Game Recap: David Wright Hits 200th Career Homer in 3-1 Loss

I’m getting real tired of saying this, but the Mets lost again last night, this time to the lowly Astros. Tony DeFrancesco finally got his first win since taking over Houston once Brad Mills got fired, and Jordan Lyles not only pitched well, but added in a run-scoring hit to add insult to injury.

Mets Offensive Highlights:

Let’s put it this way, the Mets have now lost six games in a row, and have scored two or less runs in their last seven contests, something they haven’t done in 30 years. After earning only four hits last night, the mystery kept going for Terry Collins and hitting coach Dave Hudgens, as they continue to watch the offense be non-existent. David Wright got half of the hits, one of them being his 200th career home run, which came in the fourth inning. That was all the offense the Mets would provide in support of Jonathon Niese, as Justin Turner and Andres Torreswere the only other players to record hits. Although with limited chances, the Mets went hitless with runners in scoring position (0-for-4) and left 5 men stranded.

Astros Offensive Highlights:

Houston got some early runs off Niese and the pitching staff was able to make it hold up. After striking out Steve Pearce and Tyler Greene to start the 2nd inning, Chris Snyder drew a walk, then came around to score on an RBI double from Brandon Barnes. Then, Jordan Lyles, followed that with an RBI double himself, increasing the lead to 2-0 at the time. Once New York pulled within one, the Astros were able to push across an insurance run in the 7th, when Tyler Greene led off the frame with his seventh homer of the season.

Pitching Highlights:

Lyles pitched 6 strong innings while only giving up the solo bomb to Wright, and allowed 3 hits total to go with 2 walks, while striking out 4. Wesley Wright and Fernando Rodriguez came in to relieve him and hold the score where it was for Wilton Lopez, who went five outs for his 2nd save of the season.

On the other hand, Jonathon Niese didn’t pitch that bad either, but he couldn’t get any support from his offense to give him a boost. The southpaw went 7 innings, allowed 3 runs on 6 hits and 2 walks, while punching out 5 hitters. After he made his exit, Robert Carson, Frank Francisco, Manny Acosta, and Josh Edgin all pitched parts of innings to keep the Astros scoreless, but it was too little, too late for this anemic offense.

At 57-69, the Mets are now in sole possession of 4th place in the NL East thanks to their sixth straight loss, with everyone’s pre-season predictions looking more accurate.

Probable Pitchers Saturday:

Since Armando Galarraga got sent down, Fernando Abad (0-0, 3.86 ERA) will make the first start of his career today. He will opposing R.A. Dickey (15-4, 2.82 ERA), which is truly the only glimmer of hope this afternoon for Mets fans when the knuckleballer takes the mound. First pitch in Flushing is scheduled for 1:10pm.