Mets smother Cubs and win series, marred by Edwin Diaz’s dismissal

CHICAGO – What should have been a feel-good performance and a nice transition into the Subway Series for the Mets turned into a demoralizing victory on Sunday night.

Edwin Diaz was ejected upon entering the field in the bottom of the ninth inning after umpires examined his right hand and glove and found that they violated MLB rules regarding sticky substances.

Drew Smith and Jake Diekman were called in to get the final three outs in the Mets’ 5-2 victory over the Cubs at Wrigley Field, while Diaz faces an automatic 10-game suspension for being ejected for a sticky substance.

Max Scherzer faced similar disciplinary action with the Mets last April after violating the rule during a game at Dodger Stadium. Smith was also ejected for a rules violation later in the season.

The Mets will have to play with one fewer man for the entire duration of the suspension.

This comes as the Mets prepare for two games at Citi Field against the Yankees after winning four series in a row.

Before the ninth-inning woes, Luis Severino pitched six scoreless innings, a marked improvement over his performance Tuesday in Texas, in which he allowed six earned runs. That night, the Mets got home runs from Francisco Lindor, Brandon Nimmo and Mark Vientos to improve their record to 13-6 in June.

Severino was originally scheduled to face his former team, the Yankees, on Tuesday. But late last week, manager Carlos Mendoza changed the rotation and moved David Peterson to the opener of the Subway Series. Severino started instead against the Cubs. Mendoza’s stated reasoning was that he wanted a right-hander for the Cubs and a left-hander for the Yankees.

However, Severino admitted to the Washington Post that he was “a little” disappointed not to be able to face the Yankees this week and said he would endeavor to pitch in the second part of the Subway Series after the All-Star break in the Bronx.

Severino made it to the sixth inning against the Cubs, but allowed a leadoff single to Miguel Amaya before scoring Nico Hoerner. After Michael Busch retired, Severino engaged in an epic battle with Cody Bellinger and won. Bellinger struck out on the 12th pitch of the at-bat. Mendoza came to the mound and stayed with Severino, who fell behind 2-0 in the count against Seiya Suzuki, before taking the Cubs DH out of the game with a fly to center.

In total, Severino struck out 10 times – the first time this season that he hit double figures – and allowed three hits on 102 pitches without allowing a single walk.

Severino continued his dominance against the Cubs this season, throwing a no-hitter against them at Citi Field on April 29 until the eighth inning before Dansby Swanson hit a single and Severino, who allowed one run, received a no-decision in a game the Mets lost 3-1.

Lindor and Nimmo hit back-to-back home runs in the third inning against Javier Assad that night, giving the Mets a 3-0 lead. After Harrison Bader’s inning-high double, Lindor drove the ball out and hit a fly ball to left that kept bouncing into the stands. Nimmo followed with a home run into the same zone. It was the third time this season that the Mets have hit back-to-back home runs. Nimmo’s home run was his fourth in the last six games, giving him 11 this season. Lindor’s home run was his 13th — three behind Pete Alonso for the team lead.

Bader’s fifth-inning double — almost an exact copy of the grounder he hit down the third-base line in his previous at-bat — helped the Mets extend their lead to 4-0 in the fifth inning. Lindor was hit by a pitch and, after stealing a double, Nimmo worked a walk to load the bases before JD Martinez brought in the run with a groundout.

Assad, who came into the game with a 2.75 ERA, lasted just 4 ¹/₃ innings, allowing four earned runs on seven hits and one walk. The right-hander allowed just one run in five innings when he faced the Mets at Citi Field on April 30.

The Cubs struck out Dedniel Nunez in the seventh inning. After Ian Happ’s leadoff single, Christopher Morel hit a 420-foot home run to center that cut the Mets’ lead to 4-2.

Vientos countered with a 451-foot throw to center field in the eighth inning that extended the Mets’ lead to 5-2.