Marcus Stroman continues to meet the expectations of being the New York Mets’ No. 2 starter that was hastily placed on his shoulders after Carlos Carrasco went down with a torn hamstring just before the start of the season, posting another gem on Sunday afternoon.
The 29-year-old right-hander went eight innings, allowing just one run on three hits in a 2-1 Mets win — their fifth in six games — to take the rubber game of a three-game set over the Colorado Rockies.
Stroman has now allowed just two runs in 20 innings pitched over three outings this season, providing a shutdown option behind staff ace Jacob deGrom.
The slim victory was preserved by Edwin Diaz, who gave up a two-out single to Trevor Story, but was bailed out when James McCann gunned out the Rockies star when he was trying to steal second.
Stroman’s gem was all the more important considering the Mets’ bats were sluggish yet again on Sunday as they went 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position.
Jeff McNeil picked up an RBI in the third inning when he grounded out with runners on second and third to put the Mets out in front. The advantage was doubled in the fourth when J.D. Davis singled home Michael Conforto.
Meanwhile, Stroman did what he does best: keeping the ball low in the zone while inducing soft contact, expending just 58 pitches over his first six innings of work while allowing just one hit.
He ran into trouble in the seventh when Charlie Blackmon singled home Trevor Story, who cracked a one-out double, to halve the Mets’ lead. But Stroman collected two of his five strikeouts to get out of the jam, setting down CJ Cron and Garrett Hampson consecutively.
Stroman’s day was called at 90 pitches, paving the way for Diaz to pick up his second save in three days.
