NEW YORK -- As weeks of rehabilitation turned into months and then years, Zack Wheeler kept thinking about what his return from Tommy John surgery would be like.
Fantasy didn't translate into reality.
"Absolutely not," Wheeler said after lasting just four innings in his first big league game in three years. "I wanted to come out here and dominate today, just sort of put my foot down that I'm back and I belong here."
Derek Dietrich hit a go-ahead, two-run triple in a three-run second inning and Christian Yelich had a two-run homer in the third, powering the Miami Marlins over the New York Mets 7-2 on Friday night.
Wheeler (0-1) allowed five runs, six hits and one walk with four strikeouts , throwing 54 of 80 pitches for strikes on a raw night with the temperature in the 40s. When the 26-year-old right-hander came out of the game, Mets manager Terry Collins tried to reinforce the night's positives.
"You made some quality pitches," the manager recalled telling him. "OK, you made some mistakes and he got hurt by them, but you're going to in this league. But it's the first step in a long road back and what this kid's gone through in the last two years, I'm just glad he's back out there."
Wheeler soaked in the scene when he walked in from the bullpen after his warmup, and pitching coach Dan Warthen tried to lighten the mood with jokes, just like he did when Wheeler established himself with the Mets in 2013 and '14.
He had gone 924 days between starts, losing at Washington on Sept. 25, 2014, in his previous big league outing. Among the Mets' heralded young starters, injured his elbow pitching against Miami in a spring training game the following March 9 and had surgery 16 days later to repair a torn right ulnar collateral ligament.
Wheeler returned last summer and threw 17 pitches over one inning in a rain-shortened start on Aug. 6 for Class A St. Lucie, then complained of elbow discomfort and didn't pitch again. Amped up for his return, he reached 95-98 mph on the radar readings in the first two innings, then dropped to 93-94 mph in the third.
"Honestly, I thought I would have more nerves and jitters but I didn't. I had a lot of adrenaline going in that first inning," he said. "I sort of just fell off afterwards when it was time to come and throw your offspeed pitches."
Curtis Granderson's first-inning RBI single against Wei-Yin Chen (1-0) gave Wheeler a lead as food wrappers and napkins blew across the field.
Working on the first base edge of the pitching rubber, Wheeler worked a 1-2-3 first and retired Giancarlo Stanton leading off the second on a deep fly to left into a 22 mph wind.
He walked Justin Bour, Marcell Ozuna reached on a soft single and Dietrich tripled off the base of the center field wall for a 2-1 lead. Adeiny Hechavarria followed with an RBI groundout. Yelich homered on an offspeed pitch in the fourth, driving a slider off the right-field foul pole, his fourth straight game at Citi Field with a home run.
"You want to get back. You want feel like you belong in the big leagues and you can pitch, and I think it was a huge step for him to step on a big league mound again," catcher Rene Rivera said of Wheeler. "He will be fine."
Chen gave up one run and seven hits in six innings with five strikeouts and one walk. He reached on an infield single in the fourth, ending an 0-for-51 slump at the start of his career, the fourth-longest for players who debuted in 1900 or later, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
"I think I was more happy about the hit than the win," Chen said through a translator.
GETTING STARTED
With only a few hundred fans remaining, Yoenis Cespedes hit his first home run of the season in the eighth, a drive to left off Nick Wittgren.
ROSTER CHANGE
New York said after the game it is bringing up RHP Paul Sewald from the minors. The clear a roster spot, the Mets designated infielder/outfielder Ty Kelly for assignment.
UP NEXT
New York completes the first turn of its rotation Saturday when RHP Robert Gsellman starts against Adam Conley, the third straight left-handed starter to face the Mets.
---
More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball
Miami Marlins
Fantasy didn't translate into reality.
"Absolutely not," Wheeler said after lasting just four innings in his first big league game in three years. "I wanted to come out here and dominate today, just sort of put my foot down that I'm back and I belong here."
Derek Dietrich hit a go-ahead, two-run triple in a three-run second inning and Christian Yelich had a two-run homer in the third, powering the Miami Marlins over the New York Mets 7-2 on Friday night.
