BATS STRUGGLE AGAINST PHILLIES’ STARTER EICKHOFF

Phillies’ starter Jerad Eickhoff flummoxed the Mets over his final six innings of the season, much as he has done throughout his young career. New York’s bats came out swinging early and often, and Eickhoff was able to get through the first inning on only seven pitches, including a strikeout of Jay Bruce. He commanded his 90-91 mph fastball well, but his real out pitch is still his stellar curveball, on which he generated several strikeouts in this outing.

Curtis Granderson was the team’s first baserunner with a leadoff walk in the fourth, and he was replaced by pinch-hitter Juan Lagares. He was promptly thrown out by catcher Cameron Rupp, just before Bruce singled for the Mets’ first hit of the day. New York finally broke through in the sixth, as Matt Reynolds doubled on a well-placed ground ball and was brought home by an Alejandro De Aza single up the middle. Eickhoff’s day was done after the sixth, having accumulated eight strikeouts while only allowing one walk and one run.

Reliever Colton Murray came in in the seventh, and struggled some to command his 94-95 mph fastball. Kelly Johnson was able to single and steal second base, and was eventually brought home on Kevin Plawecki’s line-drive double. Murray would get through the inning, while Michael Mariot and Joely Rodriguez shared a clean eighth. De facto closer Hector Neris closed out the Phillies’ season while silencing the Mets, who probably spent most of this game trying to get back to New York as soon as possible.

GABRIEL YNOA IS HIS SERVICEABLE SELF

Ynoa did exactly exactly what he was asked to do today, with a little bit of fastball command shakiness for good measure. He allowed five hits (all singles, including two to Maikel Franco), but only allowed one hit. He managed to work an even faster first inning than Eickhoff (only requiring five pitches), and suffered no damage in the second inning.

In the third, three singles sequenced in such a way as to score the first run of the game on a Franco RBI, but that would be all of the damage Ynoa would allow. He got his final five outs efficiently and mostly without incident. On the day, 80 percent of his batted balls were ground balls, and threw only 52 pitches. It’s interesting that he didn’t even get to finish the fifth inning, but Terry Collins instead decided to go to the bullpen.

BULLPEN STRUGGLES TO RECORD OUTS IN THE SEVENTH

Jerry Blevins came in and got out Odubel Herrera to end the fifth, and that was all that was to be asked of him on the evening. Josh Smoker worked around a hit to get through the sixth cleanly. Erik Goeddel struggled in general, and failed to record an out. He gave up a walk and two hits, allowing one of the runs to score while he was on the mound. Josh Edgin’s line on the box score looks clean, but he allowed the sacrifice fly that scored the third run of the inning. In the eighth inning, Jim Henderson closed out the game for Mets’ pitching, but allowed an RBI single to Aaron Altherr before all was said and done. This was the final run scored in the game, and the Mets fell 5-2.

UP NEXT

With the regular season completed, the Mets await the San Francisco Giants in the NL Wild Card Game on Wednesday, at Citi Field. New York was able to line up their schedule to have Noah Syndergaard available to start, which is very good. However, the Giants were able to clinch their spot on the last day of the season AND have worked their schedule in such a way as to have Madison Bumgarner available to start – which is bad. It’s also an even year, which basically makes this game meaningless, but the Mets will give it their best shot regardless.

