GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: NL: ST LOUIS (33-39) at NY METS (41-32)

NL: ST LOUIS at NY METS

<div class="pre">NL AT NY METS - MID INNING UPDATE
PLAY: S Schumaker hit for R Franklin.
SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 0 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: ST LOUIS 1
NY METS 1 TOP, 11TH

DUE UP FOR ST LOUIS: S Schumaker (.224, 0 HR, 3 RBI)</div>

 

NL: ST LOUIS at NY METS

<div class="pre">NL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
- - - - - - - - -
ST LOUIS 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
NY METS 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0

10 11 R H E
-- -- - - -
ST LOUIS 0 0 1 8 2
NY METS 0 1 2 0 (BOT 11)

CURRENT PITCHERS: STL - RYAN FRANKLIN (OUT)
NYM - AARON HEILMAN

DUE UP FOR NY METS: S GREEN (.287, 0-FOR-3)
C GOMEZ (.279, 1-FOR-3, HR, RBI)
A HEILMAN (.000, 0 HR, 0 RBI)</div>

 

NL: ST LOUIS at NY METS

<div class="pre">ST LOUIS (1) VS NY METS (1) - MID 11TH - IN PROGRESS

ST LOUIS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
S Taguchi cf 5 0 1 1 0 2 2 .297
A Miles ss 5 0 1 0 0 1 4 .312
A Pujols 1b 4 0 1 0 1 1 1 .300
S Spiezio 3b 4 0 0 0 1 2 4 .277
C Duncan lf 3 0 1 0 1 2 1 .273
R Franklin p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
a-S Schumaker ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .220
J Encarnacion rf 5 0 1 0 0 0 4 .265
A Kennedy 2b 5 1 1 0 0 1 4 .206
G Bennett c 4 0 1 0 1 1 1 .234
M Maroth p 2 0 1 0 0 1 0 .500
R Ludwick lf 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .241

Totals 39 1 8 1 4 12 21

a-grounded to second for R Franklin in the 11th.

BATTING: 2B - S Taguchi (10, J Sosa). S - M Maroth. RBI - S Taguchi (14).
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Miles 2, S Spiezio 2, A Kennedy 1.
GIDP - A Pujols. Team LOB - 10.

BASERUNNING: SB - G Bennett (1, 3rd base off J Smith/P Lo Duca), M Maroth (1,
2nd base off J Smith/P Lo Duca).

FIELDING: E - A Pujols 2 (6, catch, throw). DP: 1 (S Spiezio-A Pujols).


NY METS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Reyes ss 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 .319
J Valentin 2b 3 0 0 0 1 1 0 .280
C Beltran cf 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 .272
D Wright 3b 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 .286
C Delgado 1b 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .225
P Lo Duca c 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 .282
S Green rf 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 .287
C Gomez lf 3 1 1 1 0 1 0 .279
J Sosa p 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 .125
J Smith p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
P Feliciano p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
a-R Ledee ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250
B Wagner p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
A Heilman p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Totals 31 1 2 1 2 5 6

a-grounded to second for P Feliciano in the 8th.

BATTING: HR - C Gomez (2, 3rd inning off M Maroth 0 on, 0 Out). RBI - C Gomez
(11). GIDP - P Lo Duca. Team LOB - 2.

BASERUNNING: CS - J Valentin (1, 2nd base by M Maroth), D Wright (1, 2nd base
by M Maroth).

FIELDING: DP: 1 (J Reyes-J Valentin-C Delgado).


