GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: NL: NY METS (76-60) at CINCINNATI (62-75)

NL: NY METS at CINCINNATI

<div class="pre">NL AT CINCINNATI - SCORING UPDATE
SACRIFICE FLY BY ALEX GONZALEZ SCORED JORGE CANTU.
SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, N HOPPER ON FIRST, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: NY METS 10
CINCINNATI 4 BOTTOM, 9TH

DUE UP FOR CINCINNATI: K GRIFFEY JR (.284, 0-FOR-2, BB, SF, RBI)</div>

 

NL: NY METS at CINCINNATI

<div class="pre">NL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NY METS 0 1 2 1 0 2 2 1 1 10 16 1
CINCINNATI 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 4 11 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: NYM - PEDRO MARTINEZ, SCOTT SCHOENEWEIS (6TH), PEDRO FELICIANO
(7TH), GUILLERMO MOTA (8TH), AARON SELE (9TH) AND PAUL LO DUCA

CIN - AARON HARANG, GARY MAJEWSKI (6TH), JON COUTLANGUS
(7TH), MARCUS MCBETH (7TH), MIKE STANTON (7TH), DAVID WEATHERS
(9TH) AND JAVIER VALENTIN

HOME RUNS: NYM - MOISES ALOU (10) OFF AARON HARANG IN THE 2ND, 0 ON
DAVID WRIGHT (26) OFF AARON HARANG IN THE 3RD, 1 ON
CARLOS DELGADO (22) OFF DAVID WEATHERS IN THE 9TH, 0 ON

CIN - NONE</div>

 

NL: NY METS at CINCINNATI

<div class="pre">NL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NY METS 0 1 2 1 0 2 2 1 1 10 16 1
CINCINNATI 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 4 11 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: NYM - PEDRO MARTINEZ, SCOTT SCHOENEWEIS (6TH), PEDRO FELICIANO
(7TH), GUILLERMO MOTA (8TH), AARON SELE (9TH) AND PAUL LO DUCA

CIN - AARON HARANG, GARY MAJEWSKI (6TH), JON COUTLANGUS
(7TH), MARCUS MCBETH (7TH), MIKE STANTON (7TH), DAVID WEATHERS
(9TH) AND JAVIER VALENTIN


WP - PEDRO MARTINEZ (1-0)
LP - AARON HARANG (14-4)
SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS: NYM - MOISES ALOU (10) OFF AARON HARANG IN THE 2ND, 0 ON
DAVID WRIGHT (26) OFF AARON HARANG IN THE 3RD, 1 ON
CARLOS DELGADO (22) OFF DAVID WEATHERS IN THE 9TH, 0 ON

CIN - NONE


TIME: 3:07 ATT: 29,290

PROBABLES: NYM - OLIVER PEREZ (12-9, 3.39)
CIN - MATT BELISLE (7-8, 5.33)</div>

 

NL: NY METS at CINCINNATI

<div class="pre">NY METS (10) VS CINCINNATI (4) - FINAL

NY METS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Reyes ss 5 1 1 0 0 0 1 .295
L Castillo 2b 4 2 3 1 1 0 0 .288
D Wright 3b 5 1 3 2 0 0 1 .320
C Beltran cf 5 1 2 1 0 2 4 .281
A Sele p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
C Delgado 1b 5 1 2 1 0 2 3 .252
M Alou lf 3 3 3 1 1 0 0 .325
P Feliciano p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
G Mota p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
b-M Anderson ph-lf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .309
S Green rf 5 1 1 2 0 0 0 .273
P Lo Duca c 3 0 0 1 0 1 2 .265
P Martinez p 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 .000
a-R Gotay ph 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 .321
S Schoeneweis p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
E Chavez lf-cf 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 .273

Totals 41 10 16 10 2 7 12

a-singled to right for P Martinez in the 6th; b-grounded to second for G Mota
in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - M Alou 2 (13, A Harang 2); S Green (27, A Harang); L Castillo 2
(4, J Coutlangus, M Stanton). HR - M Alou (10, 2nd inning off A Harang 0 on, 0
Out), D Wright (26, 3rd inning off A Harang 1 on, 1 Out), C Delgado (22, 9th
inning off D Weathers 0 on, 0 Out). SF - P Lo Duca. RBI - M Alou (32), D Wright
2 (91), P Lo Duca (34), S Green 2 (40), R Gotay (23), C Beltran (87), L
Castillo (11), C Delgado (80). 2-out RBI - R Gotay. Runners left in scoring
position, 2 out - C Delgado 1, P Lo Duca 2, C Beltran 1. GIDP - C Delgado. Team
LOB - 8.

