For the second straight night, the Mets were able to contain one of MLB’s scariest lineups.
The New York Mets got to Colorado Rockies starter Tyler Chatwood early, as right fielder Jay Bruce unloaded a 426-foot bomb to straightaway center field, scoring Michael Conforto and Asdrubal Cabrera, giving the Mets a 3-0 lead.
https://twitter.com/TheRenderMLB/status/886367979788791808
After walking T.J. Rivera, Rockies manager Bud Black and assistant trainer Scott Gehret paid Chatwood a visit. It was determined that he was no longer able to continue and in came Chris Rusin.
Shortly thereafter, Travis d’Arnaud scored Rivera with a RBI single, giving the Mets a 4-0 lead.
RBI single for Travis d'Arnaud! pic.twitter.com/Lw8tohjqMl
— New York Mets (@Mets) July 15, 2017
The Mets continued piling on runs in the bottom of the second inning. Yoenis Cespedes scored on Rivera’s single, and later, Lucas Duda doubled in Bruce and Rivera.
Duda doubles in two more!
7-0 #Mets! ? pic.twitter.com/K6Sq4Mhu05
— New York Mets (@Mets) July 16, 2017
After cruising through three shutout innings, Seth Lugo (4-2) did the unthinkable. The 27-year-old blasted a solo shot to left-center field, his first career home run, giving the Mets an enormous 8-0 third-inning lead.
https://twitter.com/TheRenderMLB/status/886382537244913665
Rather than greet Lugo with cheers, his teammates in the dugout gave the starter the silent treatment as he made his way back to the bench.
Silent treatment for Seth Lugo….very sad. pic.twitter.com/Tu9N5FQCj1
— Todd Frazier Superfan (@MetsKevin11) July 16, 2017
Colorado put the pressure on in the sixth inning when D.J. LeMahieu scored on a sacrifice fly by Gerardo Parra and Raimel Tapia smacked a RBI double, scoring Nolan Arenado to cut the Mets lead to 8-2.
Cespedes left the game in the top of the sixth inning after appearing to injure his right leg as he attempted to field a line-drive off Arenado’s bat. His status for Sunday’s series finale is unknown.
A RBI triple by Charlie Blackmon pulled the Rockies within five in the seventh, but that would be the last significant offense Colorado would muster.
Jose Reyes added to the Mets lead in the bottom of the eighth inning with a solo shot down the right-field line, giving New York a 9-3 lead.
https://twitter.com/TheRenderMLB/status/886405932758036484
After hitting .184 through his first 62 games, Reyes is hitting .333 with six home runs over his last 22 outings, dating back to June 16.
Aside from his newfound power at the plate, Lugo threw 6.2 solid innings, allowing seven hits and three runs while striking out five. That earned him some hardware in the clubhouse after the game.
An all-around great night for @seth_lugo! ? #MetsWin pic.twitter.com/1YATXxxxCq
— New York Mets (@Mets) July 16, 2017
New York’s bullpen continued to do their job, as Paul Sewald and Jerry Blevins each threw 0.2 shutout innings before Addison Reed closed things out in the ninth. All three relievers had two strikeouts each.
The Mets haven’t just beaten the Rockies in two games since the All-Star break, they’ve done so at a franchise-record pace.
Mets have scored 23 runs in their first two games after the All-Star break; thanks to @EliasSports, we know that's a new franchise record
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) July 16, 2017
New York will look to complete the sweep tomorrow afternoon when Steven Matz takes on Jeff Hoffman.
