Independence Day was shaping up to be a very bad day for the Mets. The Marlins hammered Matt Harvey for six runs (five earned) on 11 hits in only 3 2/3 innings, giving them a comfortable 6-0 lead through four innings. It looked like Miami was well on their way to a win Monday afternoon.
Instead, the Mets rallied from behind to not only tie the game 6-6, but eventually take the lead and hold on for an 8-6 win ( box score). They chipped away by scoring one run in the fourth, one in the fifth, two in the sixth, then two more in the seventh. Yoenis Cespedes delivered the go-ahead two-run double in the eighth:
The six-run comeback is the fourth largest in Mets history. The win probability graph does a good job showing how the Mets chipped away. In a nutshell, this shows each team's chances of winning at any given point in the game. The Marlins had a 97.2 percent chance to win when they led 6-0 in the fourth.
Source: FanGraphs
The offense obviously deserves a ton of credit for the comeback win. They scored six runs in three innings against the Marlins relief trio of Kyle Barraclough, David Phelps, and Fernando Rodney. Those three went into Monday's game with a combined 1.93 ERA and 145 strikeouts in 107 2/3 innings.
The bullpen should not be forgotten either. After Harvey got knocked out early Erik Goeddel, Logan Verrett, Hansel Robles, and Jerry Blevins held the Marlins scoreless for 4 1/3 innings, given the offense a chance to rally. Jeurys Familia came in to nail down his 29th save in 29 chances after Cespedes gave the Mets the lead.
The Mets have now won five straight games -- they swept the Cubs in a four-game series over the weekend -- to climb to within four games of the first place Nationals. They were six games back three days ago. That's a pretty big deal, because the Mets and Nationals will close out the first half with a four-game series this weekend.
