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PITTSBURGH -- The first-place New York Mets added some much-needed punch at designated hitter Friday, acquiring Daniel Vogelbach from the Pittsburgh Pirates in a trade for rookie reliever Colin Holderman.
Later Friday, Joey Wendle had three hits and two RBIs, Braxton Garrett pitched six sharp innings and the Miami Marlins emphatically ended their 37-inning scoreless streak by beating the Pirates 8-1.
The burly Vogelbach, a left-handed hitter and an All-Star in 2019 with Seattle, was batting .228 with 12 home runs, 34 RBIs and a .769 OPS in 75 games.
"We wanted to get an offensive player and we did that in landing Vogey," first-year Mets general manager Billy Eppler said. "Somebody that's really excelled against right-handed pitching. We all kind of know that two-thirds of the pitchers we face are right-handed. So he can be a presence in the order."
The 26-year-old Holderman is 4-0 with a 2.04 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 15 appearances covering 17ª innings.
"We're really excited to work with him," Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said. "He's already had some success in the major leagues and he's someone who will come in and be part of our pitching staff now."
Opponents are batting just .186 against Holderman during his first season in the majors, and Eppler said it was "really difficult" to part with him.
"In a way we're going to have rob Peter to pay Paul a little bit," Eppler said. "Some of the conversations I've had with other clubs has given me the feeling that there might be a little bit more robust about the relief markets than the bats. So we had to use this opportunity to do that."
The 6-foot, 270-pound Vogelbach signed a $1 million, one-year contract with Pittsburgh in March. The deal included a $1.5 million club option for 2023 with a $200,000 buyout.
Vogelbach, 29, can also play first base. He has an .817 career OPS against right-handed pitchers, and 55 of his 61 major league home runs have come versus righties.
He is a .213 career hitter overall with a .745 OPS in 412 big league games over seven seasons with Seattle, Toronto, Milwaukee and Pittsburgh.
Cherington said multiple teams had called about Vogelbach over the past two weeks, and talks with the Mets intensified in the last two days.
"He loves to hit, and he takes it very seriously. That really rubbed off both in the clubhouse and in the dugout on our young players," Cherington said. "We were very happy with the job he did here and wish him all the best. It's a great opportunity for him."
Marlins come alive
The Marlins were shut out by Philadelphia in three straight games last weekend at home leading up to the All-Star break. The 37-inning drought tied the franchise record set in 2013.
Avisail Garcia stopped Miami's nine-game streak without a home run, which was one short of the club record, with a solo shot in the eighth that capped the scoring.
Garrett (2-3), a rookie left-hander, beat the Pirates for the second time in eight days by pitching one-run ball and allowing two hits. He struck out seven and walked one.
In his last outing, Garrett pitched six shutout innings with 11 strikeouts.
Rookie catcher Nick Fortes drove in three runs. Garcia, Miguel Rojas and Jesus Aguilar had two of the Marlins' 13 hits.
Zach Thompson (3-7) was tagged for seven runs against his former team. He was part of an offseason trade that sent Gold Glove catcher Jacob Stallings from the Pirates to the Marlins.
Rookie catcher Jason Delay's first career homer accounted for the Pirates' lone run, coming in the third inning. Marlins pitchers then set down Pittsburgh's last 21 batters as Steven Okert, Dylan Floro and Anthony Bass each worked one perfect relief inning.
The Pirates' only other hit was a single by Ke'Bryan Hayes in the first.
Rojas snapped the Marlins' scoring drought by doubling in the first run in a four-run fourth inning that put Miami ahead 4-1. After runs scored on a wild pitch and groundout by Fortes, Wendle capped the outburst with an RBI single.
The Marlins pushed the lead to 7-1 with a three-run seventh. Fortes hit a two-run double and scored on a single by Wendle.
Injury report
Pirates: OF Greg Allen (strained left hamstring) was activated after spending the entire season on the 60-day IL. C Michael Perez was designated for assignment to open a 40-man roster spot. ... CF Bryan Reynolds (strained right oblique) has started taking batting practice.