Former Duke Baseball pitcher Marcus Stroman picked up the loss for the New York Mets on Tuesday night in a crucial series opener.
The Major League Baseball season is winding down and each game becomes that much more important for teams in the playoff race.
The New York Mets welcome in the Chicago Cubs to Citi Field for a crucial three game series.
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Entering Tuesday’s series opener, the Cubs were two games ahead of the Mets for the second Wild Card spot in the National League.
New York would give the ball to its major trade deadline acquisition, Marcus Stroman to get things pointed in the right direction for the Mets who entered on a three game losing streak.
Stroman had to leave his start last week after just four innings due to hamstring tightness but was ready to go on Tuesday night.
The former Blue Devil had a strong night with the exception of allowing two, two-run home runs giving the Cubs a lead they would not relinquish.
Mets rookie Pete Alonso hit a solo homer in the bottom of the fourth inning which gave New York a 1-0 lead and broke the single season record for most home runs by a Met.
However, a lead-off double followed by an Addison Russell two-run blast gave the Cubs a 2-1 lead.
Then in the sixth inning Javy Baez would take Stroman deep to right field giving the Cubs a three-run lead over the Mets.
Chicago would go on to win the game, 5-2.
On the night Stroman pitched six innings, allowing six hits and four runs, while walking two and striking out seven.
The Mets now fall to three games behind the Cubs in the Wild Card standings and Stroman drops to 1-1 with his new team.
Marcus Stroman is scheduled to be back on the mound when the Mets are in Philadelphia to take on the Phillies on Sunday, September 1 at 7:00pm EST and that game can be seen exclusively on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball.