Mets top Marlins behind slugging catcher

In a mercifully easy game in Miami, the Mets took care of business and topped the Marlins 9-3. Taijuan Walker was excellent, the offense beat up on Jesus Luzardo, and the bullpen didn’t totally blow it. The only downer note was Mark Vientos, who went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts in his major league debut.

This game started in a frustrating fashion - Brandon Nimmo was robbed of a triple on a terrible call by a terrible crew, then the Mets wasted first and second with nobody out. No matter, they scored three in the second, one more in each of the third and fourth, and two more in the fifth. Nimmo and Eduardo Escobar homered and Jeff McNeil had a nice day with an RBI single, but the biggest offensive star was Tomas Nido. Yes really. The Mets’ catcher had three hits, three RBI, and most importantly, his first home run of the season.

On the mound, we got good Taijuan today, with the righty hurling seven innings of one run ball. The only blemish on the scorecard was a solo home run from Brian Anderson in the fourth. Seth Lugo came in for the eighth and surrendered a two-run homer, but the offense did enough to make that hiccup inconsequential.

With the win, the Mets cling on to first by at least a half game over the Braves as they continue to fight tooth and nail for the division. Atlanta is headed to San Francisco for three with the Giants, while the Mets will host the Cubs. Chris Bassitt is scheduled to start, with Chicago’s starter TBD.

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What’s WPA?

Big Mets winner: Brandon Nimmo, +35.0% WPA
Big Mets loser: None
Mets pitchers: +14.9% WPA
Mets hitters: +34.9% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Brandon Nimmo hits a three-run homer in the second, +26.9% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Brain Anderson homers in the fourth, -4.8% WPA