The Mets halted a three-game losing streak by defeating the Miami Marlins 5-3 on Wednesday night.
Here are the key takeaways …
– The Mets jumped on the Marlins early with a three-run second inning. After hits by Dom Smith and Javier Baez and a Michael Conforto walk, the Mets had the bases loaded with nobody out.
After Jonathan Villar grounded out to force home the first run, Tomas Nido reached on a fielder’s choice on a play where Baez lived up to his “El Mago” nickname, as he made an incredible slide home to avoid the tag from Alex Jackson. Next up, Carlos Carrasco bunted right back to pitcher Zach Thompson, but Thompson threw the ball away into center field, scoring Conforto to make it 3-0.
– Carrasco cruised through his first couple innings of work, not allowing his first hit until a Jackson double in the third. Jackson would be stranded, though, as Carrasco started his night with three scoreless frames.
He finally got into a little bit of trouble in the fifth, allowing the first two hitters, Jorge Alfaro and Bryan De La Cruz, to reach on singles. Pinch-hitter Joe Panik then singled home Alfaro to make it a 3-1 game, and with runners on the corners, Luis Rojas pulled Carrasco from the game. Aaron Loup was brought in, and while he allowed a second run to score on a force play at second, he struck out Isan Diaz to end the inning.
Carrasco went 4.1 innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits. He struck out five and did not walk a batter, throwing 62 pitches (43 strikes).
– Jeurys Familia could not hold on to the lead in the sixth, however, as he hung a slider that Jesus Aguilar sent a long way for a solo homer, tying the game at 3-3. Familia went on to strike out the side, but Aguilar’s 19th homer of the season was enough to tie the game.
– The Mets put together a two-out rally in the seventh thanks to hits from Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil and an intentional walk to Pete Alonso, but Smith flew out to center against Richard Bleier to end the inning, leaving the bases loaded.
– With the game still tied in the top of the eighth, Baez came up clutch, blasting his 24th home run of the season (and second as a Met) to put the Mets back on top 4-3. Baez fell behind in the count 1-2 against Anthony Bass, but he slashed a ball the other way to right to put the Mets ahead.
Later in the inning, the Mets put a couple of runners on base, thanks in part to the Marlins’ third error of the night, and a passed ball by Jackson allowed Conforto to race home with an insurance run, making it a 5-3 game. They’d load the bases later in the inning, but Alonso lined out to right after a good at-bat to end the inning there.
Conforto, by the way, had a nice night at the pate, going 2-for-4 with a walk and two runs scored.
– The Mets didn’t have Edwin Diaz (paternity list) or Seth Lugo (two innings Tuesday) on Wednesday night, making things a bit more difficult for Rojas to navigate in the late innings. After Miguel Castro pitched a scoreless seventh, Drew Smith followed up with a 1-2-3 eighth inning.
Trevor May got the ball in the ninth in a save situation. After a generous strike three call to start the inning, May cruised to a 1-2-3 save.
Highlights
What’s next
The Mets and Marlins close out their four-game series on Thursday afternoon at 12:10 p.m. on SNY.
Rich Hill will make his third start as a Met, while the Marlins have not yet announced their starter.