening at 0-0, 4.76. His two year contract pays him $12,500,000 per annum.

The Mets’ starting pitcher was Kodaii Senga, 11 year veteran of ,he Fukoaka Softbank Hawks of Japan’s. Pacific League, for whom he went 87-44, 2.59. He began his day at 2-0, 3.38. 2-0,1.59 in two games against the Marlins. The one team that got to him was the A’s, who touched him up for four earned runs in 4-2/3 inning at the Coliseum , where he got no decision six days ago.

The teams matched zeroes for three innings until, Francisco Lindor got in the way of an 83.6 mph chsnge up, trotted to first, and then trotted home when Pete Alonso took. a full count sinker, thrown at 92.6 mph, deep, 366 feet deep into the left field seats.

The ball left Alonso’s bat at 104 MPH.The blast was his ninth home run of the year, giving him 17 RBI and the Mets a 2-0 lead. Two batters later, it was 4-0. Manaea plunked Jeff McNeil, and Eduardo Escobar parked a slider 371 feet into the left field bleachers He had opened the day with a BA of .120. The Mets tacked on a fifth run on a two out double to left with Luis Guillome, who had walked, on base.

That ended Manaea’s unhappy adventure on the mound He lasted 3-2/3 and had thrown 88 pitches, 51 for strikes, allowing four hits, half of them four baggers, two walks, and two hit batters. He struck out another two. The newly promoted Beck replaced him, closed out the frame and came out for the top of the fifth. In fact, he came out for every subsequent frame, giving a grand imitation of Sponge Bob, as he soaked up innings to rest the weary Giant relief corps.

San Francisco got one run back on Blake Sabol’s leadoff 423 foot dinger over the center field fence, his third homer of the season, and then shaved another run off the visitors’ advantage with LaMonte Wade, Jr.’s second round tripper of ’23. All of a sudden, the tying run was at the plate in the person of JD Davis.

But he struck out, leaving it up to Yastrzemski to keep the rally going.He did that with a single to right that scored Estrada, who had walked and advanced to second on a walk to Conforto, who went to third on Yaz’s safety. Senga unleashed a wild pitch to Wilmer Flores, and Conforto dashed home to make it 5-4.

The Mets counterattacked in the top of the sixth. McNeil went deep to right on a hanging slider to stretch his team’s lead to 6-4. In spite of a double b Guillorme, Beck escaped further damage, getting all three outs via the strikeout route.

Brooks Raley, the only southpaw in the New York bullpen got the nod in the bottom of the sixth and got the Giants down in order. Senga had lasted five frames and surrendered four runs, all earned, on five hits, two for the distance, four walks, and a wild pitch. His pitch total was 85, with 52 counting as strikes.

The Mets continued their counterattack in the seventh. A double by Canha, a Texas League double by Lindor, an Alonso single, a walk to pinch hitter Daniel Vogelbach, and and New York was ahead 9-4 when John Curtiss relieved Raley to open the home half of the seventh, kept San Francisco off the board, and yielded to Drew Smith for the eighth.

Jeff Brigham closed things out with a 1,2,3 bottom of the ninth.

Tomorrow’s game will start at 7:15. New York hasn’t announced their starter. For San Francisco it will be Anthony DeSclafani (1-0,1.42). That’s Friday the 21st at 7:15)