Pete Alonso’s dramatic ninth-inning home run sees New York Mets down Milwaukee Brewers and advance to NLDS

(CNN) — Pete Alonso hammered a historic, go-ahead, three-run home run in the ninth inning to power the New York Mets to a 4-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers in their winner-take-all Game 3 of the NL Wild Card Series.

The Mets will next play their NL East rival, the Philadelphia Phillies, in the National League Divisional Series (NLDS), which begins on Saturday – the first time that the teams have faced each other in the postseason.

“I’m just so happy I could come through,” Alonso, who is set to be a free agent at the end of the season, said after the game. “It’s just something that you practice in the backyard as a kid, you’re going through those scenarios as a little kid … words can’t explain. It’s just unreal.”

Alonso’s home run off All-Star closer Devin Williams, which just cleared the right-field wall, sparked wild celebrations among Mets fans at American Family Field in Milwaukee. With free agency looming, it could have been the final act of his Mets career – but the possible last dance continues.

The crucial hit means that Alonso is the first player in major league history to hit a go-ahead homer in the ninth inning or later of a winner-takes-all postseason game.

“It’s that next-pitch mentality,” Alonso told reporters. “Every AB (at bat), every pitch, every inning, I want to do the best I can. I’m focused on that and it’s baseball, it’s a game of failure.

“Sometimes, that’s not the case, but especially in these big games, you’ve got to move onto the next pitch and make a positive impact or do the best that you can, stay within yourself and execute.”

After the Mets came from behind to win 8-4 in Game 1, the Brewers leveled the series with a 5-3 victory Wednesday. And prior to Alonso’s home run, it looked like Milwaukee was destined to win a series for the first time since reaching Game 7 of the 2018 NLCS.

Milwaukee had opened up a two-run lead in the seventh inning and appeared to be cruising thanks to back-to-back home runs from Jake Bauers and Sal Frelick.

Come the top of the ninth, the Brewers had retired 12 straight Mets batters and allowed only two-hits when Williams, who had closed out the team’s victory in Game 2, was brought in. But Alonso ensured that this time was different.

“I’m just really happy that I was able to execute right there and just hit something hard on a pitch I could handle in a big part of the field,” he said.

The Mets securing a spot in the playoffs seemed an unlikely prospect at various points throughout the season, not least when they trailed the Atlanta Braves at the top of the ninth inning on Monday. That was before Francisco Lindor hit a dramatic two-run homer to secure an 8-7 victory and a postseason berth.

New York has also made a comeback on a larger scale this year, starting the season 22-33 yet still making the playoffs. The stunning victory over the Brewers marks the first time that the team has advanced in the postseason since 2015.

“We just saw one of the greatest games in Mets history,” said president of baseball operations David Stearns. “It’s a franchise that’s had notable, late-inning, late-game comebacks in the playoffs and to be a part of this with this group, it’s really special.

“There was no way this season was going to end without something happening in that ninth inning,” he added.

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