PITTSBURGH -- Having their third baseman be the offensive catalyst is nothing new for the Mets. But it's not usually Eric Campbell.Campbell opened the scoring with an RBI double in the first and went 3-for-4 as the Mets held off the Pirates, 5-3, at PNC Park on Saturday. Campbell got his second straight start at the hot corner in place of David Wright, who has been sidelined with a sore left shoulder the past two days. 
The three hits were a career best for the 27-year-old rookie who debuted in May, and the first of his two doubles opened a three-run first inning for the Mets against Pirates starter Gerrit Cole. Campbell's two-bagger down the left-field line scored Ruben Tejada, Lucas Duda got home on a wild pitch and a Kirk Nieuwenhuis single plated Campbell to give the Mets an early cushion.New York tacked on two more runs in the second thanks to two walks and a Daniel Murphy two-run single. Cole struggled in his return from the disabled list (right shoulder fatigue), as the Mets forced him out of the game after four innings and 93 pitches.With a five-run advantage, Mets lefty Jon Niese looked strong early, but his command left him in the fourth inning. After Andrew McCutchen and Josh Harrison hit their way on base, Niese walked three straight hitters, including Pedro Alvarez and Chris Stewart with the bases loaded, to give the Bucs two runs.Niese got out of the inning otherwise unscathed, and though he gave up one more run in the fifth, he still recorded his 13th quality start in 16 tries, allowing three runs on seven hits in six innings to go with five strikeouts.The Mets didn't score and were held to four hits in the final seven innings, but it was the first time in the series they scored more than two runs and they snapped a three-game skid.Stephen Pianovich / MLB.com
The three hits were a career best for the 27-year-old rookie who debuted in May, and the first of his two doubles opened a three-run first inning for the Mets against Pirates starter Gerrit Cole. Campbell's two-bagger down the left-field line scored Ruben Tejada, Lucas Duda got home on a wild pitch and a Kirk Nieuwenhuis single plated Campbell to give the Mets an early cushion.New York tacked on two more runs in the second thanks to two walks and a Daniel Murphy two-run single. Cole struggled in his return from the disabled list (right shoulder fatigue), as the Mets forced him out of the game after four innings and 93 pitches.With a five-run advantage, Mets lefty Jon Niese looked strong early, but his command left him in the fourth inning. After Andrew McCutchen and Josh Harrison hit their way on base, Niese walked three straight hitters, including Pedro Alvarez and Chris Stewart with the bases loaded, to give the Bucs two runs.Niese got out of the inning otherwise unscathed, and though he gave up one more run in the fifth, he still recorded his 13th quality start in 16 tries, allowing three runs on seven hits in six innings to go with five strikeouts.The Mets didn't score and were held to four hits in the final seven innings, but it was the first time in the series they scored more than two runs and they snapped a three-game skid.Stephen Pianovich / MLB.com
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