GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: NL: HOUSTON (62-79) at NY METS (79-61)

NL: HOUSTON at NY METS

<div class="pre">NL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
HOUSTON 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 4 1
NY METS 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 x 3 5 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: HOU - WOODY WILLIAMS, CHAD QUALLS (7TH), BRAD LIDGE (8TH) AND ERIC
MUNSON

NYM - TOM GLAVINE, AARON HEILMAN (8TH), BILLY WAGNER
(9TH) AND PAUL LO DUCA

HOME RUNS: HOU - NONE

NYM - DAVID WRIGHT (27) OFF WOODY WILLIAMS IN THE 3RD, 0 ON</div>

 

NL: HOUSTON at NY METS

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HOUSTON (1) AT NY METS (3) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NY METS 3RD: J Reyes bunt grounded out to pitcher. L Castillo grounded out
to first. D Wright homered to right. C Beltran grounded out to second.
(1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0, NY METS 1.

NY METS 4TH: M Alou struck out swinging. S Green doubled to deep right.
P Lo Duca doubled to deep left, S Green scored. L Milledge walked. T Glavine
sacrificed to pitcher, P Lo Duca to third, L Milledge to second. J Reyes
struck out swinging. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0, NY METS 2.

NY METS 5TH: L Castillo walked. L Castillo stole second. D Wright grounded
out to third, L Castillo to third. L Castillo scored on W Williams' wild
pitch. C Beltran flied out to center. M Alou singled to left. S Green flied
out to center. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0, NY METS 3.

HOUSTON 8TH: C Lee singled to left center. M Loretta singled to right,
C Lee to second. A Heilman relieved T Glavine. T Wigginton singled to right
center, C Lee scored, M Loretta to second. L Scott hit for C Ransom. L Scott
struck out swinging. E Munson struck out swinging. M Lamb hit for C Qualls.
M Lamb struck out looking. (1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 1, NY METS 3.</div>

 

NL: HOUSTON at NY METS

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
NL
HOUSTON 1
NY METS 3 FINAL</div>

 

NL: HOUSTON at NY METS

<div class="pre">HOUSTON (1) VS NY METS (3) - FINAL

HOUSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
H Pence cf 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .327
C Burke rf-2b 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .229
L Berkman 1b 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .277
C Lee lf 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 .299
M Loretta 2b-ss 3 0 1 0 0 1 0 .273
T Wigginton 3b 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 .295
C Ransom ss 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 .125
a-L Scott ph-rf 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .259
E Munson c 3 0 0 0 0 2 3 .234
W Williams p 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .088
C Qualls p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
b-M Lamb ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .290
B Lidge p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Totals 30 1 4 1 0 8 7

a-struck out swinging for C Ransom in the 8th; b-struck out looking for C
Qualls in the 8th.

BATTING: RBI - T Wigginton (12). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M
Lamb 1. GIDP - E Munson. Team LOB - 2.

FIELDING: E - L Berkman (11, catch).


NY METS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Reyes ss 4 0 0 0 0 1 2 .289
L Castillo 2b 3 1 0 0 1 1 0 .281
D Wright 3b 3 1 1 1 1 0 0 .315
C Beltran cf 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 .280
M Alou lf 4 0 1 0 0 2 2 .329
B Wagner p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
S Green 1b 4 1 1 0 0 0 1 .276
P Lo Duca c 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 .271
L Milledge rf 2 0 1 0 1 0 0 .291
T Glavine p 2 0 0 0 0 1 1 .231
A Heilman p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
E Chavez lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .261

Totals 29 3 5 2 3 5 7

BATTING: 2B - S Green (29, W Williams); P Lo Duca (14, W Williams). HR - D
Wright (27, 3rd inning off W Williams 0 on, 2 Out). S - T Glavine. RBI - D
Wright (93), P Lo Duca (43). 2-out RBI - D Wright. Runners left in scoring
position, 2 out - M Alou 1, J Reyes 2. Team LOB - 6.

BASERUNNING: SB - L Castillo (6, 2nd base off W Williams/E Munson).

FIELDING: DP: 1 (L Castillo-J Reyes-S Green).


----------------------------------------------------
HOUSTON - 000 000 010 -- 1
NY METS - 001 110 00x -- 3
----------------------------------------------------

HOUSTON ip h r er bb so hr era
W Williams (L, 8-14) 6 5 3 3 3 3 1 4.93
C Qualls 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 3.07
B Lidge 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 2.91

NY METS ip h r er bb so hr era
T Glavine (W, 13-6) 7 3 1 1 0 4 0 3.95
A Heilman (H, 18) 1 1 0 0 0 3 0 3.15
B Wagner (S, 31) 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 2.54

T Glavine pitched to 2 batters in the 8th.

