Mets 5, Rockies 1
DENVER -- In his first major league start, Logan Verrett filled in exceptionally well for Matt Harvey. Verrett handled Coors Field and the Colorado Rockies with ease as the New York Mets won 5-1 to sweep a three-game series.
Verrett, who won his first game in the majors, allowed four hits and one run in eight innings. He made a spot start in place of Matt Harvey, whom the Mets skipped to limit his innings to about 190 this year following Tommy John surgery in 2013.
Verrett (1-0) threw 93 pitches and retired 14 of the final 16 batters he faced after right fielder Carlos Gonzalez homered in the fourth. Verrett walked one and struck out eight.
The win was the Mets' 11th straight against the Rockies and seventh this season and enabled New York to maintain its five-game lead over Washington in the National League East.
The Mets turned to Verrett, who had made 11 relief appearances in the majors this season, seven with the Mets, to keep Harvey at about 190 innings this season after missing all of 2013 following Tommy John surgery.
Rockies starter David Hale had a bizarre outing. He set a franchise record with four wild pitches, two of them consecutive allowing two runs to score with the same batter at the plate. Hale tied his career-high with nine strikeouts and retired the final 10 batters he faced.
The win was the eighth in 12 games for the Mets and their 18th in the past 26. The Rockies lost 12 of their past 15 games and went 2-7 on a homestand that concluded Sunday.
First baseman David Murphy doubled home a run in the first. Hale (3-5) hit shortstop Wilmer Flores, the leadoff batter in the second, and gave up a single to left fielder Michael Conforto. Right fielder Gonzalez threw the ball over first base, allowing Conforto to take second.
With catcher Anthony Recker batting, Hale threw consecutive wild pitches that brought in two runs, boosting the Mets' lead to 3-0. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Hale is the first major league pitcher to throw two consecutive wild pitches allowing runs to score with the same batter since April 30, 2013, when Nate Jones of the Chicago White Sox did it against Texas.
The Mets scored two two-out runs in the third. Murphy led off with a single, moved to third on Hale's fourth wild pitch and a ground out and scored when shortstop Wilmer Flores lined a 1-2 pitch for an opposite-field single to right. Conforto's single sent Flores to third, and he scored on catcher Anthony Recker's double.
Gonzalez made it 5-1 when he led off the fourth with his 30th home run, giving him two seasons with at least that many homers. Gonzalez hit a career-high 34 homers in 2010.
NOTES: Rockies RHP Rafael Betancourt, 40, was designated for assignment after going 2-4 with a 6.18 ERA in 45 games. He made 309 appearances and had 58 saves for the Rockies since they acquired him from Cleveland in July 2009 for a minor league pitcher. ... Rockies RHP Justin Miller was optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque. In three stints with the Rockies this season, Miller is 1-2 with a 4.58 ERA. ... Rockies RHP Jairo Diaz, 24, was recalled from Triple-A Albuquerque where he was 3-5 with eight saves and a 4.58 ERA in 47 games. ... The Rockies selected the contract of RHP Simon Castro, 27, from Triple-A Albuquerque where he was 5-5 with a 3.79 ERA in 36 games. ... Rockies RHP Brooks Brown (right shoulder inflammation) was reinstated from the disabled list and optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque. ... Rockies RHP Tyler Chatwood threw 25 pitches in his third simulated game as he continues his comeback from his second Tommy John surgery on July 24, 2014. ... Mets 3B David Wright (spinal stenosis), who last played for the Mets on April 14, will be activated and in the lineup Monday at Philadelphia. In nine rehab games at High Class A St. Lucie, Wright went 9-for-28 (.321) with one RBI, five walks and six strikeouts.