The Mets can’t lose: New York wins fifth straight after late rally
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The New York Mets are one of the hottest teams in baseball. The team won its fifth straight game Tuesday, taking out the Miami Marlins by a score of 5-1.
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New York had some trouble scoring early, but managed to knock around the Marlins bullpen. Things started off in the sixth inning.
With the Mets trailing 1-0, Ruben Tejada was able to tie things up with a single. The game remained tied until the top of the eighth, when the Mets’ bats really came alive.
Marlins reliever Mike Dunn ran into trouble almost immediately. Lucas Duda and Travis d’Arnaud singled to lead things off, putting a runner in scoring position.
After Wilmer Flores popped out on a bunt attempt and Ruben Tejada stuck out, things started to look grim for New York.
They managed to come through. With two outs, Eric Campbell broke the tie with a single to left. Juan Lagares opened things up with a triple, scoring two more runs. Curtis Granderson would deliver the final blow, driving in Lagares with a double.
The Mets faced a lot of criticism after the Carlos Gomez trade fell through, but, since then, everything seems to be coming up Mets.
With the win, New York improved to 57-50. They hold a one game lead over the Washington Nationals in the National League East.
CUBS EVEN HOTTER
The New York Mets are not the hottest team in the game, though. That honor goes to the Chicago Cubs. The Cubbies picked up their sixth straight win during a 5-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday.
Chicago was able to take advantage of the Pirates newest starter J.A. Happ during the contest. Happ allowed four runs on eight hits over just 4 1/3 innings.
Not surprisingly, Anthony Rizzo did a fair amount of the damage. While Rizzo didn’t drive in any runs, he constantly found himself on base during the game. He finished 4 for 5, with two runs scored. With the performance, Rizzo is batting .293 on the year.
The Cubs were backed, once again, by Jake Arrieta. While Jon Lester was the big acquisition during the offseason, Arrieta has been the better pitcher this season. Arrieta tossed seven scoreless innings, giving up just two hits. He struck out five and issued three walks.
With the win, Chicago improved to 58-47 on the year. They hold a half game lead over the San Francisco Giants for the second wild card spot in the NL.
CARRASCO EXCELLENT IN WIN
It’s not often a pitcher goes nine scoreless innings and doesn’t pick up a win, but that’s what happened to Cleveland Indians pitcher Carlos Carrasco on Tuesday. The Indians still came away with the 2-0 victory, but Carrasco wasn’t involved in the decision.
That’s because Cleveland’s offense couldn’t get anything going against the Los Angeles Angels. Though the club had 10 hits during the contest, they couldn’t come through when it mattered.
It helped that Matt Shoemaker was on his game. Shoemaker tossed six scoreless innings against Cleveland, striking out 10.
The real story was Carrasco, though. The righty gave up just one hit over nine scoreless innings. He struck out seven and walked one during the contest. Carrasco only threw 100 pitches during the start, but manager Terry Francona opted to pull him from the contest before he could start the 10th inning.
Carrasco has been on quite a roll lately.
Carrasco wouldn’t factor into the decision, but the Indians did wind up winning the game. Giovanny Urshela drilled a two-run homer in the 12th inning, giving the team the lead. Cody Allen tossed a perfect inning, picking up his 22nd save.
With the win, Cleveland improved to 49-57 on the season.
CHRIS SALE GETS KNOCKED AROUND
This doesn’t happen very often, but Chicago White Sox ace Chris Sale had a rough day on the mound Tuesday. Sale gave up seven runs in an 11-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.
Sale’s numbers from the start look pretty ugly. He allowed seven runs on six hits over 5 1/3 innings. Sale struck out nine, but walked three. He also gave up two home runs.
Sale’s last two starts have not been pretty.
On top of that, Sale made a costly mental error during Tuesday’s contest. He forgot to cover home on a throw, leading to the Rays scoring a free run.
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Sale’s overall numbers are still solid, but the White Sox need him to pitch well if they have any hopes of getting back into the race.
With the loss, Chicago dropped to 50-55 on the year.
Want to see more from Tuesday’s slate of games? Check out our scoreboard.
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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik
