Long Bombs and Big Plays spark Mets to Subway Series Win

Empire State Building Twitter

The Mets overcame three run deficits twice and their defense came up big when they needed to most as the New York Mets took the first game of the Subway Series 9-7.

Lucas Duda set up two double plays [the first], but most will remember the second of the two when he dove, caught the ball, threw to David Wright covering second, and then took the throw from Wright to end the game in the 9th inning.

On offense, the Mets overcame a three run deficit after Bartolo Colon gave up a grand slam to Brett Gardner in the 2nd inning.  Travis d'Arnaud hit his first of the year in the 5th inning to narrow the gap to two, and then in his first game since signing with the crosstown Mets, Curtis Granderson tied it in the 6th inning with a two-run blast.

The Mets bailed Colon out again after he gave up three runs, two earned, in the bottom of the 6th.  Eric Young hit a two run bomb to claw within one in the 7th, and Lucas Duda brought home Eric Campbell on a shattered bat single to center.  He would score on Chris Young's base-clearer to close the scoring in the 8th inning that gave the Mets the lead for the first time since the 2nd inning.

In the 9th inning, Kyle Farnsworth came on for the save, and found himself in trouble quickly as he walked Derek Jeter.  After Jacoby Ellsbury flied out, Mark Teixiera, who spent the game on the bench, hit a grounder that made its way all the way to the wall in right, but was only able to coax a single out of it.  That led to Brian McCann grounding to a diving Lucas Duda, who put away the Yankees with his double play.

It was the 5th straight win for the Mets over their crosstown rivals.

ROBBED: Lucas Duda nearly hit a extra base hit to the warning track, but was robbed by a quick-running sliding Jacoby Ellsbury produced the third out of the inning.

DEMOTED: Jenrry Mejia was demoted from starter to bullpen duty and made his first appearance for the Mets in the 7th inning.  He gave up two hits, but kept the Yankees from scoring.  He became the winning pitcher on record when the Mets completed their comeback in the 8th inning, winning his fourth win of the season.

PROMOTED: The Mets prior to play called up Rafael Montero from Las Vegas, who will take Mejia's spot in the rotation and will start on Wednesday in the first of the two games at Citi Field against the Yankees.  In addition, Jacob deGrom is coming to the Mets bullpen, replacing Gonzalez Germen, who is heading to the disabled list with a virus.

NEXT UP: Zack Wheeler takes the mound for the Mets as he makes his first ever appearance at Yankee Stadium.  The Mets are 3-4 when he takes the mound, with the latest loss coming in a 1-0 heartbreaker at Marlins Park.  The Yankees send out Vidal Nuño.  He earned his first win of the season last Wednesday when the Yankees won against the Angels.  Nuño struck out 3 in his 6 1/3rd innings of work.

Midday Recap: Ouch - Painful Day in the Majors

An NL East star gets plunked, clearing the benches.  Another NL East team continues riding their hot streak that cushions them for the postseason.  And an NL East team sits around and waits 15 minutes after a home plate umpire gets plunked in the jaw by a deflected bunt.

But the big story this morning is the end of a winning streak.  Entering last night's game, the Los Angeles Dodgers won 15 straight road games.  With Clayton Kershaw on the mound, they stood a good chance of making it 16 in a row on the road.

St. Louis celebrates the end of the
LA Dodgers road win streak
Associated Press

Kershaw made it through his first four innings without too much trouble. But a Jon Jay double and a Tony Cruz single gave the St. Louis Cardinals the lead in the 5th inning, and then Pete Kozma moved Cruz over to 3rd with his 18th double of the season.  Joe Kelly brought Cruz home with a sacrifice grounder to make it 2-0 in favor of the Cardinals.

The Dodgers would get one of those two back as Adrian Gonzalez brought Carl Crawford home on his single to right field.  But with the bases loaded, A.J. Ellis ended the Dodgers threat in the 6th inning as he grounded into a double play.

The Cardinals add three in the 8th with Carlos Beltran's 20th of the year, followed with a two-run shot by Matt Adams, to pad the Cardinals lead 5-1.  In the 9th inning, Edward Mujica came to preserve the Cardinals win, ending the Dodgers road win streak.

Clayton Kershaw fell to 10-7 on the season with the loss, striking out 5 while giving up 6 hits.  Joe Kelly won his 3rd of the season, giving up 6 hits.  It wasn't a fine effort - Kelly walked two and struck out 1 in his 5 1/3rd innings - but he had enough run support in the 5th inning.

