Mark Vientos homered and Edwin Díaz escaped a major jam in the ninth inning as the New York Mets held off the fading Cincinnati Reds 5-4 on Friday night in the opener of a pivotal three-game series.
Cincinnati (70-71) fell six games behind the Mets for the last National League wild card. New York began the night leading San Francisco by four games for the final playoff spot.
Vientos drove in two runs and scored two more to help the Mets win for the seventh time in 11 games. Francisco Lindor drew three walks in the leadoff spot and also scored twice.