WP - W Williams. Pitches-strikes: W Williams 105-62; C Qualls 9-7; B Lidge
16-8; T Glavine 86-54; A Heilman 21-13; B Wagner 13-8. Ground balls-fly balls:
W Williams 10-5; C Qualls 2-0; B Lidge 2-0; T Glavine 11-6; A Heilman 0-0; B
Wagner 2-0. Batters faced: W Williams 27; C Qualls 3; B Lidge 3; T Glavine 23;
A Heilman 4; B Wagner 3.

UMPIRES: HP--Mike Everitt. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Kerwin Danley. 3B--Doug
Eddings.

T--2:18. Att--53,061.
Weather: 86 degrees, sunny. Wind: 14 mph, right to
left.</div>

 

NL: HOUSTON at NY METS

<div class="pre">NL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
HOUSTON 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 4 1
NY METS 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 x 3 5 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: HOU - WOODY WILLIAMS, CHAD QUALLS (7TH), BRAD LIDGE (8TH) AND ERIC
MUNSON

NYM - TOM GLAVINE, AARON HEILMAN (8TH), BILLY WAGNER
(9TH) AND PAUL LO DUCA


WP - TOM GLAVINE (13-6)
LP - WOODY WILLIAMS (8-14)
SAVE - BILLY WAGNER (31)

HOME RUNS: HOU - NONE

NYM - DAVID WRIGHT (27) OFF WOODY WILLIAMS IN THE 3RD, 0 ON


TIME: 2:18 ATT: 53,061

PROBABLES: HOU - ROY OSWALT (14-6, 3.35)
NYM - PEDRO MARTINEZ (1-0, 3.60)</div>

 

NL: HOUSTON at NY METS

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HOUSTON (1) AT NY METS (3) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Houston Starting Lineups -- H Pence CF, C Burke RF, L Berkman 1B, C Lee LF,
M Loretta 2B, T Wigginton 3B, C Ransom SS, E Munson C, W Williams RHP.

Ny Mets Starting Lineups -- J Reyes SS, L Castillo 2B, D Wright 3B, C Beltran CF,
M Alou LF, S Green 1B, P Lo Duca C, L Milledge RF, T Glavine LHP.

Umpires -- Mike Everitt (HP), Dana Demuth (1B), Kerwin Danley (2B),
Doug Eddings (3B).

Gametime Weather: 86 degrees, Sunny, wind right to left at 14 mph.


HOUSTON 1ST: H Pence grounded out to shortstop. C Burke lined out to left.
L Berkman grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0, NY METS 0.

NY METS 1ST: J Reyes flied out to center. L Castillo safe at first on
error by first baseman L Berkman. D Wright walked, L Castillo to second.
C Beltran flied out to right, L Castillo to third. M Alou grounded into
fielder's choice to third, D Wright out at second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 1 Error)
HOUSTON 0, NY METS 0.

HOUSTON 2ND: C Lee flied out to right. M Loretta struck out swinging.
T Wigginton grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0,
NY METS 0.

NY METS 2ND: S Green grounded out to shortstop. P Lo Duca grounded out to
shortstop. L Milledge singled to left. T Glavine grounded out to second.
(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0, NY METS 0.

HOUSTON 3RD: C Ransom grounded out to shortstop. E Munson struck out
swinging. W Williams grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
HOUSTON 0, NY METS 0.

NY METS 3RD: J Reyes bunt grounded out to pitcher. L Castillo grounded out
to first. D Wright homered to right. C Beltran grounded out to second.
(1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0, NY METS 1.

HOUSTON 4TH: H Pence struck out looking. C Burke fouled out to first.
L Berkman struck out looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0, NY METS 1.

NY METS 4TH: M Alou struck out swinging. S Green doubled to deep right.
P Lo Duca doubled to deep left, S Green scored. L Milledge walked. T Glavine
sacrificed to pitcher, P Lo Duca to third, L Milledge to second. J Reyes
struck out swinging. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0, NY METS 2.

HOUSTON 5TH: C Lee grounded out to second. M Loretta grounded out to
shortstop. T Wigginton grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
HOUSTON 0, NY METS 2.

NY METS 5TH: L Castillo walked. L Castillo stole second. D Wright grounded
out to third, L Castillo to third. L Castillo scored on W Williams' wild
pitch. C Beltran flied out to center. M Alou singled to left. S Green flied
out to center. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0, NY METS 3.