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BATS TAKE ADVANTAGE OF INABILITY TO THROW STRIKES

The Phillies sent six different pitchers to the mound today, and not one of them had anything resembling a good day. Starter Jake Thompson did look good early in the game – he had a low 90s fastball that he placed well in the first three innings, as well as a biting slider that generated a few whiffs. During those innings, the only run to score was by Jay Bruce on a ball that James Loney grounded into a double play.
Things fell apart for Thompson in the fourth, as Curtis Granderson hit a leadoff homerun into the stands in right field. T.J. and Rene Rivera each walked while Loney singled to load the bases. Gsellman then grounded into a force out at home. Reyes’ first walk of the day brought in the inning’s second run.
Phil Klein appeared in relief in the fifth inning and could not control his fastball. He walked both Yoenis Cespedes and Granderson to start the inning, followed by a single by Bruce to load the bases. After the Mets scored two runs on a T.J. Rivera single and a Rene Rivera hit-by-pitch, Colton Murray replaced Klein with only one out in the inning. Bruce scored on a wild pitch.
Murray had a pretty good sixth inning – getting two strikeouts and a popup. The team then made the decision to have him come out for a part of the seventh, which is predictably when things went south again. Unable to throw a strike, Murray hit a batter, walked a batter, and allowed a single before being replaced by Frank Herrmann. Herrmann immediately walked Reyes with the bases loaded and allowed a grand slam to Asdrubal Cabrera before getting two strikeouts to end the inning.
Lefty Patrick Schuster entered in the eighth and did strike out two batters, but also allowed three hits, a walk, and a hit batter. He was then replaced by Luis Garcia, who walked Ty Kelly and allowed a Michael Conforto double before striking out Gavin Cecchini (in his second appearance of the inning).
In total, the Phillies’ staff allowed two home runs, three wild pitches, four hit batters, five inherited runners to score, nine walks, 14 hits, and 17 earned runs in eight innings. The Mets deemed a bottom of the ninth unnecessary.

ROBERT GSELLMAN STIFFLES THE PHILLIES’ LINEUP

Robert Gsellman continued to impress as he pitched what is probably his best MLB start to date. He had some command issues in the first inning as he allowed a single to Freddy Galvis and walked Maikel Franco, but suffered no damage on the scoreboard. He settled down in the second and really had his 94 mph fastball working as he generated three groundouts and three strikeouts over the next two innings.
He allowed two singles to Jorge Alfaro and Cody Asche through the rest of his outing, but was basically dominant throughout. Seventy-five percent of his batted balls were grounders, and he struck out eight batters in total. It will be overlooked because of the gaudy numbers on offense, but it was a really encouraging outing for the rookie right-hander.

SALAS, BLEVINS MAKE QUICK WORK OF LATE INNINGS

There’s not a ton to write here about the relief appearances of Fernando Salas and Jerry Blevins in the eighth and ninth innings, respectively, but each quickly retired the three batters they were assigned. Salas in particular struck out the side in order and looked really good with his fastball while doing it. Blevins finished the game with two grounders and a lineout on 10 pitches.

UP NEXT

On Monday, the Mets head to Miami to begin a three-game series against the grieving Marlins, in the first game since the passing of Jose Fernandez. Since Fernandez was scheduled to pitch that game, the Marlins’ starter is unknown, and it isn’t clear how the cancellation of Sunday’s game will affect the remaining schedule. Adam Conley was originally scheduled to pitch on Sunday, so he may be the Marlins’ most likely starter. Bartolo Colon will pitch for New York, who sit atop a tight three-team race for the two NL Wild Card spots. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m.

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OFFENSE PEPPERS GIBSON IN FIRST THREE INNINGS

Twins starter Kyle Gibson had a hard establishing his high 80s sinker in the strike zone early in this start. He allowed a lead-off walk to Alejandro De Aza, a single to Rivera and hit Yoenis Cespedes with a pitch to load the bases with no outs in the first. Michael Conforto singled to bring home two runners and Kelly Johnson also drew a walk. Gibson’s troubles could’ve continued but for a line-out unassisted double play handled by Brian Dozier. In his return from the DL, Duda grounded out softly to end the productive first inning.
After a clean second inning, Rivera demolished a hanging slider into the right field bleachers, followed immediately by a Cespedes double. Gibson calmed down over the next couple innings, preventing further damage until allowing three straight singles to begin the sixth. Buddy Bosheers relieved him at this point and got out of the inning, due in large part to an exceptional pick by James Beresford.
Taylor Rogers finished the game for the Twins, striking out two over two perfect innings. Dozier’s defense became a storyline throughout the game as he came up with several difficult balls, saving Twins’ pitchers from further damage. It was not the best offensive day for the Mets, but enough damage was done, and Terry Collins got to rest some of his big weapons. After leaving in the seventh with nausea and dizziness, Cespedes’ status is unclear.

