Masyn Winn gets day off vs. Mets and old friend Pete Alonso

NEW YORK — Cardinals rookie shortstop Masyn Winn collected the first hit of his major-league career against the New York Mets last summer at Busch Stadium. A memorable career milestone, it quickly became memorable for the circumstances surrounding it.

Winn beat out an infield single for his first hit, and Mets first baseman Pete Alonso tossed the ball into the stands. The Cardinals did retrieve the ball from a fan, but Winn’s teammates took issue with Alonso’s actions and fans in St. Louis booed Alonso heavily for the rest of the series.

“I remember it was a swinging bunt, I got down the line pretty good,” Winn said before Friday night’s series opener against the Mets at Citi Field. “Obviously, Pete threw it away. There was always a defensive play to my right that I got to and then threw the ball away. That’s what I stick onto.”

Winn took the entire incident in stride, and the ball is now a keepsake for his mother. He kept his first home run ball.

“I didn’t really care too much,” Winn said of the kerfuffle with Alonso and the ball. “I was laughing about the whole situation even as it was happening. I honestly totally forgot about keeping the first ball and all that stuff in the moment. He gave me a signed bat, a nice little message on it saying sorry. That was cool. I’ve heard he’s a great dude. I was never worried about it.

“I think he ended up flying out twice that series at 110 (miles per hour exit velocity). So I think karma got him.”

Winn, entered the series leading the team with a .313 batting average to along with team highs in triples (two) and stolen bases (four). He also led the team with seven multi-hit games. He was not in the starting lineup Friday due to a scheduled day off.

Winn dealt with back stiffness earlier this season that caused him to get several days off, but Winn said he and manager Oliver Marmol mapped out the schedule last week and purposely targeted either Wednesday or Friday as days when Winn would get a day off and Brandon Crawford would slide into the starting lineup.

The idea being that they’d give Winn back-to-back days of rest.

“I’m feeling really good after the off day yesterday,” Winn said. “Obviously if I’ve got to come in the game tonight, I’m ready for it. Just kind of maintenance work, just hoping to get this thing behind me for the rest of the year.”

Crawford singled in his first at-bat Friday night.

Cardinals pitcher Steven Matz will not start against the Mets this weekend, but Citi Field certainly holds memories for the Cardinals left-hander. The Mets originally drafted Matz, a native of Long Island and born in Stony Brook, N.Y., in the second round of the 2009 MLB Draft out of Ward Melville High School.

Matz made his debut at Citi Field on June 28, 2015. He got the win and collected three hits, including a double in that game. Matz joined a high-octane pitching rotation that included Matt Harvey, Zack Wheeler, Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard that went on to win the NL pennant that season. They lost to the Kansas City Royals in the World Series.

Asked about his lasting memories of his time with the Mets, Matz replied, “Making my debut here, coming up and being able to pitch in the World Series here and the playoffs. All that stuff was part of a pretty good memory that I’ll always have and always kind of cherish.”

Matz has made his home in Tennessee near Nashville since 2016, but his parents remain in the Long Island area as do multiple uncles and cousins.

The familiar faces on the Mets include Matz’s former teammates Brandon Nimmo, Jeff McNeil, Edwin Diaz and Alonso. Pitching coach Jeremy Hefner was also on the coaching staff at the end of Matz’s tenure with the Mets. The bullpen catchers also remain from Matz’s time as a Met as well as several members of the training staff, grounds crew and security personnel.

“It’s definitely different going here versus other places,” Matz said. “Especially being from here and everything.”

Outfielder Dylan Carlson, sidelined by a left shoulder sprain he sustained in the second to last spring training exhibition game, has made strides in a hitting progression in recent days. He has hit off of a machine and is scheduled to hit coach thrown batting practice on the field in St. Louis this weekend. He could be in line for a minor-league rehab assignment as early as next week.