DYK? Murphy on record 6-game HR streak
With 7 homers this postseason, 1 shy of all-time mark
The Mets finished off their National League Championship Series sweep of the Cubs on Thursday night, behind yet another stellar performance from history-making second baseman Daniel Murphy in an 8-3 Game 4 victory.
One night after rewriting the franchise record books, Murphy set his sights on the Major League record books, all while helping the Mets clinch their first NL pennant in 15 years. Here's a look at some of the top facts and figures to come out of New York's Game 4 victory.
:: NLCS: Cubs vs. Mets -- Results ::
• Murphy's eighth-inning homer in Game 4 made him the first player in Major League history to homer in six consecutive postseason games. He had been tied with Carlos Beltran (2004 Astros). In addition, Murphy is the only player all-time to record at least one extra-base hit and one RBI in six straight postseason games.
• Dress like the Mets for the World Series
• Murphy now has seven home runs overall this postseason, leaving him one shy of the all-time mark. The record for most home runs in a single postseason is eight, held by Barry Bonds (2002), Beltran ('04) and Nelson Cruz ('11).
• Murphy named NLCS Most Valuable Player
• Murphy also joins Lou Gehrig as the only players to score and drive in at least one run in seven consecutive postseason games. Murphy, however, is the only player to do so in a single postseason, as Gehrig's seven-game streak stretched from 1928-32.
• With the Mets advancing to the World Series to face either the Blue Jays or Royals, it will be the first time that the World Series didn't feature one of the original 16 franchises (Athletics, Braves, Browns/Orioles, Cardinals, Cubs, Dodgers, Giants, Indians, Phillies, Pirates, Red Sox, Reds, Senators/Twins, Tigers, White Sox, Yankees). Or, to put it another way, that it will feature two expansion franchises.
• Veteran right-hander Bartolo Colon was credited with the win following his 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief. The victory comes 14 years and 12 days after his last postseason victory (Game 1 of the 2001 AL Division Series), marking the longest gap all-time between postseason victories, according to Elias Sports Bureau. The previous record belonged to Milt Wilcox, who went exactly 14 years between postseason wins from 1970-84.
Video: NLCS Gm4: Colon puts out fire, earns win in clincher
• The Mets chased Cubs starter Jason Hammel after just 1 1/3 innings, making him only the second Cubs starter to allow at least four runs and four hits, all while recording no more than four outs in a postseason game.
• Hammel also served up two home runs and two walks in those 1 1/3 innings, one day after Blue Jays starter R.A. Dickey allowed two homers and two walks over 1 2/3 innings in Game 4 of the ALCS. Prior to Hammel and Dickey doing so one day apart, only two other pitchers had ever allowed at least two homers and two walks in fewer than two innings pitched in a postseason game. The two others were the Padres' Eric Show (1984 NLCS Game 5) and the Yankees' Harry Harper (1921 World Series Game 6).
• With three home runs Wednesday night, the Mets have now hit a franchise record 14 homers this postseason. Their previous high for a single postseason was 12, set in 1969.
• Murphy was far from the Mets' only source of offense in Game 4, as first baseman Lucas Duda tied a franchise record with five RBIs in a postseason game. Duda's five RBIs are also tied for the most all-time by an NL player in a series-clinching victory, joining Beltran, Fred McGriff, Pedro Guerrero and Johnny Bench.
Video: NLCS Gm4: Duda tallies five RBIs as Mets clinch
• The Mets not only swept the Cubs, but they never trailed at any point in the entire series. In doing so, they became just the sixth team to sweep a best-of-seven series without ever trailing, joining the 2012 Tigers, '04 Red Sox, 1989 Athletics, '66 Orioles and '63 Dodgers.
• This marked the Mets' first sweep in a best-of-seven postseason series. Their only other postseason sweeps came in the 1969 NLCS, then a best-of-five, against the Braves, and the 2006 NLDS against the Dodgers. In '69, the Mets went on to defeat the Orioles in five games for the franchise's first World Series title. They lost the 2006 NLCS to the Cardinals in seven games.
• The Mets are the eighth team to sweep an LCS since it became a best-of-seven series in 1985. Of the previous seven to record an LCS sweep, only one -- the '95 Braves -- went on to win the World Series. The other six all went on to lose the World Series, with three of those six clubs suffering a Fall Classic sweep on the heels of their LCS sweep.