BASERUNNING: SB - C Beltran (20, 3rd base off M McBeth/J Valentin), C Delgado
(4, 2nd base off M McBeth/J Valentin).

FIELDING: E - C Beltran (3, bobble). DP: 2 (C Delgado-J Reyes-S Schoeneweis,
L Castillo-J Reyes-C Delgado).


CINCINNATI ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Hamilton cf 3 1 2 0 0 0 0 .284
b-N Hopper ph-cf 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 .325
A Gonzalez ss 4 1 2 1 0 1 2 .274
K Griffey Jr rf 3 0 1 1 1 0 1 .286
B Phillips 2b 5 0 2 1 0 0 3 .287
A Dunn lf 3 1 0 0 1 0 4 .264
J Valentin c 3 0 0 0 1 0 2 .280
S Hatteberg 1b 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .310
E Encarnacion 3b 3 0 1 0 1 0 0 .280
A Harang p 2 0 0 0 0 2 2 .113
G Majewski p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
a-J Ellison ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .053
J Coutlangus p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
M McBeth p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
M Stanton p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
D Weathers p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
c-J Cantu ph 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .471

Totals 34 4 11 3 4 4 16

a-grounded to pitcher for G Majewski in the 6th; b-grounded to shortstop for J
Hamilton in the 7th; c-singled to center for D Weathers in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - A Gonzalez (25, P Martinez); E Encarnacion (19, S Schoeneweis).
SF - K Griffey Jr , A Gonzalez. RBI - K Griffey Jr (87), B Phillips (81), A
Gonzalez (54). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Dunn 2, A Harang 1,
J Valentin 1, J Ellison 1. GIDP - S Hatteberg, B Phillips. Team LOB - 9.

BASERUNNING: SB - B Phillips (26, 2nd base off P Martinez/P Lo Duca).

FIELDING: DP: 1 (S Hatteberg-A Gonzalez-A Harang).


----------------------------------------------------
NY METS - 012 102 211 -- 10
CINCINNATI - 200 100 001 -- 4
----------------------------------------------------

NY METS ip h r er bb so hr era
P Martinez (W, 1-0) 5 5 3 2 3 4 0 3.60
S Schoeneweis (H, 11) 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 5.01
P Feliciano 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 2.82
G Mota 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00
A Sele 1 3 1 1 0 0 0 5.18

CINCINNATI ip h r er bb so hr era
A Harang (L, 14-4) 5 2/3 10 6 6 1 6 2 3.68
G Majewski 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 9.00
J Coutlangus 1/3 3 2 2 0 0 0 4.15
M McBeth 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 7.36
M Stanton 1 2/3 2 1 1 0 1 0 6.14
D Weathers 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 3.41

M McBeth pitched to 1 batter in the 7th.

IBB - E Encarnacion (by P Martinez). HBP - P Lo Duca (by D Weathers).
Pitches-strikes: P Martinez 76-47; S Schoeneweis 11-4; P Feliciano 14-11; G
Mota 8-5; A Sele 12-10; A Harang 101-67; G Majewski 3-2; J Coutlangus 15-10; M
McBeth 7-3; M Stanton 30-18; D Weathers 17-10. Ground balls-fly balls: P
Martinez 3-8; S Schoeneweis 3-0; P Feliciano 2-1; G Mota 1-2; A Sele 2-1; A
Harang 5-6; G Majewski 0-1; J Coutlangus 1-0; M McBeth 0-0; M Stanton 2-2; D
Weathers 3-0. Batters faced: P Martinez 23; S Schoeneweis 4; P Feliciano 5; G
Mota 3; A Sele 5; A Harang 27; G Majewski 1; J Coutlangus 4; M McBeth 1; M
Stanton 7; D Weathers 5.

UMPIRES: HP--Sam Holbrook. 1B--Randy Marsh. 2B--Bob Davidson. 3B--Hunter
Wendelstedt.