GABRIEL YNOA IMPRESSES WITH UNEXPECTED START

Right-handed starter Ynoa made his MLB rotation debut in place of Rafael Montero, who has been moved to the bullpen, and performed better than anyone expected. Aside from some turmoil in the second inning (a walk and two singles resulted in a JR Murphy sacrifice fly RBI), Ynoa looked confident and dominant against the Minnesota lineup. He worked effectively off of his mid 90s sinker and was able to locate his slider to both sides of the plate.
Ynoa worked quickly in the first inning, retiring all three batters faced. In the second, he worked through a bases-loaded, one-out jam and earned two strikeouts. He struck out three batters in the third inning and, after only 76 pitches, was pulled with two outs in the fifth. It seemed a bit disappointing to see a player performing so well pulled so early during his first MLB start, but with the tying run at the plate, the times through the order penalty in effect and in such a consequential moment in the Wild Card race, it was a completely reasonable move.
The bullpen’s immediate struggles threatened to make that reasonable decision a post-game press conference nightmare for Terry Collins, but they managed to hold on.

BULLPEN HOLDS EARLY LEAD, SHUTS DOOR DESPITE SHAKINESS

Josh Edgin relieved Ynoa, but allowed the only batter he faced to reach base via single and he was pulled for Erik Goeddel. Goeddel then struggled to establish his rising fastball above the zone, resulting in two wild pitches and a walk, but still managed to strike out three Twins over his clean 1.1 innings.
Josh Smoker entered in the seventh, along with Brandon Nimmo in place of a nauseous Cespedes. Smoker looked good, striking out Kurt Suzuki and Logan Schafer without allowing a hit. Fernando Salas’ eighth inning appearance was far shakier, as he left too much of his fastball over the plate and got clobbered with three straight line drives. Kennys Vargas’ was a bomb that cut the lead to one and, after two outs, Salas was pulled for Jerry Blevins.
Blevins closed out the game with a scoreless 1.1 innings, including a two-out strikeout of Brian Dozier in the ninth, for his second save of the season. Given Terry Collins’ interest in resting his top relievers yesterday, there’s not a much better performance the team could have hoped for in a tight game with playoff implications.

UP NEXT

On Monday, the Braves head to Flushing to begin another three-game series against the Mets. Noah Syndergaard continues his Cy Young-deserving campaign against Aaron Blair, who’s had a rough rookie season with Atlanta. At nine games behind the Nationals, the Mets are effectively eliminated from the division race, but currently hold a one-game lead over the Giants in the NL Wild Card race. Cespedes’ status after his early exit from yesterday’s game is something to watch. Game time is 7:10 p.m.

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CESPEDES TOTALS FIVE RBI, CABRERA COLLECTS THREE HITS

Braves’ starter Williams Perez had rough time during his short start. He relied heavily on hitting the corners with his low 90s sinker, but often got too much of the plate and Mets’ hitters took advantage. After Asdrubal Cabrera hit a first inning triple on just such a pitch, Yoenis Cespedes hit a hard groundball to plate the game’s first run. Perez was more effective during the second inning, effectively working down in the zone.

Things fell apart for the righty in the third, as Lugo drew a walk and three straight batters hit low, glove side sinkers for hits. Jose Reyes and Cabrera loaded the bases with singles, and Cespedes demolished the 1-0 pitch for a grand slam, and his 30th home run of the season. Perez would not make it out of the inning, as he was pulled with a triceps injury. In total, Perez allowed five runs, four hits, a walk and a home run during his 2.2 innings.

Reliever Joel De La Cruz fared not much better in his 1.1 innings. He allowed a solo home run to James Loney on a hanging changeup in the fourth and failed to earn an out in the fifth. After allowing a single to Cabrera (his third hit of the day) and a walk to Cespedes, De La Cruz was replaced by former first round pick Jed Bradley. Bradley had early troubles with control, and his high 80s fastball was hit hard out of the gate. Kelly Johnson and Alejandro De Aza scored each of the two inherited runners and Loney hit a double to add an earned run to Bradley’s line. Lugo earned his first MLB RBI with a sacrifice fly, bringing the Mets’ total to 10 runs.

