Mets 7 Marlins 4

For much of the game, I wasn’t sure whether I was watching two teams that were trying to win, or two teams that were trying to lose.

Mets 7 Marlins 6

This game reminded me of playing phone tag. You know, you call someone, get their voicemail, leave a message. Then they call back, miss you, leave a message. Then you call back, get voicemail, leave a message … and so on …

Mets 3 Marlins 2

In what’s getting to be a habit at Citi Field, the two starters locked horns and set down batters in a 1970s-like pitcher’s duel.

John Maine allowed only three hits over six shutout innings, striking out five, outdueling Marlins starter Chris Volstad, who was nearly as impressive though his first six but ran out of gas in the seventh.

The Mets played small ball in scratching out a run against Volstad in the third, then pounded two doubles in the seventh to score two more. All three runs came home on doubles — by Angel Pagan, Fernando Martinez, and Omir Santos.

J.J. Putz made things interesting in the eighth, allowing two runs, but Bobby Parnell came in to save the day.

Francisco Rodriguez struck out three batters in the ninth to notch his 14th save, which ties him with Heath Bell for the MLB lead.

Notes

The Mets collected seven hits on the day, and four of them were doubles.

Only 7 of Putz’s 17 pitches were strikes. If he continues to pitch poorly, we may soon have to refer to the deal with Seattle as “the Jeremy Reed trade”.

Parnell has quickly developed a legitimate slider, which is keeping batters honest and has the effect of a changeup compared to his 97-100-MPH fastball. He threw three in a row to strike out Jorge Cantu with runners on first and third in the eighth.

Angel Pagan left the game after hitting a double and straining his groin. John Maine left the game after getting ill. Carlos Beltran was a late scratch due to a stomach bug. Brian Schneider was an early scratch due to Omir Santos.

The Marlins have five pitchers who are 6’6″ or taller, and three that are 6’4″ – 6’5″. So who plays point guard?

Next Mets Game

The Mets begin a grueling, 4-game series in Pittsburgh against that intimidating juggernaut known as the Pirates. Monday night’s opener begins at 7:05 PM and pits Livan Hernandez against Ian Snell.