Shocking: After quarreling with the head coach,star player makes a shocking announcement immediately….

As the Mets defeat the Cardinals, Mark Vientos smashes his first home run of the year.
The New York Mets defeat the St. Louis Cardinals thanks to a home run by Mark Vientos, who hits his first of the year.

Carlos Mendoza displays managerial prowess by approaching Jose Quintana with instinct in the Mets’ thrilling victory over the Cardinals.

The Mets’ thrilling victory over the St. Louis Cardinals at Citi Field on Sunday was clearly a feel-good story for Mark Vientos, who hit a walk-off home run in the 11th inning on his second day back in the major leagues, only over a month after the signing of J.D. Martinez eliminated him from his impending DH spot.

But, I would argue that the Mets’ 4-2 victory prevented the Cardinals from sweeping the series, which was a far more important big-picture moment.

That is, with the game in the eighth inning and all on the line, Carlos Mendoza made a decision that defied the advice of his analytical plan. Rather, he relied on what he seen and heard from Jose on the mound.

Quintana, who was hurling an outstanding pitch.

Simply said, the rookie manager was channeling Joe Torre, who made history in the 1996 World Series by memorably going to the mound, looking David Cone in the eye, and demanding to know whether David Cone really had anything left in him.

Never mind that Cone admitted afterward that he had lied, although half-jokingly. The key thing to remember is that Torre had faith in him to record one more out, which turned out to be a crucial moment in the Yankees’ World Series victory.

It feels pertinent because, in today’s game, where so many bullpen changes are preplanned with input from the front office, it almost seems like a lifetime ago that we saw that kind of gut-based management.

It important because it might imply

a great deal about Mendoza and his readiness to rely, at least in part, on his gut feelings and observations rather than acting like a robot whose every action is predetermined by the data.

You don’t see it as much these days because, in this analytics-driven world, it’s much simpler to justify a bad move to reporters and your general manager alike if you follow all the rules.

In this instance, though, Mendoza made the obvious matchup decision to put in Adam Ottavino to face Willson Contreras, a formidable righthanded hitter, with two outs in the eighth inning in a 1-1 game.