WELCOME HOME, MIKE

Mets 3, Padres 2 (NYM: 67-44, SD: 58-54)

The Mets fans made Mike Piazza feel welcome, the Mets players didn't. I was thinking about Piazza's situation - you really couldn't leave a place of employment any better than he did. He's going to be given a hero's welcome every time he comes back to New York for the rest of his life - and deservedly so. (To think, I didn't like him as a Dodger.) He received a bunch of standing ovations on Tuesday night - it was really nice to see.

But it was also nice to see the Mets come up with a very clean, solid, 3-2 win. The Padres' 2 runs came on a Geoff Blum 2-run homer off Steve Trachsel. And in fairness to Trachsel, it was a fly ball to right field...that carried....and carried....and somehow carried over the wall, just past Lastings Milledge's leap.

The Mets came back quickly, scoring one run on a double play ground out, then getting a bases loaded RBI single from David Wright, then another RBI single from Wright later on to take the 3-2 lead. Carlos Beltran tied a team record with 3 doubles, scoring on one of those.

Trachsel is now 11-5, and he lowered his ERA to 5.03 with 5-and-two-thirds pretty effective innings. Royce Ring, Darren Oliver, Roberto Hernandez, Pedro Feliciano, and Billy Wagner all came in from the bullpen to close out the win.

The Mets have two more with the Padres - Wednesday night Pedro Martinez* returns to the mound for the first time since his gem in Florida, against Clay Hensley.


MAGIC NUMBER: The Braves beat the Phillies, which means the Mets get two games knocked off the magic number! It's down to 38.

THE KID'S KIDS: After Monday night's rain out (actually, I read that it might have been a power outage due to storms), the St. Lucie Mets bounced back nicely, sweeping a doubleheader from Dunedin, 5-2, and 6-0. They've narrowed the gap behind Daytona to a game (again).

ALFONZO'S COMEBACK: Back at third base, another single for Edgardo Alfonzo. He was 1-for-4, raising his average to .234.

BEAT THE STREAK: An ofer for Albert Pujols, so I'm back to 0. I'm not even sure I can get a 56-gamer at this point. Maybe there are 56 games left in the year. Might be time to hang up the ol' beat the streak cleats. I'll pick a player anyway for Wednesday - Paul Lo Duca. That ought to cool him off.