Mets Start Homestand With 3 – 0 Win Over Giants

Bobby Parnell was mainly a starter in the minor leagues, but had been doing relief work for the Mets ever since he came up last year. But, last Saturday, after 60 major league appearances from the bullpen, the 25 year-old got his first major league start, and failed to make it out of the third inning. This time was a little different. This time, on a Friday evening at Citi Field, Parnell pitched beautifully. He threw six shutout innings against the San Francisco Giants, giving up just three hits and no walks while striking out seven.

He was truly masterful last night. And he was backed up by a couple big hits and some solid work from the bullpen.

Offensively, the Mets managed just five hits. But they were efficient with what base runners they had, leaving just three runners on base Friday night. In the first inning, Angel Pagan homered. In the fourth, Luis Castillo led off with a single and JefF Francoeur doubled him in with two outs to give the Mets a 2 – 0 lead. And then in the sixth, Castillo led off with a walk, Wright doubled moving Castillo to third, and then Gary Sheffield’s fly ball brought Castillo home.

And three runs turned out to be plenty enough for the Mets Friday. Parnell needed just 86 pitches to make it through six innings, but was replaced anyway in the top of the seventh by Brandon Stokes. Stokes pitched a nice clean seventh, before giving up a couple base runners in the eighth. Pedro Feliciano came in to relieve Stokes and get the Mets out of trouble in the eighth, before Francisco Rodriguez came in to pitch a perfect ninth for his 26th save of the year.

A good smooth win for the Mets, who are now 31 – 25 at home. The Mets remain 12 back in the NL East but move to just nine and a half back in the Wild Card chase.

Mets Avoid the Sweep, Win 6 – 4 Over D-Backs

At the end of the day, after five and one third innings of work, Oliver Perez had given up just one earned run and had given the New York Mets a huge lift. But it wasn’t easy. Every inning, there was some crisis. Multiple baserunners. Men in scoring position with less than two outs. So, the fact that he gave up just one earned run was something of a miracle.

In the bottom of the first, Ollie worked around a triple and a walk to get out of the inning. In the second, Ollie walked the leadoff hitter and then gave up a double, but with runners on second and third and no outs, Ollie somehow managed to keep the D-Backs off the board.

Ollie gave up his only run in the third after once again walking the leadoff hitter and then giving up an RBI double to Ryan Roberts, but stranded runners on first and second. In the fourth, Ollie put up a zero despite giving up a single and a walk. Then, in the fifth, Ollie got out of a bases loaded jam, and finally was lifted with one out in the sixth. His overall stats were ugly. He gave up six hits and six walks in just five and one third innings of work. But he gave up just one run, and thus gave the Mets a chance to win.

In the bottom of the sixth, the Mets put up a three-spot giving Oliver Perez a chance to get his 3rd win of the season. The big hit was Fernando Tatis’s 2-RBI single .

Unfortunately for Ollie, Sean Green got off to a rocky start n the seventh, hitting the first batter of the inning and then giving up a double to the second. He stuck out the next hitter, then was replaced by Pedro Feliciano, who got the second out of the inning before giving up two consecutive RBI singles.  The runs were charged to Green, but Feliciano also deserves some blame for giving up both inherited runners. And no matter whose fault it was, the result is the same, no win for Ollie Perez.

Thankfully, for the Mets,  with a man on second and two outs, Luis Castillo hit an RBI single to put the Mets up 4 – 3.  Then, after Castillo successfully stole second, Cory Sullivan tripled him home.

With a 5 – 3 lead, Brandon Stokes pitched a scoreless eighth. Then, with a 6 – 3 lead, Francisco Rodriguez struggled once again, allowing the tying run up to come up to the plate, but held on to get his 25th save of the season.

Great day for Fernando Tatis, who went 3 for 4. Gary Sheffield went 2 for 3. David Wright went 3 for 5 with two runs scored. Cory Sullivan went 2 for 4. And of course, tons of credit to Luis Castillo, whose pinch-hit RBI single gave the Mets the lead and was probably the most important play of the game.

Unfortunately for the Mets, the Phillies, Rockies, and Giants all won Wednesday, so they were unable to gain ground.

Mets Break Three-Game Losing Streak, Trounce Cardinals 9 – 0

Jonathan Niese had been competent if not spectacular in his first four starts for the New York Mets. He lasted just one and a third innings Wednesday before becoming the latest Met to succumb to the injury bug.

