Like most folks concerned with or living around the Mets this season, Josh Satin hasn’t had a whole lot to smile about. But the June 11 call-up from Triple-A Las Vegas couldn’t help it last night, even if the Mets lost.
Hitting your first major league home run will do that.
“At the time, I was thrilled,” said Satin whose fourth-inning drive, one of three Mets solo homers in the game, had provided a 2-0 lead in the eventual 5-3 defeat to the Diamondbacks at Citi Field. “Through all this, I hadn’t really cracked a smile on the field yet. But when it happened, I couldn’t resist.
“We were talking about it, Kirk [Nieuwenhuis] and I. At this point I’ve had 70 at bats in the big leagues and hadn’t hit a homer. I wanted it.”
He wanted a win more. And he also would have liked the ball, but it went to an anonymous fan in the Mets’ second sellout of the season. Sellout? Right, Matt Harvey pitched.
Though it was a personal milestone for Satin, his first major league home run really won’t be what Mets fans will remember. In the summer of Matt Harvey, Met diehards will recall last night as the right-hander’s rockiest outing to date this season. Satin’s homer? Nice job, but hey, Harvey gave up five earned runs. Chances are no one saunters over to the holiday grill today and starts the chatter with, “Hey, you see Satin’s blast last night? And what about Harvey?”
But the night began as one to remember — after a near two-hour rain delay.
“It was awesome,” Satin said of the atmosphere. “After we took the lead and right before Cody Ross hit that [three-run] homer, it was electric. The best atmosphere I’d ever been around in the big leagues. After that, they didn’t die down. It kind of took the life out of us a little bit but as far as the crowd, it was awesome.”
Satin drove a 3-2 fastball from Arizona starter and winner Randall Delgado (1-2) into the seats in left, two batters after David Wright’s also sent a shot to left. It extended Satin’s hitting streak to nine games.
“It was a great feeling,” said Satin, who came up for his third tour with the Mets when Ike Davis was sent down. “Just trying to put together good at bats. That’s all I’m trying to do.”
If he can crack a smile along the way, no one is complaining.