PLUNKED

Bryce Harper takes exception to
getting plunked in the 6th inning.
Alex Brandon | Associated Press

Things got hot between the Atlanta Braves and the Washington Nationals on Wednesday Night.  The Braves, hot on their 11th win on a row, fired up more after Bryce Harper cleared the center field wall for his 17th of the year.

But the Braves got even, as Evan Gattis singled to right scoring both Brian Upton and Andrelton Simmons for the 2-1 lead.  Armed with the lead, Julio Teheran plunked Bryce Harper on the middle of his leg, clearing both benches as Harper took exception to the first offering from Teheran after the homer.

Both teams would be warned and play resumed.  In the 7th inning, the Nationals had their best chance to tie or take the lead with the bases loaded.  But Adam LaRoche grounded to Freddie Freeman to clear the danger and preserve the Braves win.

The Braves 2-1 win is their 12th win in a row and put the Braves in a comfortable 14 1/2 game cushion in the National League East, and just behind the Pittsburgh Pirates for the best record in the majors.

OUCH!

Eric Young celebrates after scoring
on a Juan Lagares single in the 8th.
Howard Simmons | NY Daily News

Scary moment for Home Plate Umpire Manny Gonzalez during the 6th inning of the Rockies/Mets game, as a Charlie Blackmon bunt bounced off the plate and nailed Gonzalez on the throat.  He would have to leave the game, and following a 15 minute delay, took the third offering from Jenrry Mejia after the delay deep to right to the the game at 2.  After the Rockies loaded the bases to chase Mejia from the game, Carlos Torres came in and got Wilin Rosario to fly out in shallow center.  Then with two outs, Todd Helton lined to left that was about ready to fall for at least two runs until Eric Young used his speed and diving ability to snatch the ball before it hit the ground.

Eric Young also used his speed in the 8th inning after Juan Lagares beat a weak chopper to the 2nd Baseman, as Young kept running from 2nd Base and scored on the Rockies brief hesitation after the safe call at 1st.

LaTroy Hawkins earned the save for the Mets as they held on for the 3-2 win.

Midday Recap: Matt Harvey dazzles with a Blister.

Nick Swisher has an embarrassing night.  Zack Greinke meets up with the Diamondbacks for the first time since benches cleared on June 11th.  And trade rumors circulate involving Jimmer Fredette, again.

But the big story is the Mets winning in San Francisco while you were sleeping.

With Matt Harvey on the mound, the Mets take a 3-2 lead in the top 6th as Daniel Murphy converts Eric Young's triple into a run, then Murphy came home as Ike Davis hit into a double play.

Jeff Chiu | Associated Press

However, the Giants come back, as Hunter Pence triples and is brought home on Brandon Crawford's single.

The two teams stay off the scoreboard for the following 9 innings, when Eric Young's speed helps gain him 3rd base, and Anthony Recker capitalizes on a Crawford fielding error to give the Mets the 4-3 advantage heading into the bottom 16th.

Bobby Parnell saves the game and strands two as the Mets win at 3:41AM, 4-3 in 16 innings.

It wasn't the best start for Matt Harvey, who admitted he was fighting a blister.  But he did pitch 7 innings, striking out 6.

The Mets continue their Bay Area visit with Dillon Gee on the mound tonight against Barry Zito.  First pitch is scheduled for 10:15PM EDT.  Pregame coverage begins on 1230 FOX Sports at 9:35PM.

SWISHED
It was an embarrassing night for former New York Yankee Nick Swisher.  The now Cleveland Indian stared at a ball that rolled foul, only to find it come back into fair territory and as he wasn't running towards first base, he was easily tagged just feet away from the batter's box.

Then in the 10th inning, with the Detroit Tigers leading 4-2, Swisher slipped and slid as he rounded 3rd base, and had to retreat back to 3rd, preventing the Indians from scoring the run on a teammate's base hit.  He would be stranded at 3rd as the following hitter struck out.

REMATCH
Eight were suspended the last time Zack Greinke pitched against the Arizona Diamondbacks.  However, it was a calmer affair between the two teams this time around as the Los Angeles Dodgers put an end to the Diamondbacks 5 game winning streak, 6-1.

Greinke punched out 7 and walked 2 in his seven innings pitched, and Yasiel Puig continued his case to be the last NL player admitted to next Tuesday's All-Star game with a two-hit game.

