Manaea strikes out 11 in mound gem that sends Mets past Twins 2-0

NEW YORK (AP) Sean Manaea struck out a season-best 11 over seven dominant innings Tuesday night, pitching the New York Mets to a 2-0 victory against the Minnesota Twins.

Mark Vientos homered and J.D. Martinez had an RBI single to help the Mets (57-50) win for the 15th time in 21 games. They matched their season high at seven games above .500, hours after the front office concluded a busy month by acquiring pitchers Paul Blackburn, Huascar Brazobán and Tyler Zuber at the trade deadline.

“They believe in this team and I think everybody in here does, too,” Manaea said.

Twelve players on the Mets’ 26-man roster Tuesday didn’t begin the season with the club. New York was 22-33 through May 29 but has gone 35-17 since to climb into the second wild-card spot in the National League.

“We’re excited to continue to add to the team,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “We feel good with what we have in that room and ready to go.”

Manaea (7-4) yielded two hits and one walk while allowing just one runner beyond first base. The 11 strikeouts were his most since fanning 12 for San Diego against Atlanta in May 2022.

“It was pretty impressive - a complete outing from him,” Mendoza said.

The left-hander has a 1.50 ERA in his last four starts at Citi Field.

“It feels great. You can feel the energy of the crowd,” Manaea said. “That’s incredible, every day playing here.”

Ryne Stanek got two outs in the eighth and Edwin Díaz struck out Byron Buxton with two runners on to end the inning. Buxton whiffed all four times up, and Royce Lewis fanned three times.

Díaz finished the two-hitter for his 13th save in a game that took only 2 hours, 12 minutes. The four-out save was his first since Oct. 4, 2022.

“They were very fast innings,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. “There was really not a lot going on. You really have to force the action a little bit more than that by just having good at-bats. And sometimes that’s not getting a hit. Sometimes that’s just being pesky or having a long at-bat.”

All three of New York’s shutouts this season have come in the past 16 games.

Martinez hit an RBI single against rookie starter David Festa (1-2) in the fourth, and Vientos led off the fifth with a 393-foot homer to left field.

The 24-year-old Festa, born in nearby New Jersey, allowed three hits and struck out six in five innings.

“He had a good day,” Baldelli said. “We have a chance to win a game when our pitchers go out and throw the ball like that.”

METS MOVES

The Mets made four trades before Tuesday’s deadline. New York dealt three minor leaguers in a trio of deals that brought Blackburn from Oakland, Brazobán from Miami and Zuber from Tampa Bay. The club also dealt Triple-A lefty Josh Walker, who had been designated for assignment Friday, to Pittsburgh for minor league pitcher Nicolas Carreno.

New York acquired Stanek, reliever Phil Maton and outfielder Jesse Winker earlier this month.

MINNESOTA MOVE

The Twins acquired right-handed reliever Trevor Richards from Toronto in exchange for minor league infielder Jay Harry. To make room for Richards on the 40-man roster, Minnesota designated reliever Josh Staumont for assignment.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Twins: 3B Jose Miranda returned to the lineup and went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts after sitting out Monday, one day after he was hit in the cheek by a pitch. … OF Alex Kirilloff (back) was moved to the 60-day injured list to make room for RHP Randy Dobnak, who had his contract purchased from Triple-A St. Paul.

Mets: C Francisco Alvarez (left shoulder) sat out a second straight game. Alvarez was battling soreness before he lunged for a pitch in Sunday’s 9-2 loss to the Braves.

UP NEXT

The interleague series concludes Wednesday afternoon, when Twins RHP Pablo López (9-7, 4.73 ERA) opposes RHP Luis Severino (7-3, 3.58).

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb