It was the obvious move.
First base open, the rookie pitcher making his major league debut on deck, walk the eighth-place hitter.
But there was nothing obvious about Steve Matz’s first taste of the big leagues — from his three-hit, four-RBI performance at the plate to his yeoman’s work on the mound, delivering 7 ²/u2083 quality innings in the Mets’ 7-2 win over the Reds to cap a doubleheader sweep.
Cincinnati found out the hard way.
“In the end, he should be their ninth-best hitter,” manager Bryan Price said. “Unfortunately today for us, he was their best hitter.