NY Mets 2, LA Dodgers 1
When: 10:10 PM ET, Friday, July 3, 2015
Where: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, California
Temperature:
75°
Umpires:
Home -
Dan Bellino, 1B -
Ryan Blakney, 2B -
Alfonso Marquez, 3B -
Mike Everitt
Attendance:
52570
By The Sports Xchange
LOS ANGELES -- Despite 10 players on the disabled list and 14 rookies on the roster, the New
York Mets made an impact on two of the National League's races.
Catcher Kevin Plawecki hit a sacrifice fly in the top of the ninth inning to give the New York
Mets a 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday night in front of 52,570 at Dodger Stadium.
The Mets broke their three-game losing streak and remained 3 1/2 games behind the first-place
Washington Nationals in the National League East while trimming the Dodgers' lead over the
second-place San Francisco Giants in the National League West to two games.
New York broke a 1-1 tie in the top of the ninth against right-handed closer Kenley Jansen (2-
1). With Dodgers left fielder Andre Ethier shading toward left-center field, Mets first baseman
Lucas Duda began the inning with a bloop double down the left-field line.
Duda moved to third base when second baseman Wilmer Flores singled off Jansen's glove.
Shortstop Jimmy Rollins could not retrieve the ball, which ricocheted into an area between the
mound and the infield dirt.
"We haven't had that in a long time," Mets manager Terry Collins said about the ninth-inning
breaks.
Duda scored the winning run when Plawecki hit a fly ball to center fielder Joc Pederson.
Right-hander Hansel Robles (2-2) allowed only one hit and struck out three in two innings of
relief. Right-hander Jeurys Familia pitched a perfect ninth inning with one strikeout for his 22nd
save.
Most of the game was a duel between two left-handers, the Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw and the
Mets' Noah Syndergaard.
Kershaw allowed just one run, five hits and two walks while amassing seven strikeouts and
inducing nine groundouts in seven innings.
"It took a while to settle in and I was pretty erratic early," Kershaw said. "But I was able to
get out of that and started feeling better toward the middle innings."
Syndergaard, recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas on May 9, retired 13 of 15 Dodgers between the
second and sixth innings, including seven in a row. The rookie conceded one run, two hits and two
walks while striking out six in six innings and throwing a fastball that reached 99 mph.
"It's awesome to step on the same mound as Clayton Kershaw," Syndergaard said. "He's a lot of
fun to watch."
Syndergaard's poise impressed Collins.
"He kept himself under control the whole night," the manager said. "Going head-to-head with the
best pitcher in the game and holding his own was impressive."
The Mets had a chance to score the first run in the first inning but failed. Center fielder
Curtis Granderson began the game with a walk. Left fielder John Mayberry Jr. followed two outs
later with another walk. But Kershaw struck out Duda to end the inning.
The Dodgers responded by taking a 1-0 lead in the second. First baseman Adrian Gonzalez
propelled an 88 mph slider over the center-field fence for his 14th home run of the season.
New York tied the score in the top of the fourth. Mayberry doubled down the left-field line,
took third base on a wild pitch and came home when second baseman Wilmer Flores singled to right
field past a drawn-in infield.
Los Angeles had an opportunity to move ahead after third baseman Justin Turner began the bottom
of the fourth with a double to left-center field. But Duda made two stellar defensive plays to
prevent Turner from scoring.
Duda made a diving stop of Gonzalez's hard-hit grounder away from the bag and threw to
Syndergaard to get the out at first base, with Turner going to third on the play. Duda again dived
to his right to secure right fielder Yasiel Puig's ground ball, then beat Puig to the base for the
second out. Ethier lined out to end the threat.
"That one was unbelievable," Collins said about Duda's second play. "It was a tremendous play,
and then not to get into a collision at first base is a great play."
NOTES: New York OF Michael Cuddyer did not start for the third consecutive game after injuring
his left knee Tuesday. Cuddyer entered the game as a pinch-hitter in the seventh inning and struck
out. ... The Mets rank next-to-last in the major leagues with a .232 team batting average and a
.358 slugging percentage. ... The Mets' flight from Chicago to Los Angeles made an emergency stop
in Detroit on Thursday because play-by-play broadcaster Howie Rose needed medical attention. ...
Dodgers CF Joc Pederson is the eighth rookie in major league history to hit 20 home runs before
July 4. ... The Dodgers signed RHP Trevor Cahill to a minor league contract Thursday and
designated RHP Brandon League for assignment. Cahill an All-Star with the Oakland Athletics in
2010, went 0-3 with a 7.52 ERA for the Atlanta Braves before being released June 19.
Top Game Performances
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Hits |
HR |
TB |
Avg |
LOB |
K |
RBI |
BB |
SB |
Errors |
NY Mets
|
6 |
0 |
8 |
.182 |
13 |
10 |
2 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
LA Dodgers
|
3 |
1 |
7 |
.097 |
11 |
10 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |