Ronny Mauricio playing the hero meant the automated ball-strike system was no longer the villain Tuesday.
Mauricio came through with a pinch-hit walk-off single in the 10th to secure a 4-3 victory over the Diamondbacks at Citi Field, but the Mets only reached extra innings because baseball in 2026 bit them in the fifth inning.
Arizona scored all three of its runs in a frame the Mets briefly believed to have been over, the first time this season that the challenge system has burned them.
In the fifth, Freddy Peralta loaded the bases with two outs and was pulled for Huascar Brazobán.
The righty reliever threw a two-strike sinker that induced a called strike, and the Mets took several steps toward the dugout while the batter, Adrian Del Castillo, touched his helmet.
He believed the pitch to have been inside, and replay showed he was correct.
Brazobán had to collect himself and apparently did not do so well: The next pitch, a middle-of-the-plate changeup, was smashed to right field for a game-tying two-run single.
One batter later, the Diamondbacks had the lead.
This predicament — in which a celebration is cut short and a pitcher has to calm himself and pitch through the emotions — was a topic the Mets discussed during spring training, according to Carlos Mendoza.
“That’s not an easy situation,” the manager said. “And it’s new for all of us here. You think you’re out of the woods, and before you know it, you got to get back on the mound.
“They got him there. It was a really good challenge for them, close pitch. You got to give them credit there.”
