Luis Robert Jr. delivered the go-ahead two-run single in the eighth inning after Nolan McLean turned in another strong start as the New York Mets defeated the Miami Marlins, 4-2, on Thursday night at Citi Field. The victory improved the Mets to 47-63, while the Marlins fell to 55-55 after New York erased an early deficit despite being limited to one hit through the first five innings following a 66-minute rain delay.
McLean overcame a pair of early walks and leaned on an effective fastball-curveball combination to keep Miami in check. The rookie right-hander struck out six over 6.1 innings, allowing two runs on six hits while lowering his ERA to 3.29. Kyle Stowers put the Marlins on the board with a solo homer in the fourth before Jakob Marsee tied the game with a solo shot in the seventh, ending McLean’s night. Brooks Raley stranded the go-ahead run with an inning-ending double play before tossing a scoreless eighth.
After Eury Pérez retired the first eight Mets hitters and held New York to one hit through five innings, the Mets finally broke through in the sixth. Francisco Lindor tied the game with an RBI single before Robert’s slow roller brought home another run to give New York a brief lead. Miami answered in the seventh, but the Mets responded again in the eighth as Bo Bichette and Carson Benge delivered two-out hits before Robert lined a two-run single past a diving Graham Pauley. Devin Williams worked around a leadoff walk in the ninth by striking out two to earn the save.
The Mets continue their four-game series against the Marlins on Friday. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m., with Freddy Peralta (4.99 ERA) set to face Miami right-hander Jason Junk (4.89 ERA).
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to kyle@fingerlakes1.com.