Eduardo Rodríguez outlasted Nolan McLean in a rematch of the World Baseball Classic finals on Thursday night, leading the Arizona Diamondbacks to a 7-1 victory over the New York Mets.
Rodriguez threw his final pitch with the count 1-0 down before the Diamondbacks scored four runs in the seventh inning off McLean (0-1) and Luke Weaver. Gabriel Moreno greeted Weaver with an RBI double as a pinch-hitter before José Fernández came home on Alek Thomas’s hit to first base.
Tim Tawa hit a sacrifice fly and Jorge Barrosa followed with a run-scoring triple.
Moreno and Adrian Del Castillo hit RBI doubles in the eighth inning.
Rodríguez (1-0) allowed five hits, including Luis Robert Jr.’s first-inning home run, the first earned run allowed this season by the left-hander, and struck out three in six innings.
McLean allowed two runs on three hits, striking out eight batters in 6 1/3 innings.
Rodríguez pitched four scoreless innings and McLean gave up two runs in 4 2/3 innings on March 17, when Venezuela won the World Baseball Classic by beating the United States 3-2.
Diamondbacks right fielder Corbin Carroll did not play because of left hip flexor discomfort he suffered while running after a triple in Wednesday’s 7-2 victory.
The temperature at the time of McLean’s first pitch was 44 degrees. The first two games of the series were moved forward three hours, to 4:10 pm, due to the cold.
