Baty’s home run represented his fourth home run in four games. During this run, after going 2-for-3 on Tuesday, he’s increased his batting average from .210 to .239 and his OPS from .633 to .791 on the season.

The New York Mets were taken to the brink in both of their games against the Pittsburgh Pirates so far, but they won both. They beat the Pirates 2-1 on Tuesday after beating them 4-3 on Monday, and are now three games ahead atop the NL East.

Brett Baty didn’t have to be here. Under different circumstances, he certainly would not be. Late last month, the Mets demoted Baty to Triple-A Syracuse, in a move that was largely based on merit. The team had a roster crunch.