Arrieta helps Cubs spoil Syndergaard's debut

CHICAGO -- Chris Coghlan hit a two-run homer and Kris Bryant belted a solo shot to back Jake Arrieta and lead the Cubs to a 6-1 victory Tuesday night, spoiling the Major League debut of Mets top prospect Noah Syndergaard.

"You have to pitch well to beat good pitching, and we did tonight," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "Jake was outstanding."

Arrieta struck out a season-high 10 batters over eight innings. He faced the minimum through seven, walking two and giving up a clean single to left to Daniel Murphy in the fourth in that stretch. Lucas Duda and Wilmer Flores then hit back-to-back singles in the eighth, and one out later, Duda scored on Kevin Plawecki's sacrifice fly.

Video: NYM@CHC: Arrieta fans 10 over eight innings, gets win

Syndergaard escaped a bases-loaded jam in the third and stranded two baserunners in the fifth. But in the sixth, Jorge Soler singled leading off and scored on Starlin Castro's double to left. Coghlan followed with his fourth home run, launching a 96-mph fastball into the right-field bleachers.

Video: NYM@CHC: Castro doubles home Soler in the 6th

"I didn't really know what to expect out there," Syndergaard said. "Until you get to your big league debut, it's something that you can't really mentally prepare for, the feeling you get out there."

Said Maddon of the young Mets pitcher: "He's as advertised. The thing I liked about it is he's a pitcher, too. He's not just out there throwing."

Bryant led off the eighth with his third big league home run and second in as many games. The rookie fell a double shy of the cycle. He singled in the third and tripled in the fifth.

Video: NYM@CHC: Bryant crushes a huge homer to left field

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Not enough from Noah: Though Castro and Coghlan spoiled things for Syndergaard in the sixth, his debut still boasted plenty of bright moments. In particular, the rookie struck out three of the first eight batters he faced, dialing his fastball as high as 99 mph. He left with one out in the sixth, having allowed three runs on 103 pitches.

Video: NYM@CHC: Syndergaard goes 5 1/3 in Major League debut

"It's something I'm going to cherish for the rest of my life," Syndergaard said. More >

Glovework: The Mets were thwarted in the fourth. Curtis Granderson walked to open the inning but was thrown out by several feet at third base trying to advance on Murphy's single to left. Arrieta then got Michael Cuddyer to ground into an inning-ending double play.

Video: NYM@CHC: Coghlan throws out Granderson at third base

Respect 90: Bryant has said repeatedly that he's not concerned about hitting home runs, just winning games. As long as he keeps hustling, the Cubs will be happy. Bryant beat Murphy's throw from third for an infield single with two outs in the third. The Cubs rookie also tripled with two outs in the fifth. Bryant had faced Syndergaard last August in a Minor League game, and went 1-for-3 with an infield hit.

Video: NYM@CHC: Bryant hits his first Major League triple

"He's just a special talent and it's fun to watch him play every day," Arrieta said of Bryant. "He made a couple great plays at third base. I just look forward to watching him grow." More >

QUOTABLE
"He pitched really well tonight. He's got an extremely live fastball and a good breaking ball. He commands the ball well, and I'm sure he had some added adrenaline and emotions -- all things I had in my first game against the Yankees. He's going to pitch for a long time. He's a part of a good staff over there, and they'll take care of him. We were able to grind it out and get to him there in the sixth inning. He was tough. He was tough pretty much all day. That's a tribute to the guys we have [who are] able to grind out at-bats and put some good swings on balls."
-- Arrieta, on Syndergaard

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
Syndergaard became the first Mets starter to debut at Wrigley Field since Jason Isringhausen on July 17, 1995. Other notable Mets to make their big league debuts at Wrigley were Jesse Orosco (April 5, 1979) and Lee Mazzilli (Sept. 7, 1976).

Video: NYM@CHC: Syndergaard gets Fowler and Castro swinging

Bryant posted the seventh multihit game of his young career and second three-hit game. He's the first Cubs player with a triple and a homer in the same game since Luis Valbuena did it on Aug. 20, 2014, vs. the Giants.

WHAT'S NEXT
Mets: Though Matt Harvey continues to walk virtually no one, his strikeout rate has dropped precipitously over his last two starts. He'll look to improve that Wednesday in an 8:05 p.m. ET game against the Cubs, hoping to rebound from his first loss of the season Friday in Philadelphia. Harvey is 5-1 with a 2.72 ERA in six starts.

Cubs: Jason Hammel will start the third game of the Cubs' four-game series against the Mets. He has posted quality starts in each of his last three outings, going 2-0 with a 2.14 ERA. However, Hammel has not beaten the Mets in four career starts, going 0-3 with a 6.33 ERA. He has not faced the Mets since 2011. First pitch at Wrigley Field will be 7:05 p.m. CT.

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