HOUSTON 6TH: C Ransom singled to left center. E Munson grounded into
double play, second to shortstop to first, C Ransom out at second. W Williams
lined out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0, NY METS 3.

NY METS 6TH: P Lo Duca lined out to right. L Milledge grounded out to
third. T Glavine struck out looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0,
NY METS 3.

HOUSTON 7TH: H Pence flied out to right. C Burke grounded out to third.
L Berkman flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0, NY METS 3.

NY METS 7TH: C Qualls relieved W Williams. J Reyes grounded out to third.
L Castillo struck out swinging. D Wright grounded out to third. (0 Runs,
0 Hits, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 0, NY METS 3.

HOUSTON 8TH: C Lee singled to left center. M Loretta singled to right,
C Lee to second. A Heilman relieved T Glavine. T Wigginton singled to right
center, C Lee scored, M Loretta to second. L Scott hit for C Ransom. L Scott
struck out swinging. E Munson struck out swinging. M Lamb hit for C Qualls.
M Lamb struck out looking. (1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 1, NY METS 3.

NY METS 8TH: C Burke at second base. M Loretta at shortstop. L Scott in
right field. B Lidge relieved C Qualls. C Beltran grounded out to shortstop.
M Alou struck out looking. S Green grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
0 Errors) HOUSTON 1, NY METS 3.

HOUSTON 9TH: B Wagner relieved A Heilman. E Chavez in left field. H Pence
grounded out to second. C Burke struck out looking. L Berkman grounded out to
second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) HOUSTON 1, NY METS 3.</div>

 

Glavine almost perfect before Mets finish off Astros

<h3>NY METS 3, HOUSTON 1</h3>FLUSHING, New York (Ticker) -- Tom Glavine completely shut downthe Houston Astros early before Aaron Heilman bailed him outlate.


Glavine pitched seven strong innings before tiring in the eighthand Heilman struck out the side in the penultimate frame as theNew York Mets defeated the Astros for the second straight day,3-1, on Saturday.


David Wright homered for the Mets, who won for the seventh timein eight games and opened up a 6 1/2-game lead over second-placePhiladelphia in the National League East. The Phillies hostFlorida later on Saturday.


The Astros lost their fourth straight game and fell to 4-7 sinceCecil Cooper took over as interim manager for the fired PhilGarner.


Glavine (13-6) retired the first 15 batters of the game beforeCody Ransom singled cleanly to left-center field leading off thesixth. It was the fourth time that the 41-year-old lefthanderhas had a perfect game bid of at least five innings and histhird time as a Met.


Ransom was quickly erased when Eric Munson grounded into adouble play.


Glavine went swiftly through the seventh before hitting the wallin the eighth. Carlos Lee and Mark Loretta both singledleading off the frame before Glavine was replaced by Heilman,who gave up a bloop single to former Met Ty Wigginton to make it3-1.


Despite allowing the inherited runner to score, Heilmanresponded by striking out Ransom, Munson and pinch hitter MikeLamb to end the inning.


In the ninth, closer Billy Wagner struck out one in the ninthfor his 31st save.


Glavine won for the eighth time in his last nine decisions,allowing three hits with no walks and four strikeouts inseven-plus innings.


The closest the Astros came to a hit in the first five inningswas in the second when right fielder Lastings Milledge racedback to the wall and caught a line drive by Lee at the warningtrack.


Woody Williams (8-14) took the loss, allowing three runs andfive hits in six innings.


Wright homered the opposite way to right field in the third. Itwas his 27th homer, tying his career best set in 2005.

New York increased the led to 2-0 in the fourth on back-to-backdoubles by Shawn Green and Paul Lo Duca. Luis Castillo walkedin the fifth, stole second and later scored on a wild pitch byWilliams for a 3-0 lead.


Mets outfielder Moises Alou singled in the fifth to extend hishitting streak to 15 games.

 

NL: HOUSTON at NY METS

<div class="pre">HOUSTON (1) VS NY METS (3) - FINALHOUSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avgH Pence cf 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .327C Burke rf-2b 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .229L Berkman 1b 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .277C Lee lf 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 .299M Loretta 2b-ss 3 0 1 0 0 1 0 .273T Wigginton 3b 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 .295C Ransom ss 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 .125 a-L Scott ph-rf 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .259E Munson c 3 0 0 0 0 2 3 .234W Williams p 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .088 C Qualls p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 b-M Lamb ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .290 B Lidge p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000Totals 30 1 4 1 0 8 7a-struck out swinging for C Ransom in the 8th; b-struck out looking for C Qualls in the 8th.BATTING: RBI - T Wigginton (12). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M Lamb 1. GIDP - E Munson. Team LOB - 2. FIELDING: E - L Berkman (11, catch). NY METS ab r h rbi bb so lob avgJ Reyes ss 4 0 0 0 0 1 2 .289L Castillo 2b 3 1 0 0 1 1 0 .281D Wright 3b 3 1 1 1 1 0 0 .315C Beltran cf 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 .280M Alou lf 4 0 1 0 0 2 2 .329 B Wagner p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000S Green 1b 4 1 1 0 0 0 1 .276P Lo Duca c 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 .271L Milledge rf 2 0 1 0 1 0 0 .291T Glavine p 2 0 0 0 0 1 1 .231 A Heilman p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 E Chavez lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .261Totals 29 3 5 2 3 5 7BATTING: 2B - S Green (29, W Williams); P Lo Duca (14, W Williams). HR - D Wright (27, 3rd inning off W Williams 0 on, 2 Out). S - T Glavine. RBI - D Wright (93), P Lo Duca (43). 2-out RBI - D Wright. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M Alou 1, J Reyes 2. Team LOB - 6. BASERUNNING: SB - L Castillo (6, 2nd base off W Williams/E Munson). FIELDING: DP: 1 (L Castillo-J Reyes-S Green). ---------------------------------------------------- HOUSTON - 000 000 010 -- 1 NY METS - 001 110 00x -- 3----------------------------------------------------HOUSTON ip h r er bb so hr eraW Williams (L, 8-14) 6 5 3 3 3 3 1 4.93C Qualls 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 3.07B Lidge 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 2.91NY METS ip h r er bb so hr eraT Glavine (W, 13-6) 7 3 1 1 0 4 0 3.95A Heilman (H, 18) 1 1 0 0 0 3 0 3.15B Wagner (S, 31) 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 2.54T Glavine pitched to 2 batters in the 8th.WP - W Williams. Pitches-strikes: W Williams 105-62; C Qualls 9-7; B Lidge 16-8; T Glavine 86-54; A Heilman 21-13; B Wagner 13-8. Ground balls-fly balls: W Williams 10-5; C Qualls 2-0; B Lidge 2-0; T Glavine 11-6; A Heilman 0-0; B Wagner 2-0. Batters faced: W Williams 27; C Qualls 3; B Lidge 3; T Glavine 23; A Heilman 4; B Wagner 3. UMPIRES: HP--Mike Everitt. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Kerwin Danley. 3B--Doug Eddings. T--2:18. Att--53,061. Weather: 86 degrees, sunny. Wind: 14 mph, right to left.</div>

 

NL: HOUSTON at NY METS

<div class="pre">HOUSTON (1) VS NY METS (3) - FINALHOUSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avgH Pence cf 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .327C Burke rf-2b 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .229L Berkman 1b 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .277C Lee lf 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 .299M Loretta 2b-ss 3 0 1 0 0 1 0 .273T Wigginton 3b 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 .295C Ransom ss 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 .125 a-L Scott ph-rf 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .259E Munson c 3 0 0 0 0 2 3 .234W Williams p 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .088 C Qualls p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 b-M Lamb ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .290 B Lidge p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000Totals 30 1 4 1 0 8 7a-struck out swinging for C Ransom in the 8th; b-struck out looking for C Qualls in the 8th.BATTING: RBI - T Wigginton (12). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M Lamb 1. GIDP - E Munson. Team LOB - 2. FIELDING: E - L Berkman (11, catch). NY METS ab r h rbi bb so lob avgJ Reyes ss 4 0 0 0 0 1 2 .289L Castillo 2b 3 1 0 0 1 1 0 .281D Wright 3b 3 1 1 1 1 0 0 .315C Beltran cf 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 .280M Alou lf 4 0 1 0 0 2 2 .329 B Wagner p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000S Green 1b 4 1 1 0 0 0 1 .276P Lo Duca c 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 .271L Milledge rf 2 0 1 0 1 0 0 .291T Glavine p 2 0 0 0 0 1 1 .231 A Heilman p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 E Chavez lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .261Totals 29 3 5 2 3 5 7BATTING: 2B - S Green (29, W Williams); P Lo Duca (14, W Williams). HR - D Wright (27, 3rd inning off W Williams 0 on, 2 Out). S - T Glavine. RBI - D Wright (93), P Lo Duca (43). 2-out RBI - D Wright. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M Alou 1, J Reyes 2. Team LOB - 6. BASERUNNING: SB - L Castillo (6, 2nd base off W Williams/E Munson). FIELDING: DP: 1 (L Castillo-J Reyes-S Green). ---------------------------------------------------- HOUSTON - 000 000 010 -- 1 NY METS - 001 110 00x -- 3----------------------------------------------------HOUSTON ip h r er bb so hr eraW Williams (L, 8-14) 6 5 3 3 3 3 1 4.93C Qualls 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 3.07B Lidge 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 2.91NY METS ip h r er bb so hr eraT Glavine (W, 13-6) 7 3 1 1 0 4 0 3.95A Heilman (H, 18) 1 1 0 0 0 3 0 3.15B Wagner (S, 31) 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 2.54T Glavine pitched to 2 batters in the 8th.WP - W Williams. Pitches-strikes: W Williams 105-62; C Qualls 9-7; B Lidge 16-8; T Glavine 86-54; A Heilman 21-13; B Wagner 13-8. Ground balls-fly balls: W Williams 10-5; C Qualls 2-0; B Lidge 2-0; T Glavine 11-6; A Heilman 0-0; B Wagner 2-0. Batters faced: W Williams 27; C Qualls 3; B Lidge 3; T Glavine 23; A Heilman 4; B Wagner 3. UMPIRES: HP--Mike Everitt. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Kerwin Danley. 3B--Doug Eddings. T--2:18. Att--53,061. Weather: 86 degrees, sunny. Wind: 14 mph, right to left.</div>