That was the bad news. On the bright side, the Mets managed to break their three-game losing streak, defeating the St. Louis Cardinals 9 – 0 at Citi Field.

They were helped by big performances from the lineup and bullpen.  David Wright and Angel Pagan fueled a potent Mets offense Wednesday. Wright went 3 for 4, knocking an opposite-field, two-run homerun in the bottom of the first. Meanwhile, Pagan went 3 for 4, with an eighth-inning homerun and four RBIs overall. The Mets also got a fine game from Jeff Francoeur, who went 2 for 3 with a walk to help break a recent slump. Francoeur is now hitting .257. When he came to the Mets, he was hitting just .250.

The bullpen, meanwhile, was fantastic, pitching seven and a third shutout innings after Niese’s sudden departure. Nelson Figueroa pitched four and a third scoreless after a rough start Monday, and Bobby Parnell pitched three scoreless, marking his second consecutive nice outing following a blown save this weekend.

The Mets got more good news Wednesday with the return of Gary Sheffield. That being said, this really is a ragtag lineup. With Luis Castillo out as well, the Mets were forced to start Alex Cora at 2nd and Angel Berroa at short. Pagan was in center.

The Mets still have a lot of ground to make up. They are 10 back in the NL East and 8.5 back in the Wild Card.

For Mets Fans, Putz Lives Up to His Name

Five Run Eighth Inning Dooms Mets in Pittsburgh

The Mets got off to a good start Monday. Jeremy Reed led off with a double in the top of the second. Wilson Valdez followed with a RBI triple. Brian Schneider followed with a single, knocking in Valdez to make it 2 – 0.

The Mets continued the onslaught against Pirates starter Ian Snell in the top of the third. Fernando Martinez walked to lead off the inning, stole second, and then advanced to third on a throwing error by Jason Jamarillo. Daniel Murphy followed with a walk, and then Gary Sheffield grounded into a fielder’s choice making it 3 – 0. Snell got David Wright to fly out for the first out of the inning, but he then gave up another double to Reed. That’s when Valdez struck again, doubling to deep right to make it 5 – 0.

Livan Hernandez, meanwhile, was coming off his best start of the year, a complete game victory against the Washington Nationals. When he put up zeroes in each of the first three innings, it seemed the Mets were well on their way to victory. Then, he ran into trouble in the bottom of the fourth. After striking out Nate McLouth to begin the inning, he gave up a double and a walk. Throughout the inning, he kept missing the strike zone by the smallest of margins, and it seemed like that took him off his game. After the walk, he gave up a 2-RBI triple followed by an RBI groundout that made it 5 – 3. This was followed by a deep hard-hit fly ball that was snagged just a small distance from the fence. After that, things calmed down. Ian Snell recovered after giving up five early runs to throw six solid innings. Meanwhile, Hernandez recovered and made it five-plus innings without any further damage.

In the bottom of the sixth, Pittsburgh threatened and forced Hernandez out of the game. Bobby Parnell came in with runners on first and second and two outs. After a single off Parnell’s glove, the bases were loaded, but Parnell struck out Ramon Vazquez to end the inning. The score was still 5 – 3, and after Pedro Feliciano set down the Pirates 1-2-3 in the seventh, it seemed like the Mets superb bullpen once again had things under control.

But in the top of the eighth, Feliciano gave up a double and a groundout before Manuel lifted him in favor of J.J. Putz. Putz has looked shaky on the mound of late, and on Monday night, he was simply horrendous. Putz faced five batters. He gave up four hits and one walk on just 12 pitches. More importantly, he gave up four runs (three earned) and the runner he inheirited from Feliciano without recording an out. By the end of the inning, the Pirates led 8 – 5. The Mets mustered a small rally in the ninth, but nothing came of it, and in the end the Pirates has dealt the Mets one of their most devastating defeats of the season. And with the Phillies victory later in the evening, the Pirates had pushed the Mets one and a half games back in the NL East standings.

The bullpen, other than Putz, was fairly good. Parnell got out of the bases-loaded jam. Feliciano delivered a solid performance, just giving up that one double to get things started in the bottom of the eighth. Brian Stokes replaced Putz fairly successfully. But Putz’s struggles were enough to derail the entire team.

The offense was good early, but was shut out from the fourth inning on. This failure to tack on runs ended up costing the Mets. On an individual level, Jeremy Reed and Wilson Valdez had fine offensive games. Reed doubled twice, and Valdez doubled, tripled, and knocked in three runs. Valdez did make a big error in the field, but it was an understandable one, a simple error on the transfer, trying to get the ball out of his glove.