Mets bats were largely quiet for the rest of the game, as Bradley settled down in the sixth and seven innings and retired all six of the batters he faced. Brandon Cunniff shut down the Mets in the eighth and ninth innings, an outing most notable for the MLB debut of top Mets’ prospect Gavin Cecchini (he struck out swinging).

SETH LUGO SHUTS DOWN BRAVES OVER SEVEN INNINGS

Over his seven strong innings, Lugo displayed occasional problems with command, but worked through those issues to limit the Braves to two runs over seven innings. His fastball had life and regularly hit 95 mph (even hitting 96 mph as late as the sixth inning), but struggled with control of the pitch in the first and fourth innings. Some stellar defensive plays – including two well-fielded double plays involving Johnson at second base – helped Lugo out of jams.

Lugo’s curveball was as stellar as ever, and in total he struck out five while only allowing one walk. The first of the two runs allowed came on a Freddie Freeman groundball single and the second on a pinch-hit home run by Brandon Snyder. Lugo’s fifth Major League start provided further evidence that he belongs in the Mets’ long-term rotation plans.

BULLPEN STRUGGLES THROUGH JAMS TO END GAME

Sean Gilmartin entered the game in the eighth and promptly gave up back-to-back ground ball singles to Jace Peterson and Ender Inciarte. However, a popup by Garcia and a double play induced by pinch-hitter Blake Lalli got him out of the inning unscathed.

Logan Verrett entered to close out the ballgame in the ninth, but immediately gave up a double to Matt Kemp, who scored on a Markakis ground out. Problems persisted as former Met Anthony Recker walked on five pitches and Daniel Castro and Gordon Beckham each singled. Unable to command his fastball, Verrett was pulled with the bases loaded and one out. However, the Mets still had an insurmountable seven run lead, and Josh Edgin was able to generate the two outs necessary to end the game.

UP NEXT

On Monday, the Mets head to Washington to begin a three-game series with the Nationals. Embattled righty Rafael Montero remains in the rotation and makes the start for New York, while the Nationals have yet to announce who will pitch in place of the re-injured Stephen Strasburg. Potential replacements likely include hard throwing prospects Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez. The Mets are nine games behind the Nationals in the division, but now hold a half-game lead over St Louis for the second NL Wild Card spot.

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Steven Matz quickly fell behind the Milwaukee Brewers’ lineup in the first, despite flashing a lively mid 90s fastball and a curveball with nice shape. Jonathan Villar singled on a dribbler past Neil Walker, and advanced to third on some exceptional reads on breaking pitches. A sinker left over the plate to Chris Carter lead to a predictable 2-0 lead for the Brewers.

The southpaw settled down in the second, earning strikeouts against former Met Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Keon Broxton while working in a slider and a couple strong changeups. Matz pitched a quick third, earning two strikeouts while beginning to snap off some pretty curveballs.

In the fourth, Matz continued rolling, generating outs against the middle of the Brewers’ order on nine pitches. He relied more heavily on secondary pitches in the fifth, with an inning-ending Nieuwenhuis strikeout making 13 straight retired batters. The sixth inning became more eventful when third baseman Hernan Perez singled and stole second, but a replay review determined him caught stealing by Rene Rivera.

Through the seventh, the Brewers really didn’t have an answer for Matz’s fastball, which sat consistently at 93 mph with good command throughout the outing.

CONFORTO BOMB PROVIDES JUST ENOUGH SUPPORT:

Wily Peralta began the game displaying why he can be such a frustrating pitcher. He tried early to establish a high 90s sinker (hitting 97 mph in the first), but couldn’t find the plate. However, he worked around a Michael Conforto single and produced a clean inning.

He continued to struggle with command early, walking Walker on six pitches and allowing an opposite field single to Lucas Duda. Eric Campbell struck out quickly, but a Rene Rivera groundout put the Mets on the board. Peralta more consistently got to 96-97 mph with better command on his fastball, and earned swinging strikeouts on Conforto and Yoenis Cespedes.

