NEW YORK — The first pitch Mark Vientos saw in the 10th inning from Justin Wilson was a cutter from inside, outside the strike zone. That was all New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza needed to know how the at-bat would turn out.

“The way he took it, I thought, ‘The game is over here,'” Mendoza said.

Mendoza saw that there was no panic. Vientos was in no hurry. He seemed relaxed.

Moments later, on the eighth pitch of the duel, Vientos proved Mendoza’s hunch was correct, hitting a 97 mph fastball for a two-run walk-off home run that gave the Mets a 6-4 win over the Cincinnati Reds.

The win was the Mets’ eighth straight, a season-high, and moves them into a tie for the final NL wild-card playoff spot with the Atlanta Braves, who also won Friday. Both teams are 77-64 and have 21 games remaining, including three games against each other in Atlanta later in the month.

“I was ready to swing at the first pitch, and I saw him pretty well,” Vientos said. “And I kind of felt the same way. I was like, ‘OK, I see him well.’ And I think Mendy said it perfectly. I saw him well, and then my game plan, like I said, was to hit the ball with the bat.”

It was Vientos’ second home run of the night and his second walk-off home run of the season. The first walk-off came on April 28 against the St. Louis Cardinals, when Vientos was still playing to prove he belonged on the roster. It was only his second major league game of the season, after starting in Triple-A and losing out to Matt Baty for the starting third baseman spot in spring training. He came in as a pinch hitter and had not started a game for the Mets. He was sent back to Syracuse two days later.

Vientos, 24, returned to the major leagues on May 15 to start as a third baseman and has not given up his spot. He has a batting average of .289/.342/.563 with 24 home runs and 62 RBIs in 91 games. His OPS of .905 leads the Mets — and all major league third basemen with at least 350 plate appearances this season. So does his slugging percentage of .563.

He has become an indispensable source of strength for one of the strongest team lineups in baseball.

“It’s hard to describe because he was everything,” Mendoza said. “It’s just really cool and special to see someone who went through so much at the beginning of the year.”

The clubs took turns with two-run runs on Friday. Vientos, batting third, gave the Mets the lead with a two-run home run in the first inning against Fernando Cruz, the Reds’ opener in their bullpen game. Elly De La Cruz tied it with a two-run home run in the fourth inning.

The Mets regained the lead in the sixth inning with RBI singles from Jose Iglesias and JD Martinez. Half an inning later, TJ Friedl knocked Mets starter Sean Manaea out of the game with a two-run home run with two outs in the seventh inning.

In the ninth inning, two brothers were at work. On one side, Mets closer Edwin Diaz struck out the team, keeping the game tied. As he left the mound, his younger brother Alexis Diaz came in to try and do the same. The younger Diaz – Cincinnati’s closer – hit a batter but left the runner on second base, sending the game into overtime.

The stage was set for Vientos to give the Mets their longest winning streak since 2019.

“I’m proud of him,” Mendoza said. “He’s in a really good position and enjoys playing the game, coming to the stadium and just being with the guys there.”