Giants outfielder Blake Sabol made a young fan’s Friday night a little better after it looked like his mistake might have swung the outcome of the game.
With the Mets and Giants tied at 2-2 in the bottom of the fifth, Jeff McNeil sliced a double down the left-field line, and a fan wearing Giants gear reached out to grab the ball but missed, giving McNeil a ground-rule double — initially preventing Brandon Nimmo from reaching home on fan interference.
Knowing his team was probably robbed of a run, McNeil was visibly frustrated at the fan’s action, which would have prevented the scuffling Mets from taking the lead.
But the umpires converged and decided to change their initial decision, allowing Nimmo to score and the Mets to take the lead, 3-2.
Giants manager Gabe Kapler immediately emerged from the dugout to question the changed call and unsuccessfully challenged the play.
Sabol, who was patrolling left field on the play, fist-bumped the fan after the inning, consoling the young supporter of the Giants who appeared dejected after he realized he might have changed the game.
But in the end, it was the Giants who had the last laugh when Patrick Bailey hit a three-run homer in the eighth off David Robertson to put the Giants up for good, 5-4.
The Mets, who opened a three-game home series against the Giants on Friday, are in dire need of a series victory, but they did not make that any easier when they blew the last lead.
The last time the team won a series was at the beginning of June.
The Mets now sit at 36-46, in fourth place in the National League East.
San Francisco, meanwhile, has been an unexpected contender this season, earning a 46-36 record while sitting in the third NL Wild Card spot, 2 1/2 games above the Phillies.
McNeil is one of the many Mets who have underperformed this year, and even with his two-hit night Friday, he has just a .668 OPS, well under his career mark of .804.
Carlos Carrasco and Alex Cobb started the game for the Mets and Giants, respectively, both lasting five innings and giving up two runs.
