What a difference a few hours makes.
Matt Harvey toed the rubber and allowed no earned runs in eight innings tonight, but as we’ve come to expect, the run support was not there and the Mets dropped a heartbreaker 2-1.
The game was quiet for three innings, but Josh Satin got it going in the top of the fourth when he drove a double to the opposite field. John Buck followed with a double of his own, driving in Satin and giving Harv’ and the Mets an early 1-0 lead.
Harvey found himself in a little bit of trouble in the bottom of the fifth when Jayson Werth and Ian Desmond got on base. After getting a huge strikeout, he got the double play ball he needed, but Daniel Murphy‘s throw went wide and Werth came around to tie it up, 1-1. Harvey was not charged with the earned run.
It was quiet again until the seventh, when Andrew Brown reached on a Ryan Zimmerman error and was moved over on Harvey’s sacrifice bunt. Murphy walked, but Wright could not come through and popped out to first, ending the threat. Wright is in a bit of a slump, batting just .235 over his last 17 at bats. That was it for Ohlendorf, who finished the day with this final line: 7IP, 6H, 1ER, 2BB, 8K.
Harvey tossed eight innings of five-hit ball. His final line: 8IP, 5H, 0ER (1R), 1BB, 7K. His ERA dropped to 2.11.
The Mets threatened again in the top of the ninth, and had runners on the corners with one out. But Lagares and Murphy popped and flew out, respectively, and as was the theme tonight the threat was over.
The bottom of the ninth didn’t last long. With one out, Ryan Zimmerman directed a LaTroy Hawkins fastball into the right field bleachers, ending the game at 2-1.
The series continues tomorrow at 3:05 PM. Dillon Gee (7-7, 4.07 ERA) opposes right-hander Dan Haren (4-11, 5.79)
Notes:
I don’t know how Harvey does this week after week without having a complete breakdown. I’ve lost track of how many times he’s thrown a legitimate gem and gotten absolutely no run support whatsoever. If his lack of wins ends up losing him the Cy Young this year, he’ll have nobody but the Mets’ bats to blame. He was handed his eleventh no-decision tonight, officially giving him more no-decisions than decisions on the year.
Not much else. Pretty disappointed by the offensive effort in the night cap. Knocked around Jordan Zimmerman (a Cy Young candidate last year) and then a few hours later, couldn’t score a run off of Ohlendorf, who was throwing 87mph fastballs right down the middle in his last inning.
