Jonah Tong allows 3 homers in first MLB test as Mets fall to Reds

Cincinnati – The dishes knew that their recruit launchers would be tested this month. The first test for Jonah Tong arrived on Friday evening during his second departure in the big league.

In the thickness of a race in the playoff series, the Reds of Cincinnati informed the dishes and recruit Jonah Tong that they do not go down without fighting. The Reds crushed three home circuits on Tong to take the second match of a three game set, 6-2, at the Great American Ballpark.

The Giants of San Francisco and the Diamondbacks of Arizona exceeded the Reds (71-71) in the NL Wild Card classification, but the dishes (76-66) still have an advance on the two teams, the three opponents of at least three games, and follow the Padres de San Diego of 0.5 match. If the dishes win tomorrow, they divide the series of the season with Cincinnati, making their quest for an even more intimidating joker.

Tong, every 22 years with only three departures above Double-A to his credit, managed the test despite the defeat (1-1). He dispersed four points deserved in six rounds and withdrew six, giving the food part of the length they desperately need. But four walks were in trouble, especially at the bottom of the second.

“I think there are a lot of positive points of these outings,” said manager Carlos Mendoza. “He did a few walks and had a hard time winning the quick ball and the change at the start, but he said it really well. I thought the curve was better over the game.”

Tong only granted two circuits in the minor leagues this season, so three in a match was much more than what he was used to.

“These are good strikers,” he said, clearly still frustrated after its release.

With two withdrawals, he walked on Spencer Steer, then launched a quick ball at the third goal recruited Sal Stewart, who led him to the fence of the central field, just out of the reach of Cedric Mullins for his first career circuit. The explosion of two points put Cincinnati 2-0.

The dishes obtained one in the third to reduce the head in two, but Tong launched two additional fast bullets in the area: one to Matt Mclain, and one to Austin Hays, who both sent them above the fences to lead the third and fourth rounds with circuits.

The high ball was high is the Tong business card, which forced him to rework his pitch mixture and start launching more curve balls.

“I needed better work to mix my locations for strikes and to be unpredictable,” he said.

He recovered, withdrawing the team in order in the fifth and sixth to end his sleeve. However, the damage has been caused, what happens when the only three blows you abandon are circuits. Taking responsibility for its release shows maturity, but there is also one lesson to be removed from it: strikers at the highest level of baseball are higher than those that it is used to cope in minor leagues.

“He gets out with these terrains at the level of the minor league,” said Mendoza. “Whether the strikers have turned them off or there are pop-ups. Here you are faced with a much better competition. But I think he has made a good adjustment by recognizing this. The curve, as I said, is a terrain that he could start using much more.”

The offensive did not make him a lot of favors. The right -hander Brady Singer (limited the dishes to a single race for four strokes. He walked four and struck a striker, giving the tips to do damage when he left six rounds, but he managed to get out of trouble each time he had traffic on the basic forces.

The singer withdrew five years in victory (13-9).

“We could not face Singer today,” said Mendoza. “We created traffic there, made the bases load, but overall, he moved the ball, that’s what he does-especially with lead, cursor and sweeper. He threw a few cutters, but we could not do much of him.”

Jared Young hit a home run to lead the seventh round, pulling the dishes in two points, 4-2. At the bottom of the round, the right -hander Ryne Stanek broke his sequence of six -sleeves aimlessly when he loaded the bases with a withdrawal before abandoning a single two points at TJ Friedl.

At the top of the eighth, the dishes put two with two withdrawals. Francisco Alvarez put the turn to end the Channel and put an end to the threat of score. Again in the ninth, they had two runners, this time with a single withdrawal. They obtained a race when a wild land of the right -hander Emilio Pagan marked Francisco Lindor in the third, but the closest struck Brandon Nimmo and Pete Alonso to guarantee the victory.

It was not the best game of the season, but it was not the worst. After months of dramatic victories and heartbreaking losses, a relatively without incident loss almost failed to register.

Originally published: September 6, 2025 at 9:25 p.m. HAE