Wheeler (0-1) allowed five runs, six hits and one walk with four strikeouts , throwing 54 of 80 pitches for strikes on a raw night with the temperature in the 40s. When the 26-year-old right-hander came out of the game, Mets manager Terry Collins tried to reinforce the night's positives.
"You made some quality pitches," the manager recalled telling him. "OK, you made some mistakes and he got hurt by them, but you're going to in this league. But it's the first step in a long road back and what this kid's gone through in the last two years, I'm just glad he's back out there."
Wheeler soaked in the scene when he walked in from the bullpen after his warmup, and pitching coach Dan Warthen tried to lighten the mood with jokes, just like he did when Wheeler established himself with the Mets in 2013 and '14.
He had gone 924 days between starts, losing at Washington on Sept. 25, 2014, in his previous big league outing. Among the Mets' heralded young starters, injured his elbow pitching against Miami in a spring training game the following March 9 and had surgery 16 days later to repair a torn right ulnar collateral ligament.
Wheeler returned last summer and threw 17 pitches over one inning in a rain-shortened start on Aug. 6 for Class A St. Lucie, then complained of elbow discomfort and didn't pitch again. Amped up for his return, he reached 95-98 mph on the radar readings in the first two innings, then dropped to 93-94 mph in the third.
"Honestly, I thought I would have more nerves and jitters but I didn't. I had a lot of adrenaline going in that first inning," he said. "I sort of just fell off afterwards when it was time to come and throw your offspeed pitches."
Curtis Granderson's first-inning RBI single against Wei-Yin Chen (1-0) gave Wheeler a lead as food wrappers and napkins blew across the field.
Working on the first base edge of the pitching rubber, Wheeler worked a 1-2-3 first and retired Giancarlo Stanton leading off the second on a deep fly to left into a 22 mph wind.
He walked Justin Bour, Marcell Ozuna reached on a soft single and Dietrich tripled off the base of the center field wall for a 2-1 lead. Adeiny Hechavarria followed with an RBI groundout. Yelich homered on an offspeed pitch in the fourth, driving a slider off the right-field foul pole, his fourth straight game at Citi Field with a home run.
"You want to get back. You want feel like you belong in the big leagues and you can pitch, and I think it was a huge step for him to step on a big league mound again," catcher Rene Rivera said of Wheeler. "He will be fine."
Chen gave up one run and seven hits in six innings with five strikeouts and one walk. He reached on an infield single in the fourth, ending an 0-for-51 slump at the start of his career, the fourth-longest for players who debuted in 1900 or later, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
"I think I was more happy about the hit than the win," Chen said through a translator.
GETTING STARTED
With only a few hundred fans remaining, Yoenis Cespedes hit his first home run of the season in the eighth, a drive to left off Nick Wittgren.
ROSTER CHANGE
New York said after the game it is bringing up RHP Paul Sewald from the minors. The clear a roster spot, the Mets designated infielder/outfielder Ty Kelly for assignment.
UP NEXT
New York completes the first turn of its rotation Saturday when RHP Robert Gsellman starts against Adam Conley, the third straight left-handed starter to face the Mets.
