The Miami Marlins (3-3) fell short in pursuit of a series sweep against the New York Mets Sunday night. The Fish were defeated 5-2 in the Big Apple after a very rough first inning put them behind early.
Edinson Volquez had a very bad start giving up three runs in the first inning. It all started after Asdrubal Cabrera laid down a bunt to reach first on an infield single. Two batters later, Yoenis Cespedes drove a hard single to center advancing Cabrera to third on a perfectly executed hit-and-run.
Then with one out and the double-play still on the table Mets outfielder Jay Bruce hit a soft grounder to first --- which seemed like it would end the inning --- but Miami first baseman Justin Bour chose to throw home to catch racing Cabrera instead. J.T. Realmuto mishandled the ball, which enabled Cabrera to slide home safely and advances Cespedes to third.
That one error would prove to be very costly for Volquez and the Marlins.
Neil Walker hit a bloop single on the very next pitch giving the Mets a 2-0 lead, followed by Lucas Duda single to right that loaded the bases. Volquez wasn’t able to get out of the jam until after walking Michael Conforto on four pitches, which scored Bruce to extend the Mets lead to 3-0.
In the other dugout, Noah Syndergaard was waiting patiently for his chance to hold the 3-run lead. Thor brought his hammer early on striking out five of the first six batters he faced, but Derek Dietrich ended the no-hitter very quickly after leading the third inning off with a double.
Miguel Rojas reached second after Cespedes dropped a routine fly ball to center giving Miami some life. Dee Gordon then hit a rocket down the third baseline scoring Dietrich and Rojas to cut Mets lead to 3-2, but he and Realmuto got caught stealing to end the Marlins threat.
Edinson Volquez would settle down after his rough first inning, but he allowed two solo home runs in the fifth and sixth innings to Bruce and Conforto that extended the Mets lead to 5-2.
Volquez was pulled after the sixth and recorded the loss after allowing a total of five runs --- four earned --- on seven hits while striking out seven. Syndergaard picked up the victory and was dominant outside of the shaky third inning that helped Miami score their only runs of the game. The young Mets superstar allowed two runs --- one earned --- on five hits while fanning nine Fish in 7.0 innings of work.
Fernando Salas and Addison Reed closed out the game for New York in the eighth and ninth innings, allowing zero hits in route to a 5-2 victory.
Dietrich was able to reach base twice in the game, while Gordon was the only other bright spot in the Marlins lineup with his two RBI’s in the third inning.
Miami gets Monday off before coming home to face the Atlanta Braves twice and the New York Mets in a four-game set this weekend. Dan Straily is scheduled to go against Bartolo Colon Tuesday evening at Marlins Park.
Hero of the Game: Jay Bruce (+.194)
Villain of the Game: Edinson Volquez (-.269)
Play of the Game: Dee Gordon two-RBI double to left in third (+. 129)