Juan Sotos go-ahead homer propels Mets to sweep-avoiding win over Cardinals

After the first two games of the series, you’d be forgiven for wondering if the Mets would ever win again, let alone get back anywhere near .500 or the NL wild card race.But after back-to-back lopsided losses to the Cardinals, who the Mets are chasing, the Mets finally awoke on Thursday at Citi Field with a 5-4 win.They won for the seventh time in nine starts for Christian Scott, with Juan Soto putting them ahead with a two-out solo homer in the bottom of the seventh.Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Mike Puma about the inside buzz on the Mets.

But all the win did was keep the Mets from being swept at home and falling 10 games under .500.The first-place Braves come to Queens Friday as the Mets try to come up with a way to get some positive momentum in what’s been a lost season.Soto, who didn’t have an extra-base hit this month, snapped a 3-for-32 funk with a double in the fifth that led to a run and then homered in the seventh.On this day, they overcame a shaky start from Scott, who didn’t get out of the fifth inning.After he allowed just one run over 16 ⅓ innings in his previous three starts, Scott gave up a season-high four runs in just 4 ⅔ innings, as well as a career-high three homers.But after Alec Burleson gave St.Louis a lead with a 424-foot solo homer in the top of the first, Bo Bichette put the Mets up 2-1 with a two-run shot in the bottom inning after Carson Benge opened with a single.Facing right-hander Hunter Dobbins, Jared Young followed two batters later with his fourth homer of the season.But Scott was knocked around in the second, as he gave up extra-base hits to four of the first five batters of the inning, including a leadoff homer from Lars Nootbar and a two-run shot by Jimmy Crooks that gave the Cardinals a 4-3 lead.The Mets tied it in the fifth, as Soto greeted left-hander Justin Bruihl with a double and scored when Young singled to center.Soto went deep with two outs in th...