With one swing of the bat, New York Mets slugger Pete Alonso went from a underperforming star to a postseason hero.

Trailing 2–0 in the ninth inning with two runners on base, the Mets were two outs away from elimination when Alonso stepped up to the plate. Facing two-time All-Star closer Devin Williams, Alonso took a hack at a 3-1 changeup and poked it over the right-field wall for a 3–2 Mets lead over the Milwaukee Brewers.

Alonso entered Game 3 in a 5-for-38 slump (.132 batting average) and hadn't homered in his last 49 at-bats. He was a combined 1-for-11 in the wild-card series before stepping up to the plate in the ninth inning.

"This is something that you practice in the backyard as a kid," Alonso said on the ESPN broadcast after the game. "I'm just happy to come through for the boys."

Earlier in the game, Alonso served as more of a laughingstock among Brewers fans. In the seventh inning, he misplayed a routine foul ball with two runners on base. Had the Brewers scored those two extra runs, Alonso could've gone down as the Mets' goat rather than the hero.

Instead, Alonso and the Mets had the last laugh as they advance to the NLDS to battle the Philadelphia Phillies. Game 1 of the Phillies-Mets series is scheduled for Saturday at 4:08 p.m. ET.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Mets' Pete Alonso Gets Last Laugh With Game-Winning Homer to Eliminate Brewers.

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