The Sports Xchange
Aug 13, 2017
PHILADELPHIA -- Michael Conforto and Curtis Granderson hit home runs and the New York Mets topped the Philadelphia Phillies 6-2 at Citizens Bank Park on Sunday.
The Mets (53-62) took three of four from the Phillies (43-72).
Conforto's two-run shot in the first inning opened the scoring and upped his career-high total to 26 for the year. It was his 12th homer since the All-Star break.
Mets starter Chris Flexen (2-1) earned the win despite not having his best command. Flexen lasted five innings and allowed two runs on six hits. He walked four batters and struck out five.
Zach Eflin (1-4) was handed the loss. The righty was smacked around for seven hits in 5 1/3 innings. He allowed four runs, all coming on the pair of two-run shots from Conforto and Granderson, and struck out five.
With the Mets ahead 2-1 in the fifth, Eflin sandwiched a Jose Reyes double with a pair of strikeouts to bring Granderson to the plate with two outs. On a 1-1 count, Eflin's curveball got too much of the plate and Granderson sent the offering to right field for a three-run lead.
After the Phillies cut the deficit to 4-2, Granderson then tallied a run-scoring single in the seventh to make it 5-2. He then scored on a Wilmer Flores RBI single.
The Phillies, who left nine runners on base on the day, loaded the bases in the bottom of the first inning with no outs but only scraped across one run on a Rhys Hoskins RBI groundout, the first RBI of his career.
They loaded them again in the fifth with no outs. Nick Williams sent a fly ball to shallow center field that Conforto corralled and fired toward home. Freddy Galvis, on third base, did not run but, inexplicably, Odubel Herrera -- whose mental mistakes have become common -- ran from second to an occupied third base and was tagged out. The double play allowed Flexen to get out of the inning unscathed after inducing an inning-ending groundout.
The Phillies tallied just one hit the rest of the way and were outhit 12-7.
NOTES: Philadelphia OF Odubel Herrera extended his career-long hit streak to 16 games with a single in the first inning. The streak is the longest by a Phillies player since 2014. ... After trading INF Neil Walker on Saturday night, the Mets selected the contract of RHP Kevin McGowan from Triple-A Las Vegas prior to the game Sunday to take Walker's roster spot. ... The Phillies embark on a seven-game road trip to California starting Monday in San Diego. ... The Mets begin a four-game set with the Yankees (each team hosts two games) on Monday in the Bronx.