Zack Wheeler got the Mets their first rubber match win of the season in a 4-3 final against the Tigers Sunday afternoon.

The right-hander gave up a first inning home run and then a few hits in the third to give the Tigers a 3-0 lead early. The team bounced back in the fourth, however, scoring four runs to give Wheeler a lead and allow him to settle in.

Wheeler’s overall line for the day included 7.1 innings of three-run baseball. In this outing, he fanned eight and only gave up five hits, one of which was the home run in the first inning. The Georgia native threw 102 pitches today after throwing a career high of 118 against the Nationals.

Mets’ manager, Mickey Callaway, thought that after a rough start, Wheeler came into his own to complete his outing.

“He settled in nicely,” Callaway said. “[He] went out there and continued to do what it takes to keep us in ball games. As deep as he pitched in the game with the lack of bullpen we had was really really big. That’s really stepping it up today”

Wheeler said that he had trouble with Tigers’ outfielder Nicholas Castellanos (2-for-4, HR, 1B, 2Ks) but he was able to adjust and not allow the right fielder to get his hands extended and in turn, got a better result in his third time around the order, striking him out.

The strong hitting pitcher once again showed off his slugging prowess, going 2-for-3 at the plate.

Steve Gelbs of SNY asked if he takes his approach seriously at the dish.

“Of course,” Wheeler said. “You just want to get on base any way possible.”

Wheeler added that the pitchers have a little battle among themselves at the plate, so that is always fun for him when he gets a hit. In that Mets “pitchers as hitters” duel, Wheeler is winning. The veteran has nine hits this season, Jacob deGrom has five, Noah Syndergaard has three, Steven Matz has two and Jason Vargas does not have a hit just yet.

With the exception of the Nationals, Wheeler’s ERA is under 3.00 against everyone else he has faced (SNY). Four out of Wheeler’s 11 starts have been against the Nationals, and in those outings, he has given up 20 earned runs. In his other eight starts, he has only given up 16 earned runs.

Wheeler’s last start was against the Nationals and he gave up only three earned runs in seven innings of work, which seems promising given his other outings against their division rival.

In his last nine starts, Wheeler has lasted at least six innings, which is a quality outing by any standard. In his first two starts of the season, he threw five and four and two-thirds innings.

Wheeler’s next start is expected to be in the first game of the Diamondbacks series. He is not slated to start against the Dodgers.