Mets hand Wheeler ball against Marlins

Georgia-born New York phenom Zack Wheeler goes for a fourth consecutive victory in his eighth major league start on Tuesday night, when the Mets visit the Miami Marlins in game two of a four-game series at Marlins Park.

Wheeler, a first-round pick of the San Francisco Giants in 2009, came to New York in a trade deadline deal two years ago that sent outfielder Carlos Beltran to the West Coast.

Now 23, he made his debut with the Mets on June 18 and defeated the Atlanta Braves with six scoreless innings of four-hit ball.

He took his first loss two starts later against Washington, but has since gone 3-0 in four starts, including a 7-4 downing of the Braves on July 25 in which he allowed three earned runs in six innings.

Wheeler has never faced the Marlins.

Another 23-year-old, righty Nathan Eovaldi, gets the nod for Miami in his eighth start of the season and 40th appearance of his career.

Eovaldi was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2008 and headed to Miami in a late July deal last season that sent Hanley Ramirez and Randy Choate to the Dodgers.

He was 1-6 in 10 starts with Los Angeles before the trade, then went 3-7 for Miami in 2012 before winning two of his initial three decisions this season.

He tossed six innings of scoreless three-hit ball at Colorado in his last outing on July 25, but got a no-decision in a game the Marlins ultimately won, 5-3.

On Monday, Ike Davis' go-ahead RBI double highlighted a three-run seventh and helped the Mets down the Marlins, 6-5.

Daniel Murphy tallied two hits, three RBI and a pair of runs scored for the Mets, who snapped a three-game skid. David Aardsma (2-0) recorded the final two outs in the sixth to pick up the win and Bobby Parnell worked a scoreless ninth to notch his 21st save of the year.

Ed Lucas had an RBI triple and scored twice for Miami, which had won five of its previous seven.

The Mets entered the week with an eight-game lead in the overall series between the teams, 169-161. The Marlins won eight of the first 11 games in 2013, however, including five in a row from May 31 to June 9.