---
More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball
| View: Play-By-Play | Pitch-By-Pitch | Inning: All | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| Miami - Top of 1st | SCORE | |
|---|---|---|
| Zack Wheeler pitching for New York | MIA | NYM |
| Gordon grounded out to shortstop. | 0 | 0 |
| Ellis struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| Yelich struck out looking. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 1st | SCORE | |
| Wei-Yin Chen pitching for Miami | MIA | NYM |
| Reyes bunt grounded out to pitcher. | 0 | 0 |
| Cabrera singled to right. | 0 | 0 |
| Céspedes flied out to center. | 0 | 0 |
| Flores walked, Cabrera to second. | 0 | 0 |
| Granderson singled to deep left, Cabrera scored, Flores to second. | 0 | 1 |
| Walker flied out to center. | 0 | 1 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Top of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Zack Wheeler pitching for New York | MIA | NYM |
| Stanton flied out to left. | 0 | 1 |
| Bour walked. | 0 | 1 |
| Ozuna singled to deep center, Bour to third. | 0 | 1 |
| Dietrich tripled to deep center, Bour and Ozuna scored. | 2 | 1 |
| Hechavarria grounded out to shortstop, Dietrich scored. | 3 | 1 |
| Chen struck out looking. | 3 | 1 |
| 3 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Wei-Yin Chen pitching for Miami | MIA | NYM |
| Bruce flied out to left. | 3 | 1 |
| R. Rivera reached on infield single to third. | 3 | 1 |
| Wheeler bunted into fielder's choice to first, R. Rivera out at second. | 3 | 1 |
| Reyes struck out swinging. | 3 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Top of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Zack Wheeler pitching for New York | MIA | NYM |
| Gordon singled to deep center. | 3 | 1 |
| Gordon stole second. | 3 | 1 |
| Ellis grounded out to shortstop, Gordon to third. | 3 | 1 |
| Yelich homered to right (352 feet), Gordon scored. | 5 | 1 |
| Stanton singled to deep center. | 5 | 1 |
| Bour struck out swinging. | 5 | 1 |
| Ozuna grounded into fielder's choice to third, Stanton out at second. | 5 | 1 |
| 2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Wei-Yin Chen pitching for Miami | MIA | NYM |
| Cabrera lined out to pitcher. | 5 | 1 |
| Céspedes struck out swinging. | 5 | 1 |
| Flores singled to deep left. | 5 | 1 |
| Granderson struck out swinging. | 5 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Top of 4th | SCORE | |
| Zack Wheeler pitching for New York | MIA | NYM |
| Dietrich flied out to right. | 5 | 1 |
| Hechavarria grounded out to first. | 5 | 1 |
| Chen reached on infield single to shortstop. | 5 | 1 |
| Gordon grounded out to second. | 5 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 4th | SCORE | |
| Wei-Yin Chen pitching for Miami | MIA | NYM |
| Walker lined out to left. | 5 | 1 |
| Bruce grounded out to second. | 5 | 1 |
| R. Rivera doubled to deep left. | 5 | 1 |
| T.J. Rivera hit for Wheeler. | 5 | 1 |
| T.J. Rivera struck out swinging. | 5 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Top of 5th | SCORE | |
| Josh Smoker pitching for New York | MIA | NYM |
| Smoker relieved Wheeler. | 5 | 1 |
| Ellis struck out swinging. | 5 | 1 |
| Yelich singled to deep left. | 5 | 1 |
| Stanton walked, Yelich to second. | 5 | 1 |
| Bour walked, Yelich to third, Stanton to second. | 5 | 1 |
| Ozuna singled to left, Yelich scored, Stanton to third, Bour to second. | 6 | 1 |
| Dietrich singled to deep center, Stanton scored, Bour to third, Ozuna to second. | 7 | 1 |
| Montero relieved Smoker. | 7 | 1 |
| Hechavarria grounded into double play, pitcher to catcher to first, Bour out at home. | 7 | 1 |
| 2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 5th | SCORE | |
| Wei-Yin Chen pitching for Miami | MIA | NYM |
| Reyes grounded out to pitcher. | 7 | 1 |
| Cabrera struck out swinging. | 7 | 1 |
| Céspedes popped out to second. | 7 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Top of 6th | SCORE | |
| Rafael Montero pitching for New York | MIA | NYM |
| Chen lined out to right. | 7 | 1 |
| Gordon grounded out to shortstop. | 7 | 1 |
| Ellis walked. | 7 | 1 |
| Yelich popped out to shortstop. | 7 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 6th | SCORE | |
| Wei-Yin Chen pitching for Miami | MIA | NYM |
| Flores flied out to right. | 7 | 1 |
| Granderson doubled to deep left. | 7 | 1 |
