MIAMI — The Mets got just about the entire lineup involved Friday night, but Starling Marte’s body blows early and Brandon Nimmo’s knockout punch late were the most pronounced.
Between them, the 1-2 hitters drove in all six runs for the Mets in their 6-4 victory over the Marlins at loanDepot park. Fresh off a Subway Series sweep, the Mets extended their winning streak to four games.
Nimmo, who entered with an anemic .675 OPS for July, mashed a go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning off lefty Steven Okert on a night when the Mets overcame an early 3-0 deficit against Miami ace Sandy Alcantara.
Marte, a hero from the victory over the Yankees on Wednesday, in which he delivered a game-winning single in the ninth inning, finished 3-for-5 with three RBIs. The All-Star outfielder finished a double short of the cycle.
“It gets pretty difficult for the teams when me and Nimmo are doing what we do and we’re on fire,” Marte said. “Getting on base and being able to steal a base, it kind of eases the pressure for the next guy to be able to drive us in. It makes it real difficult for the other teams.”
Starling Marte hits a home run in the fourth inning. USA TODAY Sports
Brandon Nimmo hits a go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning. USA TODAY SportsWith the score 4-4 in the eighth, pinch-hitter Eduardo Escobar reached on an infield single and Tomas Nido moved him to second with a sacrifice bunt. Nimmo followed with a rocket off the facing of the second deck in right field for his 10th homer of the season.
Nimmo brought a little extra oomph to his dugout celebration.
“I haven’t been producing much offensively since the All-Star break, coming back from it,” Nimmo said. “So real nice to help out tonight and get a couple of big hits and it obviously showed when I got the [homer].
“These are big games for us and facing Alcantara, what a great pitcher, we have a lot of respect for him, but when we were able to match punch for punch I really felt like this game was one we really needed to try to take at all costs because when you can get to a guy like that it means a lot.”
Brandon Nimmo reacts after his eighth-inning home run. USA TODAY SportsThe Mets received three combined innings of scoreless relief from Adam Ottavino, Trevor Williams and Edwin Diaz after Chris Bassitt got through six. Diaz struck out the side in the ninth on 10 pitches for his 23rd save.
Alcantara, who entered with a NL-best 1.81 ERA, was handled by the Mets. The right-hander lasted only five innings — snapping a string of 14 straight starts in which he had completed at least six frames — and allowed four earned runs on eight hits with five strikeouts and three walks.
“You come off an emotional series in New York and come in here and face one of it not the best pitcher in baseball and get down 3-0, that is a tip of the hat to our guys,” Mets manager Buck Showalter said. “You had to grind. We probably caught him on one of those very rare days he isn’t himself, but you have got to take advantage of it, too.”
Starling Marte celebrates after his solo home run. APThe Marlins assembled a rally in the first to score three runs without hitting the ball hard against Bassitt. Lewin Diaz drew a two-out walk before Avisail Garcia’s grounder just eluded Jeff McNeil’s glove for a single. JJ Bleday followed with an infield single and Miguel Rojas’ soft line drive to right went for a three-run double.
“You give up three runs in the first, the odds of losing against [Alcantara] are pretty high,” Bassitt said.
Overall, Bassitt surrendered four earned runs on six hits and four walks. The four earned runs allowed were Bassitt’s most since he surrendered six in a loss to the Padres on June 8.
Chris Bassitt pitches on Friday during the Mets’ win over the Marlins. Getty ImagesBassitt said the All-Star break, coupled with a scheduling quirk in which the Mets had two days off this week, didn’t help his command.
“I went from nine days off to seven days off and I felt way too good,” Bassitt said. “It was a combination of overthrowing and not hitting my spots.”
Alcantara was within a pitch of escaping the second inning unscathed, but after going ahead 0-2 to Nido, he threw four balls to walk the catcher. Nimmo followed with a double off the center-field fence that scored Mark Canha, who had doubled. Marte then delivered a two-run triple that tied the score 3-3.
Marte’s solo homer in the fourth left him within a double of the cycle and tied the score 4-4. The homer was Marte’s 11th this season.
“I didn’t get [the double] today, but I will get it tomorrow and we’ll continue to compete,” Marte said.