With Peralta displaying a tight slider, the Mets offense failed to produce in the fourth and fifth innings. However, the clock struck midnight in the sixth and he returned to typical form. With Peralta catching too much of the strike zone, Asdrubal Cabrera lined a lead-off single into right field, followed by a Conforto bomb to left field. Now with a 3-2 lead, the parade continued with a Cespedes single. However, Jonathan Lucroy produced a strike ‘em out, throw ‘em out double play as Cespedes attempted to steal with a bruised leg. Hitting Duda and walking Campbell with two outs ended Peralta’s night after 108 pitches.

The sixth finally ended with another former Met, Carlos Torres, generating a groundout of Rivera. A leadoff single by Alejandro De Aza prompted a double-switch by the Brewers, with Chris Capuano entering to pitch. Despite working only 87-89 mph with his fastball, the lefty blew past Curtis Granderson, Cabrera, and Conforto for three straight strike outs, and ended the seventh without incident.

Capuano returned for the bottom of the eighth, and got into some trouble after walking Cespedes and hitting Campbell. However, working with a deceptive changeup, he generated two swinging strikeouts and a scoreless frame.

REED, FAMILIA CLOSE THE DOOR:

Matz was interestingly pulled after seven innings with only 88 pitches thrown. However, it was a close game, and rather than see the Brewers’ lineup for the rest of the third and beginning of the fourth time through the order, Collins went to to his late-inning relievers. Addison Reed entered for Matz in the eighth, and pounded his 93 mph four-seamer to strike out Ramon Flores during a clean inning.

Jeurys Familia came on to close it out in ninth, and made quick work of pinch-hitter Scooter Gennett and the top of the Brewers lineup, preserving the one run lead. His sinker sat 95 mph and his splitter was typically elite, and he struck out Gennett on the way to the Mets’ victory.

UP NEXT:

The Mets continue the three-game series against the Brewers, as Jacob deGrom faces Zach Davies and looks to correct his abnormally low early season strikeout rate (only 15.7 percent). Davies, an undersized right-hander, has struggled with walks to start the season. New York continues to chase the Phillies and Nationals in the NL East, while the Brewers continue to face an uphill climb against the Pirates, Cardinals and Cubs in the Central.

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Matt Harvey had a very positive early performance in the first inning, commanding four pitches with a 93 mph fastball through the first three innings. Despite extra-base hits by Trevor Story and DJ LeMahieu, the Mets maintained an early 2-0 lead.

However, three straight hits in the bottom of the fourth erased that lead, culminating with a Mark Reynolds single. Another Trevor Story double created a 3-2 Rockies lead, and a Tony Wolters single in the top of the sixth extended that lead to 4-2. Harvey was pulled following that run.

OFFENSE STRUGGLES AGAINST GRAY’S FASTBALL

Jon Gray struck out the side in the first inning with high 90s fastballs and tight high 80s sliders. He continued to maintain his velocity, but lost his command in the following inning. A walk to Neil Walker and an Asdrubel Cabrera hit-by-pitch in the second led to a two-run double by Kevin Plawecki.

Gray calmed down following that inning, striking out five and inducing five groundouts in his remaining five frames. The Mets would fail to score during that time.

Following Gray’s exit, Carlos Estevez would enter and work a clean eighth inning around Michael Conforto’s triple. Estevez would earn a pop-up and two strikeouts against the heart of the Mets’ order. Jake McGee would enter and make quick work of the top of the ninth, retiring Walker, Cabrera, and Plawecki in order.

ROBLES PERFECT TO NO AVAIL

Following Harvey’s exit, Jerry Blevens struggled before recording the final out of the sixth inning. He allowed Tony Wolters to score on a double by Blackmon in his first plate appearance, leading to the eventual final 5-2 score. He interestingly intentionally walked Story to face Carlos Gonzalez, but came away with a groundout.

