Harrison Bader, Jose Quintana lead Mets to 9th straight win

NEW YORK — It’s pretty difficult to fake the type of bliss that overcame Harrison Bader’s entire body as he rounded first base on Saturday: his arms outstretched and his head turned to the heavens, soaking in the adoration of the 34,048 fans packed into Citi Field. For a moment, Bader’s reaction made it seem as though it was the very first home run he’d hit in his life.

Bader had just delivered a go-ahead homer to lead off the sixth inning, kicking off a four-run rally against the Reds’ bullpen to propel the Mets to a 4-0 win at Citi Field. His inciting blast, combined with Jose Quintana’s outstanding effort to notch his 100th career victory, helped the Mets extend their season-high winning streak to nine games, the club’s longest since April 3-13, 2018.

And in an increasingly tight National League Wild Card race, it’s those types of contributions from New York’s more unheralded pieces that could provide a pivotal difference down the stretch. The Mets moved one game ahead of the Braves for the third NL Wild Card spot after Atlanta lost to Toronto later Saturday night.

“It feels like it’s a different guy every day, and that’s what good teams do,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “We’re doing that right now. Every day, the 28 guys that we got in there, they know that they have an opportunity to impact the game in a positive way. And they’re doing that.”

When the calendar shifts toward autumn and the weather gets a little colder, the players discussed in MVP conversations may not always be the ones to carry a team to victory. And in a game where the Mets’ Nos. 1-5 batters went a combined 2-for-17 with two walks and a hit-by-pitch — Francisco Lindor’s walk in the sixth gave him a 35-game on-base streak to set a new single-season club record — the offense had to come from somewhere.

Bader’s home run was a slump-breaking moment in a couple of ways — New York mustered just one hit in the first five innings against starter Jakob Junis, and Bader was mired in an 0-for-15 stretch at the plate — making for his triumph to feel sweeter than ever.

“Listen, obviously it’s been a tough sample size here for me, individually,” Bader said. “I think it was certainly a second of relief because, at the end of the day, it comes from just wanting to produce so intensely for your team. … With what we got going on here, playing meaningful baseball in September, this is so far beyond any individual, regardless of what my numbers might be in the past 40-50 at-bats.”

Bader went the other way with an up-and-away fastball from Sam Moll, depositing it just over the right-center-field wall into the visitors’ bullpen. It was the first opposite-field home run for Bader this season — a tidbit that the center fielder was keenly aware of after the game — and a satisfying result of the grind that he has put in behind the scenes.

“He’s never stopped working, and he was feeling it, it wasn’t easy,” Mendoza said. “And it’s good to see him going the other way against a lefty, and driving it … with good authority.”

But even before the blast, Quintana’s brilliance kept New York in the game. The left-hander logged 6 2/3 scoreless frames against the Reds, scattering five hits while notching six strikeouts and allowing just two walks, maintaining the momentum of the Mets’ rotation. It was the type of vintage Quintana outing that’s resulted in him allowing just one earned run over his past three starts. He threw four of his pitches at least 18 percent of the time, and produced eight swings and misses on his changeup.

“He’s done it for a long time in his career,” Mendoza said. “… That goes to show you his ability to make adjustments, stay consistent and believe in himself — he was huge for us.”

Quintana became the 19th active player to reach the 100-win plateau, and the first Colombian-born pitcher in MLB history to achieve the milestone.

“It means a lot for me right now, I have a lot of emotions,” Quintana said. “I can’t wait to see my family and say thank you for supporting me, to tell all my teammates that I couldn’t do this alone. I appreciate all they were doing behind me today.”

The up-the-middle defense helped Quintana settle in, with Lindor and Jose Iglesias turning two sublime double plays in the second and third innings. Even with the news of Jeff McNeil missing the rest of the regular season with a fractured right wrist, that double-play pairing provides a particular safety blanket that can’t be overstated. From the Mets side, there aren’t many words needed to capture that sense of security.

“It was amazing … amazing,” Quintana said.