The Mets wanted a sweep as badly as Mark Canha wanted house runs. They obtained each of these this week in a three-game sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies.
Canha powered the Mets previous the Phillies for the second time in as many days with one other two-run homer that helped the staff defeat its NL East rivals 4-2 on Thursday afternoon at Citi Field. His well timed hitting has been essential for the Mets within the sequence and he’s been answerable for six of the Mets’ eight runs.
Right-hander Taijuan Walker made his Citi Field return and took the loss because of Canha’s shot within the backside of the fourth. The Mets (30-27) have been down 2-1 when the outfielder took a 3-1 fastball over the fence in left-center area. Walker left a 90 MPH fastball proper out over the center of the plate. It was a meatball of a pitch and Canha did what good hitters do with that form of pitch, homering for the fifth time this season.
That inning was the tip for Walker (4-3). His outing began with a tribute video on the Citi Field scoreboard and ended on a a lot much less constructive notice.
The constructive outing got here from Max Scherzer. The first-inning woes continued when the Phillies (25-31) strung collectively two runs within the first inning. The Mets have been outscored 45-13 within the first frames of video games this season and it has confirmed expensive at instances.
But Scherzer (5-2) had two straightforward innings and cruised from there, going seven innings whole and giving the Mets six scoreless ones. The Mets’ ace has now turned in back-to-back seven-inning video games and it’s straightforward to see simply how considerably completely different the staff is when starters go at the very least six innings: The Mets are 16-0 in video games the place their beginning pitcher tosses six and 6-0 when one goes seven.
It appears insane to assume that the Mets have solely had a starter face the lineup 3 times by means of six instances this season, however it’s been a wierd 12 months. Scherzer was changed by Jeff Brigham within the eighth inning after giving up solely two runs (one earned) on three hits and one stroll whereas putting out 9.
Walker allowed three earned on two hits, walked three and struck out two. The Mets took one off left-hander Matt Strahm within the sixth to tack on an insurance coverage run.
Brigham held the lead for left-hander Brooks Raley, who turned the ball over to Drew Smith for a one-out save, the second of his profession and the season. The first pitch to Drew Ellis went proper into the glove of Brandon Nimmo.
The developments are constructive proper now: The starters are regularly going deep, the protection is strong and the Mets have now hit house runs in 15 straight video games. Far too typically this season, the staff has taken large steps ahead, solely to take greater steps again.
Now, the problem for the Mets is to maintain the momentum and construct on it.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com