Morning Rewind, 9/9: Back in the Nieu York groove

By JOHN DORN

You've heard about Matt Harvey and his newly icy relationship with the New York Mets. Last night, Harvey had the chance to redeem himself and re-prove his worth to Mets fans who now question his commitment to the team -- after the ace's status for the playoffs has come into question.

All he had to do was shut down the second-place Washington Nationals, and at least temporarily, the backlash would disappear. Seemed like an attainable enough task for Harvey -- who'd posted a 1.66 ERA over his previous 13 starts -- right?

Not so much.

It was a bad time for one of the worst starts of Harvey's life, as he allowed seven runs to cross the plate before he got out of the sixth inning. By the time Terry Collins gave him the hook, his team trailed 7-1, and the most meaningful game of Harvey's Mets career had gone about as poorly as anyone could've imagined.

But then, the Nationals bullpen happened. After six -- six! -- walks in the seventh inning that began with a six-run deficit, the Mets rallied. And they rallied, and they rallied some more. Hits from Wilmer Flores and Yoenis Cespedes and walks from Curtis Granderson and Lucas Duda drove in six.

With Jonathan Papelbon on the mound for the eighth, New York sent up Kirk Nieuwenhuis, who was previously 2-for-18 in pinch hitting appearances this year.

Then, bang.

Nieuwenhuis belted a solo shot to right field, his fourth home of the year, to give the Mets a lead they wouldn't relinquish. And right at the top step to greet him, Matt Harvey, who was instantly spared (some) grief on Wednesday morning.

Mets 8, Nationals 7


Around the League
BAL 2, NYY 1
As it turned out, the Yankees would need a win to remain just a half-game back of the Blue Jays in the East, but they couldn't top the O's at home. Usually reliable Chasen Shreeve allowed the go-ahead solo shot to Chris Davis in the ninth -- his 41st homer of the season -- to give Baltimore the W.

PIT 7, CIN 3
With the Cubs surging, the pressure is on the Pirates to maintain home field in a potential Wild Card game. They took care of business against the lowly Reds on Tuesday, with a three-run home run by Andrew McCutchen powered a five-run third inning, which was all Pittsburgh needed.

TOR 5, BOS 1

A win at Fenway now gives Toronto a 1.5-game lead in the East. It took 10 innings, but with Alexi Ogando pitching, the Jays poured in four, with help from Troy Tulowitzki and Chris Colabello, who both singled in runs.

CHC 8, STL 5
The Cubs have now won five straight, and a win on Wednesday would mean a three-game sweep of the Cardinals. They did it Tuesday behind four RBIs from Starlin Castro and three from Anthony Rizzo, hammering Michael Wacha for six runs over four innings.

SF 6, ARI 2
The Giants are just barely clinging to faint postseason contention, and they really can't afford many more losses down the stretch considering the Cubs' recent run. They won on Tuesday, and at 72-67, they're now 8.5 games back of the Dodgers in the West and nine back in the Wild Card.

OAK 4, HOU 0
Houston has now lost five of seven, shrinking its lead in the AL West to two games over the Angels. But with Los Angeles losing its affair against the Dodgers, that slim margin held up for at least a night.

LAD 6, LAA 4

Clayton Kershaw allowed just two runs on four hits over his seven innings for the Dodgers, striking out eight and lowering his ERA to a measly 2.15. The Dodgers scored four runs on just two hits in the sixth, which created enough of a cushion for the bullpen to hang on to.

TEX 9, SEA 6
The win keeps Texas on pace for a Wild Card spot in the AL, sitting 2.5 games ahead of the Minnesota Twins. Cole Hamels allowed four runs over seven innings, and Shin-Soo Choo drove in three for the win.


Other Scores:

• PHI 5, ATL 0

• DET 8, TB 7

• MIA 6, MIL 4

• CWS 7, CLE 4

• KC 4, MIN 2

• SD 2, COL 1

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