LDN - Sports

Consistent Colon guides Mets past Brewers

[June 10, 2016] MILWAUKEE -- In a starting rotation featuring four of the game's best young arms, 43-year-old Bartolo Colon has been an anchor for the New York Mets.

Colon came through again Thursday, posting zeroes through his first six innings of work to lead Mets to a 5-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park.

"He's irreplaceable," Mets manager Terry Collins said. "He takes the ball every five days and nothing shakes him up; he doesn't get high or low.

"He pitched a great game tonight, you go to shake his hand and he gives you that look and he's just like "OK, thanks." I know the young guys will all be there like that one day -- I don't know if they'll all play 19 years -- but this guy is a pro so to have him in that rotation really settles things down."

Colon (5-3) didn't walk a batter and allowed just one run on eight hits with a pair of strikeouts over his seven-inning effort and took a victory for the first time in his last three decisions.

"I've been doing the same stuff since the season began," Colon said. "Sometimes, you go through periods where it all works out. You have bad periods and good periods and right now, I'm going through a good one."

Curtis Granderson gave him a 1-0 lead with his fifth leadoff home run of the season, part of a two-hit day.

"That's what he can do; he can put a run on the board in a hurry," Collins said.

Bolstered by four double plays, Colon cruised into the seventh before Milwaukee finally got on the board with a two-out double by Kirk Nieuwenhuis and an RBI single by Hernan Perez, but Perez was caught trying to steal second, allowing Colon to get out of the inning without further damage.

"The double plays hurt us," Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. "They were rally killers. He did a good job once we got guys on base of getting ground balls."

Milwaukee starter Jimmy Nelson (5-5) wasn't sharp but held New York to just two runs despite giving up eight hits and a pair of walks with five strikeouts over 5 1/3 innings of work.

"I thought he scattered the ball a little bit again tonight," Counsell said. "He only ended up walking two hitters and hitting one guy, but really he fought his command a little bit, certainly. He ended up giving up two runs, so he did a good job of getting through it."

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He'd gone a season-low four innings in his last outing, allowing six runs on seven hits in a loss at Philadelphia over the weekend, his first dud in an otherwise strong body of work this season.

"Everybody else has done a great job of stepping up," Nelson said. "You see what Junior (Guerra) and all the other starters -- (Zach) Davies and Chase (Anderson) -- have been doing, putting together some unbelievable games. Those guys are doing their jobs and I'm happy for those guys. But I feel like it's my responsibility to get myself back on track."

Granderson took Nelson deep just five pitches into the game, crushing a 3-1 sinker to right for his 11th home run of the season.

He gave the Mets a 2-0 lead in the third, drawing a one-out double and scoring on a base hit by Cespedes.

Granderson reached a third time, loading the bases when he was hit by a pitch with two out in the fourth, but Nelson got Michael Conforto to pop out to short, ending the threat.

NOTES: Mets manager Terry Collins announced that LHP Stephen Matz will start Sunday in the series finale at Milwaukee. ... Brewers RF Domingo Santana is dealing with a sore right elbow and sat out a second consecutive game. ... Milwaukee activated RHP Corey Knebel from the disabled list. He had yet to pitch this season after suffering a strained left oblique during spring training. ... The Brewers got more good news on the injury front. RHP Michael Blazek reported no issues with his sore right shoulder after throwing a side session and LHP Chris Capuano, out since May 26 with a sore left elbow, will throw a bullpen session this weekend. Manager Craig Counsell wasn't sure yet if either will need a minor league rehab assignment before returning to the major leagues.

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