Just Mets

The first place New York Mets.

Well, it’s a virtual tie, anyway. But that’s ok.

They have one more win and one more loss than the Nationals right now, but they have roared back into first place with three stupendous wins at Citi Field this weekend.

They made a statement tonight against Jordan Zimmermann, torching him for three home runs in the third inning to come from behind for the second consecutive night in front of another electric crowd at Citi Field on Sunday. It’s a wonderful sight, wonderful sound, and a very good feeling around these retro-fitted Mets.

They also made a statement to the Nationals in general this weekend that they are for real this summer, they’re hungry and they are not going away. They are playing with that attitude, swagger, and confidence they had during their 13-3 run to start the year, and it’s a sight for sore eyes.

They completed their difficult 28 game stretch against the Cubs, Padres, Nationals, Dodgers, Giants, and Cardinals with a  15-13 record. They finished their homestead with a 6-4 record, with one of those losses being a game they gave away. And now the final two months is a pretty easy schedule on paper for them. They have to win, but that’s not a bad thing.

This summer is going to be fun, so stay tuned…

About those home runs…

There was zero doubt in my mind the Mets would lose on Sunday, even after Noah Syndergaard gave up a first inning home run to Anthony Rendon. But the Mets did what they needed to do against Zimmermann on Sunday, attacking him early and in early counts, not letting him get ahead of them.

And, they totally destroyed three baseballs in the third inning which equated to five runs: one from Curtis Granderson, one from Daniel Murphy, and yet another one from Lucas Duda.

That was pretty much all the Mets needed to secure a critical sweep of the Nationals and roar back into a tie for first place with their division rival.

A most excellent #ThorsDay.

Syndergaard made two mistakes. He made one to Rendon in the first, and another to Yunel Escobar in the sixth. Other than that, he was beyond fantastic on Sunday night until the sixth inning, when he found his first real jam of the night, but got out of it with just the home run to Escobar.

His curve was on point and extremely wicked, his fastball was overwhelming for the Nationals hitters at times, and he was really mostly dominant for eight innings to earn his sixth win of the year.

It was a big spot for Syndergaard. It was the most critical game of the year (that’s going to be said a lot over the next two months), it was the difference between first place and two games out, and it was a nationally televised game at that. But he once again showed so much poise, confidence and sharpness on the mound, eliminating all of the distractions and implications and put on a light show with his fastball on Sunday.

He’s a special kid, and he’s about to be a part of something very special over the next few years.

Other notes from Sunday:

The three home runs the Mets hit in the 3rd inning was the first time they’ve hit three in an inning since June 7, 2007.

The Mets have now hit 26 home runs in their last 13 home games.

The Mets swept the Nationals at Citi Field for the first time since May, 2009.

Duda now has nine home runs in his last eight games.

Syndergaard has a 1.80 ERA in his last 9 starts – 66 strikeouts and 14 walks in 60 innings.

The Mets improved to 38-6 when scoring four or more runs in a game.

The Mets are now 27-17 against the National League East in 2015.