Mets 17, Cubs 1: A Very Easy Win

The Mets obliterated the baseball in their series finale against the Cubs this afternoon, turning what was a close game through three innings into a blowout by the end of the fifth. Lest it be forgotten, Jon Niese had a good outing, allowing just one run in seven innings of work. It did take him 118 pitches to finish those innings, though, a perplexing total given the nature of the game at the time he took the mound for the seventh.

As for those 17 runs, every player in the Mets' starting lineup reached base at least once. David Wright went 2-for-5 with 5 RBI, Ike Davis went 3-for-5 with a home run and 4 RBI, Daniel Murphy hit a pair of home runs, his first since last season, and drove in four, and Scott Hairston drove in four, too, on a grand slam. It was an offensive showcase at Wrigley Field for the Mets.

We knew it was over when...

Ike hit a three-run home run in the fifth inning to give the Mets an eight-run lead.

What else?

Ramon Ramirez threw a couple of scoreless innings to finish the game with two strikeouts and no walks. Sure, he was pitching as low-leverage a situation as there is in baseball, but any sign of progress from this bullpen is a good thing.

Game Thread Roll Call

Nice job by cstroh8; his effort in the game thread embiggens us all.