MOVING EAST?
According to Sports Illustrated, the Sacramento Kings are interested in selling Glens Falls native Jimmer Fredette, if the offer's right.  In the 2012-13 season, Fredette, who spent most of his season sitting on the pine, averaged over 7 points per game.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are reported to be one of the teams interested in Fredette, but how interested the Cavaliers truly are depends on how things go with Andrew Bynum, who was offered a $24 million dollar contract.

Mother Nature washes Matt Harvey away

Matt Harvey was looking good.  Both on the mound and in the batter's box.

Up until Mother Nature came and washed Matt Harvey away from the game on Sunday.  After pitching 6 innings of two-hit ball, it was determined by Terry Collins and the Mets brass that Harvey would not return following a twenty minute rain delay to start the 7th.

The damage was already done.  Up 7-0 at that time and well in line to earn his 7th win of the season, they felt it was best to sit Harvey and get him prepped for his next scheduled start, which is Friday against the Washington Nationals in New York.

The bullpen preserved the shutout as the Mets win the rubber game against the Philadelphia Phillies, 8-0.  LaTroy Hawkins and Brandon Lyon pitched the remaining three innings, holding the Phillies to two total hits during the final frames.

Matt Harvey's bat in the 5th inning helped open the game for the Mets, as his double brought home Juan Lagares, who benefited from a Ben Revere fielding error that put him at third base.  Harvey would be led home by Eric Young as the Mets plated three in the 5th.

On the mound, Harvey pitched six innings, allowing only two hits.  His shutout helped lower his ERA to 2.05, polishing his candidacy to start in the All-Star Game coming up next month at Citi Field.

His pitching performance was supported by the bat of David Wright, who went 4-for-5, all being for extra bases.  Eric Young and Marlon Byrd also had multi-hit games for the Mets.

Weekend Notes: Lucas Duda is on the 15-day Disabled List, retroactive to June 22nd, as he is out with a left intercoastal strain.  His departure brought speculation that Ike Davis would be returning from the Las Vegas 51s, however the Mets opted to see Davis spend more time tweaking his swing. Instead, the Mets went with Josh Satin at 1st Base the last two games, a position he played at for eight games back in 2011.  In 10 Major League starts at 1st Base, he has never been charged with an error.

On Friday, Jeremy Hefner won his 2nd game of the season as the Mets came back from a 3-0 deficit to win, thanks to some help from Eric Young.  His 2-RBI single tied the game in the 5th inning, and then Juan Lagares brought Duda home in the 6th for the go-ahead run.

Saturday saw the Mets bounce back from a 7-1 hole after Dillon Gee saw three of his pitches go beyond the wall, two of them to Ryan Howard, who has always had Gee's number.  The other homer Gee surrendered was to Michael Young, who with Ryan Howard combined for back-to-back solos in the 5th inning.  The 7th and 9th innings were huge for the Mets as they scored 4 in the 7th and 2 in the 9th to tie the game before Kevin Frandsen took the 2nd pitch he saw deep for the Philly walk-off.

The 9th inning comeback brought the 3rd straight blown save for Jonathan Papelbon, who remembers a blown save effort against the Mets back in July last year when David Wright walked off with a single in the bottom 9th at Citi Field.

Young Choice: Eric Young has enjoyed his time with the Mets already.  Since being traded from the Colorado Rockies in exchange of Collin McHugh, the switch-hitter from New Brunswick, New Jersey has hit .364.  He has batted in 5 runs, one fewer than the 6 he had through 50+ games with the Colorado Rockies.  Meanwhile, Collin McHugh was immediately optioned to Double-A, and lost in his first start with his new team, the Tulsa Drillers of the Texas League.  In that game, McHugh allowed two runs on five hits in 6 innings pitched.

Wheeler's on Deck: The Mets travel to the midwest for a pair of games against the Chicago White Sox.  The two teams split the pair played at Citi Field in May, one which included a Matt Harvey gem where the Mets finally tacked on the game's first run in the 10th inning. The White Sox won't have to face Harvey in this pair, but will find themselves facing Zack Wheeler on Tuesday night.  Wheeler kept the Braves scoreless in the nightcap of a day-night doubleheader, settling down to strike out 7 in his six innings of work.

North Country Sports Radio Recaps: May 7 (Mets won 1-0) | May 8 (White Sox won 6-3)

Radio Coverage: 7:30PM Tuesday, 1230 FOX Sports Radio