Mark Vientos’ holey mitt nearly proves costly for Mets

At first, it looked like a routine grounder.

It looked like Carlos Mendoza’s decision to stick with Kodai Senga for one more batter had paid off.

It looked like Jared Triolo had grounded a ball right to Mark Vientos for what would be the third out of the sixth inning.

But then it quite literally went through a hole in his glove and rolled behind him.

Vientos bizarrely had a space in the webbing large enough for the baseball to sneak through, allowing the Pirates to extend the inning with runners on second and third.

It was officially scored as a double and not an error, but until Brett Baty snapped the tie with a homer in the seventh, Vientos’ gaffe jeopardized the Mets lead against one of the worst teams in baseball during their 2-1 win Tuesday at Citi Field.

“From the dugout, it happened so fast, I didn’t know what happened,” Mendoza said. “Tough break there. I’ve seen it before, but yeah, it happened there.”

Mendoza had walked to the mound, checked on Senga and told the Mets ace that he had one more hitter — with his pitch count already at 99 — before exiting.

Mark Vientos checks his glove after Jared Triolo’s double went through a hole in his glove that led to a run in the seventh inning of Mets’ 2-1 win over the Pirates on May 13, 2025. Jason Szenes / New York Post

Reed Garrett walked the next two batters after the double and Senga’s removal.

Vientos still used the glove after the sequence and got the hole fixed in between innings, according to the broadcast. He was removed from the game for the bottom of the ninth inning after Luisangel Acuña entered as a defensive replacement and Baty slid to third.

After his start Tuesday, Senga’s ERA (1.22) is the second best through eight starts in Mets history, trailing only Jacob deGrom’s 0.71 in 2021.

Kodai Senga tips his hat to the crowd after exiting in the sixth inning of the Mets’ win over the Pirates. Jason Szenes / New York Post

Senga also topped 100 pitches for the first time since Sept. 20, 2023.

David Wright, back at Citi Field on Tuesday, said Pete Alonso is “certainly deserving” of breaking the all-time Mets home run record, which could potentially happen this season.

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Alonso, who launched nine through his first 42 games this season, currently sits third on the franchise list with 235 homers, trailing just Wright (242) and Darryl Strawberry (252).

“Certainly one of the premier power hitters in baseball,” Wright said, “and again, it just seems like every time the ball leaves his bat, it’s got a chance to get out of the ballpark. … He’s certainly gonna pass me. Maybe this week.”