RHP Marcus Stroman fueled the Mets with a do-it-all effort en route to a series-splitting 6-2 win over the Padres at Petco Park in San Diego.
Five things to know from Sunday’s game
1. On the mound and at the plate, Stroman gave New York a boost. Stroman (5-4, 2.41 ERA) fired 6 2/3 frames with one run (none earned) on four hits, striking out seven and walking four on 95 pitches (58 strikes). He helped himself out in the batter’s box with a seventh-inning RBI double down the left-field line, scoring 2B Jose Peraza and extending the Mets’ cushion to a 4-1 lead.
2. While Stroman dealt, the Mets got to Padres RHP Chris Paddack enough, chipping away with a trio of one-run innings spread out over six frames and 94 pitches (66 strikes). Paddack (2-4, 4.27 ERA) scattered three runs on six hits (one home run) with six strikeouts to one walk. RHP Craig Stammen entered in the seventh inning and struggled over a pair of frames, surrendering three runs on four hits (one homer) while fanning one.
3. After a pair of scoreless frames, RF Billy McKinney got the Mets on the board with a third-inning RBI single. A line drive up the middle by McKinney, who posted a 2-for-5 day in the leadoff spot, scored Peraza and provided the Mets a 1-0 edge early on.
4. Drawing first blood carried over into the fourth inning when LF Dominic Smith launched a solo shot to center and doubled the Mets’ lead to a 2-0 cushion. Two frames later, 1B Pete Alonso also got the best of Paddack with a sixth-inning RBI single up the middle, bringing McKinney home and tacking on another run as the Mets widened a 3-0 gap.
5. Following Stroman’s aforementioned RBI double, C James McCann gave the Mets a pair of insurance runs with an eighth-inning blast to center, building the advantage to 6-1. RHPs Miguel Castro and Trevor May closed the door with a stretch of 2 1/3 innings in relief. After Castro’s hitless 1 1/3 frames, May allowed a run in the ninth but stranded one baserunner on first, bouncing back with a strikeout of Jurickson Profar to end the game.
Highlights
What’s next
The Mets (29-23) end a nine-game road trip with the first of a two-game set against the Baltimore Orioles (21-38). Projected to start, LHP David Peterson (1-4, 5.89 ERA) eyes a bounce-back performance after surrendering 16 runs in 20 innings over his past five starts. He faces LHP Bruce Zimmerman (3-3, 4.96 ERA).