| Walker singled to shallow left, Granderson to third. | 7 | 1 |
| Bruce grounded into double play, shortstop to first, Walker out at second. | 7 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Top of 7th | SCORE | |
| Rafael Montero pitching for New York | MIA | NYM |
| Stanton struck out looking. | 7 | 1 |
| Bour flied out to left. | 7 | 1 |
| Ozuna reached on infield single to second. | 7 | 1 |
| Dietrich walked, Ozuna to second. | 7 | 1 |
| Hechavarria struck out swinging. | 7 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 7th | SCORE | |
| Nick Wittgren pitching for Miami | MIA | NYM |
| Wittgren relieved Chen. | 7 | 1 |
| Rojas at third base. | 7 | 1 |
| R. Rivera struck out swinging. | 7 | 1 |
| Conforto hit for Montero. | 7 | 1 |
| Conforto reached on infield single to shortstop. | 7 | 1 |
| Reyes lined out to right. | 7 | 1 |
| Cabrera grounded out to second. | 7 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Top of 8th | SCORE | |
| Josh Edgin pitching for New York | MIA | NYM |
| Edgin relieved Montero. | 7 | 1 |
| Rojas popped out to second. | 7 | 1 |
| Gordon popped out to third. | 7 | 1 |
| Ellis grounded out to third. | 7 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 8th | SCORE | |
| Nick Wittgren pitching for Miami | MIA | NYM |
| Céspedes homered to left (368 feet). | 7 | 2 |
| Flores popped out to second. | 7 | 2 |
| Granderson struck out swinging. | 7 | 2 |
| McGowan relieved Wittgren. | 7 | 2 |
| Walker grounded out to second. | 7 | 2 |
| 1 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Top of 9th | SCORE | |
| Josh Edgin pitching for New York | MIA | NYM |
| Yelich grounded out to shortstop. | 7 | 2 |
| Stanton popped out to third. | 7 | 2 |
| Bour reached on infield single to second. | 7 | 2 |
| Ozuna walked, Bour to second. | 7 | 2 |
| McGowan struck out looking. | 7 | 2 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Bottom of 9th | SCORE | |
| Dustin McGowan pitching for Miami | MIA | NYM |
| Bruce walked. | 7 | 2 |
| Duda hit for R. Rivera. | 7 | 2 |
| Duda struck out swinging. | 7 | 2 |
| d'Arnaud hit for Edgin. | 7 | 2 |
| d'Arnaud grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, Bruce out at second. | 7 | 2 |
| Reyes grounded out to second. | 7 | 2 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
Miami Marlins
| Hitters | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | #P | AVG | OBP | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gordon 2B | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | .167 | .211 | .167 |
| Ellis C | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 24 | .000 | .200 | .000 |
| Yelich CF | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 14 | .333 | .368 | .500 |
| Stanton RF | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 19 | .235 | .278 | .294 |
| Bour 1B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 23 | .143 | .333 | .214 |
| Ozuna LF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 19 | .412 | .444 | .412 |
| Dietrich 3B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 20 | .300 | .462 | .500 |
Wittgren P
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
McGowan P
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Hechavarria SS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 13 | .133 | .188 | .133 |
| Chen P | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 13 | .333 | .333 | .333 |
Rojas 3B
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .200 | .200 | .200 |
| Totals | 37 | 7 | 11 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 175 | |||
| BATTING 3B: Dietrich (1, Wheeler) HR: Yelich (1, 3rd inning off Wheeler 1 on, 1 Out) RBI: Dietrich 3 (3), Hechavarria (1), Yelich 2 (2), Ozuna (4) GIDP: Hechavarria Marlins RISP: 4-9 (Hechavarria 0-3, Ellis 0-1, McGowan 0-1, Ozuna 1-1, Dietrich 2-2, Yelich 1-1) Team LOB: 9 | ||||||||||
| BASERUNNING SB: Gordon (2, 2nd base off Wheeler/R. Rivera) | ||||||||||
| FIELDING DP: 1 (Hechavarria-Bour). | ||||||||||
Game Information
| Stadium | Citi Field, New York, NY |
| Attendance | 27,891 (66.5% full) - % is based on regular season capacity |
| Game Time | 3:06 |
| Weather | 47 degrees, cloudy |
| Wind | 22 mph |
| Umpires | Home Plate - Pat Hoberg, First Base - Gerry Davis, Second Base - Tony Randazzo, Third Base - Rob Drake |
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