Max Scherzer dominates the Brewers over six perfect innings in his return, helping the Mets clinch a playoff spot
What was anticipated to be a pitchers' duel between Corbin Burnes and Max Scherzer at American Family Field on Monday night instead turned into a clinic by Scherzer.
The Milwaukee Brewers were simply no match for the New York Mets right-hander, who in his first major-league start since Sept. 3 threw six perfect innings before being pulled due to pitch-count concerns.
Christian Yelich finally got the Brewers into the hit column in the seventh inning and Rowdy Tellez's home run broke up the shutout, but a couple tack-on runs by the Mets in the eighth against Justin Topa sealed a 7-2 defeat.
Scherzer (10-4) earned his 200th victory while also helping New York clinch its first postseason berth since 2016.
Box score: Mets 7, Brewers 2
Milwaukee, on its own quest to qualify for its fifth consecutive appearance in the playoffs, lost for the second straight game to fall 2½ games back in the race for the third wild-card spot in the National League with the Philadelphia Phillies idle.
The projected pitchers' duel lasted three innings, with Burnes and Scherzer each facing the minimum and Burnes allowing the only hit when 2021 teammate Eduardo Escobar legged out an infield single.
But Burnes was the first to crack in the fourth.
With one out, Francisco Lindor and Jeff McNeil both singled and Pete Alonso followed with a 437-foot homer to left on a 1-2 changeup that was actually down and out of the strike zone.
Burnes quickly moved past the mistake.
But with the way Scherzer continued to deal, the three runs looked like they would be more than enough to stand up the rest of the way.
Through five innings Milwaukee had made solid contact against Scherzer exactly twice and neither time saw the opportunities result in a hit.
Scherzer, who hadn't pitched in a game for the Mets since Sept. 3, got better as he settled in and through five innings and 54 pitches had struck out eight while going to a three-ball count just three times.
Consecutive triples by Brandon Nimmo and Lindor opened the sixth and three batters later another former Brewer, Daniel Vogelbach, roped a two-out RBI double to left-center to up New York's lead to 5-0.
Burnes (10-8) followed with a walk to Mark Canha, ending his outing at 100 pitches.
He allowed seven hits for the third time in his last four starts and five earned runs for the third time in his last five starts, while his total of four strikeouts was tied for his second-lowest of the season.
Scherzer made it six perfect innings on 68 pitches but because he hadn't thrown more than 67 since Aug. 28 (including three minor-league rehab starts), not to mention the three-year, $130 million contract he signed entering 2022, manager Buck Schowalter pulled the plug on him.
He struck out nine while lowering his season ERA to 2.15.
Following a scoreless seventh from just-recalled Jake Cousins, right-hander Tylor Megill – just activated off the IL like Scherzer – trotted in from the Mets bullpen and on just his second pitch gave up the budding perfect game when Yelich went the other way for a double.
Two batters later, Tellez went deep to right-center to break up the shutout and at least give the Brewers a fighting chance at a late comeback.
But run-scoring singles by Tyler Naquin and Tomás Nido off Topa in the eighth helped end those hopes quickly.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Mets' Max Scherzer dominates Brewers over six perfect innings
