The New York Mets capped a rough weekend with another loss to the Miami Marlins, falling 5-1 on Sunday and dropping three of four in the series to end the homestand.
Right-hander Kodai Senga, still searching for consistency since returning from the injured list, labored through 4 2/3 innings. He surrendered five earned runs on seven hits, including a two-run homer to catcher Augustin Ramirez in the third. Senga walked two, struck out six, and threw just 43 of his 75 pitches for strikes. Miami added single runs in the fourth and fifth to chase him from the game.
On the other side, former Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara delivered one of his best outings of the year. The righty silenced the Mets’ lineup over seven innings, yielding just one run on four hits while striking out six. The lone breakthrough came in the seventh when Jeff McNeil singled and later scored on a Cedric Mullins force-out. McNeil finished with two of New York’s five hits.
Tensions briefly rose that same inning when Alcantara hit Mark Vientos with a pitch, leading to some jawing and benches clearing, though no punches were thrown. Both teams were issued warnings.
One bright spot for the Mets came from left-hander Brandon Waddell, called up earlier in the day. He worked 4.1 scoreless innings in relief of Senga, keeping the deficit from growing.
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The Mets (73-64) now head out on a 10-game road trip, beginning Monday in Detroit with Sean Manaea set to face Charlie Morton at 1:10 p.m.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].