----------------------------------------------------
ST LOUIS - 000 010 000 00 -- 1
NY METS - 001 000 000 0 -- 1
----------------------------------------------------

ST LOUIS ip h r er bb so hr era
M Maroth 7 1/3 2 1 1 2 4 1 1.23
R Franklin 2 2/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 1.43

NY METS ip h r er bb so hr era
J Sosa 6 6 1 1 2 5 0 3.79
J Smith 2/3 1 0 0 2 1 0 2.93
P Feliciano 1 1/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 1.63
B Wagner 2 0 0 0 0 3 0 1.89
A Heilman 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 3.86

IBB - A Pujols (by J Smith). Pitches-strikes: M Maroth 99-59; R Franklin
30-18; J Sosa 101-62; J Smith 22-11; P Feliciano 13-8; B Wagner 30-19; A
Heilman 13-9. Ground balls-fly balls: M Maroth 10-7; R Franklin 6-1; J Sosa
6-7; J Smith 1-0; P Feliciano 2-1; B Wagner 1-2; A Heilman 1-0. Batters faced:
M Maroth 25; R Franklin 8; J Sosa 25; J Smith 5; P Feliciano 4; B Wagner 6; A
Heilman 4.

UMPIRES: HP--Angel Hernandez. 1B--Ted Barrett. 2B--Mark Carlson. 3B--Larry
Young.

Weather: 77 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 12 mph, right to left.</div>

 

NL: ST LOUIS at NY METS

<div class="pre">NL AT NY METS - PITCHING CHANGE
STL: RUSS SPRINGER (3-0, 2.63) STARTING THE 11TH
CURRENT SCORE: ST LOUIS 1, NY METS 1

DUE UP FOR NYMETS: S GREEN (.287, 0-FOR-3)</div>

 

NL: ST LOUIS at NY METS

<div class="pre">NL AT NY METS - MID INNING UPDATE
PLAY: R Springer relieved R Franklin.
SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 0 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: ST LOUIS 1
NY METS 1 BOTTOM, 11TH

DUE UP FOR NY METS: S Green (.287, 0-FOR-3)</div>

 

NL: ST LOUIS at NY METS

<div class="pre">NL AT NY METS - SCORING UPDATE
SOLO HOME RUN BY SHAWN GREEN (7) TO RIGHT CENTER WITH 0 OUT
IN THE 11TH OFF RUSS SPRINGER.

FINAL SCORE: NY METS 2, ST LOUIS 1</div>

 

NL: ST LOUIS at NY METS

<div class="pre">NL FINAL 11
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
- - - - - - - - -
ST LOUIS 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
NY METS 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0

10 11 R H E
-- -- - - -
ST LOUIS 0 0 1 8 2
NY METS 0 1 2 3 0 (FINAL 11)

BATTERIES: STL - MIKE MAROTH, RYAN FRANKLIN (8TH), RUSS SPRINGER (11TH) AND
GARY BENNETT

NYM - JORGE SOSA, JOE SMITH (7TH), PEDRO FELICIANO
(7TH), BILLY WAGNER (9TH), AARON HEILMAN (11TH) AND PAUL LO
DUCA

HOME RUNS: STL - NONE

NYM - CARLOS GOMEZ (2) OFF MIKE MAROTH IN THE 3RD, 0 ON
SHAWN GREEN (7) OFF RUSS SPRINGER IN THE 11TH, 0 ON</div>

 

NL: ST LOUIS at NY METS

<div class="pre">NL FINAL 11
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
- - - - - - - - -
ST LOUIS 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
NY METS 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0

10 11 R H E
-- -- - - -
ST LOUIS 0 0 1 8 2
NY METS 0 1 2 3 0 (FINAL 11)

BATTERIES: STL - MIKE MAROTH, RYAN FRANKLIN (8TH), RUSS SPRINGER (11TH) AND
GARY BENNETT

NYM - JORGE SOSA, JOE SMITH (7TH), PEDRO FELICIANO
(7TH), BILLY WAGNER (9TH), AARON HEILMAN (11TH) AND PAUL LO
DUCA


WP - AARON HEILMAN (6-3)
LP - RUSS SPRINGER (3-1)
SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS: STL - NONE

NYM - CARLOS GOMEZ (2) OFF MIKE MAROTH IN THE 3RD, 0 ON
SHAWN GREEN (7) OFF RUSS SPRINGER IN THE 11TH, 0 ON


TIME: 3:19 ATT: 40,075

PROBABLES: STL - TODD WELLEMEYER (2-0, 4.66)
NYM - OLIVER PEREZ (7-6, 3.16)</div>

 

