The New York Mets (51-44) defeated the Miami Marlins (52-44) by a score of 5-3 at Marlins Park Friday evening. With a Washington Nationals loss, the Mets will move up a game in the standings and are now five games back for the division lead.
Pitching:
Logan Verrett was on the mound for the Mets tonight and he did about as well as could reasonably be expected for a fifth starter. Verrett took a shutout into the sixth inning before finally running into trouble. All in all, Verrett went 5.1 innings giving up two runs, walking one, and striking out three.
Everything was smooth sailing for Verrett until the bottom of the sixth inning. With the Mets up 2-0, J.T. Realmuto doubled off the left field wall to get things started for the Marlins. Miguel Rojas grounded out for the first out of the inning but not before moving Realmuto over to third base. Christian Yelich followed with his tenth home run of the season to tie the game at 2-2. That would be all for Verrett on the night.
Hansel Robles came in to complete the sixth and recorded the final two outs. Robles was flashing 98 MPH on the gun tonight. As has been the case lately, Collins went to Robles again in the seventh. All Robles did was put them down in order for a 1, 2, 3 inning.
Addison Reed came on for the Mets in the bottom of the eighth inning. Reed pitched a perfect inning. Reed is establishing himself as one of the best setup men in baseball, period.
Jeurys Familia came on in the ninth and walked a tightrope once again. With runners on first and second and two out, Martin Prado hit a pinch-hit single to bring in Christian Yelich and cut the lead to 5-3. Familia got the job done though by getting Adeiny Hechavarria to ground out to Asdrubal Cabrera. It would be Familia’s 34th save in a row and his 50th consecutive regular season save dating back to last season which is the fourth longest in MLB history.
Offense:
The Jose Reyes show? Reyes may have had a little something extra to prove tonight facing the team that traded him away after signing a six-year, 106 million dollar deal, five years ago.
In the top of the first inning, Reyes started the Mets off with a double on a line drive to left fielder Yelich. After Curtis Granderson flied out, Reyes took off and stole third base, his third of the year. Yoenis Cespedes brought him home with an easy sacrifice fly to center field to give the Mets the early 1-0 lead.
In the top of the fourth inning, after Asdrubal Cabrera struck out, Travis d’Arnaud laced a single into left field. Juan Lagares followed TDA up with a single of his own to put runners on first and second with one out. Logan Verrett then lined out for the second out of the inning. Reyes bucked the Mets trend hitting with runners in scoring position and with two outs by following with a RBI single to bring d’Arnaud home to give the Mets the 2-0 lead.
In the top of the seventh inning, and the game knotted at two runs apiece, Reyes lead off the inning with a single to get things started. Granderson followed by ripping a single into center field to put runners on the corners with nobody out. Yoenis Cespedes once again followed with a sacrifice fly to center fielder Marcell Ozuna to put the Mets back up 3-2.
In the top of the ninth with two quick outs on the board, Cespedes was hit by a pitch to put a runner on base. James Loney decided to ice the game with a little insurance as he launched his fifth home run to right-center field to give the Mets a 5-2 lead.
Notes:
Ichiro Suzuki will remain four hits shy of 3,000 hits after striking out in the eighth inning.
Alejandro De Aza has reached base in 11 of his last 24 plate appearances.
Hansel Robles has allowed only four earned runs in his last 23.1 innings.
Zack Wheeler threw off a mound in Miami tonight in front of Mets officials. Wheeler’s next step is to face live batters before throwing simulated innings. He then will begin a minor league rehab assignment.
Jeurys Familia is the fourth pitcher in major league history to record 50 straight saves.
JZ Player of the game: Jose Reyes. Reyes was in the middle of most of the Mets scoring tonight. Reyes went 3-5 with a double and a stolen base. Reyes also made a couple of nifty plays in the field.
On Deck:
The Mets will play their second game of a three-game set with the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park tomorrow evening. The game has a start time of 7:10 PM. Jacob deGrom (6-4, 2.38 ERA) looks to keep the Mets rolling against Jose Fernandez (11-4, 2.53 ERA). Get your popcorn, as this is sure to be one of the best pitching matchups of the year as the two team’s aces square off!
