Pete Alonso homers on pitch barely 1 foot off ground in NLCS Game 5

NEW YORK — With the Mets in need of a timely knock, Pete Alonso dug deep on Friday at Citi Field.

Alonso crushed a three-run first-inning homer on Dodgers right-hander Jack Flaherty’s slider, which was 1.12 feet off the ground, the lowest pitch taken deep in the postseason since 2015. With the Mets facing elimination in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series, they jumped out to their first lead since the NLCS moved to Queens.

Here are the Statcast metrics on the tater:

The clutch hit snapped the Mets’ 0-for-17 stretch with runners in scoring position and woke Alonso up from his slumber. The Polar Bear had been 2-for-15 with no extra-base hits, six strikeouts and three walks through the first four games of the series.

Alonso, a pending free agent who could be playing his final game in a Mets uniform at Citi Field, is tied with Mike Piazza for second in franchise history with five career postseason homers, behind only Murphy (seven). Three of those have come in elimination games — most in club history.