MMO Game Recap: Giants 8, Mets 5

Matt Harvey is struggling.

It looks like the “dead arm” that has been haunting Matt Harvey over the past few weeks has finally caught up to him. Tonight, he gave up a career-high seven runs in six innings as the Mets (31-29) were defeated by the Giants (34-26) 8-5 at Citi Field.

The Giants got on the board early against Harvey, with Joe Panik, the second batter of the game, hitting a two-run homer to give the Giants an early lead.

The Mets retaliated in the first, with Granderson hitting a single that could have been a double (or more) had he run it out. After a Ruben Tejada grounder and a walk by Lucas Duda, Granderson was easily thrown out at home on a single by Michael Cuddyer. However, Wilmer Flores, the next batter, knocked in both Duda and Cuddyer to tie the game.

The Mets would claw out two more runs early in the game. In the fourth, Eric Campbell hit a single that scored Travis d’Arnaud, who was 1-for-4 with a double in his return to the team. In the fifth, Lucas Duda drove in Granderson, giving the Mets a 4-2 lead.

The Mets’ lead was short-lived however, as the Giants would jump on Harvey in the top of the sixth. Joe Panik singled to lead off the inning, followed by a walk by Angel Pagan. Buster Posey then knocked a double to deep right, scoring both runners and tying the game. The very next batter, Brandon Belt, homered to left-center, giving the Giants a 6-4 lead. The Giants would get one more in the inning on a Justin Maxwell solo homer, making it 7-4, a lead the Giants would not let up.

In all, Harvey allowed seven runs on nine hits, walking two, giving up three home runs, and striking out just two batters. He threw 69 of 100 pitches for strikes but his command was clearly off. Over his past four starts, Harvey has a 7.20 ERA.

The Mets tried to put together something in the bottom of the eighth, when Juan Lagares hit a triple that drove in Travis d’Arnaud, but the scoring would end there. Adding insult to injury, Buster Posey tacked on a run with an RBI double in the top of the ninth, finishing off the Mets.