The New York Mets are off to a fast start with their 8:4 win against the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday night, now just one win away from advancing to the Divisional Round of the National League. Despite the quick turnaround after a doubleheader in Atlanta, the Mets continued to show their resiliency with several clutch at-bats and responded to everything the Brewers put together on offense.

Mark Vientos continues to find ways to deliver when the Mets need it most. In his first career postseason game, Vientos started the early rally in the second with a single up the middle, and in the fifth he added a two-out single to score a pair and give the Mets the lead.

“I have to be honest, when I walked into the clubhouse today I was really nervous,” Vientos said. “I felt the nerves of the first playoff game and I’m glad I got through the first one and did my best to help the team win.”

Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

It’s incredible what Vientos has done for the Mets this year after signing JD Martinez before the start of the season to take his place on the roster that was sent back to Triple-A after an offensive surge early in the season to finally find a home at third base and never look back.

After an impressive regular season in which he hit 27 home runs, 71 RBIs and an OPS+ of 135, the young third baseman continued his 2024 success in his first postseason game. The 24-year-old slugger has established himself in the middle of the pack with his impressive 2024 season, but now it’s time for Vientos.

“It’s hard to be tired when you’re playing playoff baseball. I had a lot of energy and I know we all did. “We’re all excited and got the job done,” Vientos said.

He’s shown the ability to stay cool, calm and collected in the big moments, but it’s hard to predict whether he can maintain that feeling into the postseason. Even with an underwhelming performance, the Monkey is now off his back, tasting what playoff baseball is all about and will look to continue his success for the rest of the Wild Card Series in Milwaukee.