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Mets come back to beat Cubs, come away with much-needed win

Welcome to The Walk Off, the nightly MLB recap from Big League Stew. Here we’ll look at the top performers of the night, show you a must-see highlight and rundown the scoreboard. First, we start with a game you need to know about.

The first game of the 2016 season between the two teams that faced off the NLCS last year lived up to the hype. And for the New York Mets the hope is that the result Thursday night gives them some life going forward.

The Chicago Cubs jumped out to a 2-0 lead thanks to a two-run home run by Kris Bryant in the first inning and Javier Baez made it 3-0 with solo blast in the sixth. It looked like the Cubs were in control and would stroll to an easy win and hand the Mets, who had just been swept by the Nationals, another loss.

Yoenis Cespedes launched a towering shot in the bottom of the sixth off Cubs starter John Lackey to put New York on the board, but it was in the seventh when they really pounced.

Lackey came out of the game after allowing a one-out single and was replaced by Joel Peralta. Peralta proceeded to walk Alejandro De Aza and then gave up an RBI single to Brandon Nimmo that brought the Mets within one.

Neil Walker came up next and hit a dribbler to second, but Baez made a throwing error trying to go to third and that allowed two runs to come home and put New York in front.

The Cubs didn’t go quietly, though. They had runners and second and third with no outs in the ninth against Mets closer Jeurys Familia, but Familia rebounded to retire the next three hitters he faced and earn his 27th save of the season in a thrilling 4-3 win. The Mets really showed some fight, and the feeling is that the nature of the victory can the galvanize a team that could really use a boost.

Jeurys Familia, left, celebrates with Travis d'Arnaud. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
Jeurys Familia, left, celebrates with Travis d’Arnaud. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)

From MLB.com:

“It sure came at the right time,” Mets manager Terry Collins said. “To come back against that team, first game of this 11-game homestand, I think it’s huge for us. It lifted the spirits of every guy in there.”

The series continues Friday night with Jason Hammel taking the mound for the Cubs and Jacob deGrom going for the Mets.

TOP PERFORMERS

Carlos Carrasco: The Cleveland Indians right-hander struck out 14, walked two, and gave up three hits and one run in a 4-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays to push Cleveland’s winning streak to 13 games. It was easily Carrasco’s best start since coming back from a hamstring injury in early June, and if he’s finding his groove that’s a great sign for the streaking Indians.

Danny Espinosa: Espinosa smashed two home runs – one from each side of the plate including a grand slam – as the Washington Nationals throttled the Cincinnati Reds 13-4. Hitting in the eighth spot in the lineup, he finished the game 2-for-4 with two runs scored and seven RBIs.

Cameron Maybin: In a wild eight-run ninth inning it was Maybin who delivered the biggest hit. The Detroit Tigers outfielder delivered a three-RBI double with the game tied 7-7 to lift Detroit to a 10-7 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. Maybin had two other hits to raise his average to .359.

MUST-SEE HIGHLIGHT

Hyun-soo Kim’s home run wasn’t enough for the Baltimore Orioles to avoid a 5-3 loss to the Seattle Mariners, but it did carry historical significance. Kim’s solo shot in the seventh inning was the 56th home run hit by an Orioles player in the month of June, breaking the record held by the 1996 Oakland Athletics for the most homers hit by one team in June.

THE REST OF THE SCOREBOARD

Yankees 2, Rangers 1: Chase Headley scored the winning-run on a passed ball in the ninth and starter Michael Pineda struck out 12 over six innings.

White Sox 6, Twins 5: Tim Anderson had three hits in the leadoff spot and Todd Frazier had a home run.

Dodgers 8, Brewers 1: Corey Seager and Trayce Thompson both homered and Kenta Maeda gave up one run in six innings for the win.

Braves 8, Marlins 5: Atlanta racked up 14 hits as six players had multi-hit games while having to use seven pitchers in the game.

Royals 4, Cardinals 2: Kendrys Morales launched a 456-foot home run and also had an RBI double to help Kansas City take three out of four against their in-state rivals.

Giants 12, Athletics 6: Brandon Belt went 4-for-5 and drove in four runs and Buster Posey had three hits, including a home run, and three RBIs as San Francisco flexed its offensive muscle in Oakland.

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Israel Fehr is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at israelfehr@yahoo.ca or follow him on Twitter.