http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/07/sports/baseball/seven-call-ups-four-homers-and-a-victory-for-the-mets.html 2016-09-07 05:58:10 Seven Call-Ups, Four Homers and a Victory for the Mets The Mets continued their surge in the National League wild-card standings with a 5-3 win over the Cincinnati Reds. === CINCINNATI — The final wave of Right behind him entered infielder T. J. Rivera, outfielder Brandon Nimmo and, for the first time in his baseball career, infielder Gavin Cecchini, the Mets’ first-round draft pick in 2012. Fresh from Class AAA Las Vegas, Rivera walked around the already packed Mets clubhouse looking for his locker. “The Riveras are over there,” said catcher Rene Rivera, pointing to the other end of the room. As the Mets continued their surge up the National League wild-card standings thanks to Tuesday’s 5-3 win over the Cincinnati Reds, they did so with an ample roster of players. With the seven call-ups on Tuesday, the Mets had 37 active players, the most in the major leagues, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. “If you were in a situation where you pretty much had a starting lineup all healthy, you probably wouldn’t do what we did here,” said John Ricco, the Mets’ assistant general manager. “But given the amount of flux and young guys we’re kind of shuffling in and out, it makes more sense.” The Mets used 18 players in their win. Starter Rafael Montero, one of the players called up on Tuesday, allowed three runs over four and a third innings. Manager Terry Collins used six of the 12 relievers at his disposal to piece together the rest of the game. True to form, the Mets’ primary source of offense came from the long ball. Curtis Granderson, Jose Reyes and Alejandro De Aza smashed solo blasts, but Yoenis Cespedes produced the biggest hit, a go-ahead two-run homer in the seventh inning. To reach the playoffs, the Mets will need front-line players such as Cespedes and Asdrubal Cabrera — who have nagging leg injuries — on the field as much as possible. But the team, which has been hammered by injuries this season, now has plenty of options, perhaps too many. “We’re forced to almost because of all the injuries,” said the bench coach Dick Scott, the Mets’ former farm director. “Just to have the extra guys, it’s important. Plus, we have guys who deserve promotions.” For the first five months of the season, major league teams can have only 25 active players for each game. Reserve players can be stashed on the 40-man roster or in the minor leagues. Beginning on Sept. 1, rosters can expand to 40, as long as a player is on the 40-man roster. In all, the Mets called up 12 players in three waves over six days. Most of those players will not see significant playing time, but can contribute in small ways. With a handful of middle infielders already on the roster, Ricco said the Mets debated whether to call up infielder Matt Reynolds on Sunday night. They decided to do so, and Reynolds helped the sleep-deprived Mets win on Monday over the Reds. “We’ll use them and try to keep them ready as best we can,” Collins said. “But we’re used to September by now.” Because of the Mets’ injury-riddled season, every call-up except Cecchini had already appeared earlier this season. Cecchini, who hit .325 with Las Vegas and could be an option at second base in the majors next season, may not play much down the stretch, but the Mets wanted to reward his strong season. “It’s a dream right now,” Cecchini said Tuesday. “It’s everything that I imagined.” Rivera, who edged out Las Vegas teammate Nimmo on Monday for the Pacific Coast League batting title with a .353 average, was grateful to be back in the major leagues. He said it felt as if half the Las Vegas roster was with the Mets in Cincinnati. “I didn’t know how many people were going to be up here until they decided to call all of us back up,” Rivera said. “It’s going to be fun, although I don’t know if the locker room can hold this many guys. It’ll be cool.” The only players not active from the 40-man roster are outfielder Juan Lagares, who could still return from thumb surgery before the season is done; starter Steven Matz, who is trying to return from a shoulder injury; and starter Jon Niese, who is rehabbing from knee surgery on Aug. 25. With expanded rosters, September breeds a different style of baseball. When the Mets hosted the Washington Nationals over the weekend in New York, the games slowed in the later innings as Nationals Manager Dusty Baker cycled through relievers within the same inning. Tuesday’s game here lasted three hours and eight minutes. As the Mets prepared for batting practice on Tuesday, the room was a bustle of activity. Call-ups unpacked as the others got ready. Outfielder Michael Conforto, who returned from Las Vegas on Sept. 1, said it felt “a bit more like spring training when you have all the 40-man guys together.” Then he stopped when Nimmo walked by and offered a hug. “Good to see you, bro,” Conforto said, before turning back to continue his thought. “I got all my boys up here. It’s a good thing. It’s going to be a little crowded, but it makes it fun to have everybody here.”