GROUNDED BYRD: Marlon Byrd (right) is called out at home in the second inning last night by umpire Mark Wegner after trying to stretch a triple into an inside-the-park home run as Diamondbacks catcher Wil Nieves cradles the ball in his glove. Arizona went on to win, 5-4, on Paul Goldschmidt’s walk-off home run in the ninth. (
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PHOENIX — That probably wasn’t “Gold-schmidt” uttered from reliever Scott Atchison’s lips as he watched Paul Goldschmidt’s drive ascend and then fall behind the right-field fence in last night’s ninth inning.
The ball was gone, and along with it a Mets’ three-game winning streak.
“It was a cutter up, just wasn’t a very good pitch,” Atchison said after Goldschmidt’s walkoff blast gave the Diamondbacks a 5-4 victory over the Mets at Chase Field. “He’s probably their best hitter in the lineup right now, and I think if I make a good pitch, I think I get him.”
Atchison retired the first batter he faced, Martin Prado, before Goldschmidt — a National League MVP contender — hit his 27th home run of the season. To that point, the Mets bullpen had worked 3 1/3 shutout innings on a night Jeremy Hefner struggled.
The Mets had rallied with two runs in the eighth to tie the game against Heath Bell. After Daniel Murphy, Marlon Byrd and Josh Satin singled successively to load the bases with nobody out, Justin Turner grounded out for his third RBI of the game. Moments later, Wilmer Flores grounded out to bring in the tying run. It gave the rookie Flores five RBIs in his first four major league games.
It has been a tale of two Hefs for the Mets, who last night were again left to wonder what Hefner really is.
They probably have deduced by now that he’s not the pitcher who posted a 1.76 ERA in his final seven starts of the first half. With less certainty the Mets can say he’s probably also not the pitcher who has been brutal since the All-Star break.
After last night barely surviving a fifth inning in which he surrendered two runs, Hefner allowed three straight hits to open the sixth and was promptly removed. Wil Nieves’ two-run double against Hefner broke the 2-2 tie before Pedro Feliciano and David Aardsma contained the fire.
“I wasn’t missing too many bats,” Hefner said. “I had the outfield running all over the place. I just wasn’t very good.”
In his five starts since the All-Star break, Hefner has a 9.13 ERA. Over that stretch he has lasted six innings just once. But manager Terry Collins remains committed to keeping Hefner as part of the Mets’ six-man rotation. Hefner is expected to next pitch on Thursday in San Diego.
Turner’s second RBI single of the game made it 2-2 in the sixth, but the Mets missed a chance to take the lead when Flores and John Buck were retired with two runners on base. Buck was caught looking at a full-count pitch from Patrick Corbin to end the inning.
Hefner still had a shutout with two outs in the fifth before successive doubles by Corbin, Adam Eaton and Prado gave the Diamondbacks a 2-1 lead. Hefner then walked Goldschmidt before retiring Eric Chavez to escape.
“You don’t execute, and you get lit up,” Hefner said. “I got lit up.”
Turner gave the Mets a 1-0 lead in the fourth with a two-out RBI single against Corbin. After Satin walked and reached second on a wild pitch before Turner, who was in the lineup at shortstop to give Omar Quintanilla a rest, delivered.
Byrd, following third-base coach Tim Teufel’s sign, gambled in the second inning and was thrown out at the plate trying to stretch a leadoff triple into an inside-the-park homer. Byrd hit a shot that just missed clearing the fence in center, and when the ball caromed back toward the infield, he had his opening. But Aaron Hill made a perfect relay home and Byrd was called out by umpire Mark Wegner, despite on replay appearing to touch the plate before the tag.
Juan Lagares also took a base-running gamble in the seventh and was thrown out trying to stretch a double into a triple, ending the inning.