Mets ace Jacob deGrom pitched brilliantly until he was hit in the pitching arm by a line drive and exited in the seventh inning, and New York homered four times to rout the Philadelphia Phillies 10-0 on Thursday night.
DeGrom (13-5) was nailed in the back of the right arm, just above the elbow, by Nick Williams' liner. X-rays were negative, and the team said deGrom had a bruised triceps.
The 29-year-old deGrom initially smiled when manager Terry Collins went to check on him. But deGrom never threw a warmup pitch nor appeared to protest Collins' decision to take him out.
DeGrom gave up four hits in 6 2/3 innings, striking out nine without a walk. He improved to 9-2 with a 1.82 ERA in his last 11 starts while upping his career mark against Philadelphia to 6-0 with a 2.10 ERA in 10 starts.
The injury-ravaged Mets already are without starters Noah Snydergaard (right lat tear), Matt Harvey (stress injury to right shoulder) and Zack Wheeler (stress reaction in right arm).
It had been a feel-good night to that point for the Mets, who avoided falling 12 games under .500 for the first time since the end of the 2013 season with just their second win in the last seven games.
Wilmer Flores finished a triple shy of the cycle, Neil Walker had four hits with a homer, and Michael Conforto and Curtis Granderson also went deep as the Mets continued their power surge at Citizens Bank Park. The Mets have hit 51 homers in their last 23 games in Philadelphia.
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Flores hit a three-run shot to straightaway center in the first off Vince Velasquez (2-7). Velasquez didn't return after his shaky 32-pitch first inning due to numbness in his right middle finger. The right-hander was making his fifth start after being sidelined for 1 ½ months due to a right elbow flexor strain.
Mark Leiter Jr. replaced Velasquez and gave up a solo shot to Walker in the third before settling down to strike out seven in five strong innings of relief.
Conforto stayed hot and blew the game open in the seventh with an opposite-field, three-run homer off the foul pole in left. The home run extended Conforto's career high to 24 on the season while giving him 11 in his last 13 games.
Granderson hit a two-run drive in the ninth.
Odubel Herrera extended his career-best hitting streak to 13 consecutive games with a seventh-inning single for the Phillies.
Rhys Hoskins went 0-for-2 with a walk in his major-league debut. A natural first baseman, Hoskins started in left field after getting his first action there as a pro just this week at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. He did play the outfield in college.
REMEMBERING DUTCH
The Phillies held a pregame moment of silence for former star catcher Darren Daulton. This was the first time the Phillies played at home since Daulton died over the week of brain cancer. Daulton's No. 10 was written in the dirt behind the catcher's box.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Mets: New York recalled OF Juan Lagares from Double-A Binghamton prior to the game. Lagares had been on the DL since June 16 with a fractured right thumb. Lagares replaced Jay Bruce, who was traded to Cleveland on Wednesday night.
Phillies: OF Aaron Altherr likely won't return until September, Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said prior to the game. Altherr (strained right hamstring) went on the DL on Saturday.
UP NEXT
Mets: RHP Seth Lugo (5-3, 4.55) makes his first-ever start at hitter-friendly Citizens Bank Park. Lugo has allowed multiple home runs in three straight starts.
Phillies: RHP Nick Pivetta (4-7, 5.89) will look to build on the success he had in his only other start against the Mets when he allowed one run on one hit in seven innings on July 10 in New York.
