News » Los Angeles just took three of four from Arizona

NEW YORK (AP) — One of the few teams to have much success against Jacob deGrom all year has been the last-place Miami Marlins.Go figure.In his latest hard-luck loss during a record-setting season Roberto Alomar Jersey , deGrom was outpitched by Jose Urena as the Marlins beat the New York Mets 5-3 on Tuesday night.“These guys, they want to score for him so bad, you can see it,” Mets manager Mickey Callaway said. “Unfortunately, we just haven’t done that very much.”Locked in a compelling race for the NL Cy Young Award despite his pedestrian record, deGrom (8-9) gave up only Lewis Brinson’s two-run double in seven stellar innings. The right-hander allowed three hits and struck out nine , his major league-low ERA climbing just a tick from 1.68 to 1.71.Even still, he fell to 0-2 in four starts against Miami (57-86), which has won three of those games.“You just have to scrap for your hits,” manager Don Mattingly said. “We just hang in there. I think the games we’ve been able to beat him, I think our starters have been good.”Urena (6-12) permitted one run and four hits in 6 1/3 innings for the Marlins, who were rained out the previous two days. He is 3-0 with a 2.22 ERA in his last four starts, and 3-0 with a 0.98 ERA in three career starts at Citi Field.After his outing was pushed back two days because of rain http://www.bluejaysfanproshop.com/authentic-paul-molitor-jersey , deGrom held his opponent under four runs for the 26th straight start — breaking a big league single-season mark set by King Cole in 1910 with the Chicago Cubs.“I wasn’t as comfortable as I normally am. What was I at, eight days or so?” deGrom said. “To go that long without being on the mound, I felt a little off. But I was able to kind of correct myself as the game went on.”In a recurring theme, however, the Mets didn’t provide much help. All they could muster at the plate was Michael Conforto’s solo homer off Urena and Kevin Plawecki’s two-run shot against Drew Steckenrider with two outs in the ninth.Conforto has homered in three consecutive games for the first time in his career.JT Riddle came off the bench and homered into the second deck in right field in his first at-bat for Miami since returning from a sore left wrist.“Those two rainouts really helped. Got me two extra days to rest,” he said. “It felt really good, especially being off a week now.”After missing five games, Riddle connected in the eighth against reliever Anthony Swarzak, who made his first major league appearance since Aug. 3. The right-hander was recently activated from the disabled list after missing time with shoulder inflammation.Miami got three straight hits off Robert Gsellman to start the ninth, including an RBI triple by Brian Anderson and Derek Dietrich’s run-scoring double.A resurgent Brinson doubled off the center-field fence with two outs in the fourth. After that, deGrom set down his final 10 batters and finished the night with 239 strikeouts, equaling the career high he set last season.“I think you kind of understand that you’re only going to have a couple opportunities off a guy like him,” Anderson said. “Usually it’s one or two a game. And he’s really good at shutting down those opportunities. I think with runners in scoring position Roger Clemens Jersey , guys are hitting under .100 off of him. Having a guy like Lewis come in there and get that hit against him, and with two strikes, really helped our morale and really got us going there.”Mets third baseman Todd Frazier was ejected after the sixth by plate umpire Dan Bellino.MAKING STRIDESBrinson is batting .400 (12 for 30) with a homer, three doubles and six RBIs since coming off the disabled list Sept. 1. He has upped his season average to .206.TRAINER’S ROOMMarlins: RHP Dan Straily (strained left oblique) felt discomfort while throwing for the first time since leaving his last start. He could miss the rest of the season, Mattingly said.Mets: 3B David Wright took live batting practice on the field as the Mets’ captain tries to complete his comeback from a string of debilitating injuries.UP NEXTA single-admission doubleheader Wednesday to make up Monday’s rainout. RHP Trevor Richards (3-8, 4.73 ERA) and RHP Jeff Brigham (0-1, 9.00) are the scheduled Miami starters, with RHP Zack Wheeler (10-7, 3.39) and LHP Jason Vargas (5-9, 6.75) set to go for the Mets. It’s September, so it’s time for Terrance Gore.The 5-foot-7 speedster has resurfaced with the Chicago Cubs, who purchased his contract from Triple-A Iowa when rosters expanded Saturday. Like the Royals previously, the Cubs will have a chance to turn Gore loose on the bases. The 27-year-old outfielder has played in 50 games in his major league career. He has 11 at-bats Justin Smoak Jersey , zero hits, 14 runs and 21 stolen bases.Gore made his big league debut with Kansas City in 2014 and had a handful of appearances for the Royals over the past four years. He was traded to the Cubs last month, and they brought him up from the minors when rosters expanded. Of Gore’s 50 big league games in the regular season, 43 have come after the start of September. When rosters expand, there’s more room for a player like Gore, who is about as one-dimensional as they come but can clearly help as a pinch runner.The roster squeeze is tighter in the playoffs, but the Royals kept Gore for their postseason runs in 2014 and 2015. The Cubs have the best record in the National League at the moment, but they can use Gore’s skill set. They’re tied for 12th in the NL with 56 stolen bases. They’ve also been caught stealing 35 times, the most of any team in the league.Gore is a slightly less extreme version of Herb Washington, Oakland’s baserunning specialist from 1974-75. Washington had 31 steals in his major league career without a single plate appearance. He wasn’t as efficient as Gore, however. Washington was caught stealing 17 times. That’s only happed four times to Gore.Other developments from around the majors:TRIPLE THREAT?A torrid second half has J.D. Martinez making a bit of a Triple Crown bid in the American League. The Boston slugger leads the league with 115 RBIs and is second with 39 homers, one behind Oakland’s Khris Davis. Martinez is also hitting .337, just three points behind teammate Mookie Betts http://www.bluejaysfanproshop.com/authentic-marco-estrada-jersey , the league leader.Martinez has never batted higher than .315 in a season, but he’s hitting .359 since the All-Star break, and that has put him in the mix for what would be a surprising batting title. The last seven batting titles in the AL have gone to either Jose Altuve or Miguel Cabrera. Altuve is still a threat this year at .321.When Cabrera won the Triple Crown in 2012, he took MVP honors in a hotly debated race against Mike Trout. Martinez may face an uphill climb for that award, since he has played only 48 games in the field this year.HIGHLIGHTSThe Dodgers, Diamondbacks and Rockies are in a tight race atop the NL West, meaning their head-to-head matchups are crucial. Los Angeles just took three of four from Arizona, with each win by the same score of 3-2. Matt Kemp delivered the decisive hit in each of the final two games — an eighth-inning homer Saturday and a two-run double in the ninth Sunday. Los Angeles also won in its last at-bat Friday, on an eighth-inning homer by Justin Turner.The first-place Dodgers lead Colorado by a half-game and Arizona by one.LINE OF THE WEEKMilwaukee’s Christian Yelich went 6 for 6 and hit for the cycle Wednesday night in a 13-12, 10-inning victory over Cincinnati. Then over the weekend, he came up with a nice encore, hitting his first career grand slam in Sunday’s 9-4 win over Washington.