The loss is a tough one, but the Mets hope to regain their winning ways tomorrow with Johan Santana on the mound. The game begins at 7:05 Eastern time.

Mets Defeat Marlins in 11, Hold Onto First Place

It was a marvelous pitchers duel Friday night as young Sean West of the Florida Marlins went up against Mike Pelfrey of the New York Mets. Both pitchers performed spectacularly. West went seven innings, giving up just four hits, one walk, and one earned run. The one real blemish was the fifth inning home run West gave up to Omir Santos. West probably could’ve went longer too. He had thrown just 91 pitches when he was pinch hit for in the top of the eighth. Meanwhile, Mike Pelfrey went seven and two-thirds, giving up just five hits and a walk, and striking out six. The only run he gave up was in the fourth, when he surrendered a triple to Chris Coghlan and then gave up a sacrafice fly to Dan Uggla.

Then, it became a battle of the bullpens. Pelfrey was taken out with runners at first and second and two outs in the top of the eighth. He was replaced by Bobby Parnell, who got Dan Uggla to ground out for the final out of the inning. Then, Marlins reliever Kiko Calero loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the eighth but was able to escape with no harm done. In the ninth, Francisco Rodriguez gave up one hit, struck out two, and kept the Marlins off the board. A combination of Marlins relievers held the Mets scoreless in the bottom of the ninth.

So, the game was headed to extra innings. Putz managed to pitch a perfect tenth. Dan Meyer would do the same for the Marlins. In the elventh, Putz recorded two outs, but let a runner get to third. That’s when Pedro Feliciano came in, and managed to get another huge out. Still 1 – 1 after 10 and a half at Citi Field. And then Sheffield walked to begin the bottom of the eleventh, stole second, and was driven home by Omir Santos soft line drive into left-center. Game over. Mets win!

Overall, it was not a good night for either offense. Both teams ended up leaving runner after runner on base. The Marlins left seven on base, the Mets left ten. That being said, the Mets did get some very good individual performances from some unexpected faces. Omir Santos continued to surprise, blasting the solo home run in the fifth as well as the game-winning single in the 11th. Santos is now hitting .276 on the season. And then Ramon Martinez had a multi-hit game as well, going two for three to riase his average to .167. And once again, Gary Sheffield was in the thick of things, particularly with his single to start the Mets 11th inning rally. David Wright, on the other hand, had a rough day, going 0 for 5 with two strikeouts, including a strikeout with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth.

The Phillies had already won by the time the Mets game headed into extra innings, so first place was at stake in Friday night’s game. With their big win, the Mets remain a half game ahead of the Phillies in the NL East.

GAME NOTE: After a rough stretch, J.J. Putz has had three straight scoreless appearances, earning one hold and a save over that stretch.

Santana Stumbles But Mets Win Regardless

Phillies Loss Combined With Mets Win Puts Mets In First 

Everything seemed so perfect. The Mets were leading 3 – 0 with their ace pitcher and possibly the best pitcher in all of baseball, Johan Santana, on the mound. Meanwhile, the Phillies were off to a bad start against the Florida Marlins. It seemed the Mets would end the night in first for sure.

And then, Santana stumbled. Up 3 – 0 in the top of the fourth, Santana walked Ryan Zimmerman and then gave up a two-run home run to Adam Dunn. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the Nationals would load the bases off Santana, on a single and two walks. With two outs and the bases loaded, Santana proceeded to issue his fourth walk of the inning, a walk to Christian Guzman that tied the game at 3. Santana would escape the inning without any further damage, but for a second, it looked as if the Mets night might not turn out so well after all.

Santana thankfully regained his control after that disastorous top of the fourth, getting the Nationals out 1-2-3 in the top of the fifth and the top of the sixth. Then, fortune turned the Mets way in the bottom of the sixth, when with Gary Sheffield on first, Daniel Murphy hit a high fly ball to right field. The ball apparently hit the right-field wall, and when Sheffield tried to score on the play, he was tagged out at home. Murphy ended up on second with a double. But then the umpires examined the video, and decided that the ball had bounced off the Subway sign overhang above the right-field wall and thus was a home run. 5 – 3 Mets. It appears the umpires were wrong. It appears it was just a double, but regardless of whether the call was correct or not, the Mets now had the lead.

