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(Sports Network) – Jenrry Mejia makes his first major league start this afternoon, when the New York Mets continue their three-game series with the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.
The 20-year-old right-hander made the Mets with a terrific spring and was used in relief before being sent to Double-A in late June to stretch him out to become a starter. He was 0-2 with a 3.25 earned run average in 30 appearances with the big-league team.
“It helped me,” Mejia said of his time in the bullpen with the Mets. “Now I know I can pitch here.”
Mejia excelled at Double-A Binghamton after being sent down, going 2-0 with a 1.32 ERA in six starts. In his first Triple-A start for Buffalo, Mejia gave up a run in eight innings on Monday.
He faced the Cubs twice earlier in the season, tossing two scoreless innings.
The Cubs drew first blood in this series on Friday, as Blake DeWitt’s three- run homer in the sixth provided the difference in Chicago’s 7-6 victory.
DeWitt hit his fourth home run in just 30 games with Chicago since a midseason trade with the Dodgers, and the Cubs improved to 7-3 under interim manager Mike Quade. Alfonso Soriano also hit a three-run shot in the victory, while Xavier Nady went 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored.
Chicago’s Randy Wells allowed four runs, eight hits and four walks in the start, and James Russell (1-1) earned the win for retiring the only batter he faced. Carlos Marmol ended up with his 26th save of the season.
David Wright hit a solo homer among three hits and drove in three runs for the Mets, while Luis Hernandez hit his first home run with the team. That still wasn’t enough to prevent New York from falling for the fourth time in five games.
Mets starter R.A. Dickey (9-6) squandered an opportunity to set a new career- high in wins after giving up a season-worst seven runs on eight hits and a walk in six frames.
Today Chicago will hand the ball to volatile righty Carlos Zambrano, who has won his last three decisions. Zambrano won his second straight start Monday against Pittsburgh, which managed just an unearned run and four hits in 5 1/3 frames off him.
The three-time All-Star is 3-0 with a 1.84 ERA in five starts since returning to the rotation following anger management classes.
Zambrano lost to the Mets earlier in the year and is 4-3 lifetime against them with a 3.63 ERA in 11 games, 10 of which have been starts
The Mets won three of four meetings with the Cubs in a series held in New York back in April.
Since returning to the starting rotation last month, Carlos Zambrano has posted a 3-0 record and a 1.84 ERA. He's given up quite a few walks -- 20 in 29 innings -- but no home runs.
This afternoon at Wrigley Field, Big Z and the Cubs will take on the Mets in the second of a three-game series. Mets rookie Jenrry Mejia will be making his first major league start after 30 relief appearances.
The game, originally scheduled for a 3:10 start, will now begin at 12:05 and be televised on WGN.
Aramis Ramirez Homers, Carlos Marmol Saves, Cubs Win Third In Row
Chicago, IL (Sports Network) – Carlos Zambrano allowed two runs in seven strong innings, and the Chicago Cubs ensured themselves a series victory with a 5-3 win over the New York Mets at Wrigley Field.
Zambrano (7-6) struck out eight and walked two while allowing four hits for the Cubs, who are 8-3 under interim manager Mike Quade. In six starts since coming off the restricted list due to anger management issues, Zambrano is 4-0 with a 1.98 earned run average.
Aramis Ramirez added a solo homer for the Cubs, while Carlos Marmol notched his 27th save of the season.
Jenrry Mejia (0-3) made his first career start for the Mets and yielded four runs, eight hits and two walks while fanning two in five frames. The 20-year- old became the youngest starter in team history since Dwight Gooden debuted as a 19-year-old in 1984.
Ike Davis hit his 16th homer for New York, which fell to a dreadful 1-15-4 in NL road series this season.
Chicago jumped on top with a run in the second inning.
Xavier Nady singled to center with one away and came around to score on a two- out double to left by Geovany Soto.
In the third, Marlon Byrd singled with one out, went to third on a Ramirez double and scored to make it 2-0 on Nady’s sacrifice fly.
The Mets finally got on the board in the fourth. With runners on the corners and one out, Lucas Duda struck out, but New York executed a successful double steal, with Luis Castillo scoring on the play.
New York couldn’t tie the game, though, and Chicago increased its lead with a two-run fifth.
Starlin Castro singled and stole second and come home on Byrd’s double to right. Byrd took third on a fly out, and, with two outs, scored when Tyler Colvin reached on a wild pitch third strike for a 4-1 advantage.
The teams traded solo homers in the seventh. Davis’ one-out blast for the Mets made it a two-run game before Ramirez restored the three-run cushion with a leadoff shot in the home half.
New York crept closer on Carlos Beltran’s RBI double in the eighth, and Davis’ one-out single off Marmol in the ninth brought the tying run to the plate. Josh Thole and Mike Hessman, however, both struck out looking to end the threat.
Quade is the first Cubs manager to start 8-3 since Jim Essian in 1991…Zambrano passed Kerry Wood for third on the team’s all-time strikeout list. He now has 1,411…The Mets are 10-21 in their last 31 road contests…Castro went 2-for-4, extending his streak of multi-hit games to six…Mejia made 30 relief appearances for the Mets earlier this season, going 0-2 with a 3.25 ERA…The season series is tied, 3-3.
Sep 04 3:37p by Al Yellon - 0 comments