Cespedes hits 3 homers in Mets’ 14-9 win over Rockies

But the Mets needed it Friday.

Yoenis Cespedes erupted for five hits, three home runs, and seven RBI as the Mets tied their season-high for runs scored while racking up sixteen hits in the opener of a three-game series in Colorado.Cespedes also scored 5 runs and stole a base while piling up 15 total bases-just one shy of the Mets single game record set by Edgardo Alfonzo back in 1999.Travis d’Arnaud and Michael Conforto added back-to-back homers to give the Mets five long balls on the night, all at least 400 feet in distance.

Cespedes became the third Mets player with a three-homer game this season, joining Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Lucas Duda, both of whom accomplished the feat at Citi Field. The Mets had lost four of five before a 14-9 series opening win at Coors Field. The 42-year-old Dominican has won only one of his last 10 outings, even though he yielded fewer than three earned runs five times in that span. Colon, who has issued only 16 walks in 141 1/3 frames this season, is 2-1 with a gaudy 7.71 ERA in three career starts versus Colorado. The two teams combined to hit eight in the game. It came an inning after the Rockies had scored once to completely erase a 7-1 deficit.

Colon was forced to settle for a no-decision against Pittsburgh last Friday despite allowing just one run and five hits in seven innings. It certainly didn’t help Colon that he was drilled on the pitching arm attempting to bunt in the second inning and there was some question whether he would be allowed to continue.

In the bottom of the fifth, then, Nick Hundley tripled home LeMahieu to tie the game again at eight runs apiece. The Rockies challenged the call, but after a review of 2 minutes, 49 seconds, Hundley was still out. The center fielder hit a grand slam in the second inning and a solo shot in the fourth.

But to their credit, the Rockies never quit, scoring three more runs in the bottom of the fourth thanks to a home run from Nolan Arenado, that made the game 8-7 and chased Colon from the game for New York. Rockies C Dustin Garneau is the 25th player in franchise history to get a hit on his first at-bat in the majors, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Starter Jonathan Gray was charged with seven runs through 1.2 frames with four relievers allowing six runs.