NEW YORK METS (29-23, second place/NL East) at MIAMI MARLINS (29-25, third place/NL East)
Friday: RHP Noah Syndergaard (5-2, 1.84) vs. RHP Tom Koehler (3-5, 4.50), 7:10 p.m. ET
Saturday: RHP Bartolo Colon (4-3, 3.39) vs. LHP Justin Nicolino (2-3, 4.50), 4:10 p.m. ET
Sunday: RHP Matt Harvey (4-7, 5.37) vs. RHP Jose Fernandez (8-2, 2.53), 1:10 p.m. ET
MARLINS SHORT HOPS
Jose Fernandez went 6-0 with a 1.38 ERA and had 56 strikeouts in May. The only other pitchers since 1893 to post a 6-0 record in May with at least 50 Ks were Pedro Martinez in 1999 and Roger Clemens in 1997. Fernandez will bid on Sunday to become the first pitcher since ERA became an official stat in the early 1900s to go five straight starts earning a win while allowing no more than one earned run and striking out at least nine batters in each outing. Fernandez tossed seven scoreless innings against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday to outduel Gerrit Cole.
Center fielder Marcell Ozuna, who spent five weeks last summer at Triple-A New Orleans, hit .411 (46-for-112) in May. That was the third-highest average for a calendar month by a Marlins player in franchise history. Only Preston Wilson (.431 in July 1999) and Hanley Ramirez (.424 in July 2007) performed better. Ozuna’s streak of reaching base in 36 straight games, the longest in the majors this season, was snapped Monday.
Right fielder Giancarlo Stanton returned to the lineup Wednesday after missing seven games with a sore right side. Stanton then was not in the original lineup Thursday, but was added before the first pitch.
2015 National League batting champ Dee Gordon, who faced the Mets during a mid-April series at Citi Field, was suspended for 80 games on April 29 after testing positive for the performance-enhancing drugs exogenous testosterone and clostebol, according to MLB. Derek Dietrich has taken over at second base -- although he did not play Thursday after suffering a bone bruise and departing the previous night. Dietrich had been struck on the left wrist with a 92 mph fastball from Pittsburgh’s Tony Watson. It was a rough couple of days for Dietrich. He was struck in the back of the head on Sunday by a foul ball off the bat of Christian Yelich that ricocheted off a dugout wall.
The Mets will get their first look at Marlins Park’s revised dimensions. The deepest part of the ballpark, by the home run sculpture in center field, was reduced from 418 to 407 feet. The walls, which had been as high as 13 feet, have been reduced to a uniform six feet. Marlins Park yielded the second-fewest homers in the majors from its opening in 2012 through last season. AT&T Park in San Francisco had one fewer homer.
Closer A.J. Ramos is 17-for-17 in save conversions this season. That’s one shy of matching the franchise record to begin a season. Juan Carlos Oviedo converted his first 18 save chances in 2011. Dating to last season, Ramos has converted 26 straight chances. That’s the third-longest streak in Marlins history, trailing only Steve Cishek’s 33 straight saves in 2013 and ’14 and Todd Jones’ 27 straight in 2005.
Justin Nicolino entered the rotation on April 27 after demoted Jarred Cosart produced a 7.98 ERA in three starts.
The Marlins made a bullpen swap Wednesday, promoting Cody Hall and demoting Jose Urena. Hall had been claimed off waivers from the Arizona Diamondbacks on May 18.
Ichiro Suzuki snapped a 1-for-24 slump on Tuesday. That same day, he passed Sam Crawford for 31st on MLB’s all-time hits list. On May 23, Ichiro became the first player since Cap Anson in 1894 to record 10 hits in a three-game span after turning 42 years old, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
METS SHORT HOPS
David Wright has not appeared in a game since last Friday because of a herniated disk in his neck. He will land on the DL before the series opener. Matt Reynolds is expected to be promoted from Las Vegas.
Matt Harvey arrives in Miami with a 5.37 ERA, but he finally is coming off a good start. Harvey tossed seven scoreless innings on Monday against the Chicago White Sox.
On Wednesday, the Mets became the second MLB team since 1893 to draw 13 walks in a game and score no more than one run. They have scored only nine runs in their last five games. Of the Mets’ runs scored this season, 56.0 percent have come via the home run.
First baseman James Loney made his Mets debut on Tuesday. Loney was acquired from the San Diego Padres last weekend for cash after Lucas Duda landed on the DL with a stress fracture in his lower back.
