SAN FRANCISCO _ Batterymates Rene Rivera and Rafael Montero enjoyed banner days, Jay Bruce slugged his 20th homer of the season and the Mets extended their winning streak to three games by beating the Giants, 8-2.
But even Sunday afternoon's respite from a season of disappointment came with reason for pause. Michael Conforto left the game shortly after he was struck on the left hand on the final pitch thrown by Giants left-hander Matt Moore.
According to the Mets, X-rays were negative for Conforto, who escaped with little more than a bruise. He began the day hitting .288 with 14 homers. He leads the team with a .959 OPS in what has been a bounceback season for the former first-rounder.
The Mets completed a three-game sweep of the moribund Giants, with most of it powered by a backup catcher in Rivera and a pitcher in Montero looking to re-establish his standing with the franchise.
Rivera hit a two-run shot in the second and followed with a solo home run in the fourth, giving the nine-year veteran the first multi-homer game of his career. He also made a sliding catch near the backstop and bailed the Mets out of a jam by throwing out Hunter Pence trying to steal second.
Rivera's work behind the plate helped propel Montero to his first victory since 2014. In one of his best starts in the big leagues, the right-hander held the Giants to one run over 5 2/3 innings. The performance came after two strong relief appearances that earned him Sunday's starting assignment.
Facing one of the weakest lineups in baseball _ the Giants began the day with a .674 OPS _ Montero shed his reputation for nibbling. He attacked the strike zone with his fastball, which set up his secondary offerings. The results were swings and misses and an ability to work out of trouble.
"If they hit a couple of balls hard, I don't want him to shy away," manager Terry Collins said before the game. "I want him to continue to do what's (brought) him success in the last couple of outings, and that's mix it up and throw the ball over the plate."
The Giants (27-51) only helped Montero's cause.
Pence's stolen-base attempt came with two outs in the third and a runner on third, an inexplicable risk given the situation. The Giants ran themselves out of another rally in the sixth. With men on first and second, manager Bruce Bochy sent the runners in motion, only to have Buster Posey hit a pop up behind first base. Joe Panik was doubled off second.
On Friday, general manager Sandy Alderson signaled a willingness to listen to trade offers for veteran players in their free-agency walk years. Since then, the Mets have yet to lose. Still, they remain seven games under .500 and 11 games out of a playoff spot.
Bruce upped his potential trade value, hammering his 20th homer of the season to continue what has been a scorching June. He's on pace to eclipse 40 homers and 100 RBIs for the season. Curtis Granderson added a solo shot into McCovey Cove in the ninth, giving the Mets 46 homers in June, a new franchise record for the most home runs hit in a single month.
