PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- It's a daring call, but Juan Lagares executed it to perfection.
Lagares stole home to give the Mets a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning of Sunday's 9-4 Grapefruit League loss to the Red Sox at Tradition Field.
On a double-steal attempt, Matt Reynolds was at first base and Lagares was on third when Reynolds took off for second, drawing a throw from Red Sox catcher Ryan Hanigan. As soon as the ball left Hanigan's hand, Lagares bolted for home plate. Boston shortstop Xander Bogaerts, seeing Lagares sprinting for home, cut off the throw just in front of the bag at second and fired the ball back to Hanigan. But Lagares beat the tag with a head-first slide under Hanigan's glove to give the Mets a 2-1 lead.
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The steal of home was part of a three-run inning in which the Mets also scored on a wild pitch and a David Wright single.
"He got a good read," Mets manager Terry Collins said of Lagares, who had seven stolen bases last season and now has three this spring. "He's certainly got his quickness back. It was a good play."