MIAMI _ Any series against the Mets, a formidable opponent on the mound is a given.
The cast of quality arms is imposing: Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey. That was the trio the Marlins faced in the last three games of the weekend series at Marlins Park.
An Easter parade of Miami pitchers outdid them all Sunday in carrying a no-hit bid until two outs in the eighth inning.
The no-hitter was lost in the eighth inning and ultimately an uplifting shutout win on pinch-hitter Asdrubal Cabrera's tying two-run single in the ninth inning off David Phelps.
But it ended well for Miami when rookie J.T. Riddle hit a two-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth for a 4-2 victory.
It was the second walk-off win of the series as the Marlins won three of four from their division rivals.
Phelps was on the verge of closing it out before Wilmer Flores kept the Mets alive with a single to right. That sent Travis d'Arnaud to third, and when Giancarlo Stanton bobbled the ball in right field, Flores raced to second.
Earlier, in the eighth inning, Neil Walker's sharp single to center off Brad Ziegler ended the possibility of the first combined no-hitter in Marlins history. Yoenis Cespedes followed with another clean hit, but Ziegler got Jay Bruce on a grounder to keep the shutout intact going into the ninth.
Dan Straily worked the first 5 1/3 innings, lifted after walking five and throwing 93 pitches. Jarlin Garcia and Kyle Barraclough kept the no-no going through seven innings
The Marlins have had five complete-game no-hitters. They were looking at a five-man effort to get it done Sunday.
Straily might as well have been carrying a lunch pail when he took the mound against Harvey. The journeyman right-hander, on his fifth team in six seasons, looked every bit the ace as held the Mets without a hit into the sixth inning.
Straily couldn't finish what he started. After issuing back-to-back walks with one out, manager Don Mattingly came out with the hook.
Rookie left-hander Garcia, in his second big-league appearance, came on to retire two of the Mets' toughest hitters, Bruce (strikeout) and Lucas Duda (fly to left) to keep the Mets without a hit or run.
Earlier, Straily was supported by a highlight-reel catch by Marcell Ozuna, who scaled the fence in left to grab Wilmer Flores' deep drive for the second out of the fifth.
It didn't appear the ball would have cleared the fence, but it was headed for trouble. Ozuna received a long embrace by Straily in the dugout after the inning.
Stanton made a running catch on Travis d'Arnaud's bid for a hit toward the right-field corner leading off the seventh.
The Marlins added to an early lead on Ozuna's RBI-double in the sixth, scoring Christian Yelich, but should have had another. Justin Bour, trying to score from first, somehow failed to get his foot on the plate despite arriving ahead of the ball.
Side-armer Ziegler came on in the eighth and got a quick groundout by pinch-hitter Michael Conforto. With the count full to Curtis Granderson, Ziegler spun a pitch up over the plate and the Mets' leadoff hitter swung under it for the second out.
Up came Walker, who jumped on a 2-0 sinker and hit is solidly past the mound and into center field.
The Marlins manufactured a run in the first on the legs of Dee Gordon, who dragged a bunt for a hit without drawing a throw. Harvey then threw wide on a pickoff attempt and Gordon went all the way to third as the ball ricocheted into right field. He came home on Yelich's grounder to short.
The Marlins had a tough break in the fourth when Ozuna's liner to the right side on a hit-and-run struck Stanton, who was on the run, in the rear end. With an exit velocity of 92 mph, according to Statcast, it had to sting.
The added hurt was it cost the Marlins an out and derailed what could have been a productive inning.
