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Mets clobber Phillies to take lead in NL wild card race

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.

Who needs pitching when you can hit like this? The New York Mets may be dealing with a severely diminished rotation at the moment, but the offense picked them up during Sunday’s 17-0 drubbing of the Philadelphia Phillies.

Things started early, as the club notched a run on a double play groundout in the second inning. That may have been a less than stellar start, but the team would make up for it going forward. A Curtis Granderson solo shot extended the club’s lead in the fourth, as did a bases-loaded walk to Jose Reyes.

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That’s when things really started to get fun. New York feasted against the Phillies’ bullpen, scoring an incredible five runs in the seventh and six runs in the eighth.

Reyes and shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera wound up being the most productive hitters during the contest, each driving in four runs. All told, 10 different members of the Mets notched at least one hit and seven managed at least one RBI during the 17-0 shellacking.

Jose Reyes and Asdrubal Cabrera each had four RBI in the Mets' 17-0 blowout win. (Getty Images/Adam Hunger)
Jose Reyes and Asdrubal Cabrera each had four RBI in the Mets’ 17-0 blowout win. (Getty Images/Adam Hunger)

Oh, and the pitching was pretty good too. Robert Gsellman tossed seven scoreless frames against Philadelphia. He gave up just three hits and two walks, striking out eight. With Steven Matz, Matt Harvey and Jacob deGrom all likely lost for the season, the team needs Gsellman to step up with October approaching.

Following Sunday’s win, Gsellman getting a playoff start seems a bit more likely. With the victory, the Mets were able to take a one and a half game lead in the National League wild card with just six games left to play. New York had some help from their competition, as both the San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals lost Sunday.

TOP PERFORMERS

Victor Martinez: The Detroit Tigers may have suffered a rough 12-9 loss Sunday, but it wasn’t Victor Martinez’s fault. The 37-year-old attempted to get his team back into the game with a grand slam in the bottom of the third inning. Despite his efforts, the team still trailed by three runs following the blast. Martinez would again attempt to aid in a late comeback attempt, singling and scoring in the eighth inning. He finished 2-for-4, with two runs scored and four RBI in the loss.

Carlos Rodon: The Chicago White Sox are playing for the future right now, and Carlos Rodon gave fans a reason to be excited for next year during Sunday’s 3-0 win over the Cleveland Indians. Rodon tossed eight scoreless innings, giving up just two hits and three walks during the contest. He struck out 11 batters. With the win, Rodon improved to 8-10 on the year. He has a 4.08 ERA.

Nelson Cruz: The Seattle Mariners are on the periphery of the AL wild card race, and Nelson Cruz did everything in his power to keep it that way during Sunday’s 4-3 win over the Minnesota Twins. Cruz smacked two home runs during the game. His first blast tied the game at one, while his second long ball put the Mariners up by two runs. That wound up being the difference, as the Twins couldn’t complete the comeback in the win. Cruz finished 2-for-3, with two runs scored and two RBI in the victory.

MUST-SEE HIGHLIGHT

The Los Angeles Dodgers clinched the National League West in the most dramatic and exciting way possible Sunday. With the game tied in the bottom of the 10th inning, Charlie Culberson hit an 0-1 pitch from Boone Logan out to the stands in left for the incredible 4-3 walk-off victory.

To make things even better, Sunday’s game marked Vin Scully’s final home broadcast at Dodgers Stadium. His last highlight at the stadium will now be a division-clinching walk-off home run. That’s quite the storybook ending for the legendary broadcaster.

THE REST OF THE SCOREBOARD

Blue Jays 4, Yankees 3: The Blue Jays managed a ninth inning comeback against Dellin Betances and Tyler Clippard. The club walked it off after an infield single from Edwin Encarnacion scored Kevin Pillar from third.

Red Sox 3, Rays 2: Once again, David Ortiz played the hero. His double in the top of the 10th inning drove in the go-ahead run, giving the Reds Sox the win.

Orioles 2, Diamondbacks 1: Hyun-Soo Kim’s two run homer in the second inning was all Dylan Bundy needed to pick up the win. Zach Britton notched his 46th save to close out the ninth inning.

Nationals 10, Pirates 7: The Nationals exploded for a five-run eighth inning. Pirates reliever Felipe Rivero was charged with all five runs. He lasted just a third of an inning, and was saddled with the loss.

Reds 4, Brewers 2: Brandon Finnegan tossed five scoreless innings for Cincinnati. Scott Schebler finished the night with two hits, driving in a run in the win.

Astros 4, Angels 1: Joe Musgrove gave up just one run over seven strong innings. He struck out four and did not issue any walks during the victory.

Athletics 7, Rangers 1: Oakland pounded Colby Lewis in the second inning. The 37-year-old lasted just 1 1/3 innings, giving up seven earned runs on seven hits.

Padres 4, Giants 3: Manuel Margot gave Padres fans a glimpse of the future. The 21-year-old went 3-for-4, with one run, one RBI and one steal during the win.

Cubs 3, Cardinals 1: Catcher David Ross hit a home run to put the team ahead early, and then received a standing ovation from the home fans as he was removed from the game in the seventh inning.

Marlins, Braves: Cancelled due to the tragic death of 24-year-old pitcher Jose Fernandez.

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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik