Mets' Alonso makes loud Spring intro

Pete Alonso saw his first action of the spring on Saturday and picked up -- almost exactly -- where he left off.
MLB.com's No. 51 overall prospect stepped in against Touki Toussaint -- ranked 50th overall -- in the second inning, turned around the first pitch he saw from the right-hander and deposited it over the wall in left-center field for a two-run blast. The roundtripper put the Mets on en route to a 4-3 triumph at First Data Field.

The Mets' top prospect also clubbed the last pitch he saw in game action last year for a homer, sending it over the left-center field wall in Las Vegas for a two-run, walk-off blast in the final game at Cashman Field.

The two pitches came five months, 20 days and 2,424 miles apart. Still, the result was the same.
"I love moments [like that]," Alonso told MLB.com. "I love being challenged. That's one of the things I take pride in is stepping up and not backing away from a challenge."
In Alonso's only other plate appearance, he drew a four-pitch leadoff walk against lefty Kolby Allard in the fourth.
Eighth-ranked Mets prospect Anthony Kay, 26th-ranked Kyle Dowdy and No. 25 Eric Hanhold each tossed a scoreless inning, yielding a hit and registering a strikeout.
Greyson Jenista drove in the Braves' first run with a sacrifice fly to deep center in the second. He picked up a single in his only other plate appearance. Thomas Burrows and Chad Sobotka each threw a perfect frame out of the Atlanta bullpen. 

In other spring action:

