Luis Robert Jr.'s first home run as a Met came in a huge spot on Saturday against the Pirates.
Trailing 2-1 in the bottom of the 11th inning, Robert hit his first home run as a Met, which was a walk-off three-run shot to propel New York to a 4-2 victory against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Mets subsequently improved to 2-0 on the young season.
It was a pitching duel at Citi Field on Saturday as both David Peterson and Mitch Keller tossed gems for their teams, with the bullpens also holding firm to keep the game scoreless through nine innings. While Pittsburgh grabbed a 1-0 lead in the top of the tenth, the Mets were able to tie the game in the bottom half of the frame on a Luis Torrens RBI single. That was all the Mets could get, however, as both Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto grounded into fielders' choices and Bo Bichette flied out to right field to end the inning and scoring threat. Even after the Pirates retook the lead in the 11th, the Mets responded right back in the bottom half of the inning. Jorge Polanco drew a leadoff walk to put the winning run on base before Robert came through and provided his first signature moment with the Amazins'. "It's really special," Robert said after the game. "I don't think I've hit a walk-off home run since 2020, so to be able to do it there, these last two games have been special." "It's real special. I don't think I've hit a walk-off home run since 2020, so to be able to do it here, these last two games have really been special."The Mets were hoping that when they acquired the 28-year-old from the Chicago White Sox in the offseason, he would come through in clutch situations like Saturday's game and show his prodigious power. Although Robert has been riddled by injuries over the last couple of seasons, he is just nearly three years removed from slugging a career-best 38 home runs in 2023, as well as his first All-Star Game selection and a 12th-place finish in AL MVP voting. Robert also credited the at-bats in front of him that he thought gave him an advantage before he came to bat, especially Polanco's at-bat that set up the homer. The Mets' come-from-behind win was a much-needed contrast from the previous season. In 2025, they went 0-70 in games when they trailed in the eighth inning or later, being the only winless team in such scenarios. It took just two games into the 2026 season for the Amazins' to snap that skid. New York will now go for a sweep of the Bucs on Sunday with rookie phenom Nolan McLean on the mound, while Pittsburgh will throw out Carmen Mlodzinski.Logan VanDine is a contributing writer for On SI's Mets. Logan is a graduate of Rider University where he majored in Sports Media and minored in Sports Studies. During his time at Rider, Logan worked for Rider's radio station, 107.7 The Bronc as a sports host, producer and broadcaster, and for the school's paper: The Rider News. He began his time with The Rider News as a section writer for sports and was a copy editor for two years followed by being one of the sports editors during his senior year. Logan also placed third in the New Jersey Press Foundation Awards for sports feature writing. Aside from his work at On SI, he is also a writer for FanSided covering the New York Giants and Mets and also covers the Giants for Total Apex Sports. Give him a follow on X: @VandineLoganFrancisco Alvarez Could Be the Mets' X-Factor In 2026
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