Like R.A. Dickey last night, Johan Santana threw eight scoreless innings against the Dodgers this evening in Los Angeles. Santana struck out just three, walked two, and allowed only three hits. At the plate, the Mets got one in the first on a Daniel Murphy sacrifice fly and another in the fifth on a Josh Thole sacrifice fly. With Andres Torres on third base and one out in the sixth, Don Mattingly opted to intentionally walk David Wright. Ike Davis followed up with a very long three-run home run to put the Mets up 5-0. Bobby Parnell threw a flawless ninth inning to seal the victory.

We knew it was over when...

Ike hit his three-run bomb. The 2-0 lead looked good against the Dodgers' lineup, but a 5-0 lead was virtually insurmountable.

What else?

• In addition to the sacrifice fly, Murphy had a pair of hits.
• Kirk Nieuwenhuis, who has struggled at the plate lately, went 2-for-4.
• With the Nationals' loss today, the Mets are 2.5 games out of first place in the National League East.

Game Thread Roll Call

Nice job by BurleighGrimes; her effort in the game thread embiggens us all.