David Peterson delivers shutout ball as Mets lefty awaits birth of 1st child

Buck Showalter had wondered out loud Sunday whether David Peterson was going to be available to deliver his pitches Monday against Miami. The Mets manager knew Peterson’s wife, Alex, was going to head to a hospital one of these days for a different kind of delivery.

Less than 90 minutes before the game at Citi Field, Showalter was asked for the alternative starters if Peterson’s wife went into labor in Denver and the pitcher had to bolt for the airport before the first pitch.

“Why is it important?” Showalter asked, playfully. “It’s not going to happen, hopefully. I’ve got to call Mrs. Peterson.”

Mr. Peterson had an idea their first child — it’s a boy — wasn’t coming quite yet. The 26-year-old lefty took the ball and did good things with it. He skillfully pitched out of three traffic jams on the way to 5 1/3 scoreless innings.

The first-place Mets were on their way to a 6-0 win in the series finale. They took three of four from the Marlins, marking the team's 16th series win out of 21. 

“I have my phone in the training room during the game in case something happens, but once I got here today, it was all about the start,” said Peterson, who planned to accompany the Mets to their next series in Houston. “I don’t think we’re on the verge of having to dart out of here. It was good to just be able to come in, focus on the game, focus on getting a series win.”

The Mets, who got three RBIs from the struggling Eduardo Escobar, moved to 45-24 after winning five of seven on the homestand. 

The day’s only negatives came with Jeff McNeil and J.D. Davis. McNeil left after the fourth inning with tightness in his right hamstring. Showalter called it “a day-to-day thing,” but McNeil was going for an MRI. The Mets will see how he feels Tuesday. Davis got hit on the left pinkie with a pitch in the eighth. Showalter said “so far, so good” as far as the initial X-ray.

Peterson was strictly a positive. He improved to 4-1 with a 3.18 ERA after yielding six singles. He fanned seven, walked two, hit one and stranded six.

Sixty of Peterson’s 100 pitches landed in the strike zone before Adam Ottavino, Drew Smith and Yoan Lopez finished a combined seven-hitter.

As a fill-in starter, Peterson had been up and down, more down the previous three times. But not this time.

“He was locating well,” Brandon Nimmo said. “His stuff is really nasty. I get the pleasure to watch that from centerfield.”

Nimmo contributed three hits. The first was a leadoff double to right-center in the first. The bases were ultimately loaded before Trevor Rogers (3-6) missed with a full-count fastball to Mark Canha, allowing Nimmo to score.

The Mets scored two more in the fourth. Davis drew a one-out walk. McNeil grounded a double to left-center, extending his hitting streak to eight games. Escobar was next, and he lifted a sacrifice fly.

McNeil tagged and went to third, then crossed on a wild pitch. Showalter said he felt the hamstring on the quick break for home.

Pete Alonso added a sac fly in the fifth that made it 4-0.

Escobar then snapped a 0-for-23 skid with a two-run single in the eighth.

“When he has a good at-bat, it really energizes the dugout,” Showalter said. “People pull for him because we know what he’s capable of.”