NEW YORK — The only thing Jenrry Mejia popped Monday night was his fastball.
Showing off a sizzling heater with wicked movement, Mejia pitched four-hit ball into the seventh inning and led the New York Mets over the St. Louis Cardinals 2-0.
Mejia (3-0) bounced back well from a torn blister on his right middle finger that limited him to five innings in his last start. The 24-year-old righty began the game by getting Matt Carpenter to look at three straight strikes, and rarely was in trouble.
"Coming off the blister … we weren’t sure what he was going to give us," Mets manager Terry Collins said. "He gave us more than we expected, for sure."
David Wright lined an early RBI single that extended his hitting streak to 12 games and Kyle Farnsworth earned his first save as the New York’s newest closer.
On an evening when the Mets debuted new camouflage tops to salute the military, they looked sharp, particularly on a double play started by shortstop Ruben Tejada.
The Cardinals lost for the third time in four games.
"Their shortstop kind of stopped any kind of rally from happening," Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said.
"Being frustrated, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that," he said after the NL champions were shut out for the third time this year. "I think the bigger story is that our offence will get going on a consistent basis."
Mejia struck out seven in 6 2-3 innings and walked three. He stretched his scoreless streak to 13 2-3 innings.
Mejia said the blister was hardly a concern. The St. Louis hitters were the ones having trouble, not him.
"They know my fastball moves," he said.
Scott Rice and Carlos Torres each got two outs before Farnsworth, the Mets’ third closer this year, pitched the ninth for his first save.
Farnsworth inherited the role after Bobby Parnell needed Tommy John surgery and Jose Valverde struggled. Farnsworth had two saves last season for Pittsburgh.
Tyler Lyons (0-1) lost in his first major league game of the season. Promoted from Triple-A Memphis earlier in the day to take the rotation spot of injured Joe Kelly, he allowed two runs and six hits in six innings.
A 26-year-old lefty with a big-breaking slider, Lyons struck out seven. He’s another in the long line of tall, homegrown pitchers developed by the Cardinals, and went 2-4 last year in his first big league season.
Lyons struck out the first two batters in the third before Eric Young Jr. singled for the Mets’ first hit. Slumping Curtis Granderson was hit by a pitch and Wright singled for a 1-0 lead.
Lyons’ throwing error on a tapper set up another run in the sixth. Daniel Murphy walked, later stole third and scored on a single by Travis d’Arnaud.
Mejia escaped his biggest jam in the sixth when, with runners at the corners and one out, he retired Matt Holliday on a popup and Matt Adams on a grounder.
The previous inning, the Mets backed Mejia with a sweet double play. Tejada dived to stop Jon Jay’s grounder up the middle and flipped to Murphy, and the second baseman made a barehanded catch and spun quickly for the relay.
"Tremendous double play," Collins praised.
NOTES: Wright has eight hits in his last three games. He has eight RBIs in eight games. … Murphy has been safe on 25 straight steal tries. … Cardinals C Yadier Molina stretched his hitting streak to 12 games. … Granderson struck out three times. He’s hitless in his last 19 at-bats and is in a 4-for-47 slump that includes 17 strikeouts. … St. Louis SS Jhonny Peralta was hitless in three at-bats and is in an 0-for-15 rut. … The Mets promoted 40-year-old OF Bobby Abreu from Triple-A. He didn’t get into the game. … St. Louis RHP Eric Fornataro made his major league debut and pitched a perfect eighth. Molina waited outside the dugout to pat him on the head. … Cardinals RHP Adam Wainwright (3-1, 1.80) starts Tuesday night against RHP Dillon Gee (1-0, 3.71). … Kelly strained his left hamstring trying to beat out a bunt last week and was put on the 15-day disabled list. … The Mets have thrown three shutouts this season.