 

Glavine almost perfect before Mets finish off Astros

<h3>NY METS 3, HOUSTON 1</h3>FLUSHING, New York (Ticker) -- Tom Glavine said he did not havethe stuff to throw a no-hitter, but he had more than enough toshut down the Houston Astros.


Glavine pitched five perfect innings and later tired in theeighth and Aaron Heilman struck out the side in the penultimateframe as the New York Mets defeated the Astros for the secondstraight day, 3-1, on Saturday.


David Wright homered for the Mets, who won for the seventh timein eight games and opened up a 6 1/2-game lead over second-placePhiladelphia in the National League East. The Phillies hostFlorida later on Saturday.


"Today I didn't feel like I had the extra life on my fastball,"Glavine said. "It was all about location and feelingcomfortable."


The Astros lost their fourth straight game and fell to 4-7 sinceCecil Cooper took over as interim manager for the fired PhilGarner.


Glavine (13-6) retired the first 15 batters of the game beforeCody Ransom singled cleanly to left-center field leading off thesixth. Ransom was quickly erased when Eric Munson groundedinto a double play.


It was the fourth time that the 41-year-old lefthander has had aperfect game bid of at least five innings and his third time asa Met.


The two-time Cy Young Award winner said the thought of ano-hitter did not enter his mind.


"Not with my stuff. I never think about a no-hitter until theseventh or eighth," Glavine admitted.


Mets manager Willie Randolph agreed, noting that Glavine forcesa lot of ground balls, making him less likely to throw ano-hitter. Randolph took greater comfort in that Glavine ispitching his best baseball as the season winds down.

"That's what you get from guys who know how to win, who knowwhat time it is," he said.


Glavine won for the eighth time in his last nine decisions,allowing three hits with no walks and four strikeouts inseven-plus innings.


"It's pretty much what he's done for a long time," Ransom said."That's why he's won 300 games."


Glavine went swiftly through the seventh before hitting the wallin the eighth. Carlos Lee and Mark Loretta both singledleading off the frame before Glavine was replaced by Heilman,who gave up a bloop single to former Met Ty Wigginton to make it3-1.


Despite allowing the inherited runner to score, Heilmanresponded by striking out Ransom, Munson and pinch hitter MikeLamb to end the inning.


"Tommy pitched a great game. It's great to preserve what hepitched," Heilman said.


In the ninth, closer Billy Wagner struck out one in the ninthfor his 31st save.


The closest the Astros came to a hit in the first five inningswas in the second when right fielder Lastings Milledge racedback to the wall and caught a line drive by Lee at the warningtrack.


Woody Williams (8-14) took the loss, allowing three runs andfive hits in six innings.


The Astros had lost their last two games by a combined score of25-5.


"It was a very competitive game and if these guys play like thatfor the most part the rest of the year, I'll be very happy,"Cooper said. "We're in every game that way, all we have to dois just come up with a big hit."


Wright homered the opposite way to right field in the third. Itwas his 27th homer, tying his career best set in 2005.

New York increased the led to 2-0 in the fourth on back-to-backdoubles by Shawn Green and Paul Lo Duca. Luis Castillo walkedin the fifth, stole second and later scored on a wild pitch byWilliams for a 3-0 lead.


Mets outfielder Moises Alou singled in the fifth to extend hishitting streak to 13 games.