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BRACKET D QUARTERFINALS

No. 10 2023 Rangers vs. No. 3 1986 METS

At New York Shea Stadium

GAME ONE: Rangers 10, Mets 7 (10 innings) — A cramp in Rick Aguilera’s leg has put a crimp in the 1986 Mets’ plans. Called on to relieve Roger McDowell in the tenth inning of a 5-5 tie, Aguilera struck out one batter, then left the mound, wincing in pain. New York skipper Davey Johnson had to go to his third reliever of the night, lefty Jesse Orosco, who soon had all of New York wincing in pain as he gave up 5 runs on 4 singles and 1 walk. Rangers 2B Marcus Semien’s bases-loaded, 2-run single up the middle snapped the tie and gave Texas a 7-5 lead. The Rangers added 3 more insurance runs, then held off a Mets rally in the bottom of the tenth to snag the victory. ... Evan Carter went 4-for-5 with a run scored for the Rangers, while Adolos Garcia had 3 hits including a 2-run homer. ... Ray Knight’s 2-run homer in the bottom of the second inning gave the 1986 Mets a 2-0 lead before Garcia’s homer tied it. Knight also had an RBI double in the tenth inning, as the Mets got within 10-7, but no closer.

GAME TWO: Mets 8, Rangers 4 — An Adolis Garcia 2-run bomb in the top of the first inning but the 1986 Mets on notice right away — but, wow, how they responded. Every hitter in the Mets lineup had at least one hit and seven different guys drove in runs. A 2-run homer by C Gary Carter in the bottom of the fifth gave the hosts some breathing room. However, the Rangers chased LHP Bob Ojeda with 2 runs in the top of the eighth, with Corey Seager’s RBI single cutting the margin to 5-4. The Mets responded again with 3 runs in the bottom of the eighth, on 3 singles and 3 walks. ... Roger McDowell earned the save for the 1986 Mets.

At Texas Globe Life Field

GAME THREE: Rangers 7, Mets 4 — Just when the Mets thought they had their swagger back, the Rangers blitzed them with 6 unanswered runs to take a 2 games to 1 lead. ... Early homers by Gary Carter (in the first inning) and Darryl Strawberry (in the fourth) had the 1986 Mets on top 4-1 after four and a half innings. Rangers starter Max Scherzer was wobbling, and Mets LHP Sid Fernandez was on track. ... Then in the bottom of the fifth, the tables turned. Fernandez hit a rough patch with a pair of Rangers on base with 2 outs. Then DH Mitch Garver hammered a 3-run homer to left field to knot the score at 4-4. ... In the sixth, Fernandez continued to struggle. Leody Taveras singled with one out, then stole second, and then scored on Josh Jung’s line-drive single past shortstop. Ron Darling came in to provide relief, but the Rangers knocked him around too, with Corey Seager’s 2-run double making it 7-4. Seager finished the game 3-for-4 with 2 RBI and a run scored. ... Scherzer’s line: 7 IP, 4 R, 4 ER, 8 H, 0 W, 4 K. ... Jose LeClerc picked up the save with 2 innings of hitless relief.

GAME FOUR: Mets 2, Rangers 0 — Dwight Gooden and two relievers combined to shut out the 2023 Texas Rangers and knot this series at 2 games apiece. ... Mets hitters Mookie Wilson and Ray Knight each drove in a run in New York’s 2-run second inning. Gooden had to make it stand — but this was not a typical dominating shutout. Gooden labored, allowing 4 hits and 3 walks while every Rangers hitter worked a deep count. At the end of six innings, Gooden had thrown 123 pitches. He was done, but unfortunately, the Mets still had a fragile 2-0 lead to protect with three innings left. With Ron Darling needing rest and Jesse Orosco possibly unreliable (see Game One) skipper Davey Johnson called on Rick Aguilera, who had cramped up in extra innings in Game One. Aguilera gave up 2 hits and a walk over the seventh and eighth innings but kept Texas off the scoreboard. In the ninth, McDowell came in and got 3 quick outs — except the third was a strikeout and passed ball, and Josh Jung managed to reach first. Next, Marcus Semien singled, and now the crowd was into it with superstar Corey Seager stepping in. Seager worked the count full but then tapped out harmlessly to first base. Series tied.

GAME FIVE: Rangers 8, Mets 1 — Marcus Semien hit LHP Bobby Ojeda’s second pitch of the game down the third base line, all the way to the corner for a leadoff triple. That was the opening salvo to a 4-run first inning. Semien also ripped a 2-run double in the bottom of the second to make it 6-0 as the 2023 Rangers cruised. ... This game had none of the tension of Game Four. After Jonah Heim’s bases-clearing double in the first inning, the Mets were already too far behind, and their starter had nothing. ... Rangers LHP Jordan Montgomery went the distance: 9 IP, 1 ER, 6 H, 1 W, 5 K. ... Now the series shifts back to Shea Stadium, where the 2023 Rangers will try to finish the job the 1986 Red Sox couldn’t.

At New York Shea Stadium

GAME SIX: Rangers 4, Mets 1 — This tournament now has its Cinderella. The 2023 Texas Rangers began the Wild Card round as the No. 10 seed in their bracket. They’ve now upset one of the top ball clubs in the entire apparatus: the mighty 1986 New York Mets. And they never looked like a “Cinderella” while doing it. The 2023 Rangers played like the stronger team. They pitched better, played smoother defense, hit more consistently, and applied all the pressure. The 1986 Mets spent all six games trying to overcome what the Rangers threw at them, when seeding suggested it should have been the other way around. ... IN GAME SIX, Rangers starter Max Scherzer held the Mets to 3 hits over 7 innings while walking 3 and striking out 3. New York scored its only run (unearned) when CF Leody Taveras dropped a flyball in centerfield to put Wally Backman on base. Four batters and 2 outs later, Kevin Mitchell singled him home to cut the Rangers lead to 2-1. That’s where it stayed until the top of the seventh. With two runners on, Rangers RF Adolis Garcia lined a 2-out, 2-RBI double off the top of the centerfield wall to make it 4-1. By then, RHP Ron Darling was pitching in relief of starter Sid Fernandez, who yielded 2 runs on 4 hits and 5 walks (with 4 strikeouts) over 5 laborious innings. ... The Rangers built a 2-0 lead on single tallies in the first and fourth innings, with RBI singles from LF Robbie Grossman and 3B Josh Jung. ... Scherzer departed after 7 innings for closer Will Smith. The normally “clutch” Mets mustered only a walk against Smith over the eighth and ninth innings, while striking out twice. ... The 2023 RANGERS WIN the series, 4 games to 2, outscoring the 1986 Mets, 33-23.

MVP-1: Rangers C/DH Mitch Garver: 7-for-13, HR, 2 doubles, 6 RBI, 7 runs scored

MVP-2: Rangers RF Adolis Garcia: 7-for-24, 2 HR, 1 triple, 1 double, 7 RBI, 3 runs scored

MV-Pitcher: Rangers RHP Max Scherzer: 2-0, 14 IP, 5 R, 4 ER, 11 H, 3 W, 7 K

2023 RANGERS TEAM STATS: Batting: (.259, 55-of-212); Extra-Base Hits: 15 (2 triples, 10 doubles, 3 HR); Stolen Bases-Caught: 2-1; Double Plays-Errors: 5-4; Walks-Strikeouts: 21-33 (-12).

1986 METS TEAM STATS: Batting: (.247, 51-of-206); Extra-Base Hits: 15 (1 triple, 9 doubles, 5 HR); Stolen Bases-Caught: 2-3; Double Plays-Errors: 7-11; Walks-Strikeouts: 15-33 (-18).