Flores drives in 3, extends RBI streak to 4 games to lift Mets to 4-1 win over Diamondbacks

PHOENIX — Rookie Wilmer Flores drove in three runs to extend his RBI streak to four games, Zack Wheeler pitched effectively into the seventh inning and the New York Mets beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 4-1 on Saturday.

Flores, called up from Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday, had a run-scoring single off Brandon McCarthy (2-6) in the fourth inning and a two-run single in the eighth, giving him eight RBIs in his first five games in the majors.

Juan Lagares hit a solo homer and Wheeler (5-2) allowed a run over 6 1-3 innings to bounce back from a shaky outing previous start.

LaTroy Hawkins worked around a baserunner in the ninth for his third save in five chances.

Aaron Hill homered for Arizona, which stranded 10 runners and had its three-game winning snapped.

Wheeler struggled in his last outing, giving up four earned runs and seven hits in five innings of a loss to the Royals last Sunday.

The rookie right-hander was sharp against the Diamondbacks, keeping them off-balance with his mid-90s fastball and looping curveball while avoiding walks — a rarity this season.

Wheeler finally made a mistake in the seventh inning, when Hill fouled off a couple of two-strike pitches before hitting a curveball just out of left fielder Chris Young's reach for a homer that cut New York's lead to 2-1.

Wil Nieves followed with a one-out single and Wheeler was replaced by Scott Rice, who got Adam Eaton to ground out with the bases loaded to end the inning.

Wheeler allowed six hits and didn't walk a batter after walking at least two in each of his first nine starts.

McCarthy, in his second start off the DL, got through the first three innings before Lagares led off the fourth with a line-drive homer that just cleared the wall into the pool deck in right-center. Ike Davis then doubled off the wall and Flores knocked him with a single to put the Mets up 2-0.

McCarthy was good after that, getting Flores to ground out with runners on second and third in the sixth inning before being lifted for a pinch hitter in the seventh. He allowed two runs on six hits and struck out four.

New York loaded the bases against David Hernandez in the eighth inning and Flores lined a two-run single to left to put the Mets up 4-1.

Arizona loaded the bases against Carlos Torres in the bottom half, but Pedro Feliciano struck out Gerardo Parra to end the threat.

Hawkins gave up a two-out single to Eaton before striking out Prado looking for his 900th career strikeout.