Dominant Jose beating NL’s best this year

MIAMI — Marlins ace Jose Fernandez is doing something very difficult: He’s making beating good teams look easy.

Fernandez raised his standard on Sunday, matching a career high with 14 strikeouts in seven innings in Miami’s 1-0 win over the Mets at Marlins Park.

“He was unbelievable,” catcher J.T. Realmuto said. “He had all of his stuff going, obviously. But a couple of long innings [pitch count-wise] there, early. After that, he really settled in. He got batters out quickly. We tried focusing on getting guys out on three pitches, that way he can pitch a little deeper into games. He’s been able to do that for us lately.”

Benchmarks are popping up every time Fernandez (9-2, 2.29 ERA) is on the mound. He has won eight straight starts since April 28, showcasing an ERA of 1.38 with 78 strikeouts to 15 walks. The eight straight wins ties Chris Hammond (1993) for the longest streak in franchise history.

Five of the those eight wins were against teams with winning records, including beating the Nationals twice. He has also defeated the Dodgers, Pirates and Mets. …

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