ST. LOUIS — Daniel Vogelbach’s big moments have been few and far between this season, but he gave the Mets a winning streak-inducing jolt Saturday night.
Miles Mikolas threw a low fastball in the fifth inning and Vogelbach crushed it to right field for a grand slam that served as the highlight of the Mets’ 13-2 victory over the Cardinals at Busch Stadium.
The Mets (58-66), who are playing their best baseball since the All-Star break, extended their winning streak to four and won for the sixth time in seven games.
The last time the Mets showed such life was during a six-game winning streak to start July — their last gasp before the team was dismantled ahead of the trade deadline.
Vogelbach’s home run was his third in eight days after he hit only seven over the 4 ¹/₂ months to begin the season.
He is under club control for next season, but it would hardly be surprising if the Mets went in a different direction to provide more flexibility from designated hitter and the bench.
The Mets looked to trade Vogelbach at the deadline, but were underwhelmed by the offers.
“It’s a long season, and if you stay the course and put the work in … what I have done against right-handed pitching my whole career, it just doesn’t go away,” said Vogelbach, who owns a .715 OPS this season. “You have stretches where you struggle. But if you stay the course, things will come back to life.”
DJ Stewart and Pete Alonso also homered as part of the Mets’ 13-hit attack. Alonso’s home run — a 466-foot shot in the seventh — was his 38th of the season. Francisco Lindor finished 4-for-5 and scored three runs, one on a steal of home.
The Mets’ second straight scoring outburst — they totaled seven runs on Friday — provided plenty of support for Kodai Senga, who allowed one earned run on two hits with five strikeouts and two walks over seven innings.
Senga reached the 150-strikeout plateau for the season to become the seventh Mets pitcher to strike out at least that many as a rookie. He’s the fifth Japanese pitcher to get there as a rookie in MLB.
“I think the biggest goal for me has been just staying healthy,” Senga said through his interpreter. “Hitting 150 strikeouts just comes with staying healthy, and I still have a little bit of the season left, so I just want to maintain that.”
Lindor raced home from third on a double steal in the first inning to give the Mets their initial run. On a swing and miss by Alonso for the second out, Jeff McNeil broke for second base and, on the throw, Lindor sprinted home.
McNeil’s second hit of the game, an RBI single in the third, extended the Mets’ lead to 2-0. Lindor doubled to start the rally after Brandon Nimmo had reached on an error and was thrown out attempting to steal second.
Stewart’s third homer in four games put the Mets ahead 3-0 in the fourth. Stewart, who is receiving regular playing time in the outfield since the trade deadline and with Starling Marte on the injured list, hit two homers against the Pirates on Wednesday.
