Mets keep Yankees reeling with Subway Series romp

After disaster struck for the Yankees in the ninth inning Wednesday night, they had two days to let the impact of that defeat marinate during a week that began with their manager saying the season was on the line.

Saturday, the Yankees’ calamity was spread out over nine innings — and the damage was inflicted by their crosstown rivals as the Mets took a bag of salt and scattered it all over Yankees’ open wounds.

Taijuan Walker no-hit the Yankees for 5 ¹/₃ innings and the Mets’ bats singled them to death for an 8-3 win in front of a season-high 40,047 at Yankee Stadium.

While the Mets (42-36) bounced back from their own tough series in Atlanta — which featured a 20-2 loss Wednesday and a walk-off loss Thursday — the Yankees (41-40) lost for the sixth time in seven games. Coming off back-to-back rainouts after Wednesday’s devastating loss to the Angels, they didn’t show much life Saturday, and by the time they did it was too late.

Walker continued his strong season by not giving up a hit until Aaron Judge took him deep for a solo home run with one out in the sixth inning. The Yankees added a pair of runs later in the inning, but Jeurys Familia and Drew Smith retired their final 10 batters in order to end the game.

Both teams entered with bottom-10 offenses in MLB, but it was the Mets who came alive, out-hitting the Yankees 14-3, with 13 of those hits singles. The top of the Mets lineup led the way. Brandon Nimmo, in his first game back after a hand injury cost him two months, Francisco Lindor and Dominic Smith combined to go 8-for-13 with six runs scored and four RBIs.

Subway Series
Dominic Smith and the Mets beat the Yankees on Saturday.
Corey Sipkin

After wasting scoring chances early off Jordan Montgomery — first and second with no outs in the first inning and second and third with one out in the third — the Mets finally cashed in on a rally in the fifth.

Nimmo, Lindor and Smith delivered consecutive singles with one out, the last one driving in Nimmo to put the Mets ahead 1-0.

Pete Alonso then drew a walk to load the bases, marking the end of Montgomery’s day after 4 ¹/₃ innings — his second-shortest outing of the season.

Lucas Luetge relieved him and allowed a broken-bat single to James McCann to give the Mets a 2-0 lead. One out later, Luetge spiked a slider in the dirt for a wild pitch that allowed Smith to score from third to make it 3-0.

Walker, meanwhile, held the Yankees hitless through five innings, though he needed 87 pitches to do so. He issued two-out walks in both the second and third innings, but got out of both predicaments, striking out Gio Urshela looking and getting Judge to fly out.

The Mets padded their lead in the sixth inning off former teammate Justin Wilson. Jeff McNeil, Jose Peraza and Nimmo each singled to load the bases before Lindor walked to force in a run. Smith then made it 6-0 with a two-run double, knocking Wilson out of the game.

Michael King, who was a candidate to start the nightcap of Sunday’s doubleheader, came on and got two outs before allowing a two-run single to Kevin Pillar that put the Mets up 8-0.

After the Yankees got within 8-3 in the bottom of the sixth, with Judge’s homer and Urshela’s two-run single off Miguel Castro, Familia put out the fire by striking out Miguel Andujar, stranding two runners on base.

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