By Jerry Beach, The Sports Xchange



NEW YORK -- There was no better way Sunday afternoon to summarize a series that unfolded like nobody expected than the sight of New York Mets third baseman Wilmer Flores stepping to the plate in search of his franchise record-tying sixth hit -- and trying to do so with Chicago Cubs catcher Miguel Montero on the mound.

Flores got that sixth hit by singling to left for the penultimate hit of the 22 collected by the Mets in a 14-3 rout of the Cubs that completed a stunning four-game sweep at Citi Field.

"I'm not going to lie: My sixth at-bat, I thought about it," Flores said before a grin crawled to his face. "I didn't want to face a (position) player. He threw one in the middle and I hit it."

Flores, whose previous career-high for hits in a game was four, homered leading off the Mets' seven-run second inning and ended the outburst with an RBI single. He singled and scored in the fourth, hit a two-run homer in the fifth and singled in his final two at-bats in the seventh and eighth.

The crowd of 36,137 gave the popular Flores -- who endeared himself to fans when he cried upon believing he was about to be traded during a game last July 29 -- standing ovations following each of his final two hits. The six-hit afternoon lifted his average from .224 to .255.

"Huge day for him," Mets manager Terry Collins said. "You've got to be really, really happy for him."

Flores is the second Mets player to go 6-for-6 in a game. Edgardo Alfonzo achieved the feat on Aug. 30, 1999. Alfonzo remains with the Mets as a club ambassador and called Flores to congratulate him Sunday afternoon.

"Pretty good feeling -- six hits, I never thought I was going to get six hits ever," Flores said.

The monster effort may have come during one of Flores' final days as a starter. Jose Reyes, whom the Mets signed as a free agent June 25, is playing third base for Double-A Binghamton and is expected to be serve as the everyday leadoff batter and third baseman once he is promoted sometime this week.

"Not my choice," Flores said about possibly losing his job. "I'm ready to play."

Flores hit .296 with six homers and 19 RBIs in 44 games following his near-trade last season.

"I think Wilmer, as I have seen in the past from him, (is) saying that he's the kind of guy that said you know what, you're going to have to get this job," Collins said. "Went out today and had a big day."

The big day capped a resurgent series by the Mets, who outscored the Cubs 32-11 in a rematch of last year's National League Championship Series, which New York also swept in four games.

"It was just a rough weekend," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "Give the Mets credit. They really swung the bats well and, of course, they always pitch well. They got us this time. They got us last year."

The Mets, who lost four straight prior to the Cubs' arrival and scored just 30 runs in 12 games from June 17-29, busted out against Chicago's top four starters. John Lackey, Jason Hammel, Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester entered the series with a 35-13 record and 2.48 ERA in 62 starts but went 0-3 with a 12.71 ERA (24 runs allowed in 17 innings) against New York.

Lester, who was named the National League Pitcher of the Month for June on Saturday, gave up eight runs on nine hits and one walk while striking out two over a career-low 1 1/3 innings. His ERA soared from 2.03 to 2.67.

"We just didn't pitch as well this time around," Maddon said. "We went through the order this time and Jason and Jake and Jon just weren't as good as they normally are."

Curtis Granderson homered in the first for the Mets (44-37) while Rene Rivera hit a two-run homer in the second before RBI singles from Granderson, Yoenis Cespedes, Neil Walker and Flores finally chased Lester.

Rivera had an RBI single in the fourth, Kelly Johnson delivered a pinch-hit two-run homer in the seventh and James Loney capped the scoring with an RBI single in the eighth.

Noah Syndergaard actually put the Mets in a 1-0 hole in the first, when Anthony Rizzo delivered an RBI single, before cruising to the victory. Syndergaard allowed seven hits and walked none while striking out eight over seven innings.

Willson Contreras homered leading off the ninth and Javier Baez raced home on a wild pitch for the Cubs (51-30), who entered the series on a three-game winning streak but have lost 10 of 14.

Montero allowed one run on four hits over 1 1/3 innings in his professional pitching debut.

NOTES: The Cubs placed OF Chris Coghlan (right rib cage strain) on the 15-day disabled list and recalled INF Jeimer Candelario from Triple-A Iowa. Candelario batted sixth and went 1-for-4 in his major league debut. ... The Cubs reached the midway point of the season on a 100-win pace for the first time since 1977, when they were 51-30 after 81 games and finished 81-81. ... Mets RF Curtis Granderson (right calf) returned to the starting lineup for the first time since Tuesday. ... Mets SS Asdrubal Cabrera (knee) was out of the lineup for just the fourth time this season.