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Flores powers Mets past Marlins

Sep 17, 2014 - 5:52 AM Flushing, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - Wilmer Flores had the best game of his young career and made Mets history in the process, belting two home runs and leading New York to a 9-1 rout of the Miami Marlins on Tuesday.

Flores finished 3-for-4 with a pair of homers and six runs batted in, becoming the first Mets second baseman to record such numbers in a game. He's also the first player since Geovany Soto in 2008 to have multiple six-plus RBI games in his rookie season.

"It's good helping your team," Flores said. "I'm seeing the ball well right now."

Curtis Granderson had three hits and Ruben Tejada drove in a pair of runs for the Mets, who ended a three-game losing skid and evened this three-game series.

Bartolo Colon, back on the hill five days after getting ejected for the first time since 2003, gave up 12 hits but only one run in 7 1/3 innings of work. Colon (14-12) struck out seven and did not walk a batter.

Christian Yelich provided the lone Marlins run with an RBI infield single in the third inning. Starter Nathan Eovaldi (6-12) was charged with six runs on six hits to lose for the sixth time in his last seven starts.

"(Eovaldi) didn't give us the start we needed," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said. "It was tough."

Eovaldi rolled through the first three innings, yielding just a leadoff single to Lucas Duda in the second, but things unraveled in the fourth. Travis d'Arnaud doubled with one out. After Duda went down swinging, Flores crushed a double off the wall in left to tie the game. Granderson followed with an RBI single, Matt den Dekker walked and after a brief meeting at the mound, Tejada made it 4-1 with a two-run double to the gap in left-center.

Miami threatened to reclaim the lead a half inning later, loading the bases with one out against Colon, but Marcell Ozuna struck out and Garrett Jones grounded out to shortstop to end the inning.

Eovaldi allowed two men to reach in the fifth before Brad Penny came on in his place. Penny fanned Duda for the second out in the inning before Flores broke the game open with his three-run blast to left.

The young second baseman added to the lead two innings later, homering for the second time off Penny to make it 9-1.

Game Notes

Mets center fielder Juan Lagares left the game after the fourth inning with a hyperextended right elbow ... Colon improved to 3-2 in five career starts against the Marlins ... Reed Johnson and Donovan Solano had three hits apiece for Miami ... Miami outhit New York, 13-12.