David Peterson won his race against the stork Monday, but his victory tour wasn’t finished.
With team officials on high alert the left-hander might have to depart as his wife, Alex, prepared to deliver a son, Peterson zigged and zagged, helping the Mets beat the Marlins 6-0 at Citi Field.
Peterson has been indispensable as the Mets have survived rotation hits to Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer and Tylor Megill. On this day, he pitched 5 ¹/₃ shutout innings and allowed six hits with seven strikeouts and two walks.
The Mets (45-24) finished with five victories in seven games on the homestand and improved to 16-3-2 in series this season. The shutout was the 11th this season by the Mets.
This one came with a health concern, as Jeff McNeil departed with tightness in his right hamstring in the top of the fifth, after racing home from third on a wild pitch the previous inning. McNeil was to undergo testing on the hamstring, and manager Buck Showalter indicated he will be evaluated on a daily basis.
David Peterson pitched 5 1/3 shutout innings in the Mets’ win over the Marlins on Monday.Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Peterson rebounded from his worst start of the season. In his previous appearance, he got knocked out by the Brewers after allowing four earned runs over four innings.
“I felt like I got into a spot where my delivery felt very consistent again,” Peterson said. “That was one of the biggest things, just feeling consistent with every pitch and delivery and going after guys.”
As for the upcoming birth of his son, Peterson (who plans to return home to Denver for the arrival) said he was unfazed as Monday’s start approached.
“Once I’m here, it’s all about the game,” Peterson said. “I’m going in the training room during the game in case something happens [to check his cell phone], but once I got here today it was all about the start.”
Adam Ottavino, Drew Smith and Yoan Lopez combined for 3 ²/₃ innings of shutout relief, helping to redeem the bullpen a day after Seth Lugo surrendered a grand slam to Jerar Encarnacion in the Mets’ only loss in the series.
The Marlins put two runners on base in five of the six innings they faced Peterson, but the lefty escaped each time. In the sixth that came with Ottavino’s help, as the right-hander entered and got Encarnacion to hit into an inning-ending double play. It left Peterson with a 3.18 ERA in 10 appearances for the Mets this season.