T--3:07. Att--29,290.
Weather: 88 degrees, sunny. Wind: 8 mph, left to
right.</div>

 

NL: NY METS at CINCINNATI

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
NL
NY METS 10
CINCINNATI 4 FINAL</div>

 

NL: NY METS at CINCINNATI

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NY METS (10) AT CINCINNATI (4) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CINCINNATI 1ST: J Hamilton reached on infield single to pitcher.
A Gonzalez doubled to deep left, J Hamilton to third. K Griffey Jr hit sacrifice
fly to center, J Hamilton scored, A Gonzalez to third. B Phillips singled to
left center, A Gonzalez scored. B Phillips stole second. A Dunn grounded out
to first, B Phillips to third. J Valentin flied out to right. (2 Runs, 3 Hits,
0 Errors) NY METS 0, CINCINNATI 2.

NY METS 2ND: M Alou homered to left. S Green fouled out to third.
P Lo Duca lined out to third. P Martinez struck out looking. (1 Run, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) NY METS 1, CINCINNATI 2.

NY METS 3RD: J Reyes fouled out to third. L Castillo walked. D Wright
homered to right, L Castillo scored. C Beltran reached on infield single to
second. C Delgado grounded into double play, first to shortstop to pitcher,
C Beltran out at second.(2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 3, CINCINNATI 2.

NY METS 4TH: M Alou doubled to left. S Green grounded out to first, M Alou
to third. P Lo Duca hit sacrifice fly to left, M Alou scored. P Martinez
struck out swinging. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY METS 4, CINCINNATI 2.

CINCINNATI 4TH: B Phillips flied out to left. A Dunn walked. J Valentin
lined out to left. S Hatteberg singled to center, A Dunn to second, A Dunn
scored, S Hatteberg to second on error by center fielder C Beltran.
E Encarnacion intentionally walked. A Harang struck out swinging. (1 Run, 1 Hit,
1 Error) NY METS 4, CINCINNATI 3.

NY METS 6TH: C Delgado struck out swinging. M Alou doubled to right.
S Green doubled to left, M Alou scored. P Lo Duca grounded out to shortstop,
S Green to third. R Gotay hit for P Martinez. R Gotay singled to right, S Green
scored. G Majewski relieved A Harang. J Reyes flied out to center. (2 Runs,
3 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 6, CINCINNATI 3.

NY METS 7TH: J Coutlangus relieved G Majewski. L Castillo doubled to right
center. D Wright grounded out to third, L Castillo to third. C Beltran
singled to left, L Castillo scored. C Delgado singled to right, C Beltran to
second. M McBeth relieved J Coutlangus. C Beltran stole third, C Delgado stole
second. M Alou walked. M Stanton relieved M McBeth. S Green grounded out to
second, C Beltran scored, C Delgado to third, M Alou to second. P Lo Duca
struck out looking. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 8, CINCINNATI 3.

NY METS 8TH: N Hopper in center field. E Chavez grounded out to third.
J Reyes reached on infield single to shortstop. L Castillo doubled to deep
center, J Reyes scored. D Wright lined out to third. C Beltran flied out to
center. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 9, CINCINNATI 3.

NY METS 9TH: D Weathers relieved M Stanton. C Delgado homered to right.
M Anderson hit for G Mota. M Anderson grounded out to second. S Green grounded
out to second. P Lo Duca hit by pitch. E Chavez grounded into fielder's
choice to shortstop, P Lo Duca out at second. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY METS 10, CINCINNATI 3.

CINCINNATI 9TH: A Sele relieved G Mota. M Anderson in left field. E Chavez
in center field. J Cantu hit for D Weathers. J Cantu singled to center.
N Hopper singled to center, J Cantu to third. A Gonzalez hit sacrifice fly to
center, J Cantu scored. K Griffey Jr singled to shallow center, N Hopper to
second. B Phillips grounded into double play, second to shortstop to first,
K Griffey Jr out at second.(1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 10, CINCINNATI 4.</div>

 

NL: NY METS at CINCINNATI

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NY METS (10) AT CINCINNATI (4) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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

Cincinnati Starting Lineups -- J Hamilton CF, A Gonzalez SS, K Griffey Jr RF,
B Phillips 2B, A Dunn LF, J Valentin C, S Hatteberg 1B, E Encarnacion 3B,
A Harang RHP.

Umpires -- Sam Holbrook (HP), Randy Marsh (1B), Bob Davidson (2B),
Hunter Wendelstedt (3B).

Gametime Weather: 88 degrees, Sunny, wind left to right at 8 mph.


NY METS 1ST: J Reyes flied out to left. L Castillo reached on bunt single
to third. D Wright singled to left, L Castillo to second. C Beltran struck
out swinging. C Delgado struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
NY METS 0, CINCINNATI 0.

