NewsUp to Pelfrey to keep Mets on track
New York (17-14) vs. Atlanta (16-16), 7:10 p.m. ET
By Marty Noble / MLB.com
05/12/09 1:57 AM ET
NEW YORK -- Now what? Johan Santana lost to the Braves. And now it's up to Mike Pelfrey to put the Braves in their place and keep the Mets in first place when he makes his sixth start. Pelfrey says the Monday night result doesn't effect his Tuesday night assignment because, "Either way, he's not an easy guy to follow.""But win or lose with him," Pelfrey said, "my job is the same. And I try to do the same things -- pitch as deep as possible into the game and keep us in it, give my team a chance to win. It doesn't matter who you follow or what he's done. Johan pitched great [Monday]. He didn't win, but he pitched well enough to win. But how does that affect what I have to do?
"I don't ever compare myself to him. With John [Maine] or Livan [Hernandez], we try to outdo each other. You can try with them, but not with Johan. You'd get [an inferiority complex]. And you can never tell, anyway.
"I haven't been myself, and I'm 4-0 because of all the runs we've scored when I've pitched. And Johan is 4-2, and we don't score that much for him," Pelfrey added, referring to the 36 runs of support he's gotten in five starts compared to the 15 runs in Santana's seven starts.
Knowing what he knows, Pelfrey says he would be willing to deal with the lack of support the Mets have afforded Santana under one condition: "He gives me his [0.78] ERA. I'll take my chances with that."
Pitching matchup
NYM: RHP Mike Pelfrey (4-0, 5.46 ERA)
No strikeouts? No problem. Pelfrey has won his three most recent starts pitching to contact. He didn't strike out anyone in beating the Phillies on May 1, had a no-strikeout performance Thursday and has one strikeout in his past three starts, covering 18 innings. A sequence of 76 batters has come and gone since his last strikeout. No matter, he is unbeaten, at least partially because the Mets score for him -- 36 runs in five starts. Pelfrey has a 2-3 record and a 5.54 ERA in seven career appearances -- six starts -- against the Braves. He has struck out 19 batters in 37 1/3 innings against them. Chipper Jones has hit two home runs in 10 at-bats against him.
Jurrjens turned in yet another solid performance against the Marlins on Thursday. The only difference was, the Braves actually provided enough run support for him to win. He surrendered two runs, both coming on solo home runs by shortstop Hanley Ramirez, on three hits through seven innings. Jurrjens walked two and struck out four while throwing 102 pitches, 66 for strikes. The 23-year-old Curacao native now has now given up just nine earned runs in 40 1/3 innings this year. He has a 2-1 record and 4.00 ERA in three career starts against the Mets. The active players on the Mets' roster have 10 hits, including one a home run, in 42 composite at-bats against Jurrjens.
Tidbits
General manager Omar Minaya said he expects Tim Redding to join the Mets rotation when he has completed his rehab assignment. Redding made his second start as part of his Minor League rehabilitation assignment Monday night, pitching seven innings for the Mets' Triple-A Buffalo affiliate in its 5-3 victory against Norfolk. Redding wasn't involved in the decision. He allowed seven hits and three runs, all earned, while striking out four and walking one. ... Sean Green threw a bullpen session Monday and seemed to benefit from facing batter, manager Jerry Manuel said. Minaya noted that Green has options remaining but that the club has no plans to demote him. "Not yet," Minaya said. ... Jeremy Reed started in right field and Ryan Church, who has three hits in his most recent 32 at-bats didn't play. Reed had a double, a single and a walk in four plate appearances. Even before that, Manuel said he intended to start him again Tuesday. ... Oliver Perez threw his first bullpen session in Port St. Lucie, Fla., on Monday. The tendinitis in his right knee has diminished somewhat. The plan is to have him pitch in simulated games before he begins pitching in Minor League rehab games. ... Brian Schneider is limited to catching in the bullpen and taking batting practice because of the strained calf muscle.
Plummer passed away at age 56 last June after a four-decade career with the Mets. He began as a Minor League bat boy and worked his way up to a front office executive. He was the director of corporate sponsorship at the time of his death.
This date in Mets history -- May 12: After winning merely five times in their first 22 games, the 1962 Mets won twice on this date. Hobie Landrith, the first of the original Mets, hit a home run off Warren Spahn with two outs in the ninth to fuel a 3-2 victory against the Braves in the first game of a doubleheader at the Polo Grounds. Gil Hodges hit a solo home run with one out in the ninth inning to win the second game after the Mets had tied the score at 7 in the eighth. The Mets hadn't won a game by one run until that date. Craig Anderson was the winning pitcher in both games, pitching three total innings in relief. He had been the winning pitcher six days earlier, too. He lost his other 17 decisions that season, and he never won another game in his brief career.
Dave Kingman produced one of the nine four-hit games in his career in a 6-3 Mets victory against the Braves in Atlanta on this date in 1976. Two of the hits were solo home runs against Andy Messersmith. ... Tim Teufel singled in Ray Knight with the decisive run in the Mets' 1-0 victory against the Braves at Shea Stadium on May 12, 1986. Sid Fernandez (seven innings) and Roger McDowell combined on a four-hitter with Fernandez walking one and striking out 10.
Frank Viola gained his seventh victory in seven starts in a 7-0 victory against the Dodgers at Shea in 1990. He struck out seven. No other Mets pitcher has won his first seven starts in a season. ... In 2004, Tom Glavine and Braden Looper combined on a three-hitter in a 1-0 victory against the D-backs in Phoenix. Kazuo Matsui's home run off Randy Johnson to lead off the game was the difference.
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• WFAN 660, WADO 1280 (Español) Up next
• Wednesday: Mets (Jon Niese, 0-0, 3.00) vs. Braves (Jo-Jo Reyes, 0-2, 5.48), 1:10 p.m. ET
• Thursday: Mets (John Maine, 3-2, 4.54) at Giants (Jonathan Sanchez, 1-3, 4.78), 10:15 p.m. ET
• Friday: Mets (Livan Hernandez, 3-1, 5.08) at Giants (Tim Lincecum, 3-1, 3.25), 10:15 p.m. ET
Marty Noble is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
