For the first time in days this was not the message for the Mets game.

Mets 4, Phillies 3, 8 innings

Mets 4, Phillies 0

(4-3)

Winning is fun.

See, this is what 2021 can be like.

Things got a little bit messy in Game 1 but it didn’t matter when the Mets pulled out a win in extra innings. (Which was the 8th inning in this case, with the 7-inning games in a doubleheader…and hence the ‘crazy 8s’ in the title.)

The second game of the doubleheader was only the required 7 innings - 6 of which were beautifully pitched by Marcus Stroman.

The Mets are starting to get key hits - after Dom Smith’s first-inning homer in game one they were stagnant until that 8th inning when they came through twice with runners in scoring position.

And they hit well in the second game, led by Brandon Nimmo’s 3 hits and 3 RBI.

Stroman in game two and Taijuan Walker in game one gave the Mets solid starts, and even the relievers were good on Tuesday: Miguel Castro and Trevor May had some hard luck in game one, giving up tying and go-ahead runs on balls that didn’t leave the infield, and Jeurys Familia looked good to finish Stroman’s game.

A doubleheader sweep against a division rival is big, no matter where in the season it happens.

After another unexpected layoff, the Mets came back looking much more lively than they did last week.

Now we just need some cooperation from the weather so they can keep this train rolling.

Notes: One of the things I’ve felt has been missing from the Mets in recent years is some fire. Everything seemed to be taken in stride. That’s why I liked seeing Dom Smith get fired up at Jose Alvarado after he buzzed and then hit Michael Conforto in Game 1. I’m sure it wasn’t intentional, but let the guy know you’re upset. I’m not rooting for a brawl, but I do like the team coming together over something…I obviously didn’t write anything after the rain outs Sunday and Monday. I suppose if I’m documenting the season I should have, but there’s nothing to comment on. Other than it was stupid to start Sunday’s game. The fact that’s a suspended game is ridiculous - the rosters will be significantly different when it’s made up in August, too. But, for the record, I was disappointed by Sunday’s rain out. Monday I was tired and happy to go to bed and I didn’t necessarily miss the game.

How I Watched: Mostly watched these games on SNY through the MLB.TV app - after picking the girls up from school, then through dinner, and then into the night. I did have to make a trip to dance, and heard Eddie Coleman doing play-by-play on the radio. Only later learned that the word on Howie Rose is he’s dealing with a “personal medical issue.” Hope he's OK.

What Else I Watched: I had half an eye on the Yankees-Blue Jays game, which I started watching between Mets games and then kept on as I watched the second game. I’ll probably say this every time he pitches, but every pitch Hyun-Jin Ryu throws looks so hittable, yet he has such success.

Notes From Around The League: The last time I wrote here I mentioned the Padres no-hitter - it was thrown by Joe Musgrove, but even more impressively (OK, not more, but impressive nonetheless), it was caught by Victor Caratini. That’s notable because the last no-hitter in the majors was thrown last September by Alec Mills for the Cubs, and the catcher there was - you guessed it - Victor Caratini…We also talked about Casey Mize last week - he got his first career win the other night with 7 scoreless innings. Good for him…Max Fried has had a rough start to the year. Atlanta has had trouble keeping their pitchers healthy - I wonder if something’s bothering Fried because he is not pitching as well as he usually does.