Red Sox 8, Yankees 5
Top Red Sox prospectMichael Chavis, appearing in a game for the second straight day, cracked a three-run homer on a full-count offering from right-hander Drew Hutchinson. MLB.com's No. 79 overall prospect reached on an infield single in the second inning and was thrown out trying to go first-to-third on a single by Tzu-Wei Lin. Left-hander Travis Lakins, Boston's No. 17 prospect, worked around three hits over two innings of scoreless relief. Yankees top prospectEstevan Florial singled in three at-bats. Box score
Pirates 3, Phillies 2
No. 6 Phillies prospectEnyel De Los Santos got the start and tossed a pair of hitless innings, fanning four without issuing a walk. Right-hander Adonis Medina, MLB.com's No. 77 overall prospect, struck out one in a perfect inning for Philadelphia. Pirates No. 11 prospectJason Martin clubbed a go-ahead homer in the ninth inning in his only at-bat, while 23rd-ranked Clay Holmes turned in a hitless frame. Box score
Tigers 4, Blue Jays 0
Tigers prospect Dustin Peterson went 2-for-4 with a pair of singles in his first spring action. Right-hander Elvis Luciano allowed a hit and a walk in a scoreless inning out of the Blue Jays bullpen. Box score
Orioles 7, Twins 2 (ss)
Top Orioles prospect Yusniel Díaz, the primary piece in last year's Manny Machado trade, clubbed a two-run homer in the third inning off left-hander Gabriel Moya. Zach Pop worked a scoreless inning of relief with a strikeout for Baltimore. Twins prospect Nick Gordon lined a pair of singles and LaMonte Wade Jr walked twice and scored a run. Box score
Cardinals 11, Marlins 1
Cardinals No. 28 prospect Max Schrock took right-hander Brett Graves deep for a three-run shot in the sixth inning to fuel a big day at the dish. The 24-year-old added a single and a double and plated four runs. He had plenty of help as third-ranked Andrew Knizner singled, doubled, walked and scored a run. No. 27 prospect Ramón Urías smoked a three-run shot of his own in the fifth and went 2-for-4 with two runs scored, while ninth-ranked Lane Thomas singled in all three plate appearances. Right-hander Ryan Helsley retired all six hitters he faced in relief, striking out three. Marlins No. 5 prospect Sandy Alcantara got the start and gave up one hit, one walk and fanned three in two innings. Box score
Royals 9, Rangers 1
Royals No. 8 prospect Nicky Lopez slashed a pair of singles and 21st-ranked Josh Staumont retired the side in order in the ninth. For the Rangers, right-hander Jonathan Hernández scuffled as the team's No. 5 prospect walked three batters and was charged with three earned runs while recording one out. Box score 
Athletics 6, White Sox (ss) 5
A's No. 8 prospect Jorge Mateo utilized his 80-grade speed to leg out a triple in the eighth inning and scored the decisive run two batters later on an groundout by Dustin Fowler. For the White Sox, catcher Seby Zavala singled, doubled and scored twice, while fifth-ranked Nick Madrigal added a base knock. Box score
Dodgers 7, White Sox (ss) 6 
Top Dodgers prospect Alex Verdugo went 0-for-3 but delivered an RBI groundout in a four-run first inning. Third-ranked Gavin Lux did not start but contributed a single off the bench and right-hander Josh Sborz fanned one in a perfect eighth. Right-hander Jordan Stephens yielded a run on three hits over two innings for Chicago. Box score
Cubs 8, Brewers 4
After displaying both power and speed last season for Double-A Biloxi, second-ranked Brewers prospect Corey Ray got off to a fast start this spring. The 2016 first-round pick smashed a two-run homer to right off Jen-Ho Tseng in the second, then went the other way and lined an RBI double to left in the sixth. Brewers No. 30 prospect Trent Grisham added an RBI single and right-hander Adrian Houser allowed a hit and struck out one in one inning. For the Cubs, No. 11 prospect Zack Short walked and scored in the seventh, an inning after Mark Zagunis drove in a run with a groundout. No. 22 prospect Oscar De La Cruz closed out the game with a 1-2-3 ninth. Box score 
Rockies 7, D-backs 3
The Rockies broke out the power bats, with Sam Hilliard and second-ranked prospect Colton Welker both going yard. Facing right-hander Joel Payamps in the eighth inning, Hilliard smoked a liner over the right field fence for a two-run dinger. After top prospect Brendan Rodgers walked in the ninth, Welker connected on an 0-2 pitch from Stefan Crichton and sent it over the left field wall. Top D-backs prospect Jazz Chisholm walked in two plate appearances. Box score
Padres 6, Mariners 4
Although they lost the game, the Mariners saw a glimpse of their rebuild. Acquired from the Reds in a three-team trade in January, 12th-ranked prospect Shed Long cracked his first long ball of the spring, a leadoff shot off Bryan Mitchell in the first inning. Another new face, 15th-ranked Dom Thompson-Williams, drew a walk and scored a run, while No. 4 Evan White whacked a double in the eighth. Padres No. 4 prospect Francisco Mejía collected a single in the fifth, while Edward Olivares and Ty France both scored a run. Box score
Angels 10, Giants 3
On a big day for the Angels, eighth-ranked prospect Matt Thaiss was in the middle of the action, going 2-for-2 with two RBIs and a run scored. He put Los Angeles on the board in the first, doubling in two runs off right-hander Chris Stratton. In the fourth, he delivered a single to right and scored when Peter Bourjos homered. Top Angels prospect Jo Adell got the start in right field but went 0-for-2. His replacement, third-ranked Brandon Marsh, walked and scored a run. Ryan Howard provided a bright spot for the Giants with an RBI double in the eighth. Box score
Twins 10, Rays 5
Saturday marked a rough first step for a dynamic duo of Twins prospects. Royce Lewis, MLB.com's No. 5 overall prospect, was sidelined with an oblique strain in the afternoon, and ninth-ranked Alex Kirilloff came up hitless in three at-bats in the Grapefruit League opener. The 21-year-old right fielder reached on an error by Rays No. 11 prospect Nick Solak to tack on Minnesota's final insurance run in the fifth inning. Rays No. 10 prospect Brandon Lowe opened the scoring in the first with an RBI double to right -- his only hit in three at-bats -- off Twins No. 27 prospect Kohl Stewart. After issuing a walk and picking up a strikeout, Stewart gave way to 10th-ranked Lewis Thorpe, who allowed a pair of runs on two hits and a walk with a pair of punchouts in the second. Box Score
Nationals 7, Astros 6
Although Carter Kieboom's brother, Spencer, stole the show by single-handedly closing a four-run gap, it was the Nationals' second-ranked prospect who scored the winning run on a double by Adrían Sanchez. MLB.com's No. 25 overall prospect also doubled to left in his first at-bat in the seventh. Top Astros prospect Kyle Tucker singled twice in two at-bats, while second-ranked Yordan Alvarez chipped in a two-run single in the fifth. Astros No. 15 prospect Myles Straw singled, stole a base and scored, and No. 20 Ronnie Dawson had a hit and a pair of steals. No. 16 Garrett Stubbs and 23rd-ranked Abraham Toro both had a hit and a run scored. Tenth-ranked Bryan Abreu yielded a run on one hit, striking out one in 1 2/3 innings for Houston. Box Score