Brett Baty hit a tiebreaking homer in the seventh inning and the New York Mets held off the punchless Pittsburgh Pirates 2-1.

A 4-3 win over Paul Skenes and the Pittsburgh Pirates might register as another tally in the standings, but for the New York Mets, it was another data point in a growing case for Pete Alonso as the heartbeat of their 2025 campaign—and perhaps, a National League MVP candidate.

Brett Baty didn’t have to be here. Under different circumstances, he certainly would not be. Late last month, the Mets demoted Baty to Triple-A Syracuse, in a move that was largely based on merit. The team had a roster crunch.

Despite the injury bug hitting the team, the New York Mets are overperforming and staying competitive with their extensive depth.

The Pittsburgh Pirates continued to struggle with runners in scoring position and let Mitch Keller’s strong start go to waste in a 2-1 loss to the New York Mets at Citi Field on Tuesday night.

While playing third base for the Mets on Tuesday, Mark Vientos had his glove explode, which lead to the tying run for the Pirates.

This story was excerpted from Anthony DiComo's Mets Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox. NEW YORK -- As a small child in Hawaii, Pirates infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa was more into surfing,

Specifically, Wright was asked for his thoughts on Judge's new "Captain America" nickname in relation to his role as captain of Team USA's 2026 World Baseball Classic roster, a title he is taking over from Mike Trout.