Dein erstes Forum » but the Bearcats have won four of

MIAMI -- Helped by a couple of small victories against Giancarlo Stanton, Steven Matz earned a big win for the New York Mets.Matz pitched six innings Sunday for his first win since May, twice escaping trouble by getting Stanton to ground out with a runner in scoring position, and the Mets took the rubber game of their series against Miami, 3-0.It was good to go out there and put up zeroes and get a win, Matz said.The Mets won two of three games in the series and returned home trailing second-place Miami by half a game in the NL East.This was crunch time for us, manager Terry Collins said. We couldnt lose any more ground. This was a good series for us to win.Matz (8-6) allowed four hits, walked two and struck out six. Pitching despite a bone spur in his elbow, he had been 0-5 in his past nine starts with an ERA of 4.73.He retired the Marlins in order only once, but twice ended threats by retiring Stanton, who has six homers against the Mets this month.It was just not giving in, not giving him that good pitch that he can hit, Matz said.Matz had help in the first inning from an unlikely source. Michael Conforto, starting in center field for the first time as a professional, sprinted to left and made a diving catch and rob leadoff hitter Miguel Rojas.Conforto also went 2 for 2 before being replaced in the seventh. Collins breathed a sigh of relief that the experiment started well.Hes here because he can hit, Collins said. If we dont play him in center field, we have no place to play him. Were not going to find out if he can play center until we get him out there.Jose Reyes drove in the first run with a two-out RBI triple in the third inning. Reyes, who joined the Mets this month, had five hits in the series to raise his average to .242.This guy is going to help us, Collins said. When he gets 150 at-bats, you are going to see a dynamic leadoff hitter.Yoenis Cespedes and James Loney contributed consecutive RBI singles in the eighth.Miami drew consolation from an encouraging start by Jose Urena (1-2), who allowed only one run in six innings. It was the right-handers second start this season after being recalled from Triple-A, and he could become a fixture in the Marlins thin rotation.They lost a starter when left-hander Wei-Yin Chen went on the 15-day disabled list because of a sprained elbow. The move was announced after the game.We dont feel like its anything crazy, but we also want to be cautious, manager Don Mattingly said.Matz, who beat Miami for the first time in four career starts, helped the Mets notch their ninth shutout this year. He retired the side in order only once but didnt allow any extra-base hits.Thats probably the best Ive seen him, Mattingly said.His fastball had late life, Collins said. He had a lot of swings and misses on his fastball. His changeup and curve ball he threw for strikes.Three relievers completed a five-hitter, and Jeurys Familiar pitched a perfect ninth to earn his 51st consecutive save, tied for the third-longest in major league history. He has 35 saves this year, most in the majors.A wild pitch on a strikeout helped the Mets in the eighth, when Alejandro De Aza reached that way to lead off. New York went on to score twice in the inning and won with just six hits.SUZUKI UPDATEThe Marlins Ichiro Suzuki, who didnt start in the series, struck out as a pinch hitter in the seventh and remained four hits shy of 3,000.UP NEXTMets: They begin a nine-game homestand Monday, when RHP Noah Syndergaard (9-4, 2.43) is scheduled to pitch against Cardinals RHP Carlos Martinez (9-6, 2.83). 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CINCINNATI -- Thursday games are not a large part of Tom Hermans experience, but the Houston coach is quickly playing catchup.His undefeated and sixth-ranked Cougars are scheduled to play the first of this seasons four non-Saturday night games this week when they travel to Cincinnati to face the Bearcats in the American Athletic Conference opener for both teams.Its not a bad thing on the back end, said Herman, whose team played one Thursday game last season -- his first in a long time, he said. You like it when you can take a deep breath on Friday and Saturday and let your kids heal and relax a little bit, but to go from our offense playing 97 snaps against Lamar and then turn it around on Sunday and for all intents and purposes have a Tuesday practice in terms of preparing for a game week -- I understand why they do it. The ratings are off the charts when you play these Thursday night games, and were in the entertainment business, but we play four of these. We have three Thursday night games and Friday night game, so in a 12-game schedule, a third of our games are not on a Saturday. That takes its toll on players bodies. Were playing four games in 20 days. You do the match. Thats a lot of pounding on a young mans body in a short amount of time.Houston (2-0) is coming off a 42-0 win over Lamar that was delayed 3 ? hours by lightning and torrential rain that was beneficial from the aspect that quarterback and Heisman Trophy-candidate Greg Ward Jr. was able to use the down time to get extra treatment on his banged-up shoulder. He ended up not playing against Lamar.He was out in pads (Sunday) night and practiced, Herman said on Monday during his weekly media session. Hes still sore, but the soreness is all muscular, so were doing everything we can, from massages to dry needling, to make sure that the muscles that surround the shoulder are ready to go.Cincinnati coach Tommy Tuberville is -- and isnt -- looking forward to seeing Ward.We saw him play quarterback for the first time four years ago, so weve seen him every year, Tuberville said Monday on the AAC weekly coaches teleconference.dddddddddddd. He makes plays. Obviously, were going to have to play much better than we have been playing to contain a quarterback like Greg Ward.The Bearcats are scheduled to play three non-Saturday games, including the last two Fridays of the regular season. They are coming off a 38-20 win at Purdue -- the first for the program at a Big Ten site in 59 years -- in which they build up a 31-7 lead and fought off a Boilermaker comeback that cut the lead to 31-21 halfway through the fourth quarter. Cincinnati (2-0) had five interceptions in the game, three by senior safety Mike Tyson.Houston, the first top 10 team to visit 40,000-seat Nippert Stadium since then-fifth-ranked West Virginia played there on Nov. 17, 2007, holds a 14-10 advantage in the all-time series against Cincinnati, but the Bearcats have won four of the last five games. The Cougars prevailed, 33-30, last season -- a typically close outcome. The last three games between the two teams have been decided by a combined 18 points.As good as they were last year, theyve improved on both sides of the ball, said Herman, for whom the trip will be somewhat of a homecoming, since hes a Cincinnati native who still has family in the area. Their defensive line and their defensive tackles seem to be in a lot better shape. Theyre moving around better. Their two safeties are really good players hat make a ton of tackles for them. They seem to be a little more sound in what theyre doing. Theyre in the right places at the right time on defense.On offense, the quarterback (sophomore Hayden Moore) is playing at an extremely high level. Hes a really good player behind a massive offensive line. Theyre running the ball a little bit better than they have in years past. It will be a challenge. ' ' '