Mets edge Marlins in finale
Mets blast 2 homers off Chen, Syndergaard holds Marlins at bay
MIAMI — After a thrilling extra-inning win on Saturday night, the Marlins were unable to carry that momentum over to Sunday afternoon.
In the rubber match of the three-game set, the Mets connected on a pair of home runs and Noah Syndergaard held Miami at bay as New York took the finale, 4-3.
Entering Sunday with the fifth lowest home ERA (1.94) in the majors, Marlins starter Wei-Yin Chen allowed four runs — two earned— on four hits, four walks and a season-high 108 pitches. The left-hander, who fell to 4-9 on the year, gave up two home runs on the afternoon aswell.
“I didn’t think [Chen] was as sharp as he was today with his command,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. “We sawa lot of pitches those first couple of innings, but he hung in there. … The [Jose] Reyes [home run], I think he was trying to elevate a fast ball up and away and he left it right there for him.
“He was pretty good after that, but the [Michael] Conforto [home run] was really just a slider that stayed there.”
Syndergaard picked up his eighth win of the season for the Mets (49-66), allowing three earned runs in seven innings.
After New York took a quick 1-0 lead in the first on a Wilmer Flores RBI sacrifice fly, the Marlins struck back in the bottom half of the inning. Following a leadoff single
“I didn’t think [Chen] was as sharp as he was today with his command.”
Don Mattingly,
Marlins manager
from Rafael Ortega, Starlin Castro belted an RBI single to even the score, 1-1. Ortega, who was called up on Friday following the Justin Bour trade, went 2 for 5 on the day. Over the threegame series, the outfielder finished 4 for 13, hitting safety in every contest.
In the ensuing inning, the Mets jumped back on top. After a Derek Dietrich error at first put Jose Bautista on base, Reyes crushed a 402-foot home run to leftcenter, giving NewYork a 3-1 advantage.
The hero of Saturday night’s extra-inning win, Bryan Holaday put together another big performance. With J.T. Realumuto taking aday off, the reserve catcher got the start and finished 2 for 3 with a pair of RBI.
After Miami cut the lead to, 3-2, on Holaday’s first RBI, New York pushed the lead back to two with a Conforto solo home run in the sixth.
Marlins acquire outfielder
Just three days after trading Justin Bour to the Phillies, the Marlins have made another deal.
On Sunday, Miami acquired outfielder Christopher Bostick from the Pittsburgh Pirates for cash considerations. Bostick, 25, has been added to the Marlins’ 40-man roster and will report to Triple-A New Orleans.
A utility player who can also play in the infield, Bostick appeared in 78 games for Triple A-Indianapolis this past season, hitting .295 with 24 doubles, four home runs and 32 RBI.
A 44th-round selection in the 2011 MLB draft, Bostick has played in 22 major league games. After making his debut last season in July, Bostick hit .276 in 29 at bats.
It’s the fourth trade the Marlins have made in the past two weeks. On July 31, they dealt reliever Brad Ziegler and outfielder Cameron Maybin in separate deals on the eve of the MLB trade deadline. They received minor league prospects Tommy Eveld, B ry son B rig man and international bonus pool money in those deals.
In the Bour trade, Miami received minor league pitching prospect McKenzie Mills from Philadelphia.