Detroit Tigers at New York Mets

In the two days A.J. Ewing has been in the Majors, Carson Benge said, “I’ve already been treating him like a rookie.” That may seem rich coming from Benge, a rookie himself with all of 39 games of Major League experience. But even in that scant amount of time, Benge has experienced many of the highs and lows the top level of this sport has to offer. Take Wednesday, for example. In the first inning at Citi Field, Benge -- one of the most skilled defenders in the Mets organization -- flat-out missed a Dillon Dingler line drive to right, resulting in a double and a two-run Tigers rally. In the seventh, he was thrown out at home on a botched double-steal attempt, largely because he self-admittedly broke too passively toward the plate. Yet neither of those mistakes sunk the Mets. Instead, Benge came up clutch in the 10th, grounding a walk-off single up the middle to drive home -- who else? -- Ewing in a 3-2 win over the Tigers. The victory clinched a third series win for the Mets in their last four tries. “It’s good to see it, because there’s so much learning that goes on before games, in games,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “That’s the perfect example. He comes in, he gets an opportunity, gets the single and we get the ‘W.’” It certainly helped that after Christian Scott coughed up two runs in the first following Benge’s misplay, he and a quartet of Mets relievers fired nine consecutive scoreless innings. Benge contributed to the Mets’ comeback along the way, singling and stealing a base in the third inning, then singling again off lefty Framber Valdez to set up Bo Bichette’s game-tying hit in the seventh. Benge only slightly fouled that moment when he broke late toward the plate on a planned double steal, resulting in a relatively easy out at home. “It’s baseball,” he said. “It’s going to happen. It happens to the best of us. So being able to try and get the next play, try and get the next out, the next pitch, just really helps me keep my head on straight.”