Francisco Lindor of the New York Mets delivered a game-changing home run in the ninth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Center in Toronto, Canada, breaking up a no-hit bid from Bowden Francis. Lindor’s homer tied the score at 1-1, igniting a rally that saw the Mets score an additional five runs, including a three-run shot by Francisco Alvarez. Although the Blue Jays scored once more, it wasn’t enough to turn the tide. “It felt really good,” Lindor said after the Mets’ 6-2 victory. “It was one of those hits where I could feel the energy shift in the dugout. Everything was going his way until the last pitch he threw.” Lindor connected on Francis’s 111th pitch of the season, marking the second time the 28-year-old pitcher has thrown over 100 pitches in one season since his Major League Baseball (MLB) debut in 2022. “With that many pitches, I felt like I had to empty the tank with heaters and let him put the ball in play,” Francis said. It was the second time in four starts that Francis lost a no-hitter on a leadoff homer in the ninth inning; previously, Taylor Ward of the Los Angeles Angels did the same on August 24. As a result, Francis became the first pitcher to lose two no-hit bids during the ninth inning in one season since Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan with the Texas Rangers in 1989. “It sucks for him that it’s happened twice in the same fashion,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said after Wednesday’s game. Having secured their 80th win of the season, the Mets (80-66) are leading the Atlanta Braves (79-67) by one game in the race for the final National League wild-card playoff spot.
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Francisco Lindor ends Blue Jays' no-hit bid with a homer in 9th
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