Flushing, NY (Sports Network) – Prince Fielder drove in two runs as the Milwaukee Brewers took a 6-2 win in the finale of a three-game set against the Mets at Citi Field to sweep New York and continue their surge.
Ryan Braun went 3-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored for the Brewers, who have won nine of their last 10 games. Yovani Gallardo (14-8) worked seven innings, giving up just two runs on six hits with six strikeouts to get the victory.
“The guys picked me up out there today,” said Gallardo. “We’re just playing really good baseball right now and we want to keep it going out there.”
Milwaukee leads St. Louis, which plays in Chicago later Sunday, by nine games for first place in the NL Central — the largest division lead for the club in team history.
Also, thanks to a 22-3 run since losing consecutive games on July 23-24, the Brewers stand at 76-52 and are 24 games over .500 for the first time since holding an 80-56 mark on August 31, 2008.
Lucas Duda’s two-run homer accounted for all the runs for the Mets, who have lost nine of 11. R.A. Dickey gave up just two runs on six hits over seven innings, but did not factor into the decision.
“I have great confidence in my players and think they can get the job done,” said Mets manager Terry Collins. “Obviously I was wrong, we can’t stop anybody. I should have stayed with Dickey and tried to keep the game tied. I thought we’d try to play the win there and we just can’t stop anybody.”
The score was tied after seven innings, but the Brewers went ahead in the eighth.
With Manny Acosta (1-1) on the mound, Nyjer Morgan worked a walk to begin the frame and Braun singled to right to put runners on the corners and chase Acosta. Tim Byrdak then took the mound and got Fielder to hit a grounder to second that Justin Turner fielded cleanly, but he threw the ball out of the reach of Ruben Tejada and everyone was safe with Morgan scoring the go-ahead run.
Jason Isringhausen then took the mound and got the next two batters out, but Jerry Hairston Jr. singled home Braun for a 4-2 advantage.
Francisco Rodriguez, who got the win in Saturday’s game in his first appearance against his former team, pitched a 1-2-3 eighth inning.
Milwaukee tacked on two more runs in the ninth thanks to a suicide squeeze from Nyjer Morgan that plated Craig Counsell and an RBI double from Braun for a 6-2 lead.
LaTroy Hawkins pitched a perfect ninth to complete the win.
The first three innings of the game went scoreless before the Brewers took the lead on Casey McGehee’s two-out, solo home run in the fourth.
In the sixth inning the Brewers added another run as Braun led off with a single, stole second then came home on a single from Fielder for a 2-0 lead.
Gallardo, meanwhile, was dealing on the mound as he allowed just three hits through the first six innings, but the Mets finally got to him in the seventh.
David Wright led off the inning with a single and Duda tied it when he drilled a pitch over the wall in right-center for his sixth homer of the year. Jason Bay then double to put the go-ahead run in scoring position, but the next two batters recorded outs without moving Bay up. After Tejada was issued an intentional walk, Gallardo got Willie Harris to fly out and end the inning.