It was past midnight when the Miami Marlins completed their doubleheader sweep against the New York Mets to start a four-game series at Citi Field. Momentum was turning in the Marlins' favor again as they attempt to keep a firm grasp on their playoff positioning as the shortened 2020 season nears the halfway mark.
But Marlins manager Don Mattingly knew his team couldn't get wrapped up in the wins that were already behind them.
The biggest challenge of the series was still ahead of them.
"Whatever happens today, in about 10 minutes, it's over," Mattingly said in the wee hours of Wednesday morning following the 4-0 and 3-0 wins. "We've got Jacob deGrom (Wednesday), and that's the game we have to try to win."
Try as they might, the Marlins once again had little success against one of Major League Baseball's best pitchers and their late rally attempt once he left the mound didn't hold.
deGrom tied a career high with 14 strikeouts against the Marlins, who lost 5-4 to the Mets on Wednesday. The two-time-defending National League Cy Young Award winner held the Marlins (14-12) to two hits and two walks over seven innings.
The lone run deGrom gave up came in the third. Matt Joyce led off the inning with a bloop double to shallow left field that fell between three Mets players. Jesus Aguilar moved Joyce to third with a groundout and Corey Dickerson brought him home with another groundout.
Miami put together an eighth-inning rally against the Mets' bullpen to tie the game, scoring runs on a Jesus Aguilar bases-loaded infield single and back-to-back bases-loaded walks from Dickerson and Brian Anderson.
But Wilson Ramos' RBI single in the bottom half of the inning against Nick Vincent put the Mets (13-16) ahead for good.
Over three starts against Miami this year, deGrom held the Marlins to three earned runs on 13 hits and four walks with 27 strikeouts over 18 innings.
