Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

The Mets (35-41) and Phillies (39-37) continued their three-game series on Saturday evening in Philadelphia, and the Mets looked to bounce back after dropping game one to the Phillies 5-1. Heading into Saturday’s matchup, the Mets had dropped five of their last seven games.

Looking to turn things around, the Mets turned to their ace, right-handed pitcher Max Scherzer (6-2). He was opposed by Phillies left-handed pitcher Cristopher Sanchez, making his third start of the season for Philadelphia.

Scherzer pitched a strong game on Saturday, striking out eight batters across six innings while only allowing two earned runs, leading the Mets to a 4-2 victory over the Phillies.

Starling Marte had a great game for the offense, going 2-for-4 with two runs scored, a home run, and an RBI. He was instrumental on Saturday, bringing in the Mets’ first run of the day and their go-ahead run in the sixth that ultimately led the Mets to their win over the Phillies. Luis Guillorme also had a solid performance on Saturday at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a run scored.

It was a first-inning “Marte-Parte” that put the Mets on top in the first inning. That was the only run the Mets scored in the inning, but it was the start they needed to get early momentum going and put the Mets on top 1-0 over the Phillies. Entering Saturday’s game, the Mets were 21-8  in 2023 when scoring first.

Scherzer came out in the bottom of the first and gave up a walk and a single, but kept the runners in place and the score at bay. He also recorded his first two strikeouts of the day.

Both the Mets and Phillies went down in order in the second. Sanchez struck out two in the top of the second, which Scherzer matched with two strikeouts of his own. Scherzer looked sharp early, and had four strikeouts through two innings.

The Mets extended their lead in the top of the third. Luis Guillorme started the inning off with a line drive triple to center field that split the outfielders. He turned on his speed and was able to leg out a triple to lead off the inning. Two batters later, Brandon Nimmo hit an RBI single to left field to score Guillorme and extend the Mets’ lead to 2-0 over the Phillies. Sanchez then retired the next he faced to avoid further damage and left Nimmo stranded.

Scherzer continued to cruise, retiring the Phillies in order in the bottom of the third, which included his fifth strikeout of the day. Sanchez kept the Mets quiet in the top of the fourth as he retired Pete Alonso, Tommy Pham, and Francisco Alvarez in order.

The Phillies’ offense put pressure on Scherzer in the bottom of the fourth, scoring a run and cutting the Mets’ lead. Nick Castellanos led off the inning with a solo home run to put the Phillies on the board and decrease the Mets’ lead to 2-1. Two batters later, Bryson Stott singled to right field to try to keep the Phillies’ extended momentum going, but Alec Bohm grounded out to end the inning as Scherzer got out of the inning.

Sanchez looked strong again in the fifth for Philadelphia as he retired the Mets in order, striking out Canha and Guillorme. Sanchez had four strikeouts through five innings.

The Phillies’ offense pushed back again in the bottom of the fifth. Brandon Marsh hit his thirteenth double to lead-off the inning, and then, three batters later, Trea Turner singled to left field for an RBI to score Marsh and tie the game at 2-2. After allowing a single to Castellanos, Scherzer settled down and struck out Harper to keep the game tied at two.

The Mets answered back and re-took the lead in the sixth. Nimmo led off the top of the single with a single to right field. That knocked out Sanchez as the Phillies went to their bullpen in the sixth. Yunior Marte relieved Sanchez on the mound.

Cristopher Sanchez’s Final Line:

5.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 4 SO, 1 HR, 4.05 ERA

Yunior Marte was welcomed by two back-to-back singles by Marte and Francisco Lindor to load the bases with no outs. Alonso then grounded into a force out that scored Nimmo to give the Mets the lead back, 3-2. Tommy Pham then collected the Mets’ fourth hit of the inning, it was an RBI single to right field that scored Marte and extended the Mets’ lead to 4-2 over the Phillies. Alvarez then grounded into a double play to end the inning.

Scherzer came back out to throw the sixth for the Mets. And he did exactly what they needed him to do, keeping the Phillies quiet. He retired three of four he faced and recorded his eighth strikeout of the day to keep the Mets’ lead 4-2 through five & a half innings played in Philadelphia.

The Phillies went back to their bullpen in the sixth. Matt Strahm relieved Yunior Marte on the mound for the Phillies.

Strahm retired three of four Mets he faced. Guillorme singled with one out, but Strahm retired the other three he faced to get out of the inning unscathed.

The Mets went to their bullpen in the seventh as Scherzer’s outing came to an end after six strong. The former Tiger struck out eight batters, walked one, and scattered seven hits across six innings. Brooks Raley was on to relieve Scherzer on the mound.

Raley struck out Marsh, allowed a single to Josh Harrison, and retired Schwarber. After 2/3 inning pitched, he then turned the game over to Adam Ottavino, who struck out Turner to end the inning.

The Phillies went to their bullpen again in the eighth as well. Jeff Hoffman came on to relieve Strahm, retiring the Mets in order by striking out two batters and inducing a fly-out.

Ottavino came back out for the eighth inning. He walked two and retired one before turning the ball over to David Robertson. Robertson forced Stott into a double play to retire the last two batters of the inning.

The Phillies went back to their bullpen in the ninth with the Mets up by two. They brought in Dylan Covey to replace Hoffman on the mound. Covey cruised through the ninth. He struck out Pham, allowed a walk to Alvarez, and then grounded Canha into a double play to end the inning.

Robertson was back out to try to close the game out for the Mets in the ninth and put them back in the win column. He did just that allowing a single, but retiring the other two he faced and ending the game on a double-play as the Mets solidified their victory over the Phillies 4-2.

Buck Showalter spoke on Robertson after the game. He called him a consistent personality and a consistent pitcher, saying that consistent personalities are usually consistent pitchers.

“Robby’s a guy who likes to compete. He likes to pitch,” said Showalter. He said he’s had a lot of rest and they knew he could stretch Robertson a bit today. Showalter said, “he pitched good today.”

Scherzer (7-2, 3.95 ERA) was credited with Saturday’s Mets’ win. Sanchez (0-1, 4.05 ERA) was credited with the loss. Robertson was credited with his eleventh save of the season.

Player of the Game: Starling Marte

The Metsmerzied player of the game for Saturday’s game is Starling Marte. The right-fielder was 2-for-4 with two runs scored, a home run, and an RBI on Saturday. He gave the Mets the lead in the first with a solo home run and came across to score on an RBI single by Pham in the sixth that re-gave the Mets the lead in the inning. And that was the lead the Mets were able to hold in their 4-2 win over the Phillies.

Marte met with Steve Gelbs of SNY after the game. He said he’s getting good swings in the strike zone and feels good at the plate. He was asked about the home run he hit. Marte said he was looking for a ball up.

“The main goal for me was to see the ball up, let it get in a little deeper. That was the main goal for me and we got the result we wanted,” stated Marte.

Marte also spoke on the heightened competition. “When we get here, it heightens the competition a little more. I’ve been coming here a lot of years, and we’ve been playing a lot of high intense games since I’ve been coming here.”

On Deck:

The Mets and Phillies will close out their three-game series with the rubber match on Sunday. Carlos Carrasco (2-3, 6.34) will be on the mound for the Mets (35-41) against Zack Wheeler (6-4, 3.48 ERA) for the Phillies.

Sunday’s game will be available to watch on WPIX and MLB Network (blackout restrictions apply). The game can be listened to on WCBS 880.