FLUSHING, NY, August 8th – The New York Mets slugged three home runs, and behind another strong start from rookie pitcher David Peterson defeated the Miami Marlins 8-4 Saturday night. The Mets win snapped the Marlins seven-game winning streak who remained in first place by one game over the Atlanta Braves.
Peterson’s Poise
David Peterson has shown great poise in his previous two starts this year and Saturday night was no different. On three different occasions during his five innings pitched, Peterson showed just the kind of poise and presence he has on the mound. He also had a little bit of help from the Marlins too. In the top of the first inning, Peterson allowed three straight two-out singles to Jesus Aguilar, Corey Dickerson, and Brian Anderson giving the Marlins a 1-0 lead. Peterson bared down and struck out Francisco Cervelli to end the inning.
In the second inning, Peterson struggled with his control walking Logan Forsythe and Monte Harrison back to back. After a mound visit by Mets pitching coach Jeremy Hefner, Peterson got the speedy Jonathan Villar to ground into an inning-ending double play.
After cruising through the third and fourth innings, Peterson once again ran into problems in the fifth. Forsythe led off the inning with a home run to centerfield. Harrison walked on four pitches. Next up was Villar and he ran the count to 3-0. Surely Villar was going to take the 3-0 pitch and wait for Peterson to throw him a strike. Villar swung at the 3-0 pitch and flied out to centerfield. That allowed Peterson to settle down and finish out the inning. Peterson improved to 2-1 after throwing five innings with four hits, three walks, and three strikeouts.
Mets Play Long Ball
The Marlins were starting their major league record ninth different pitcher to start off the season. That makes their 7-2 record even more remarkable. But on this night the Mets had the power working early in the game. Already trailing 1-0, Pete Alonso led off the bottom of the second inning with a walk. Next up was Michael Conforto. Conforto crushed a 2-2 pitch into the right-centerfield stands giving the Mets a 2-1 lead.
The next inning J.D. Davis hit a two-out single. Alonso was up next and he hit a line drive home run just over the left-field wall. The Mets were now leading the Marlins 4-1. The home run by Alonso was only his second of the season and he continues to show signs of breaking out of his slump. Davis had a sacrifice fly in the fifth inning giving the Mets a 5-2 lead.
Familia Falters
Pitching in the sixth inning is rare for Jeurys Familia. After all, he was the Mets closer for several years before becoming a setup man. But Mets manager Luis Rojas is clearly looking for roles for a lot of his bullpen pitchers. Familia has not really looked that bad this year aside from giving up three walks in five and two-thirds innings prior to Saturday’s game.
Familia walked Dickerson leading off the sixth inning. After Anderson singled, Familia got Cervelli to ground into a double play. Matt Joyce walked on five pitches followed by Forsythe’s full-count walk to load the bases. The Mets replaced Familia with Drew Smith. Up next was Harrison who hit a slow roller through the Mets shifted infield for a two-run single pulling the Marlins to within one run.
The next batter was Villar who worked the count to 3-0. Just one inning earlier Villar bailed out the Mets by swinging at a 3-0 pitch. But there is no way he would do it again. Guess again. Villar swung and missed at a pitch that would have been ball four. Smith would wind up striking out Villar to end the inning.
Davis, Bullpen Put the Game Away
With one out Amed Rosario singled to left and Jeff McNeil walked to bring up J.D. Davis. The Marlins went to their bullpen to bring in Josh Smith. Smith gave up 10 homers in 31 innings pitched in 2019. Davis took the first pitch deep over the right-centerfield wall giving the Mets an 8-4 lead.
The Mets would get three scoreless innings from Robert Gsellman, Seth Lugo, and Justin Wilson to close out the game. The three Mets relievers would give up two hits and one walk striking out five Marlins.
Inside the Box Score
Once again Dominic Smith started at first base with Pete Alonso serving as the designated hitter. J.D. Davis has taken over the starting third base position with Jeff McNeil starting in left field for the second straight game. Andres Gimenez replaced Brian Dozier at second base and Brandon Nimmo replaced McNeil in left for late-inning defense as Rojas has done all season long. The Mets middle of the lineup combined to have four hits, eight RBI’s, three home runs, and five runs scored. Davis has a career-best 12 game hitting streak.
Injury News
Brad Brach is pitching in simulated games. The RHP missed Summer camp after testing positive for COVID-19. The Mets have not announced a timetable for his return. Marcus Stroman pitched in a simulated game this past Friday. The RHP threw over 80 pitches in five-plus innings and is moving around better. He is scheduled to pitch in another simulated game in the next few days.
RHP Michael Wacha has been placed on the ten-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation. Catcher Ali Sanchez has been called up to take Wacha’s roster spot. Wacha’s injury is not considered serious. The Mets have not announced who will make Wacha’s next start but have said Stroman is not an option.
Up Next
Sunday afternoon is the rubber game of the series. The Marlins are finally using a starting pitcher for the second time this season when they send Pablo Lopez (1-0, 0.00) to the hill. The Mets will counter with the reigning two-time Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom ( 1-0, 2.12) making his fourth start of the year. Game time is 1:10 PM
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