NL: ST LOUIS at NY METS

<div class="pre">ST LOUIS (1) VS NY METS (2) - FINAL IN 11 INNINGS

ST LOUIS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
S Taguchi cf 5 0 1 1 0 2 2 .297
A Miles ss 5 0 1 0 0 1 4 .312
A Pujols 1b 4 0 1 0 1 1 1 .300
S Spiezio 3b 4 0 0 0 1 2 4 .277
C Duncan lf 3 0 1 0 1 2 1 .273
R Franklin p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
a-S Schumaker ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .220
R Springer p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
J Encarnacion rf 5 0 1 0 0 0 4 .265
A Kennedy 2b 5 1 1 0 0 1 4 .206
G Bennett c 4 0 1 0 1 1 1 .234
M Maroth p 2 0 1 0 0 1 0 .500
R Ludwick lf 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .241

Totals 39 1 8 1 4 12 21

a-grounded to second for R Franklin in the 11th.

BATTING: 2B - S Taguchi (10, J Sosa). S - M Maroth. RBI - S Taguchi (14).
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Miles 2, S Spiezio 2, A Kennedy 1.
GIDP - A Pujols. Team LOB - 10.

BASERUNNING: SB - G Bennett (1, 3rd base off J Smith/P Lo Duca), M Maroth (1,
2nd base off J Smith/P Lo Duca).

FIELDING: E - A Pujols 2 (6, catch, throw). DP: 1 (S Spiezio-A Pujols).


NY METS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Reyes ss 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 .319
J Valentin 2b 3 0 0 0 1 1 0 .280
C Beltran cf 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 .272
D Wright 3b 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 .286
C Delgado 1b 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .225
P Lo Duca c 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 .282
S Green rf 4 1 1 1 0 1 1 .290
C Gomez lf 3 1 1 1 0 1 0 .279
J Sosa p 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 .125
J Smith p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
P Feliciano p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
a-R Ledee ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250
B Wagner p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
A Heilman p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Totals 32 2 3 2 2 5 6

a-grounded to second for P Feliciano in the 8th.

BATTING: HR - C Gomez (2, 3rd inning off M Maroth 0 on, 0 Out), S Green (7,
11th inning off R Springer 0 on, 0 Out). RBI - C Gomez (11), S Green (27). GIDP
- P Lo Duca. Team LOB - 2.

BASERUNNING: CS - J Valentin (1, 2nd base by M Maroth), D Wright (1, 2nd base
by M Maroth).

FIELDING: DP: 1 (J Reyes-J Valentin-C Delgado).


----------------------------------------------------
ST LOUIS - 000 010 000 00 -- 1
NY METS - 001 000 000 01 -- 2

No outs when winning run scored.
----------------------------------------------------

ST LOUIS ip h r er bb so hr era
M Maroth 7 1/3 2 1 1 2 4 1 1.23
R Franklin 2 2/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 1.43
R Springer (L, 3-1) 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 2.96

NY METS ip h r er bb so hr era
J Sosa 6 6 1 1 2 5 0 3.79
J Smith 2/3 1 0 0 2 1 0 2.93
P Feliciano 1 1/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 1.63
B Wagner 2 0 0 0 0 3 0 1.89
A Heilman (W, 6-3) 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 3.86

R Springer pitched to 1 batter in the 11th.

IBB - A Pujols (by J Smith). Pitches-strikes: M Maroth 99-59; R Franklin
30-18; R Springer 6-3; J Sosa 101-62; J Smith 22-11; P Feliciano 13-8; B Wagner
30-19; A Heilman 13-9. Ground balls-fly balls: M Maroth 10-7; R Franklin 6-1; R
Springer 0-0; J Sosa 6-7; J Smith 1-0; P Feliciano 2-1; B Wagner 1-2; A Heilman
1-0. Batters faced: M Maroth 25; R Franklin 8; R Springer 1; J Sosa 25; J Smith
5; P Feliciano 4; B Wagner 6; A Heilman 4.

UMPIRES: HP--Angel Hernandez. 1B--Ted Barrett. 2B--Mark Carlson. 3B--Larry
Young.

