Alonso pulls within 1 homer of Strawberry, but Mets fall to Guardians after comeback bid

NEW YORK (AP) — Pete Alonso hit his 251st career homer Monday night to pull within one of Darryl Strawberry’s New York Mets franchise record, but the Cleveland Guardians earned a 7-6, 10-inning win after squandering a five-run lead.

Gabriel Arias’ 440-foot, three-run homer to left-center ended a five-run sixth inning against Sean Manaea, who surrendered RBI singles to David Fry and Carlos Santana earlier in the inning.

Alonso, starting at designated hitter for the 59th time in his career, hit a 388-foot blast to left-center in the bottom half against Slade Cecconi. The slugger has three homers in his last four games.

Alonso had his fourth hit, an RBI single, in the eighth, before Mark Vientos delivered the game-tying sacrifice fly.

Cade Smith (4-4) escaped a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the ninth. Automatic runner Daniel Schneemann scored the tie-breaking run in the 10th, when third baseman Brett Baty threw the ball wide of second on David Fry’s bunt against Ryan Helsley (3-2). Arias added a sacrifice fly.

Nic Enright earned his first career save despite allowing Baty’s two-out RBI single in the 10th.

Manaea gave up five runs and struck out three in 5 2/3 innings. Cecconi surrendered three runs (two earned) with six strikeouts in six innings.

Smith ended the ninth by striking out Alonso and getting Jeff McNeil to line to second.

Alonso entered Monday batting just .218 in 220 at-bats as a designated hitter. … Manaea threw 56 pitches in his first five scoreless innings but 29 pitches in the sixth.

The three-game interleague series continues Tuesday, when Mets RHP Clay Holmes (9-6, 3.45 ERA) opposes Guardians LHP Logan Allen (7-9, 4.06).

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

New York Mets starting pitcher Sean Manaea throws during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Cleveland Guardians at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

New York Mets' Pete Alonso rounds bases after hitting a three-run home run during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Cleveland Guardians at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

Cleveland Guardians' Gabriel Arias is congratulated in the dugout after hitting a home run during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Slade Cecconi throws during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

Cleveland Guardians' Brayan Rocchio, bottom right, steals second base during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

Cleveland Guardians pitcher Hunter Gaddis throws during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

New York Mets starting pitcher Ryan Helsley throws during the 10th inning of a baseball game against the Cleveland Guardians at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

New York Mets right fielder Juan Soto (22) makes catch against the wall during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Cleveland Guardians at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

Cleveland Guardians pitcher Nic Enright, left, and catcher Bo Naylor, right, celebrate after their win in a baseball game against the New York Mets at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

A fan catches a home run ball hit by New York Mets' Pete Alonso (not shown) during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Cleveland Guardians at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

New York Mets starting pitcher Sean Manaea throws during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Cleveland Guardians at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

New York Mets' Pete Alonso rounds bases after hitting a three-run home run during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Cleveland Guardians at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

Cleveland Guardians' Gabriel Arias is congratulated in the dugout after hitting a home run during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets at Citi Field in New York, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Gordon Donovan via AP)

AL HENAKIYAH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Ricky Brabec deliberately gave up his motorbike lead over Luciano Benavides in the Dakar Rally while Nasser Al-Attiyah was happy to cruise through another day closer to his sixth car title on Thursday.

Al-Attiyah started 346-kilometer stage 11 between Bisha north to Al Henakiyah with a 12-minute overall lead and let it drop to less than nine minutes over new second-placed driver Nani Roma in a Ford.

Al-Attiyah was content to let Dacia teammate Sébastien Loeb catch up and pass him to have a teammate nearby for any help and to minimize errors on the mazy, dirt track. Al-Attiyah was 17th, nearly 13 minutes behind stage winner Mattias Ekström, and said he needed to execute the same plan on Friday's last effective racing stage before the end on Saturday.

“If we lose two, three, four minutes no problem,” Al-Attiyah said. “We just need to finish this Dakar in first place.”

Honda cooked up a strategy in the Saudi desert for Adrien van Beveren to open the way and let Brabec catch up after the 190-kilometer pit stop and pick up time bonuses.

Brabec boosted his overall lead from 56 seconds to nearly four minutes just 25 kilometers from the finish. He was also within a minute of the stage lead but he slowed down so KTM rival Benavides was the new overall leader, but only by 23 seconds.

Brabec got his his wish to start Friday's stage 12 six minutes behind Benavides, so he can eye him. They head west to the rally starting point of Yanbu on the Red Sea coast on 311 kilometers of gravel, some river beds with a finish in the dunes.

“A little bit of strategy today and hopefully it pays off tomorrow,” Brabec said. "I feel like its going to be a good day. We’re going back into the rocks so it will be a little bit better for us.”

Brabec is counting on his experience of winning the Dakar in 2020 and 2024 to trump Benavides, who has a best placing of fourth last year.

“I've been in this situation before,” Brabec said. “For the whole two weeks I've been just trying to stay relax, stay comfortable and just be confident, so two days more. I'm gonna do the same thing tomorrow that I've been doing every day; ride dirt bikes and have fun.”

Van Beveren helped Brabec with navigation while fighting with another teammate, Skyler Howes, the entire day for the stage win.

Howes prevailed by 21 seconds for his first career major stage in his eighth Dakar. He was third in 2023 and sixth last year. He's running fifth, 34 minutes off the pace.

Benavides was fourth in the stage and believed the race will be decided on the final 105-kilometer sprint on Saturday.

“I played no strategy like Ricky. I don't care,” Benavides said. “I'm doing what I can to control what I can control.”

Ekström won his third car stage of this Dakar, a special so fast that 12 other drivers were within 10 minutes.

Ford achieved another 1-2-3 stage. Romain Dumas, a three-time winner of the Le Mans 24 Hours, was a career-best second just over a minute back and Carlos Sainz was third.

Only Toyota's Henk Lategan beat Ekström to a checkpoint but Lategan's podium hopes were wrecked after 140 kilometers when a bearing broke on his rear left wheel. Lategan was second last year and second overall overnight but he plunged out of the top 15, at least.

Loeb moved up to third overall, 10 minutes behind Roma and three minutes ahead of Ekström.

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Rider Daniel Sanders competes during the eleventh stage of the Dakar Rally between Bisha and Al Henakiyah, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, Jan.15, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Driver Nasser Al-Attiyah and co-driver Fabian Lurquin compete during the eleventh stage of the Dakar Rally between Bisha and Al Henakiyah, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, Jan.15, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Rider Skyler Howes competes during the eleventh stage of the Dakar Rally between Bisha and Al Henakiyah, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, Jan.15, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Driver Henk Lategan, left, and co-driver Brett Cummings repair their car during the eleventh stage of the Dakar Rally between Bisha and Al Henakiyah, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, Jan.15, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Driver Nani Roma and co-driver Alex Haro compete during the eleventh stage of the Dakar Rally between Bisha and Al Henakiyah, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, Jan.15, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)