CINCINNATI 1ST: J Hamilton reached on infield single to pitcher.
A Gonzalez doubled to deep left, J Hamilton to third. K Griffey Jr hit sacrifice
fly to center, J Hamilton scored, A Gonzalez to third. B Phillips singled to
left center, A Gonzalez scored. B Phillips stole second. A Dunn grounded out
to first, B Phillips to third. J Valentin flied out to right. (2 Runs, 3 Hits,
0 Errors) NY METS 0, CINCINNATI 2.

NY METS 2ND: M Alou homered to left. S Green fouled out to third.
P Lo Duca lined out to third. P Martinez struck out looking. (1 Run, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) NY METS 1, CINCINNATI 2.

CINCINNATI 2ND: S Hatteberg struck out swinging. E Encarnacion flied out
to left. A Harang struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 1,
CINCINNATI 2.

NY METS 3RD: J Reyes fouled out to third. L Castillo walked. D Wright
homered to right, L Castillo scored. C Beltran reached on infield single to
second. C Delgado grounded into double play, first to shortstop to pitcher,
C Beltran out at second.(2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 3, CINCINNATI 2.

CINCINNATI 3RD: J Hamilton grounded out to first. A Gonzalez flied out to
center. K Griffey Jr flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 3,
CINCINNATI 2.

NY METS 4TH: M Alou doubled to left. S Green grounded out to first, M Alou
to third. P Lo Duca hit sacrifice fly to left, M Alou scored. P Martinez
struck out swinging. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY METS 4, CINCINNATI 2.

CINCINNATI 4TH: B Phillips flied out to left. A Dunn walked. J Valentin
lined out to left. S Hatteberg singled to center, A Dunn to second, A Dunn
scored, S Hatteberg to second on error by center fielder C Beltran.
E Encarnacion intentionally walked. A Harang struck out swinging. (1 Run, 1 Hit,
1 Error) NY METS 4, CINCINNATI 3.

NY METS 5TH: J Reyes flied out to center. L Castillo grounded out to
third. D Wright singled to left. C Beltran struck out swinging. (0 Runs,
1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY METS 4, CINCINNATI 3.

CINCINNATI 5TH: J Hamilton reached on infield single to second. A Gonzalez
struck out swinging. K Griffey Jr walked, J Hamilton to second. B Phillips
flied out to right, J Hamilton to third. A Dunn grounded out to second.
(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY METS 4, CINCINNATI 3.

NY METS 6TH: C Delgado struck out swinging. M Alou doubled to right.
S Green doubled to left, M Alou scored. P Lo Duca grounded out to shortstop,
S Green to third. R Gotay hit for P Martinez. R Gotay singled to right, S Green
scored. G Majewski relieved A Harang. J Reyes flied out to center. (2 Runs,
3 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 6, CINCINNATI 3.

CINCINNATI 6TH: S Schoeneweis relieved P Martinez. J Valentin walked.
S Hatteberg grounded into double play, first to shortstop to pitcher, J Valentin
out at second. E Encarnacion doubled to left. J Ellison hit for G Majewski.
J Ellison grounded out to pitcher. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY METS 6,
CINCINNATI 3.

NY METS 7TH: J Coutlangus relieved G Majewski. L Castillo doubled to right
center. D Wright grounded out to third, L Castillo to third. C Beltran
singled to left, L Castillo scored. C Delgado singled to right, C Beltran to
second. M McBeth relieved J Coutlangus. C Beltran stole third, C Delgado stole
second. M Alou walked. M Stanton relieved M McBeth. S Green grounded out to
second, C Beltran scored, C Delgado to third, M Alou to second. P Lo Duca
struck out looking. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 8, CINCINNATI 3.

CINCINNATI 7TH: P Feliciano relieved S Schoeneweis. E Chavez in left field.
N Hopper hit for J Hamilton. N Hopper grounded out to shortstop. A Gonzalez
singled to right center. K Griffey Jr flied out to center. B Phillips singled
to center, A Gonzalez to third. A Dunn grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 8, CINCINNATI 3.

NY METS 8TH: N Hopper in center field. E Chavez grounded out to third.
J Reyes reached on infield single to shortstop. L Castillo doubled to deep
center, J Reyes scored. D Wright lined out to third. C Beltran flied out to
center. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 9, CINCINNATI 3.

CINCINNATI 8TH: G Mota relieved P Feliciano. J Valentin flied out to
center. S Hatteberg flied out to left. E Encarnacion grounded out to
shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 9, CINCINNATI 3.

