Koehler plunked Cespedes in the first inning and then helped silence the streaking slugger the rest of the way.
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Koehler is not a pitcher whose tendency is striking out batters. So he initially got annoyed and shooed Davidson away while the team was stretching.
In his first 42 games with the Mets, Cespedes has hit 17 home runs, driven in 42 runs and had people suggesting he should be voted the NL’s Most Valuable Player.
In the seventh, shortstop Wilmer Flores drew a one-out walk against Marlins right-hander Kyle Barraclough (2-1). But lefty reliever Mike Dunn struck out Curtis Granderson, Cespedes and Daniel Murphy in succession as the Mets were thwarted in their attempt to put together yet another late comeback.
“With this team, if you give them a crack, they’ve shown this year they can kick the door in”, Jennings said.
In fact, three Fish had multi-hit nights, as Yelich and Bour both went 3 for 5. “I thought he stifled any momentum swing that was possibly taking place there”.
The New York Mets and Marlins will play the rubber game of their three-game series Wednesday night at Citi Field, and there could be some extracurricular activity. “MVP!” as Cespedes stepped to the plate in the first inning, and he was hit near the left hip on the first pitch he saw from Koehler, a 92 MPH fastball. The six now believe discussions with the soon-to-be-30-year-old Cespedes will begin at $125 million and end up perhaps in the $160 million range, a staggering figure for someone who the last two seasons posted on-base percentages of.294 and.301.
The Marlins got an impressive start from rookie Justin Nicolino and some timely hitting in the middle innings Monday night.
“I’ve got to tell you, we’re just trying to win”, Collins said. “We’ll answer in our own due time”.
“It kind of felt cool, not going to lie to you”, Koehler said. The Miami Marlins have won five of their last eight road games. The outing sends his ERA up to 2.64 along with a 0.99 WHIP and a 189/36 K/BB ratio over 181 innings.
(AP Photo/Lynne Sladky). Miami Marlins starting pitcher Jose Fernandez winds up during the first inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Thursday, July 9, 2015, , in Miami.
“He’s got great stuff and he’s taken it to us a few times before”, Yelich said. Since the calendar flipped to August, though, the Mets have scored 6.1 runs per game, a rate that has not only been the league’s best-exceeding even the scorching Blue Jays-but one that is comparable with those of the most potent lineups in recent history, like the 1999 Indians of Manny Ramirez and Jim Thome (6.23) and the “96 Mariners of Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez (6.17)”.
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Noah Syndergaard’s brilliance Saturday – which came after his previous turn was skipped in the rotation – only emboldened manager Terry Collins to push for the same with deGrom. They have had a winning streak of seven or more games four different times this season, and currently have an 8.5 game lead over the Washington Nationals in the NL East. That race looks to be over after the Mets swept a series against them last week.
