were Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Lucas Duda, who both did so in July 2015; Cano also became the first Met to hit three home runs in any game since Yoenis Cespedes in April 2017. He is also the oldest second baseman in MLB history to hit three home runs in one game. On July 28, the Mets traded pitching prospects Anthony Kay and Simeon Woods Richardson to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for Marcus Stroman. The Mets finished the month strong, winning each of the last six games of the month. August The Mets continued their hot play to begin the month, winning 9 of their first 10 in August, including eight in a row and 15 out of 16 stretching back to July 25—their best 16-game stretch since 1990. By August 7, the Mets had a record of 19-6 since the All-Star break, the league's best record in that time, and were within one game of a wild-card playoff berth. On August 18, Pete Alonso hit his 40th home run of the season in an 11–5 win over the Kansas City Royals, setting a new National League record for home runs in a season by a rookie, breaking the previous record of 39 by Cody Bellinger in 2017. On August 27, Alonso hit his 42nd home run of the season in a 5–2 loss to the Chicago Cubs, setting a new record for home runs in a season by a New York Mets player. This is also the first time any MLB rookie has set a franchise record for home runs in a season since Johnny Rizzo did so for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1938. The Mets' wild card chances took a hit after back-to-back series sweeps against the Atlanta Braves and Chicago Cubs, but the team closed out the month with two consecutive wins against the Philadelphia Phillies. August saw the continued improvement of the Mets bullpen, which had struggled prior to the All-Star break, but had a 3.79 ERA in the second half of the season as of the end of August, ranking fifth in the major leagues. September Mets catcher Wilson Ramos had a career-best 26-game hitting streak through September 4. It was tied with David Wright in 2006–07 for the second-longest streak in Mets history, was the longest ever for a Mets catcher, and was the longest in the MLB since Freddie Freeman's 30-game streak