The New York Mets let a comfortable lead slip away Friday night, but MJ Melendez made sure the outcome ended in celebration. Melendez crushed a dramatic two-run homer in the bottom of the 10th inning, lifting the Mets to a thrilling 9-7 walk-off victory over the Miami Marlins at Citi Field. The win marked New York’s second straight after a five-game losing streak and improved the Mets to 24-33 on the season.
With automatic runner Vidal Bruján stationed at second base to begin the 10th, Melendez stepped to the plate against Miami reliever Pete Fairbanks. After falling behind 0-2, Melendez turned on a 98 mph fastball and launched it into the second deck down the right-field line. The ball barely stayed fair as Bruján scored ahead of him, sending the Citi Field crowd into a frenzy on Fireworks Night.
The game-winning blast was Melendez’s first career walk-off hit in the major leagues. He punctuated the moment with a bat flip and an emotional celebration directed toward the Mets dugout.
New York appeared headed for a much easier victory early in the game. The Mets jumped all over previously unbeaten Marlins starter Max Meyer in the first inning. A.J. Ewing and Brett Baty each delivered two-run singles as New York raced to a 4-0 lead.
Mark Vientos added to the offensive showcase with a towering 445-foot home run, helping the Mets build leads of 5-1 and later 6-2. Melendez, who entered as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning, contributed before his heroics by lifting a sacrifice fly that stretched the advantage to 7-5.
Kyle Stowers continued his strong season with three hits, including an RBI double, while the Marlins chipped away against Mets starter Freddy Peralta. Peralta was handed multiple early leads but struggled to put Miami away, allowing four runs—two earned—on seven hits over 4 2/3 innings.
The Marlins finally erased the deficit in the eighth inning when Owen Caissie connected for a two-run homer off Tobias Myers, tying the game at 7-7 and forcing extra innings.
Meyer, who had dominated the Mets just six days earlier by allowing only one hit over seven scoreless innings in Miami, wasn’t nearly as effective this time around. The right-hander lasted six innings and surrendered six runs, five earned, on six hits while losing his perfect record.
After the Marlins failed to score in the top of the 10th, Austin Warren delivered a perfect inning to earn his first win of the season. Fairbanks took the loss after serving up Melendez’s decisive blast.
The victory was New York’s fifth walk-off win of the year and improved the club’s record to 7-4 in extra-inning games.
The three-game series continues Saturday at Citi Field. Miami is scheduled to send right-hander Tyler Phillips (0-0, 1.07 ERA) to the mound for his second start and 17th appearance of the season. The Mets will counter with right-hander Christian Scott (0-0, 3.20 ERA), who is still searching for his first major league victory in what will be his 16th career start.
Before Saturday’s game, the Mets will honor former manager Bobby Valentine and former outfielder Lee Mazzilli with their induction into the New York Mets Hall of Fame during a ceremony at Citi Field.
