Major leagues:
The bullpen phone was a secondary concern for Mets starter David Peterson on Monday compared to the one sitting in the trainer’s room.
His cell phone never buzzed, and that was OK by him. Peterson will worry about his wife’s delivery another day.
Peterson pitched into the sixth inning with wife Alex expected to go into labor soon, and New York beat the Miami Marlins 6-0 despite losing Jeff McNeil to injury.
Mets manager Buck Showalter joked Monday morning that New York was on “baby watch” with Peterson, McNeil and Seth Lugo all awaiting newborns. Lugo was placed on the paternity list before the game.
Peterson was prepared to leave the park if Alex went into labor with the couple’s first child, and the Mets had contingencies if he couldn’t make the start. Peterson had his phone stashed in the trainer’s room, hoping someone would hear if it rang, but he was reasonably confident he had time to pitch before his son arrived.
After being inconsistent with his mechanics this season, Peterson (4-1) was on top of his delivery and covered 5 1/3 innings with a season-high seven strikeouts on 100 pitches. He allowed six hits and two walks as the Mets won the four-game series by finishing their 11th shutout this season, tying the Yankees for the major league lead.
McNeil left in the fourth inning with right hamstring tightness after scoring on a wild pitch. He was sent for an MRI, but Showalter was hopeful it was only a day-to-day issue.
No IL for Machado: San Diego Padres All-Star slugger Manny Machado wasn’t in the lineup a day after spraining his left ankle and acting manager Ryan Flaherty was optimistic his former teammate won’t need to go on the injured list.
“He’s got some purple and blue in there but overall he’s moving around pretty good and feels good,” Flaherty, who played with Machado in Baltimore, said Monday.
“He’s not in the starting lineup tonight. Outside of that, I think there’s there’s pretty good optimism,” he said.
Machado, who’s having an MVP-caliber season, sprained his left ankle in the first inning Sunday at Colorado while trying to beat out a grounder. He stretched his left leg toward the base as the throw arrived from pitcher Antonio Senzatela and his cleats slipped across the top of the bag.
American League
Mariners release Romo: Relievers Sergio Romo and and Roenis Elías were cut Monday by the struggling Seattle Mariners to make room for reliever Ken Giles and infielder Kevin Padlo.
Romo and Elías were designated for assignment, Giles was activated from the 60-day injured list and Padlo was recalled from Triple-A Tacoma.
Seattle has lost seven of its last nine games and is fourth in the AL West at 29-39, 13 games behind first-place Houston.
Romo, a 39-year-old right-hander known for his long beard, had an 8.16 ERA in 17 relief appearances and spent a month on the injured list with right shoulder inflammation.
He allowed home runs to the Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout on Thursday and to the Angels’ Jared Walsh on Saturday.