Alec Burleson snaps power drought with a 3-run homer, leading Cardinals past Mets 4-2

NEW YORK (AP) — Alec Burleson hit his first homer in almost nine months Friday night, a three-run blast that powered the St. Louis Cardinals to a 4-2 win over the New York Mets.

Burleson’s second-inning round-tripper off José Buttó was his first since he homered against the Minnesota Twins last Aug. 3. He entered Friday with two extra-base hits — both doubles — in 51 at-bats.

“You can’t really hit it at them when you hit it over the fence,” Burleson said with a grin. “Being able to go up there with a plan and approach and actually execute it and get rewarded for it is awesome.”

Burleson started Friday for just the fifth time in the Cardinals’ last 15 games. He had seven singles in 18 at-bats between extra-base hits.

“I think it gets you to drop your shoulders a little bit — take a breath that you finally got rewarded,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. “He’s been taking good swings at people. Some haven’t dropped. And that’s a big swing there that helped us win this ballgame. So let’s build off of that.”

J.D. Martinez went 2-for-4 with an RBI double in his Mets debut. Martinez signed a one-year contract March 23 but was sidelined by lower back stiffness.

“Just trying to go up there and be competitive, that was my whole thing today,” Martinez said. “Just put the ball forward. I did it twice. The other ones, I didn’t put it forward.”

Willson Contreras hit a 445-foot homer off the facade along the second deck in left field in the third for the Cardinals.

Miles Mikolas (2-3) gave up two runs in 5 2/3 innings to lower his ERA from 6.49 to 5.91. He wriggled out of a two-on, none-out jam in the first by getting Francisco Lindor to fly out before inducing Pete Alonso to hit into a double play. Tomás Nido led off the third with a double and was stranded at third when Mikolas struck out Starling Marte and retired Lindor on a groundout.

“They barreled some balls right at people but he was able to get his outs when needed,” Marmol said. “Overall did a really nice job.”

Ryan Helsley, the Cardinals’ fourth pitcher, earned his eighth save with a perfect ninth.

St. Louis’ Nolan Arenado went 0-for-3 but was hit by a pitch in the second to extend his streak of reaching base safely to 24 games, the longest streak in the majors this season and tied for the second-longest such streak of Arenado’s career.

Nido homered in the fifth for the Mets, who were 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position.

“I thought we had decent at-bats,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “Just couldn’t get the big hit.”

Buttó (0-1) allowed four runs in 5 2/3 innings.

NIGHT RANGERS

The crowd of 24,159 cheered the three times the Mets aired on the scoreboard goals by the New York Rangers, who beat the Washington Capitals 3-1 to take a 3-0 series lead in the first round of the NHL playoffs.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: SS Masyn Winn (back) had a scheduled day off. ... OF Dylan Carlson (left shoulder) took batting practice in St. Louis Friday and could begin a rehab assignment next week. ... INF Matt Carpenter (right oblique) swung a bat Friday and is expected to do so again Saturday.

Mets: To make room for Martinez on the active roster, the Mets designated infielder Zack Short for assignment. ... RHP Tylor Megill (right shoulder strain) is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment Saturday by throwing two innings for Class A Brooklyn. ... RHP Kodai Senga (right shoulder) threw a bullpen Thursday and is slated to throw live batting practice Monday.

UP NEXT

Mets RHP Adrian Houser (0-2, 7.45 ERA) opposes Cardinals RHP Sonny Gray (2-1, 1.04) Saturday in the middle game of the series.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

New York Mets catcher Tomás Nido watches as pitcher José Buttó, right, hands the ball to manager Carlos Mendoza during the sixth inning of the team's baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Friday, April 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher JoJo Romero pitches to a New York Mets batter during the sixth inning of a baseball game Friday, April 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

St. Louis Cardinals' Ryan Helsley gestures after the team's win in a baseball game against the New York Mets, Friday, April 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

New York Mets' Francisco Lindor (12) reacts after striking out during the eighth inning of the team's baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Friday, April 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

St. Louis Cardinals' Willson Contreras (40) heads for home after hitting a home run off New York Mets pitcher José Buttó during the third inning of a baseball game, Friday, April 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

St. Louis Cardinals' Willson Contreras hits a home run against the New York Mets during the third inning of a baseball game Friday, April 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

St. Louis Cardinals' Alec Burleson (41) celebrates with Paul Goldschmidt (46) and Nolan Arenado (28) after hitting a three-run home run against the New York Mets during the second inning of a baseball game Friday, April 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

St. Louis Cardinals' Alec Burleson watches his three-run home run against the New York Mets during the second inning of a baseball game Friday, April 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

PEMBROKE, Bermuda--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 8, 2024--

Hamilton Insurance Group, Ltd. (NYSE: HG) (“Hamilton” or “the Company”) announced today that it has entered into an agreement to repurchase 9,124,729 Class A common shares owned by funds affiliated with Blackstone Alternative Solutions LLC (“BAS”) at $12.00 per share, representing a 12.0% discount to the 30-day volume weighted average price of the Company’s Class B common shares. The total purchase price for those shares is $109,496,748. The total purchase price will be funded by a loan under the Company’s revolving credit facility which the Company intends to repay with funds withdrawn from the Two Sigma Hamilton Fund. The Company expects to close the repurchase transaction on May 10, 2024 subject to customary closing conditions. The common shares purchased by Hamilton will be cancelled and the Company will have 101,878,284 shares outstanding following the repurchase transaction.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240508121681/en/

“We are very pleased to have this opportunity to repurchase Hamilton shares at an attractive price and return capital to our shareholders,” said Pina Albo, CEO of Hamilton. “We are also grateful to BAS for its support and investment in Hamilton over the years. This transaction allows BAS to fully exit an investment that was made over ten years ago, resulting in meaningful earnings per share, book value per share, and ROE accretion to Hamilton shareholders.

“Along with the strength of our first quarter earnings, and our recent AM Best rating upgrade, this transaction should create significant value for our shareholders, while not impeding our plans for strategic growth in both specialty insurance and reinsurance at this favorable time in the market cycle.”

BAS commented, “We thank Hamilton for the partnership over the past ten years and wish them continued success in the future.”

Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This information may contain forward-looking statements which reflect the Company’s current views with respect to future events and financial performance and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are made based on management’s current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects upon the Company. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting the Company will be those anticipated by management. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, all matters that are not historical facts. These forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of future performance and involve risk and uncertainties, and there are certain important factors that could cause actual results to differ, possibly materially, from expectations or estimates reflected in such forward-looking statements. These uncertainties and risks are described under the section titled “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and other subsequent periodic reports filed with the SEC available electronically at www.sec.gov. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information to reflect changes in assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events, or otherwise.

About Hamilton Insurance Group, Ltd.
Hamilton is a Bermuda-headquartered company that underwrites specialty insurance and reinsurance risks on a global basis through its wholly owned subsidiaries. Its three underwriting platforms: Hamilton Global Specialty, Hamilton Re and Hamilton Select, each with dedicated and experienced leadership, provide us with access to diversified and profitable business around the world.

For more about our company, visit www.hamiltongroup.com or find us on LinkedIn at Hamilton.

Pina Albo, Hamilton CEO (Photo: Business Wire)