Schwei's Mets Notes: Matz Joins Koosman, Darling In Exclusive Rookie Club
By John Schweibacher
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The Mets finished their nine-game, post-All-Star-break road trip with a winning record (5-4) by taking two of three against the second-place Marlins this past weekend in Miami.
Steven Matz pitched six shutout innings to earn his first win since May 25 in the Mets' 3-0 victory over the Marlins on Sunday. It was the fifth time Matz did not allow a run while pitching at least six innings this season. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the only other Mets rookies to ever have five such starts in a season prior to August are Jerry Koosman (six in 1968) and Ron Darling (five in 1984).
Giancarlo Stanton went 4-for-5 with a homer and three RBIs, as the Marlins beat the Mets, 7-2, on Saturday night. Stanton has hit five homers against the Mets this season, trailing only the Nationals' Daniel Murphy, who has hit seven against his former club, the most by any opponent in 2016.
The Mets took the opening game against the Marlins, 5-3, on Friday night in Miami. Jeurys Familia closed out the ninth inning to earn his 34th save of the season and his 50th consecutive save overall.
Familia's streak, which reached 51 in a row Sunday, is now tied for the third-longest save streak by any reliever since 1969, when saves became an official statistic. Eric Gagne (84 straight from 2002-04), Tom Gordon (54 in 1998-99), and Jose Valverde (51 in 2010-11) are the only relief pitchers with as many or more than Familia.
Jose Reyes went 3-for-5, scored two runs and stole a base in his first game at Marlins Park since 2012 in Friday night's win. The last time Reyes had a game with at least that many hits, runs scored and a steal was on Sept. 27, 2011, against the Reds in the next-to-last game in his first stint with the Mets.
The Cubs took the rubber game of their three-game series with the Mets, 6-2, at Wrigley Field last Wednesday afternoon. Anthony Rizzo hit two home runs off of Bartolo Colon in the Cubs' win. The last Cubs player to hit two homers in a game against the Mets at Wrigley was Corey Patterson in a 7-0 Chicago win on May 10, 2005.
The Mets beat the Cubs, 2-1, in the middle game of the three-game set last Tuesday night in Chicago. Noah Syndergaard recorded his 300th career strikeout in a no-decision in his 43rd career game. Only Dwight Gooden (351) and Matt Harvey (308) had more K's through their 43rd game for the Mets at the start of their careers than Syndergaard.
The Mets lost the opener of their series with the Cubs, 5-1, last Monday night, their eighth straight regular season loss at Wrigley Field. The road losing streak in Chicago was the second longest in team history. The Mets dropped nine consecutive games at Wrigley from Sept. 25, 1983, through Sept. 15, 1984.
The Mets ended that losing streak with a 9-3 win at Wrigley Field on Sept. 16, 1984. Bruce Berenyi went seven innings for the win, while Darryl Strawberry homered and drove in five runs.
Happy Recap: Wilmer Flores. The Mets' super-utility guy is hitting .311 in July (14-for-45) with seven home runs and 13 RBIs.
Nine Miles of Rough Road: Asdrubal Cabrera. The Mets' shortstop is 0-for-his-last-32 with runners in scoring position, the third-longest streak of at-bats without a hit in such situations in club history.