The next inning, Hansel Robles came in and effectively attacked Rockies hitters with his slider. He retired all six of the batters he faced in the seventh and eighth innings, but the game ended in Colorado’s favor before the bottom of the ninth.

UP NEXT

Tomorrow is game two of the series in Colorado, as Logan Verrett faces former top prospect Eddie Butler in a right-handed duel. The Mets look to break a two-game losing streak and potentially tie with the Nationals for the NL East lead. The game begins at 8:10 p.m.

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Noah Syndergaard had some of his best stuff working tonight, as he struck out 12 Miami Marlins with only one walk over seven innings. He featured a fastball sitting 98-99 mph, his suddenly trademark slider comfortably sat 93 mph, and his changeup sat 88-90 mph with life.

The fastball was particularly deadly in this outing – Syndergaard commanded the pitch impeccably, and during the first three innings generated seven strikeouts (all swinging), a pop up, and two ground balls while primarily relying on the pitch. The lone base runner during this time was opposing starter Jose Fernandez, who reached on a bobbled ground ball to Neil Walker.

Syndergaard ran into a little trouble in the fourth, as the Marlins suddenly became aggressive on the first pitch. Four straight batters made contact on his first offering, and two (Justin Bour and Derek Dietrich) singled, scoring Miami’s first run. Despite this hiccup, the six batters Thor faced that inning included four groundballs and a swinging strikeout.

He came right back and struck out the side in the fifth, including Dee Gordon for his third straight appearance (Gordon would go on to strike out four times for the first time of his career). Syndergaard would take advantage of two peculiar base-running plays to speed up his final two innings. Christian Yelich oddly attempted a steal of third and was thrown out by Travis d’Arnaud in the sixth. The next inning, Ichiro Suzuki pinch hit with two outs and Derek Dietrich on third. Ichiro legged out an infield hit but Dietrich was immediately thrown out at home – proving once and for all that no one should run on Lucas Duda’s arm.

Syndergaard was dominant despite the lone run he allowed, and benefited from the strong defensive efforts of his infield – namely David Wright and Asdrubal Cabrera.

Offense can’t take advantage of Fernandez’s early inconsistency

Marlins ace Jose Fernandez was inconsistent in the first two innings of the game. He still sat 94-95 mph with the fastball but couldn’t get it over the plate, and then relied too heavily on secondary pitches and got into trouble.

Despite several opportunities, Mets batters only applied limited damage during the 51 pitches it took Fernandez to get through two innings. In the first, Curtis Granderson knocked an unbroken-breaking ball into right field for a lead-off double, followed by a walk of Wright on four pitches (all fastballs). Duda lined a change-up into right field, scoring the Mets’ lone run, but was thrown out advancing to second. Although they loaded the bases the following inning, New York failed to score further runs.

After two tumultuous innings, Fernandez found his groove with a quick third inning. He would not allow a further baserunner, and struck out the side in the fifth. It took 90 pitches for Fernandez to get that far into the game, and the team pulled him. Despite now having four innings to score some insurance against one of the worst bullpens in baseball, little was produced.

Craig Breslow allowed two runners in the sixth, but Michael Conforto grounded into a double play. David Phelps then pitched two no-hit innings while striking three, and closer A.J. Ramos shut the door in the ninth.

Bullpen fights command, loses lead in eighth

Jim Henderson struggled for the first time in his Mets career, throwing a career-high 34 pitches to only four batters. That included a marathon 16-pitch plate appearance against Gordon that lead to an opposite field single on a hanging breaking ball. Henderson then walked Christian Yelich and Giancarlo Stanton while struggling with fastball command, and was pulled for Jerry Blevins with the bases loaded.

Blevins allowed the go-ahead sacrifice fly in a tough situation and was immediately pulled for Addison Reed, who generated the necessary ground ball to end the inning. Due to a short bullpen, Jeurys Familia was still called upon in the ninth. Despite allowing two base runners, he generated three ground balls and a swinging strikeout, and ended the inning.

