Saturday, September 12, 2026 — six homers in the Bronx, and a season that refuses to follow the script.
The Mets hammered the Yankees 12-2 on Saturday at a sold-out Yankee Stadium, hitting six home runs — the first time they’ve ever hit six against their crosstown rival. Francisco Lindor led off the game with a homer and capped a five-run eighth with a grand slam.
It was a statement win. More than that, it was the latest evidence that the Mets have been one of baseball’s better teams since deciding they weren’t contenders.
The Game
Lindor’s leadoff shot was the 36th of his career and his fifth this season. His grand slam was the eighth of his career, making him the third Met to hit one in the Bronx, after Mike Piazza in 2000 and Carlos Delgado in 2008. It was his 24th multi-homer game.
Luis Torrens added a two-run homer and an RBI double, Carson Benge homered and singled in a run, Jared Young went deep, and Juan Soto homered in the seventh — a day after hearing boos all night from the Bronx crowd.
Rookie Zac Thornton was terrific in his Subway Series debut, holding the Yankees to two runs on five hits over seven innings and finishing his outing with an inning-ending double play.
Cole’s Rough Stretch
Gerrit Cole fell to 8-9, allowing five runs on nine hits in 4⅓ innings. In his last three Subway Series starts, Cole is 0-3 with a 10.92 ERA and has allowed 10 home runs. A week ago in San Diego, he gave up homers to the first three batters of the game.
For a Yankees team that just climbed to 23 games over .500 and is chasing the division, Cole’s inconsistency is the most significant question mark heading into October.
The Mets’ Strange September
Here’s what makes the Mets’ story interesting from a front-office perspective. At the August 3 deadline, New York sold. It moved Luke Weaver, Huascar Brazóbán, Brooks Raley and A.J. Minter out of the bullpen, and later placed Luis Robert Jr. on waivers to save money, where Baltimore claimed him.
Since that deadline, the Mets have gone 22-13. Young players like Thornton and Benge are getting real opportunities and producing. Soto is back from the injured list. Lindor is Lindor.
What It Means for the Winter
A strong finish complicates the offseason narrative. A team that sold in August would ordinarily spend the winter in reset mode. But the Mets have a payroll built to contend, a core of Lindor and Soto under long-term contracts, and a group of young players who just showed they can help now.
That combination points toward a more aggressive winter than the deadline would have suggested — particularly in the bullpen the front office dismantled and in the rotation, where Thornton and Nolan McLean have flashed promise but remain inexperienced. An organization with this payroll and this ownership rarely stays quiet for long.
The Read
The Mets punted on 2026 at the deadline. Since then, they’ve played like a team that wants a do-over. Saturday’s rout in the Bronx won’t change their standing much this season. It may change how hard they push this winter.
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