MIAMI _ The Marlins' August hitting woes continued on Friday night.
For the eighth straight game, Miami was held to three runs or fewer as the Mets raced to a 6-2 win in the series opener. The Marlins (47-70) have now lost nine of their past 10 contests.
New York starter Zack Wheeler pitched seven innings, allowing four hits and two runs to pick up the victory, while Jose Urena took the loss. The 26-year-old went 51/3 innings, allowing eight hits, one walk and four earned runs on 90 pitches. The Mets tagged Miami for 13 hits on the night.
Miguel Rojas provided the lone fireworks at the plate for Miami, blasting a two-run homer in the seventh inning. For Rojas, it was his third consecutive game with at least one hit and one RBI.
The Marlins had a slightly revamped lineup on display after the team traded first baseman Justin Bour to the Phillies earlier in the day for minor-league pitcher McKenzie Mills. Usual left fielder Derek Dietrich started at first, while Rafael Ortega _ who was called up on Friday _ started in left. Ortega was 1-for-4 in his Marlins debut.
The Mets (48-65) struck first in the third inning after lefty Michael Conforto shot an RBI single though the right side of the Marlins' shift to give New York a 1-0 lead.
Later in the sixth, the Mets were back at it. After chasing Urena out of the game, Marlins reliever Drew Rucinski made his first appearance since July 8 after suffering a right groin strain. Inheriting two runners from Urena, the right-hander gave up a hit-by-pitch, a single and two unearned runs _ both attributed to Urena _ in 2/3 innings.
While the Marlins struggled at the plate, J.T. Realmuto was finally able to break out of his recent slump. The All-Star catcher snapped an 0-for-23 skid, hammering a double to left in the seventh inning. During that seven-game stretch, Realmuto saw his batting average fall from .307 to .290.
