NEW YORK (Interstat) — The New York Yankees honored the memory of Sept. 11 before opening a Subway Series against the New York Mets, then rode a three-run homer by Cody Bellinger and a strong start by Carlos Rodón to a 6-4 victory Friday night at Yankee Stadium II. The crowd of 47,410 saw the game completed in 2 hours, 49 minutes. New York improved to 85-62, while the Mets fell to 68-79. The Yankees remained three games behind Tampa Bay in the American League East and moved 5 1/2 games ahead of Boston for the first AL wild card. The Mets had won three straight road games against Miami before crossing town to the Bronx. The Yankees had swept Colorado in their previous series.

The pregame ceremony carried weight throughout the ballpark. Aaron Boone, Aaron Judge and Gerrit Cole were among those who carried a memorial wreath into Monument Park, and several members of the 2001 Yankees were on hand as the club remembered the first responders and victims of the Sept. 11 attacks. Bellinger, whose father played for the 2001 Yankees, wore pinstripes and an FDNY cap during the observance. Brielle Saracini, whose father was the captain of United Flight 175, threw a ceremonial first pitch that Bellinger caught. Once the game began, the Yankees wasted little time giving the home crowd something to cheer.

Rodón earned the win to move to 6-3. The left-hander allowed one earned run on three hits over 6 1/3 innings and struck out eight. He left with the Yankees in control and handed the ball to a bullpen that included Paul Blackburn, Brent Headrick and David Bednar. Bednar recorded the final five outs for his 33rd save, allowing one earned run on two hits with one strikeout. Nolan McLean took the loss for the Mets, falling to 11-8. He pitched five innings, allowed 10 hits and five earned runs, and struck out five. Jack Weisenburger provided three innings of relief for New York, giving up one earned run on three hits with two strikeouts.

Bellinger supplied the game’s biggest swing in the bottom of the second. After Anthony Volpe singled and Ben Rice followed with a single, Bellinger drove a curveball from McLean to right-center field for his 14th home run of the season. The three-run shot turned a 1-1 game into a 4-1 Yankees lead. It was the first homer McLean had allowed on a curveball in the major leagues. Bellinger finished 2 for 4 with three RBIs, while Rice went 3 for 4 with a home run and one RBI. Rice’s solo shot in the fifth, his team-leading 37th, extended the lead to 5-1.

The Mets had tied the game in the top of the second with a walk, a single and a fielding error. Mark Vientos walked, Carson Benge struck out and Marcus Semien singled to center before a fielding error by Spencer Jones put runners in scoring position. Christopher Morel then grounded out to shortstop George Lombard Jr., scoring Vientos. A.J. Ewing ended the inning with a groundout. The Mets managed little against Rodón after that, though they kept the game within reach with late runs.

New York’s first run came in the bottom of the first. Rice lined a single to left, Bellinger singled to right and Judge walked to load the bases. Luis García Jr. lined out to second, but Spencer Jones followed with a single to left that scored Rice. Lombard Jr. then grounded into a double play to end the threat. The Yankees added their second-inning burst on Bellinger’s homer, and Rice’s fifth-inning drive gave them a four-run cushion.

The Mets cut into the deficit in the seventh. Benge singled to left, Semien walked and Jared Young reached on a force out that put runners at the corners. Ewing lined a single to right that scored Benge and moved Young to second. Francisco Alvarez walked to load the bases, but Brent Headrick got Francisco Lindor to line out to the pitcher, ending the inning with the Yankees ahead 5-2. The Mets added another run in the eighth when Bo Bichette singled, Vientos and Benge walked, and Semien lifted a sacrifice fly to center that scored Bichette. Jared Young flew out to center to end the inning.

The Yankees answered in the bottom of the eighth. García singled to right and Jones singled to left, with José Caballero running for García. Lombard Jr. sacrificed the runners over, and Ryan McMahon singled to left to score Caballero for a 6-3 lead. Austin Wells popped out and Volpe grounded out, but the insurance run proved useful. In the ninth, Ewing hit his ninth home run of the season to right field, pulling the Mets within two. Alvarez struck out, Lindor singled to right, but Juan Soto grounded into a double play started by Paul Goldschmidt to end the game.

Ewing finished 2 for 4 with a home run and two RBIs for the Mets. Lindor, Soto, Bichette, Semien, Benge and Ewing combined for the Mets’ seven hits, but the Mets could not string together enough against Rodón and the Yankees bullpen. García, Jones, McMahon and Volpe helped support Bellinger and Rice as New York finished with 13 hits. The Mets turned a double play in the first, and the Yankees turned one in the ninth. Bednar closed the door after the Mets’ final push. The teams were set to continue their series at Yankee Stadium on Saturday and Sunday before the Mets returned home to face Baltimore and the Yankees traveled to Minnesota.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of New York Yankees 7, New York Mets 6. Interstat’s ELO system had given the Yankees a 61.5 percent probability to win. The Yankees had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1.5. The over/under line was 8. This victory moved the Yankees to 85-62 and the Mets to 68-79.