The Mets-and Harvey-are helped by the fact that they have opened up a six-game lead over the second-place Washington Nationals in the N.L. East standings after coming back from a 7-1 deficit to win 8-7 in Harvey’s last start on Tuesday.
The Nationals are reeling, have lost all three games to the Mets in comeback fashion as Washington now trails the upstarts from Queens by seven games with 23 contests left to play.
New York’s manager, Terry Collins, was asked what statement the sweep of the Nationals sent?
Mets starter deGrom (13-7) gave up two runs on five hits with nine strikeouts in seven innings before he was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the top of the eighth.
New York Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said Monday he expects Matt Harvey won’t pitch beyond the “range” of 180 innings in the regular season unless needed in the final series in early October. “So, it’s tough. I feel for those guys getting out there and giving up runs because they’re not intending to, that’s for sure”.
“If we could do it, I think it would be a preference”, Alderson said.
He’s left it in the hands of the Mets. Their record was 53-50, and they had taken the first game of their home series against the Nationals. Harvey said. Before the eighth, he had allowed just a solo homer to Travis d’Arnaud, and the Mets mounted little resistance as his curveball induced plenty of swings and misses. Hudson, 40, pitched six effective innings in his return to the San Francisco Giants’ rotation and hit his first homer in two seasons, lifting the team to a 6-2 victory over the host Arizona Diamondbacks. Yoenis Cespedes’ bases-loaded double was the big blow. In his fourth season, the A’s are 385-339 under his direction with three playoff appearances. “I don’t want to get ahead of the situation and create another disconnect”. Again, I can’t predict what’s going to happen here.
Jeurys Familia came in to close the game for the Mets and did so for his 39th save of the year.
Cardinals 4, Cubs 3: Matt Carpenter tripled and scored twice, and Stephen Piscotty doubled in the winning run in the eighth as St. Louis ended a three-game losing streak. Instead, it became bases loaded and no body out. Harper was actually the best player on the field in Wednesday’s game, clubbing two homers among three hits, near the end of a summer in which he has been the best player on the field most days.
The lead didn’t last.
“The only thing that affected my endurance was Walter Alston, our manager”, John said.
“We’re playing like we don’t have anything to lose, and that’s what we need to do”, Nieuwenhuis said. “So we learn from the bad, appreciate the good, take nothing for granted and come with a fresh attitude tomorrow and go to work”.
Barely over.500 when Cespedes came from Detroit and debuted for them on August 1, the Mets quickly turned into bruisers.
The Nationals are dealing with several ailments, as 3B Yunel Escobar (103-degree fever), CF Michael Taylor (swollen right knee) and 1B Ryan Zimmerman (left oblique soreness and tightness) were all out of the starting lineup.