NY METS 9TH: D Weathers relieved M Stanton. C Delgado homered to right.
M Anderson hit for G Mota. M Anderson grounded out to second. S Green grounded
out to second. P Lo Duca hit by pitch. E Chavez grounded into fielder's
choice to shortstop, P Lo Duca out at second. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY METS 10, CINCINNATI 3.

CINCINNATI 9TH: A Sele relieved G Mota. M Anderson in left field. E Chavez
in center field. J Cantu hit for D Weathers. J Cantu singled to center.
N Hopper singled to center, J Cantu to third. A Gonzalez hit sacrifice fly to
center, J Cantu scored. K Griffey Jr singled to shallow center, N Hopper to
second. B Phillips grounded into double play, second to shortstop to first,
K Griffey Jr out at second.(1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 10, CINCINNATI 4.</div>

 

Martinez wins season debut as Mets top Reds

<h3>NY METS 10, CINCINNATI 4</h3>CINCINNATI (Ticker) -- Pedro Martinez didn't dominate in hisreturn to the New York Mets. But it was good enough.

Martinez battled through five innings and David Wright belted atwo-run homer as the Mets posted a 10-4 victory over theCincinnati Reds in the opener of a three-game series on Mondayafternoon.


Moises Alou and Carlos Delgado each hit solo home runs for NewYork (77-60), which holds a five-game lead over the PhiladelphiaPhillies (72-65) in the National League East.


It was the fourth straight win for the Mets, who were swept bythe Phillies last week.


A three-time Cy Young Award winner, Martinez (1-0) made hisfirst start since having rotator cuff surgery on October 5,2006. He threw six scoreless innings for Class A St. Lucie inhis last rehab start on Sunday.


But he is not his former self, relying more on guile andpitching expertise than the overpowering stuff which made himone of the most-dominant hurlers in the major leagues.

New York, which has seen its lead in the NL East dwindle in theseason's second half, hoped to receive a late-season boost fromMartinez. While he was not dominant on Monday, Martinez kepthis team in the game.


The 35-year-old righthander allowed three runs and five hitswhile striking out four and walking three in five innings -leaving after 76 pitches. He topped out at 89 miles per hourwith his fastball and seemed to rely on his breaking pitch tothrow strikes.


Scott Schoeneweis, Pedro Feliciano, Guillermo Mota and AaronSele each tossed an inning to close out the game.


But it was a rude opening frame for Martinez, who yielded tworuns quickly.


After a single by Josh Hamilton and Alex Gonzalez's double, KenGriffey Jr. opened the scoring with a sacrifice fly, which sentGonzalez to third. Brandon Phillips then ripped an RBI singleto make it 2-0.


Alou cut the Mets' deficit in half with a solo homer in thesecond against Reds ace Aaron Harang (14-4). After a one-outwalk to Luis Castillo in the third, Wright smacked a two-runblast to make it 3-2.


Paul Lo Duca gave the Mets a two-run advantage with a sacrificefly in the fourth.


In the bottom of the frame, Cincinnati took advantage of sloppyplay by New York center fielder Carlos Beltran to make it 4-3.Scott Hatteberg singled Adam Dunn to second, and Dunn eventuallyscored on Beltran's wild toss to third base, which hopped intothe stands.


But the Mets tacked on six more runs in the final four frames.

Shawn Green and Ruben Gotay had RBI hits in the sixth. Oneinning later, Beltran stroked an RBI single and scored onGreen's groundout to second three batters later.


Castillo stroked an RBI double in the eighth to make it 9-3, andDelgado belted his 22nd homer in the ninth to give New York aseven-run advantage.


Harang (14-4) was roughed up, yielding six runs and 10 hits. Hestruck out six and walked one for Reds, who have lost fourstraight.

 

Martinez wins season debut as Mets top Reds

<h3>NY METS 10, CINCINNATI 4</h3>CINCINNATI (Ticker) -- Pedro Martinez didn't dominate in hisreturn to the New York Mets. But it was good enough.

Martinez battled through five innings and David Wright belted atwo-run home run as the Mets posted a 10-4 victory over theCincinnati Reds in the opener of a three-game series on Mondayafternoon.


Moises Alou and Carlos Delgado each hit solo home runs for NewYork (77-60), which holds a five-game lead over the PhiladelphiaPhillies (72-65) in the National League East.


It was the fourth straight win for the Mets, who were swept bythe Phillies last week.