And from there on, it was easy. Bobby Parnell and Pedro Feliciano combined to pitch a relatively easy top of the seventh. The Mets then added two more runs in the bottom of the seventh. The big hit in the seventh was Daniel Murphy’s 2-RBI double, which gave him an impressive 5 RBIs on the day.

Manuel brought in J.J. Putz to pitch the top of the eighth, and after a leadoff walk, Putz got Ronnie Belliard to ground into a double play and then got Willie Harris to ground out to end the inning. Still 7 – 3 Mets. Francisco Rodriguez had a little trouble in the ninth, giving up an RBI single to Nick Johnson after Daniel Murphy’s error allowed Christian Guzman to reach base. But it was over. Rodriguez struck out Zimmerman to win the ballgame and clinch the sweep of the Nationals.

It was a strange day for Johan Santana. The fourth inning aside, he was phenomenal. His final numbers were three hits, six walks, 11 strikeouts, and 120 pitches in just six innings of work. The bullpen was strong.

The offense was good too although they left nine runners on base. Angel Pagan got two more hits from the leadoff spot. Luis Castillo was spectacular, getting two hits, scoring two runs, and walking three times from the two spot. Murphy was tremendous too, ending with three hits and of course the five RBIs. The one downer was David Wright, who went 1 for 5 with four strikeouts.

With the Phillies losing 6 – 2 to the Florida Marlins shortly after the Mets game ended, the Mets  are now in first place in the NL East. They are a half game up on the Phillies. Meanwhile, the Braves are currently losing to the Giants, and if they do end up losing, then the Mets will be three games up on the Braves.

The Mets have an off day before they begin a home series with the Florida Marlins on Friday night.

Livan Hernandez Goes the Distance, Mets Win 6 – 1

Santana Will Go For Sweep Tonight

The biggest move the Mets made this winter was getting Francisco Rodriguez. Yet, that was hardly the only move Omar Minaya made this past off-season. He brought in J.J. Putz, Ken Takahashi, and Sean Green as well to help shore up the bullpen. Sean Green aside, those moves have worked out pretty well. He also brought in some key position players. Gary Sheffield was clearly the biggest and best acquisition, but Minaya also brought in solid players like Jeremy Reed and Alex Cora to provide depth. But perhaps, one of Minaya’s biggest and most underated moves was bringing in Livan Hernandez.

Livan Hernandez is 33 years old, and presumably past his prime. Yet, he brings plenty of experience, craftiness, and of course his rubber arm to the Mets. He has been remarkably consistent this year. He is rarely spectacular, but he keeps the Mets in games. As evidence of the statement, Hernandez has lost only one game this entire year. The fact is he may not win every game, but he usually gives his team a chance. And on a starting staff that has been wildly inconsisten this year, Hernandez’s work has to be appreciated.

Last night, against one of the worst teams in baseball, Hernandez was hardly spectacular, but remarkably efficent. In going all the way for the Mets, he gave up nine hits and a walk, but just one earned run. It took 127 pitches, yet at the end of the evening, Livan Hernandez had gotten the first complete game at Citi Field.

Despite their depleted lineup,  the Mets provided plenty of offense for Hernandez. Ramon Martinez hit an RBI double in the bottom of the second. The Mets added another two runs in the bottom of the third, and then with the Mets leading 3 – 1 after six and a half innings, Gary Sheffield put the game out of reach with his three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh.

In other good news, Oliver Perez made his first rehab start for triple-A Buffalo, and presumably, dependent on how Perez does for Buffalo and on how Tim Redding does for the Mets, could rejoin the big club within the next few weeks.

With the Braves loss to the Giants last night, the Mets are now two games ahead of the Braves. They remain a half-game behind the Phillies iu the NL East and 1.5 games behind the Brewers/Cardinals in the Wild Card chase.

Mets Greet Home Fans With 5 – 2 Victory Over Nationals

Mets Bullpen Bends But Doesn’t Break Against Nationals

Over 41,000 fans greeted the Mets at Citi Field Monday night as they returned home from a 5 – 5 road trip through San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Boston. And the Mets, in turn, treated their fans to a 5 – 2 victory over the last-place Washington Nationals.

The Nationals got on the board first Monday, when Wil Nieves hit an RBI single in the second-inning to give the Nats a 1 – 0 lead, but the Mets responded just one inning later with an RBI single by Carlos Beltran. The game remained tied at 1 until the sixth inning, when Gary Sheffield hit a 3-run homerun to give the Mets a 4 – 1 lead. Ramon Martinez added a sacrafice fly to make it 5 – 1.

