[size=24:ae1f21020f][b:ae1f21020f]METS VICTORIOUS AGAIN[/b:ae1f21020f][/size:ae1f21020f]
[size=16:ae1f21020f]Strawberry's 29th HR Leads Mets to 6-4 Win[/size:ae1f21020f]
<img src="http://fantasygames.sportingnews.com/images/baseball/stratomatic/1986/story_photos/darryl_strawberry_3_150x214.jpg" align="left" border="1" width="150" height="214" style="margin-right: 10px;" /> New York outfielder Darryl Strawberry hit his major league leading 29th home run on Sunday night to lead the [url=http://www.sportingnews.com/baseball/1986/scores/boxscore.php?id=1353][u:ae1f21020f]Mets to an impressive 6-4 win[/u:ae1f21020f][/url] over the visiting Montreal Expos.
The win, New York's 16th in their last 20 games, allowed the Mets to maintain a three game lead over the Cardinals in the National League East ([url=http://www.sportingnews.com/baseball/1986/scores/boxscore.php?id=1355][u:ae1f21020f]St. Louis also won[/u:ae1f21020f][/url], 2-0, in a tough road game against the Pittsburgh Pirates).
After struggling in the first half of the season, the Mets have spent the past 3 weeks winning, and are finally playing the kind of baseball that led many experts to pick the Mets as pre-season favorites to win the National League pennant.
[b:ae1f21020f]In Other Playoff Races...[/b:ae1f21020f]
In the American League East, the top three teams (Detroit, Toronto, New York) all lost, while [url=http://www.sportingnews.com/baseball/1986/scores/boxscore.php?id=1359][u:ae1f21020f]
Boston crushed the Royals 12-6[/u:ae1f21020f][/url] and the [url=http://www.sportingnews.com/baseball/1986/scores/boxscore.php?id=1361][u:ae1f21020f]Indians won 8-7[/u:ae1f21020f][/url] to further tighten the playoff race. The Tigers still lead the division, but Cleveland is 6 games back and Boston trails by just 8.
In the N.L. West, Nolan Ryan pitched [url=http://www.sportingnews.com/baseball/1986/scores/boxscore.php?id=1356][u:ae1f21020f]Houston past San Diego 2-1[/u:ae1f21020f][/url], moving the Astros to within two games of the Padres.
[i:ae1f21020f]photo: SN Archives[/i:ae1f21020f]