In the wake of a chaotic Wednesday that saw several concerning injuries, a concerning in-game and postgame meltdown from a reliever that led to a DFA and a a players-only meeting, the Mets were in desperate need of a sign not just of life but of stability.
A series of step-ups from some of the most veteran members of the club provided relief.
Francisco Lindor’s bat gave the Mets a chance.
Pete Alonso ignored a hurting right hand and came off the bench to jump-start a late-inning rally.
And J.D. Martinez’s blast put the finishing touches on a comeback, 3-2 win over the Diamondbacks in a series-opener in front of 20,926 at Citi Field on Thursday.
The Mets (23-33) halted a four-game skid and hope they have pulled up from an all-out plummet.
The win was just their second in the past 10 games and third in their past 13.
They were trailing, 2-1, before launching their rally beginning in the seventh inning.
Alonso — whose imaging came back negative a day after he was forced out of the game because his hand was drilled — pinch-hit and stroked a double down the third-base line.
With two outs, Lindor roped an RBI single into right field to tie the game.
Lindor, who called the team meeting a night earlier so the players could bounce ideas off of one another to try to snap out of this funk, finished 4-for-4 with that clutch single and a third-inning home run.
He consistently gestured to the dugout with fist-pumps after big hits, trying to spark the club any way he could.
Maybe it worked with the 36-year-old Martinez, who stepped up in a tie game in the eighth inning and blasted his fourth home run of the season that became the game-winner.
The Mets made three runs stand up because their undermanned bullpen turned in a gem.
After five solid, two-run innings from Christian Scott, Adrian Houser, Danny Young and Reed Garrett (third save) pitched four scoreless innings.
The Mets’ bullpen has been a weak spot in the past few weeks, likely because of overuse, and has never appeared more vulnerable than right now.
Without the injured Edwin Diaz and the formerly reliable Jorge Lopez, whose in-game and postgame outburst led to his exit from the team, the Mets pieced together innings six through nine, in which Arizona did not record a hit.