Carson Benge set a New York Mets record on Saturday night, though not in the way anyone might have pictured it. The rookie outfielder broke the franchise mark for hits by a first-year player with a slow roller down the third-base line, beating it out for an RBI infield single in the eighth inning of a 10-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at Citi Field.
The hit was Benge’s 156th of the season, one more than the 155 that Pete Alonso collected as a rookie in 2019. When the Mets put word of the record on the video board, Benge acknowledged an ovation from the crowd of 37,468.
“It’s amazing,” Benge said, according to MLB.com. “Even though we’re out of it, we’ve still got the best fans in the world. So being able to see that was pretty cool.”
“You imagine it would be a home run to break the record, but it’s a swinging bunt down the line, so it’s poetic,” interim manager Andy Green said. “He gets hits all different types of ways.”
A three-hit night
Benge got things going early. In the second inning he drove a solo home run about 370 feet off Phillies starter Andrew Painter, his 19th homer of the year. He drew even with Alonso in the seventh on a broken-bat single, then took the record outright an inning later on the check-swing tapper.
Francisco Alvarez supplied the go-ahead blow with a three-run homer off Painter in the fifth, and the Mets pulled away with four runs in the eighth, The Associated Press reported. The loss hurt a Phillies team that began the day at 85-70, tied with the Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres for the National League’s three wild-card spots.
“It’s special,” Benge said of the record. “It’s special to see the guys that have come through here, all the greats and the types of players that have come through here and been rookies here. So being able to hold that is pretty special.”
Alonso set the previous mark in 2019, breaking the 146-hit total Ty Wigginton had held for 16 seasons. That year Alonso also hit 53 home runs, a major league rookie record. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Benge now joins Corbin Carroll, Mike Trout and Corey Seager as the only active major leaguers who hold their franchise’s rookie hits record.
From .136 to the record book
Benge’s season did not start smoothly. The Mets put him on their Opening Day roster even though he had never played above Double-A, and he batted just .136 over his first 20 big league games. That raised questions about whether the club would send him back to the minors.
New York kept him in the lineup, and he responded. Since April 23, Benge has hit .294 and put together 12 games with three or more hits, according to MLB.com.
Through Saturday, the 23-year-old was batting .276. His 156 hits include 19 doubles, three triples and 19 home runs, and he has stolen 22 bases, two short of the club’s rookie record shared by Mookie Wilson and A.J. Ewing.
Green said the way Benge handled his rough opening month is what has impressed him most.
“Adversity early on. To be as good as he has been for as long as he has since that first month of the season,” Green said. “Relaxed and plays the right way. Goes about his business the same way regardless of what happens or who he is facing.”
A quick climb from Stillwater
Benge starred as a two-way player at Oklahoma State, where he hit .339 with 41 doubles, 25 home runs and 107 RBIs in 119 games over two seasons. He was named an All-American and a first-team All-Big 12 player in 2024, the same year he helped the Cowboys win the Big 12 championship.
The Mets took him with the 19th overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. Roughly two years later, his name sits atop one of the franchise’s rookie leaderboards.
Green, who was quick to note how fast that happened, offered the front office a suggestion with a smile. “You draft him 19th and then just one year later, he’s breaking the rookie record,” he said. “I think we should keep drafting Oklahoma State kids.”
Asked whether his teammates gave him a hard time about setting the record on a little dribbler rather than a line drive, Benge just laughed. With the regular season in its final week, he has a chance to push the new mark higher and to make a run at the stolen base record as well.