T--3:19. Att--40,075.
Weather: 77 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 12 mph, right
to left.</div>

 

NL: ST LOUIS at NY METS

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
NL
ST LOUIS 1
NY METS 2 FINAL</div>

 

NL: ST LOUIS at NY METS

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ST LOUIS (1) AT NY METS (2) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NY METS 3RD: C Gomez homered to left center. J Sosa grounded out to
shortstop. J Reyes grounded out to third. J Valentin flied out to center.
(1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 0, NY METS 1.

ST LOUIS 5TH: A Kennedy reached on infield single to pitcher. G Bennett
singled to right center, A Kennedy to second. M Maroth sacrificed to third,
A Kennedy to third, G Bennett to second. S Taguchi grounded out to second,
A Kennedy scored, G Bennett to third. A Miles grounded out to first. (1 Run,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1, NY METS 1.

NY METS 11TH: R Springer relieved R Franklin. S Green homered to right
center. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1, NY METS 2.</div>

 

Green's walk-off homer provides Mets fourth straight

<h3>NY METS 2, ST LOUIS 1</h3>FLUSHING, New York (Ticker) -- Shawn Green's leadoff homer inthe bottom of the 11th inning gave the Mets a 2-1 victory overthe St. Louis Cardinals on Monday.

Hitless since the third inning and without a baserunner sincethe seventh, Green belted a 3-2 fastball from Russ Springer(3-1) over the right field fence for the Mets' third hit of thegame, fourth straight win and sixth walk-off triumph of theseason. It was Green's second career walk-off blast.

Aaron Heilman (6-3), who was the Game Seven loser against theCardinals in last year's National league Division Series,pitched a scoreless inning for the victory.

The Cardinals were making their first appearance at Shea Stadiumsince the NLDS last October. New York opened the season with athree-game sweep in St. Louis.

Mike Maroth was exceptional in his Cardinals debut, allowingjust one run and two hits in 7 1/3 innings with two walks andfour strikeouts. The injury-plagued Cardinals acquired thelefthander from the Detroit Tigers on Friday.

His one costly mistake was a home run in the third to rookieCarlos Gomez - his third of the season. The only other hitallowed by Maroth was a second-inning single to Carlos Delgado.

New York starter Jorge Sosa was almost as good with six stronginnings, allowing one run and six hits with two walks and threestrikeouts. The righthander had lost his previous two outings,surrendering 13 runs in nine innings.

The Cardinals loaded the bases in the seventh off rookie JoeSmith with the help of a double steal by catcher Gary Bennettand Maroth. Smith retired two batters with runners on secondand third. After an intentional walk to Albert Pujols, PedroFeliciano relieved and got Scott Spiezio to ground back to thebox to end the inning.

St. Louis manufactured a run off Sosa in the fifth.

Adam Kennedy singled off the glove of Sosa for his 1,000thcareer hit. Bennett singled and both runners moved up on asacrifice by Maroth before So Taguchi brought home Kennedy witha groundout.

Taguchi had doubled in the third to extend his hitting streak to17 games.

Sosa's night ended after he induced a pair of fly balls to getout of a two-on, one-out jam in the sixth.

Mets catcher Paul Lo Duca was in the lineup after appealing histwo-game suspension for his tirade following an ejection inSaturday's contest against the Oakland Athletics.

 

NL: ST LOUIS at NY METS

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ST LOUIS (1) AT NY METS (2) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

St Louis Starting Lineups -- S Taguchi CF, A Miles SS, A Pujols 1B, S Spiezio 3B,
C Duncan LF, J Encarnacion RF, A Kennedy 2B, G Bennett C, M Maroth LHP.

Ny Mets Starting Lineups -- J Reyes SS, J Valentin 2B, C Beltran CF, D Wright 3B,
C Delgado 1B, P Lo Duca C, S Green RF, C Gomez LF, J Sosa RHP.

Umpires -- Angel Hernandez (HP), Ted Barrett (1B), Mark Carlson (2B), Larry Young (3B).

Gametime Weather: 77 degrees, Partly Cloudy, wind right to left at 12 mph.


