Niese, Murphy lead surprising Mets past Phils 6-1

PHILADELPHIA - Jonathon Niese pitched seven steady innings on a rainy Tuesday night and Daniel Murphy had three hits to lead the surprising New York Mets to a 6-1 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.

Ruben Tejada doubled and had two RBIs for the Mets, who have won seven of nine. They improved to 15-11 overall, marking the first time New York has been four games over .500 since July 14, 2012.

Marlon Byrd homered and Ryan Howard had two hits with a double for Philadelphia, which lost for just the third time in nine games.

The start was delayed by rain for 1 hour, 28 minutes, and the temperature at first pitch was a chilly 46 degrees. Many in the announced crowd of 28,189 who braved the cold were dressed more appropriately for a Philadelphia Eagles football game in December, with hooded sweat shirts, winter coats and wool blankets.