The Nationals threatened in the seventh, eighth, and ninth innings. In the seventh, Bobby Parnell, coming in for John Maine, walked the first batter he faced. He struck out pinch-hitter Justin Maxwell, but then gave up a single to Carlos Guzman and walked Nieves to load the bases with just one out. Next up was Nationals third-basemen Ryan Zimmerman, who Parnell proceeded to walk. With the score 5 – 2 and the bases still loaded, Jerry Manuel brought in Pedro Feliciano to face Adam Dunn. After Dunn flied out to deep center, Manuel replaced Feliciano with J.J. Putz, who was able to record the final out of the seventh.

In the eighth, J.J. Putz walked two, but was able to keep the Nationals from scoring. Then, in the ninth, Nick Johnson singled off Francisco Rodriguez, and Zimmerman walked again, but once again, the Mets bullpen was able to avoid damage, as Rodriguez struck out Austin Kearns and got Willie Harris to pop out to preserve the 5 – 2 victory.

It was a scary but encouraging victory for the Mets. John Maine had a nice comeback outing Monday. After giving up five runs (four earned) against the Dodgers, Maine gave up just one run in six innings of work against the Nationals. It wasn’t his best performance.  Yet, it was a solid performance, one that was good enough to get Maine his fourth win of the season.

Meanwhile, the bullpen was shaky yet ultimately effective. In three innings of work, the bullpen (Parnell, Feliciano, Putz, and Rodriguez) gave up two hits and six walks but only gave up one run. Parnell’s performance was discouraging, but Feliciano recorded a crucial out with the bases loaded, and Putz and Rodriguez showed mental toughness getting out of jams.

On offense, there were lots of good signs. David Wright had more than one walk for the fifth time in eight games. Meanwhile, Gary Sheffield had two hits, including the three-run home run. His average is now up to .277 with 4 home runs and 14 RBI. Angel Pagan walked twice in the leadoff spot. And Beltran got another two hits to raise his average to an astounding .367.

Monday’s victory combined with losses by Philadelphia and Atlanta, put the Mets all alone in second place and just a half game out of first. Tonight, the Mets will send Livan Hernandez against Craig Stammen. The game is scheduled to start at 7:10 EST.

Red Sox Batter Mets Bullpen, Win Series Finale

Phillies Win in Extra Innings to Move 1.5 Games Ahead

For a brief moment Sunday, it looked like the New York Mets were on their way to a series sweep of the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. Led by David Wright and Jeremy Reed RBI singles, the Mets had stormed back from a 3 – 1 defecit. Then, up 4 – 3 in the top of the fifth with runners on first and third, Gary Sheffield hit a single off Tim Wakefield to give the Mets a two-run lead. With Tim Redding doing surprisingly well, it looked like the Mets might be able to pull off a shocking three-game sweep of the Red Sox. And with the New York Yankees hanging tough against the Philadelphia Phillies, it looked like the Mets might end the weekend in first place.

That’s when Tim Redding imploded. In the bottom of the fifth, After retiring Kevin Youklis and Jason Bay on deep fly balls, Redding gave up a single to J.D. Drew. Mike Lowell followed with a deep drive off the Green Monster. Sheffield played the bounce perfectly, holding Lowell to a single. George Kottaras hit a double to make it 5 – 4. And that’s when Manuel came out, and replaced Redding with Sean Green.

The Mets entered Sunday’s game with one of the best bullpens in the major leagues, but Sunday wasn’t a very good day for the Mets relief corps. Red Sox shortstop Nick Green hit Sean Green’s first pitch into right field for a two-RBI single. Green was tagged out trying to stretch it into a double, but by then the Red Sox were already up 6 – 5.

Ken Takahashi came in to pitch the seventh. He walked Dustin Pedroia but also recorded two outs before handing the ball over to Brandon Stokes. Stokes immediately proceeded to walk Youklis before giving up an RBI single to Jason Bay and an RBI double to J.D. Drew. 8 – 5 Red Sox.

 Stokes got into more trouble in the eighth. He gave up consecutive singles to Kottaras and Green to start the inning. After getting Jacoby Ellsbury to ground out, Pedroia hit an RBI single, and two batter later, Youklis hit a three-run homerun to give the Red Sox a 12 to 5 lead.