ST LOUIS 1ST: S Taguchi struck out looking. A Miles reached on infield
single to second. A Pujols grounded into double play, shortstop to second to
first, A Miles out at second.(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 0, NY METS 0.

NY METS 1ST: J Reyes popped out to shortstop. J Valentin walked.
J Valentin caught stealing second, pitcher to first to second. C Beltran popped
out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 0, NY METS 0.

ST LOUIS 2ND: S Spiezio struck out looking. C Duncan walked.
J Encarnacion flied out to center. A Kennedy flied out to center. (0 Runs,
0 Hits, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 0, NY METS 0.

NY METS 2ND: D Wright fouled out to first. C Delgado singled to left
center. P Lo Duca grounded into fielder's choice to third, C Delgado out at
second. S Green grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 0,
NY METS 0.

ST LOUIS 3RD: G Bennett grounded out to shortstop. M Maroth struck out
swinging. S Taguchi hit a ground rule double to deep right. A Miles flied out
to left. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 0, NY METS 0.

NY METS 3RD: C Gomez homered to left center. J Sosa grounded out to
shortstop. J Reyes grounded out to third. J Valentin flied out to center.
(1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 0, NY METS 1.

ST LOUIS 4TH: A Pujols singled to center. S Spiezio struck out looking.
C Duncan struck out swinging. J Encarnacion popped out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) ST LOUIS 0, NY METS 1.

NY METS 4TH: C Beltran grounded out to third. D Wright walked. C Delgado
grounded into fielder's choice to first, D Wright safe at second on throwing
error by first baseman A Pujols. P Lo Duca grounded into double play, third to
first, D Wright out at third.(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 1 Error) ST LOUIS 0, NY METS 1.

ST LOUIS 5TH: A Kennedy reached on infield single to pitcher. G Bennett
singled to right center, A Kennedy to second. M Maroth sacrificed to third,
A Kennedy to third, G Bennett to second. S Taguchi grounded out to second,
A Kennedy scored, G Bennett to third. A Miles grounded out to first. (1 Run,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1, NY METS 1.

NY METS 5TH: S Green struck out swinging. C Gomez grounded out to second.
J Sosa struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1, NY METS 1.

ST LOUIS 6TH: A Pujols lined out to right. S Spiezio walked. C Duncan
singled to left, S Spiezio to second. J Encarnacion flied out to center.
A Kennedy flied out to center. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1, NY METS 1.

NY METS 6TH: J Reyes fouled out to first. J Valentin struck out swinging.
C Beltran grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1,
NY METS 1.

ST LOUIS 7TH: J Smith relieved J Sosa. G Bennett walked. M Maroth singled
to left, G Bennett to second. G Bennett stole third. M Maroth stole second.
S Taguchi grounded out to second. A Miles struck out swinging. A Pujols
intentionally walked. P Feliciano relieved J Smith. S Spiezio grounded out to
pitcher. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1, NY METS 1.

NY METS 7TH: D Wright safe at first on error by first baseman A Pujols.
C Delgado struck out swinging. P Lo Duca lined out to left. D Wright caught
stealing second, pitcher to first to shortstop.(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 1 Error)
ST LOUIS 1, NY METS 1.

ST LOUIS 8TH: C Duncan struck out swinging. J Encarnacion grounded out to
pitcher. A Kennedy flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1,
NY METS 1.

NY METS 8TH: S Green flied out to left. R Franklin relieved M Maroth.
R Ludwick in left field. C Gomez struck out swinging. R Ledee hit for
P Feliciano. R Ledee grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1,
NY METS 1.

ST LOUIS 9TH: B Wagner relieved P Feliciano. G Bennett grounded out to
shortstop. R Ludwick struck out swinging. S Taguchi struck out swinging.
(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1, NY METS 1.

NY METS 9TH: J Reyes grounded out to shortstop. J Valentin grounded out to
second. C Beltran grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1,
NY METS 1.

ST LOUIS 10TH: A Miles flied out to left. A Pujols struck out swinging.
S Spiezio fouled out to catcher. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1, NY METS 1.

