Francisco Lindor shakes off illness and comes off the bench to make the Mets beat the Cubs 7-6 in 11 innings originally appeared in NBC Sports Chicago
NEW YORK (AP) — Francisco Lindor hit two two-run doubles off the bench as the New York Mets beat the Chicago Cubs 7-6 in 11 innings on Thursday for a split of their four-game series .
Right fielder Starling Marte made two rocket throws in extra innings, tagging out Cubs runners on base to end the 10th and 11th. Brandon Nimmo had two RBIs for the Mets, who overcame a 4-0 deficit to salvage a 3-4 homestand.
Daniel Palencia (0-1) drilled Harrison Bader with a pitch to start the bottom of the 11th. Lindor, who didn’t start after leaving Wednesday night’s game early with flu-like symptoms, hit a sharp shot inside third base and down the left field line to score automatic runners Brett Baty and Bader.
Nick Madrigal gave Chicago a 6-5 lead in the top of the 11th with a first-pitch double from Danny Young (1-0) in his Mets debut.
Mets closer Edwin Díaz threw two hitless innings, retiring all five batters he faced in his first game of more than one inning since missing last season after knee surgery.
Christopher Morel hit a three-run homer for the Cubs, who stole six bases. Pete Crow-Armstrong, traded by the Mets in July 2021, a year after they drafted him in the first round, had two RBIs.
New York catchers have thrown out just one runner trying to steal this season.
A sloppy fielding error by reliever Keegan Thompson helped New York score three times in the sixth. Lindor walked on a two-run double by Thompson that scored two runs, and Nimmo’s RBI double off lefty Richard Lovelady tied it at 5-all.
Morel’s fifth inning off Mets starter Adrian Houser gave Cubs rookie Ben Brown a 4-0 lead in his fourth major league start.
Pitching close to home, Brown held New York hitless through four innings. But he drew a leadoff walk in the fifth and surrendered back-to-back RBI singles to Nimmo and Starling Marte.
A walk to DJ Stewart loaded the bases, and Brown was pulled with a multiple-run lead just short of qualifying for his first career win for the second time in 24 days. Thompson struck out pinch-hitter Pete Alonso to end the inning.
Brown, 24, was raised on Long Island, about 50 miles from Citi Field, and attended Ward Melville High School, which also produced big league pitchers Steven Matz and Anthony Kay — both drafted by the Mets.
Brown was selected by Philadelphia in the 33rd round of the 2017 amateur draft and traded to the Cubs for reliever David Robertson at the August 2022 trade deadline.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Cubs: LHP Justin Steele (strained left hamstring) will meet with the team in Chicago this weekend and see the medical staff before determining whether he is ready to return to the rotation without another minor league rehab outing. Steele, on the injured list since opening day, threw 63 pitches Wednesday for Triple-A Iowa. He allowed three runs and six hits in 3 1/3 innings. … RHP Kyle Hendricks (lumbar strain) was scheduled to throw about 75-80 pitches in a rehab start for Double-A Tennessee.
Mets: LHP Brooks Raley (left elbow inflammation) is expected to undergo another MRI. He won’t be ready to come off the injured list on Monday when he’s first eligible, as previously expected. “This will probably be longer than we expected,” coach Carlos Mendoza said. … DH JD Martinez was rested. He excelled as a hitter in the seventh and remained in the game until he was relieved by a runner in the tenth.
NEXT
Cubs: RHP Hayden Wesneski (2-0, 0.87 ERA) makes his second start and fourth appearance of the year Friday afternoon at Wrigley Field against Milwaukee RHP Joe Ross (1-3, 5.40). It will be Chicago’s first game this season in the NL Central.
Mets: LHP Jose Quintana (1-2, 3.48 ERA) starts Friday night at Tampa Bay against RHP Aaron Civale (2-2, 5.06). Quintana threw eight innings of three-hit ball Sunday against St. Louis, his longest start since September 2022 with the St. Louis Cardinals.
