After the Mets dropped game one to the Brewers on Monday, they bounced back to take game two on Tuesday. It was a pitcher’s duel between the Mets’ left-hander Zac Thornton (0-1, 2.11 ERA) and the former Met right-hander Brandon Sproat (3-4, 5.09 ERA, 91 SO) for Milwaukee as he faced his former team for the first time. For the Brewers, it was also the first time in 13 games that they had faced a left-handed pitcher, whom they have performed poorly against
Thornton, in his first start since dropping the “h” from his first name, pitched an absolute gem on Tuesday. He threw six scoreless innings, giving up just three hits, one walk, and struck out two. He has now thrown back-to-back scoreless outings (13 innings). In his last 19 innings, he has given up just one earned run.
Zac Thornton vs. Brewers
Thornton’s strong outing, followed by the Mets’ bullpen closing out the last three innings, allowed New York to go on and defeat the Brewers 4-0, shutting them out and giving the Mets their fifth shutout win of the year and Thornton the first win of his career.
The Mets got on the board first in the second as Jared Young went deep for the seventh time this season on a solo home run to center field that put the Mets up 1-0.
The game remained at 1-0 until the fifth when the Mets struck for two more to extend their lead to 3-0. With Bichette on, Francisco Lindor doubled to center field, and when the ball deflected off Brice Turang, Bichette advanced to third to put two runners in scoring position for Carson Benge. The rookie delivered with a single to right field that scored Bichette and Lindor and made it a 3-0 Mets lead.
Weaver came in to relieve Thornton in the seventh, pitching a scoreless inning to pave the way for the Mets to extend their lead in the eighth. Activated off the injured list on Tuesday and going hitless in his first seven at-bats back, Luis Robert Jr. found his swing and launched a rocket 451-foot home run to left-center that extended New York’s lead to 4-0 over Milwaukee in the eighth.
That was all the Mets needed as the bullpen came in and finished the shutout, and the Mets went on to defeat Milwaukee.
Player of the Game
Tuesday’s player of the game was Zac Thornton for his six shutout innings, with just three hits and a walk given up, striking out two.
On Deck
The Mets and Brewers conclude their series with the rubber match on Wednesday at 2:10 p.m. It will be right-handed pitcher Christian Scott (3-1, 2.87 ERA, 72 SO) on the mound for the Mets against the righty Logan Henderson (3-1, 2.97 ERA, 38 SO) for the Brewers.