Up next

Tomorrow is the final game of this three-game series against the Marlins, and the final game of the 2016 opening homestand. Logan Verrett, in place of Jacob deGrom, proud parent of a new son and proud owner of a tight lat muscle, makes his 2016 debut  against Miami left-hander Adam Conley. The Mets look to snap their four-game losing streak, and the afternoon game begins at 1:10 p.m.

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Matt Harvey didn’t have quite the outing he had probably hoped for in his 2016 Citi Field debut. He serviceably pitched six innings, but allowed three runs while striking out three. Though he wasn’t hit hard in the first few innings, a couple of singles by Phillies batters lead to an RBI sacrifice fly by Freddy Galvis in the third. While his velocity climbed throughout the game and his changeup and curveball were working, Harvey had problems with fastball command.

He limited damage through the first three innings in part due to a strong defense by Asdrubal Cabrera, and continual inexplicably bad base running by the Phillies (in this case, catcher Carlos Ruiz). Harvey got into a steady rhythm in innings four and five, inducing four groundouts, a flyout, and a swinging strikeout of Ryan Howard during that time.

However, Harvey did not have feel for his slider during the game, and damage was done in the 30-pitch sixth inning. Odubel Herrera hit a slider with little break for a two run home run to right field. That blast was immediately followed by an opposite field single on a similar pitch to Maikel Franco. Despite the prior day’s horrible base running, Cesar Hernandez managed to get his first steal of the year after his sixth hit of the series. Harvey would also allow two walks to Howard.

It was an inconsistent outing – he didn’t miss a lot of bats (only three strikeouts), and suffered six hits. However, inherent to Harvey’s talent comes some leeway with mistakes. He generated eight groundouts and was still sitting comfortably in the mid-to-high 90s through the sixth inning. He came in below expectations today, but the bullpen allowed further damage and the offense couldn’t even match the three runs Harvey allowed; he was not the lone cause of the day’s loss.

Offense falls quiet around Cespedes, Wright:

Other than Michael Conforto’s walk in the fifth, David Wright and Yoenis Cespedes provided the entirety of the Mets’ offense. Each had two hits, including one extra-base hit apiece. Phillies’ starter Jeremy Hellickson commanded his pitches well and had a good curveball working, striking out five in five and a third innings. Cespedes knocked Hellickson out of the game with a two-run shot at the end of an eleven-pitch battle (it was his first home run of year).

The rest of the offense would fail to produce runs around that bomb and come up empty for the rest of the game. The much-maligned Phillies bullpen combined for three and a third scoreless innings, divvied up between James Russell, Hector Neris, and closer-by-necessity Jeanmar Gomez. The lone baserunner allowed during that time was Wright, who singled to lead off the ninth. Curtis Granderson, Lucas Duda, and Neil Walker each went 0-for-4 on the day.

Bullpen allows damage in late innings:

Jim Henderson was electric in relief of Harvey, inducing swinging strikeouts of all three batters he faced in the seventh. He threw 16 of his 17 pitches for mid 90s four-seam fastballs, and brings his season line to seven strikeouts over three scoreless innings. For those curious, Henderson currently has a ludicrous -1.32 FIP. Negative.

Following Henderson, Addison Reed struggled with similar problems to Harvey, namely his flat slider and inconsistent fastball command. He allowed singles to Galvis and Franco while issuing a four-pitch walk to Herrera. Howard’s sacrifice fly plated the Phillies’ fourth run, despite further poor base running by Herrera that nearly ended the inning on a double play.

In the ninth, Logan Verrett looked a little rusty in his warm up for Wednesday’s start against the Marlins (he replaces Jacob deGrom, who is skipping a start with lat tightness). While he did strike out Cedric Hunter, he walked Peter Bourjos and allowed a pinch-hit RBI double to Andres Blanco to end the day’s scoring.

Up next:

The Mets are host to the Marlins tomorrow, beginning a three-game series. In his first start of the year, Steven Matz will take the mound against right-hander Jarred Cosart as Miami looks for their second win of the season. Matz will attempt to shut down Dee Gordon, Christian Yelich, and Giancarlo Stanton, who have all gotten off to strong starts this season. The game begins at 7:10 p.m.

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