Francisco Alvarez, Brandon Nimmo smack big homers in Mets blowout win over Phillies

PHILADELPHIA — The Mets’ lineup has ridden Francisco Lindor’s MVP-type season and Mark Vientos’ emergence for much of the year and the duo has helped get them into playoff position, but for the team to make noise in October, they’ll need more from the rest of the offense.Brandon Nimmo and Francisco Alvarez have been two of the primary culprits in what’s been wrong, but they both showed signs of breaking out in Friday’s 11-3 win over the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park.They each hit three-run homers in the fifth inning off Aaron Nola, who didn’t give up a hit through the first four innings.Alvarez hit his shot out to left, knocking it off the foul pole, to give the Mets a 3-0 lead and Nimmo followed later in the inning on a 3-2 curveball.Somewhat lost in the team’s stunning turnaround has been the continued struggles of both hitters, as Alvarez had gone deep just twice over his previous 52 games before hitting homers in his last two to give him eight on the year and Nimmo hadn’t homered since Aug.18.Their slumps have extended beyond just power, as Alvarez had a .501 OPS during those 52 games, while Nimmo’s OPS was .546 in his previous 50 games prior to Friday.Before the game, Carlos Mendoza noted Alvarez’s better at-bats over the last week, especially against fastballs.On Friday, he turned on an inside knuckle-curve that was several inches off the plate.“I stayed inside the ball to see if I [could] keep it fair,’’ Alvarez said.“He’s in position to make good swing decisions and do damage,’’ Mendoza said of the catcher.

“He’s getting to a spot mechanically where he’s ready to fire.”Nimmo, meanwhile, has been dealing with pitchers attacking him differently based on his success during the final two months of last season and an impressive June this year.Sign up for Inside the Mets by Mike Puma, exclusively on Sports+ Please provide a valid email address.

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