A three-time Cy Young Award winner, Martinez (1-0) made hisfirst start since having rotator cuff surgery on October 5,2006. He threw six scoreless innings for Class A St. Lucie inhis last rehab start on Sunday.


"Indescribable. So far, so good." Martinez said. "It was goodenough. I did what I was supposed to do. I got 75 pitches in.I gave my team an opportunity.


"I felt I settled down after the first inning and got everythingin control again. I had a couple of situations where I wasforced to make pitches, and I didn't want to make."

Relying more on guile and expertise than overpowering pitches,he struck out Scott Hatteberg and Aaron Harang in the secondinning to become the 15th pitcher in major league history torecord 3,000 strikeout.


"He didn't look like he had his old stuff, and I wouldn't expecthim to," Hatteberg said. "He has a long way to go to get backto his old stuff. I've faced him. I've caught him. I know himpretty well.


"He had just electric stuff with 94 (miles-per-hour) fastballsand sharp breaking curves. He may get there, but isn't closenow. But it's obvious he knows how to pitch. He had command.He changed speeds, he worked the counts and kept the ball on thecorner all the time."


Martinez agreed.


"I'll probably pick up velocity along the way," Martinez said.

New York, which has seen its lead in the NL East dwindle in theseason's second half, hoped to receive a late-season boost fromMartinez. While he was not dominant on Monday, Martinez kepthis team in the game.


"Well, you can't ask for anything better than that," New Yorkmanager Willie Randolph said. "He's amazing. I shouldn't evenbe surprised, really. Pedro was superb. It was one start.We're going to enjoy this one here.


"We'll see how he feels (Tuesday). I'm sure he's going to besore. We'll continue to monitor him. But today, he was good.He'll be in our rotation. Whether he's No. 5 or 6, we'll playit by ear."


"I thought I would (be nervous), but I wasn't really," Martinezsaid. "I feel really humble that I'm back here. There were somany days of hard work. There are so many people that I'd liketo thank that, if I started now, I couldn't finish."

Josh Hamilton, who was facing Martinez for the first time,marveled at how the veteran hurler was under control.

"Obviously he's a totally different pitcher. I was talking toCarlos Delgado on first base and he said that Pedro feels prettygood but said I should have seen him when he was able to throwharder," Hamilton said. "He could put the ball where he wantedto. He looked like he had confidence.


"He wasn't afraid to throw his changeup in any count. He is thefirst pitcher I ever faced that kept his eyes on the plate theentire time. He looked at the plate from the time he took thesign, all through his windup. He never looked away like mostpitchers do."


The 35-year-old righthander allowed three runs and five hitswhile striking out four and walking three in five innings -leaving after 76 pitches. He topped out at 89 miles per hourwith his fastball and seemed to rely on his breaking pitch tothrow strikes.


"Pedro didn't have his his best stuff but he had a lot of latemovement," Cincinnati manager Pete Mackanin said. "He changedspeeds. He snuck some fastballs right by guys because they hadto watch his soft stuff. He knows what he's doing."

Scott Schoeneweis, Pedro Feliciano, Guillermo Mota and AaronSele each tossed an inning to close out the game.


But it was a rude opening frame for Martinez, who yielded tworuns quickly.


After a single by Hamilton and Alex Gonzalez's double, KenGriffey Jr. opened the scoring with a sacrifice fly, which sentGonzalez to third. Brandon Phillips then ripped an RBI singleto make it 2-0.


Alou cut the Mets' deficit in half with a solo homer in thesecond against Harang. After a one-out walk to Luis Castillo inthe third, Wright smacked a two-run blast to make it 3-2.

Paul Lo Duca gave the Mets a two-run advantage with a sacrificefly in the fourth.


In the bottom of the frame, Cincinnati took advantage of sloppyplay by New York center fielder Carlos Beltran to make it 4-3.Scott Hatteberg singled Adam Dunn to second, and Dunn eventuallyscored on Beltran's wild toss to third base, which hopped intothe stands.


But the Mets tacked on six more runs in the final four frames.

Shawn Green and Ruben Gotay had RBI hits in the sixth. Oneinning later, Beltran stroked an RBI single and scored onGreen's groundout to second three batters later.


Castillo stroked an RBI double in the eighth to make it 9-3, andDelgado belted his 22nd homer in the ninth to give New York aseven-run advantage.


Harang (14-4) was roughed up, yielding six runs and 10 hits. Hestruck out six and walked one for Reds, who have lost fourstraight.