Final Score: Mets 12, Marlins 1

The Marlins were emotionally drained after Monday’s game, and it showed last night. For the most part Thor cruised, and the Mets put up 12 runs against the Marlins pitching staff. Here’s the bottom line. There are four games left. The Mets are 0.5 games up on the Giants for the first Wild Card and 1.5 up on the Cardinals. Win and we’re in. We own the home field tiebreaker against the Giants. So if we coast, we host. Winning the final four games is obviously easier said than done. But I’ve tried reading all the Wild Card tiebreaker scenarios. I’m done with tiebreaker talk. Win out. No excuses. Finishing the season with 88 wins would be a decent accomplishment considering all the injuries to the pitching staff. Pray.

Strep-less Wonder: Noah Syndergaard pitched 6 innings and gave up 1 run on 5 hits with 8 Ks. His velocity was slightly down. Hopefully that was due to some residual fatigue after his battle with strep throat. He also had two hits in the game. We need to clinch before Sunday. We need Thor for the Wild Card game.

It’s Still About Homers: Jay Bruce hit a two-run homer in the second inning to make it 2-1 Mets. Bruce had two hits last night. If he’s coming out of his funk, the league better watch out. That’s assuming we actually win enough games to continue playing beyond Sunday. Yoenis Cespedes hit a two-run bomb to left center field in the third inning to make it 4-1. It was a classic Yo blast and bat flip situation.

It Was About RISP Until It Wasn’t: The Mets were 0 for 9 with RISP until the 8th inning when they broke the game open. Curtis Granderson hit a two-run single to make it 6-1 and with two outs Lucas Duda hit a bases loaded double that scored three more runs to make it 9-1. The Mets piled on 3 more runs in the 9th inning. Grandy added another double.

Bent Ankle: Jose Reyes rolled his ankle in the 8th inning after he hit a double and slammed on the breaks after rounding second base because Ty Kelly was holding at third base. Jose shook it off.

Why No Subs?: The Mets continued to play Asdrubal Cabrera and Jose Reyes until the end of the game despite having a huge lead. They also pitched Addison Reed and Jeurys Familia in a blowout. After all, we definitely need to get the league’s most overworked relievers more work.

It Changes Everything: A healthy Lucas Duda and hot Jay Bruce would really stretch out this Mets lineup. When the home run ball is flying out, the idea of adding two more all or nothing sluggers to the mix feels like a genius move in theory. I’m salivating at the prospect of a home run fueled playoff run. For now I’ll take a home run fueled five game winning streak to finish the season.

The Pitchers Are Injured: Yesterday, the Mets announced Steven Matz will miss the rest of the season. I announced it a week ago. They also mentioned that Bartolo Colon hurt his foot running the bases two weeks ago and is playing through a sprained tendon. Try not to put too much weight on it Tolo.

Today: Seth Lugo pitches tonight. I’m excited to see more of that Lugo curve. Another top notch performance from Lugo will really help calm the nerves before this must win final weekend in Philly. A loss will set off the Panic City alarms.