It was a rough day for the Mets bullpen. Sean Green actually made a pretty good pitch to Nick Green, but Nick took it the other way for the 2-RBI single. Ken Takahashi was OK too, but ended up being charged with an earned run. Meanwhile, Brandon Stokes was awful, giving up five earned runs in just one and a third innings. On the bright side, Pedro Felicano pitched a scoreless eighth inning, his ninth straight appearance without giving up a run. His ERA is now down to 2.50.

Meanwhile, while the Mets bullpen was giving away the game, the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Yankees were battling it out at Yankee Stadium. Down 3 – 2 in the ninth, Melky Caberea hit a game-tying single off Phillies closer Brad Lidge to send the game into extra innings. But in the top of the 11th, Carlos Ruiz hit a double, driving in Chase Utley to give the Phillies a 4 – 3 lead. Chad Condrey shut the Yankees out in the bottom of the inning to secure the win for the Phillies, who now lead the Mets by one and a half games in the NL East. 

Meanwhile, the Atlanta Braves completed a three-game sweep of the Blue Jays, defeating Toronto by a score of 10 to 2. Atlanta has won seven of their last ten, and are now tied for second place in the NL East with the Mets.

Pair of Ninth Inning Comebacks Puts Mets Back in Striking Distance of First

Two-Run Santos Homerun Lifts Mets to 3 - 2 Victory Over Red Sox

Despite a brilliant start from Mike Pelfrey, an errorless game by the Mets defense, and an excellent relief appearence from Pedro Feliciano, the New York Mets were down to their final out Saturday afternoon. There they were, two outs in the top of the ninth, a runner on first, and reserve catcher Omir Santos at the plate. On the mound was Jonathan Papelbon, perhaps the best closer in the major leagues. That’s when the improbable occured. That’s when Santos hit a shot to left-center field that bounced high off the Green Monster and back iunto play. At first, it was ruled in-play, but after much discussion, the umpires correctly ruled that it was a home run. 3 – 2 Mets. Suddenly, the Mets were on line for their second straight victory over the Boston Red Sox.

The Mets got off to a good start Saturday as Carlos Beltran hit a two-out single in the top of the first off Josh Beckett. After a Beckett throwing error allowed Beltran to advance to second, Gary Sheffield hit a single to put the Mets in front 1 – 0. Sheffield’s average is now up to .260, and he has 10 RBIs and 19 runs on the season.

Unfortunately for the Mets, the Red Sox stormed back with two runs in the bottom of the inning. Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia started the inning with consecutive singles. After a David Ortiz strikeout, Ellsbury and Pedroia managed a double steal, and were then brought home by a Kevin Youklis 2-RBI single. 2 – 1 Red Sox.

But what started out as an offensive game quickly turned into a masterful pitcher’s duel between Mike Pelfrey of the Mets and Josh Beckett of the Red Sox. Pelfrey ended up going seven innings for the Mets. In those seven innings, he gave up just six hits, one walk and struck out eight. Meanwhile, Beckett pitched eight beautiful innings, giving up just five hits and one run. The run was unearned, a result of Beckett’s own error in the first.

The Red Sox still led 2 - 1 as the game headed into the bottom of the eighth. Mike Pelfrey had already thrown 111 pitches,  so Pedro Felicano was brought in to pitch the eighth.  Feliciano was excellent, retiring the Red Sox 1-2-3. Saturday’s successful appearance was yet another example of a rathe r remarkable turnaround for Feliciano, who had a 4.5o ERA on May 2. Now, just weeks later, his ERA is down to 2.65.

Then, in the top of the ninth, Papelbon walked Sheffield, struck out David Wright and Jeremy Reed, before surrendering the game-winning blow to Santos. Things got a little shaky in the bottom of the ninth, when J.J. Putz walked the leadoff batter, but then he retired Jason Bay, J.D. Drew, and Mike Lowell to seal the victory.

Meanwhile, the New York Yankees scored three runs in the bottom of the ninth to defeat the Philadelphia Phillies. The Yankees entered the inning down 4 – 2, but managed to muster three hits and three runs off Phillies closer Brad Lidge to win the game. They tied the game on a two-run homerun by Alex Rodriguez. Yankees outfielder Melky Cabrera got the game-winning blow, doubling in Robinson Cano to win the game.

So, the Mets are now just a half-game behind the Phillies for first place in the NL East. The Braves are a half-game behind the Mets and one and a half behind the Phillies. Meanwhile, the Florida Marlins are fading. They’re now five and half games out of first place in the NL East.