Mets at Marlins
The surprising Miami Marlins look to stay hot at home when they continue a three-game set against the New York Mets on Tuesday. The Marlins scored three times in the eighth and once in the ninth on a Casey McGehee RBI single to steal a 4-3 win in the series opener Monday night, improving to 6-1 on their current homestand. Miami's 15-5 home record is far and away the best mark in baseball.
New York has lost four of its last five games but has to be pleased with the emergence of veteran Curtis Granderson. After a miserable start to his Mets career, Granderson has put together a six-game hitting streak, during which he is 9-for-23 with two home runs and six RBIs. Fellow outfielder Chris Young sat out the series opener but has virtually matched Granderson by going 9-for-22 during a six-game hitting streak of his own, scoring at least one run in each contest.
TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, SNY (New York), FSN Florida (Miami)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Mets RH Bartolo Colon (2-4, 5.65 ERA) vs. Marlins RH Henderson Alvarez (1-2, 3.28)
Colon's see-saw season continued at Colorado on Thursday, when he followed up a stellar start one week earlier by giving up seven runs and 10 hits in 4 2/3 innings. It dropped the veteran to 0-2 with a 14.90 ERA in his last two road starts. Colon, who remains nine wins shy of 200 for his career, has not faced the Marlins since 2002, when he won two of three starts while a member of the Montreal Expos.
Alvarez gave up four runs in six innings to get a no-decision against Atlanta on Thursday, his first non-quality start since April 8. The 24-year-old let up two runs in six innings at New York on April 25, which left him 2-1 with a 3.55 ERA in four career starts against the Mets. After opening the season with starts of three innings and 5 2/3 innings, Alvarez has lasted at least six frames in four consecutive outings.
WALK-OFFS
1. The Mets have scored in the first inning in four straight games.
2. Miami has won 10 of the last 14 meetings at home.
3. New York 2B Daniel Murphy has at least one hit in 14 of his last 15 games.