NY METS 10TH: D Wright grounded out to shortstop. C Delgado popped out to
third. P Lo Duca grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1,
NY METS 1.

ST LOUIS 11TH: A Heilman relieved B Wagner. S Schumaker hit for R Franklin.
S Schumaker grounded out to second. J Encarnacion singled to right center.
A Kennedy struck out swinging. G Bennett struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1, NY METS 1.

NY METS 11TH: R Springer relieved R Franklin. S Green homered to right
center. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) ST LOUIS 1, NY METS 2.</div>

 

Green's walk-off homer provides Mets fourth straight

<h3>NY METS 2, ST LOUIS 1</h3><div class="pre">FLUSHING, New York (Ticker) The stakes were not as high as the</div>last time the New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals met at SheaStadium, but Shawn Green again made the outcome a dramatic one.

Green's leadoff homer in the bottom of the 11th inning gave theMets a 2-1 victory over the Cardinals on Monday.

Hitless since the third inning and without a baserunner sincethe seventh, Green belted a 3-2 fastball from Russ Springer(3-1) over the right field fence for just the Mets' third hit ofthe game.

"After playing a number of years, I understand that leading offin a ninth, 10th or 11th that you have to get on base," Greensaid. "I haven't pulled a home run like that in a long time. Itfelt real good."

The teams met in New York for the first time since Game Seven oflast year's National League Championship series, which theCardinals won with the help of a ninth-inning home run by YadierMolina.

Eight months later, it was the Mets who were winners, thanks toGreen's second career walk-off homer and first since September20, 2001 for the Los Angeles Dodgers against Arizona. Green hadpulled a deep foul ball before connecting off Springer.

"I didn't feel like I had a lot when I went out there. With a3-2 pitch, I wasn't going to walk him," Springer said."Somebody's got to win it."

The Mets have won four straight games after losing 13 of 16. Itwas also the Mets' sixth walk-off win of the season.

"We would have lost this game last week," said Billy Wagner, whothrew two scoreless innings as part of a brilliant effort bythe Mets' bullpen. "We're tired of getting beaten around."

Aaron Heilman (6-3), who surrendered the home run to Molina lastOctober, pitched a scoreless inning for the victory as New Yorkimproved to 4-0 against the Cardinals this season.

Mike Maroth was exceptional in his Cardinals debut, allowingjust one run and two hits in 7 1/3 innings with two walks andfour strikeouts. The injury-plagued Cardinals acquired thelefthander from the Detroit Tigers on Friday.

"There is so much out of your control as a pitcher," Marothsaid. "I just tried to keep it simple."

His one costly mistake was a home run in the third to rookieCarlos Gomez - his third of the season. The only other hitallowed by Maroth was a second-inning single to Carlos Delgado.

New York starter Jorge Sosa was almost as good with six stronginnings, allowing one run and six hits with two walks and threestrikeouts. The righthander had lost his previous two outings,surrendering 13 runs in nine innings.

"I don't think it was his best outing, but he made pitches whenhe had to," Mets manager Willie Randolph said.

The Cardinals loaded the bases in the seventh off rookie JoeSmith with the help of a double steal by catcher Gary Bennettand Maroth. Smith retired two batters with runners on secondand third. After an intentional walk to Albert Pujols, PedroFeliciano relieved and got Scott Spiezio to ground back to thebox to end the inning.

"That's one of the at-bats I wish I had done something," Spieziosaid. "We had our chances."

"If we don't have him in that spot, we don't win the game,"Wagner said.

St. Louis manufactured a run off Sosa in the fifth.

Adam Kennedy singled off the glove of Sosa for his 1,000thcareer hit. Bennett singled and both runners moved up on asacrifice by Maroth before So Taguchi brought home Kennedy witha groundout.

Taguchi had doubled in the third to extend his hitting streak to17 games.

Sosa's night ended after he induced a pair of fly balls to getout of a two-on, one-out jam in the sixth.

Mets catcher Paul Lo Duca was in the lineup after appealing histwo-game suspension for his tirade following an ejection inSaturday's contest against the Oakland Athletics