Austin Hays hit two of Cincinnati’s four home runs and Nick Lodolo threw seven strong innings as the Reds beat the New York Mets 8-4.

Austin Hays hit two homers and finished with three RBIs Friday night for the visiting Cincinnati Reds, who beat the New York Mets 8-4 in the opener of a three-game series.

The New York Mets could upgrade their outfield by acquiring a struggling slugger from a disappointing American League club.

According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the Mets have an interest in acquiring Minnesota Twins left-handed reliever Danny Coulombe. Danny Coulombe stats ( ESPN ): 0.68 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 29-7 K-BB ratio in 26.

The New York Mets would need to part ways with a king's ransom of prospects to make this NL East trade a reality.

Cincinnati Reds relief pitcher Kevin Herget (57) throws a pitch in the ninth inning of the MLB National League game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Milwaukee Brewers at Great

Ahead of his jersey retirement, Mets legend David Wright spoke about his journey and the connection between him, the organization and the fans.

Kicking off Wright’s big weekend at Citi Field, where the captain’s No. 5 will be retired and he’ll be inducted into the Mets’ Hall of Fame, Collins spoke to reporters on Friday. There, he revealed why he named Wright captain ahead of the 2013 season.

"The first thing he said is, 'I just want to help.' "And I said, 'Well, you're going to help tonight because you're going to hit third.' And what does he do? Hits a homer his first time up. And that personifies who he is.