Rafael Montero did not have his best stuff Saturday night and was facing a Reds lineup he had just pitched against 10 days ago.
The resurgent young righty passed both tests.
Montero walked a tightrope all night in Round 2 but gutted out five innings of one-run ball in the Mets’ fourth straight win, 6-1 over the Reds at Citi Field.
Having fired 8 ¹/₃ shutout innings against the Reds on Aug. 30, Montero wasn’t as sharp Saturday. The 26-year-old allowed four hits and walked five (one intentionally) but was able to limit the damage as he stranded eight runners and struck out five. The Reds made him labor, throwing 97 pitches over five innings, but he didn’t crack.
“Sometimes I look at guys and there are those guys who are conveniently wild,” manager Terry Collins said. “I thought tonight was one of those nights. … The fact that he gave us five, he threw a lot of pitches, but he limited the damage and that was impressive.”
In his past six starts, Montero is 4-1 with a 2.75 ERA.
“I’m happy, I thank God, and I’m going to keep working hard to get results,” Montero said through an interpreter.
Montero left the game with the Mets hanging on to a 2-1 lead — thanks to Kevin Plawecki’s two-run home run in the second inning — and his teammates provided breathing room late.
Dominic Smith added an RBI single in the sixth inning while Nori Aoki extended his hitting streak to 11 games in the seventh, when he cracked a two-run single. He came around to score when Asdrubal Cabrera, who returned to the lineup after missing a game with lower back discomfort, belted his second double of the game.
The Yankees and Rays are set to take over Citi Field on Monday, playing a three-game series that was moved from Tropicana Field due to the threat of Hurricane Irma.
The concept isn’t totally foreign to Mets manager Terry Collins, who was managing the Angels in 1998, when they played the Yankees at Shea Stadium after a beam fell through the upper deck at the old Yankee Stadium.
The Yankees played at Citi Field last month while the Rays will be less familiar guests.
“I’m still going to give the edge to the Yankees,” Collins said. “The subways go in a lot of different directions around here, so they’re going to be able to put some people in the seats here.”
Shortstop Amed Rosario, who hasn’t played since last Sunday because of a bruised finger, took batting practice Saturday and pinch-ran in the seventh inning. Collins said after the game he will play Sunday.
Noah Syndergaard, who made a rehab start with Single-A Brooklyn on Thursday, is scheduled to throw about 50 pitches in a simulated game Sunday.