Travis d’Arnaud homers, Mets crush Phillies 7-1

RACHEL COHEN
AP Sports Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Bartolo Colon let the trade talk get to him — a dozen years ago, when he was dealt from the Indians to the Expos.

Baseball is now long gone in Montreal, but the 41-year-old pitcher is still going strong — and certainly won’t get distracted by any rumors.

Travis d’Arnaud went 3 for 4 with a three-run homer, Colon made his second straight strong start, and the Mets crushed the Phillies 7-1 on Monday night.

“That’s when I really noticed this is a business,” Colon said of the 2002 trade. “Really after that I quit paying attention.”

D’Arnaud hit one of three Mets doubles as they took a 4-0 lead in the first. Then the catcher’s seventh home run of the season broke the game open in the fifth.

Colon (10-8) retired the first 20 batters in his last outing Wednesday against Seattle, eventually allowing two runs on three hits in 7 1-3 innings in a 3-2 win. He wasn’t as dominant Monday. But staked to a big lead, he was never in much trouble either, scattering 10 hits over 7 2-3 innings.

With the Mets up 7-0 in the sixth, the Phillies loaded the bases after umpire Jerry Meals ruled that Daniel Murphy’s foot didn’t touch the bag on a two-out force play at second base. New York challenged, and the call stood on review.

But Colon promptly struck out Cody Asche to end the threat. The big right-hander was taken out after 121 pitches upon allowing his only run on consecutive two-out doubles in the eighth.

“You’re not just looking at a guy who’s got experience,” manager Terry Collins said. “This guy is down to earth. He’s calm. He’s not rattled by anything. He’s an inning-eating machine.”

A.J. Burnett (6-10), like Colon a veteran who could attract suitors before Thursday’s trade deadline, also was coming off a stellar outing. But after throwing 131 pitches Wednesday, one shy of his career high, Burnett got off to a shaky start this time.

Curtis Granderson walked to open the bottom of the first, and Murphy drove him in with a double. Lucas Duda had an RBI single and Juan Lagares a two-run double later in the inning. Lagares snapped an 0-for-17 slump.

Burnett settled down, retiring 11 of the next 13 batters with four strikeouts. But with two outs in the fifth, he walked Duda. Chris Young singled, then d’Arnaud made it 7-0.

“There was no life, nothing,” Burnett said. “Balls were in the middle, were not on the corners. So, yeah, it was a brutal effort.”

Catcher Carlos Ruiz was 4 for 4 with Philadelphia’s only RBI. The Phillies left 12 men on base. They had 13 hits, but 11 of them were singles.

HOWARD’S END

A day after hitting a two-run homer in a 4-2 win over Arizona, recently benched 1B Ryan Howard had a tough night, going 0 for 5 with an error. Trailing 4-0, the Phillies had runners on first and third with two out in the third, but Howard hit a hard ground ball right into the shift, with shortstop Ruben Tejada making the play from the second baseman’s spot. Howard then struck out with the bases loaded to end the game.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Mets: Lefty reliever Dana Eveland was taken out after he was struck on his pitching elbow by Ben Revere’s hard comebacker in the ninth. He said afterward he was fine. Collins said RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka, who went on the 15-day disabled list with right elbow inflammation Saturday, was feeling better and should be able to start playing catch by the end of the week.

MOVES

The Phillies released OF Tony Gwynn Jr., who had been designated for assignment last Monday. The son of the late Hall of Famer had batted .163 (16 for 98) with three extra-base hits and three RBIs.

ON DECK

LHP Cole Hamels (5-5) starts for the Phillies against Mets RHP Dillon Gee (4-3) on Tuesday night in the middle of the three-game series.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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