Peralta Shines, Melendez Hits Two Homers as Mets Rout Cardinals

MJ Melendez and Freddy Peralta were superb in the Mets’ (4-2-1) 14-3 rout of the St. Louis Cardinals (4-3) in Jupiter on Friday.

The Mets hit the ground running in the first inning of Friday’s matchup. Carson Benge was hit by the first pitch of the game by Quinn Mathews. Juan Soto promptly hit a soft double to left field to give the Mets runners on second and third with nobody out. Benge scored in the subsequent at-bat on a wild pitch to give the Mets a 1-0 lead. After a Christian Arroyo walk, the next two Mets were retired and Soto was picked off of second base. Peralta took the mound in the bottom half of the inning and set the Cardinals down 1-2-3 with a strikeout on 10 pitches.

Peralta had a stellar outing in his first spring start as a Met. In three perfect innings, he struck out three while generating six swing and misses. Peralta’s velocity was down slightly from his 2025 averages across the board by about one mph, but that should rectify itself as the Mets head towards Opening Day.

Melendez came up in the top of the fourth inning and hit a 93.8 MPH solo home run that cleared the left field wall at 359 feet to extend the Mets’ lead to 2-0. Cardinals pitcher Matt Pushard recovered nicely and set the next two Mets down in order. In the bottom half of the inning, Devin Williams replaced Peralta, and although he allowed a long solo home run to JJ Wetherholt on his first pitch, he limited any further damage to keep the score 2-1 Mets.

The fifth inning began with speedster Nick Moribito drawing a walk, followed by a steal on the next pitch. Benge added to his strong spring showing up to this point with a single to make it first and third with nobody, before promptly stealing second. After Soto struck out, Arroyo hit a sac fly to right field that drove in Moribito, advancing Benge to third. After a Jose Rojas walk, Hayden Senger drove in Benge on a base hit to left field. Melendez followed with his second long-ball of the day. This time, it was a 408-foot and 100.9-mph blast that extended the Mets’ lead to 7-1. The inning concluded with a Grae Kessinger strikeout after eight Mets came to bat. Justin Hagenman replaced Williams in the bottom of the fifth, an inning where he allowed a pair of doubles, resulting in a run that cut the Mets’ lead to 7-2.

A.J. Ewing came to the plate in the top of the seventh inning and ripped a 100.5 mph single to the right side on the first pitch he saw. After a Jacob Reimer strikeout, Ewing swiped second base, before advancing to third on a throwing error. In the first pitch of his at-bat, Kevin Parada singled, driving in Ewing to extend the Mets’ lead to 8-2. Despite allowing another run in the bottom of the seventh that cut the lead to 8-3, Hagenman worked three solid innings, striking out four, and generating nine swing and misses.

After a one-out RBI double by Austin Barnes, Ewing hit a 105.9 mph home run, his first of the spring. The ball traveled 400 feet and extended the Mets’ lead to 11-3. Despite loading the bases with two outs, Kessinger grounded out to end the inning.

Huascar Brazobán entered in the bottom of the eighth inning, setting the Cardinals down in a scoreless inning that included two strikeouts. In the top of the ninth, Cristian Pache recorded his third hit of the day and Barnes grounded out to drive in his second run of the afternoon. Ewing walked, Reimer drove in a run on a single and Parada walked to drive in another run. Brett Banks came in to close it out in the bottom of the inning to secure a 14-3 Mets win.

Player of the Game

Melendez slightly edged out Peralta, Ewing and Pache for today’s Player of the Game. His two home run performance, capped off with his three-run homer in the top of the fifth, propelled the Mets’ offense. Melendez’ strong showing in his first week of Grapefruit League games has him trending in the right direction for a spot on the Opening Day roster.

On Deck

Tobias Myers will take the mound for his second spring training outing against Jake Irvin and the Washington Nationals on Saturday, February 28 at 1:10 pm EST. The game will stream live from Port St. Lucie on SNY.

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