Those Mets

PATHETIC: METS WIN THEIR FIRST N.L ROAD SERIES OF THE SEASON

After Manager Jerry Manuel called the Mets’ offensive production “pathetic” in Houston, the hitting instructor Howard Johnson called a meeting before Friday’s game in Pittsburgh and challenged the hitters. That night the Mets collected 15 hits and picked up seven runs, the first time they had scored that many since July 28. Saturday night, in a rain-shortened, five-inning game, they scored five runs on seven hits to beat the Pirates, 5-1, at PNC Park. The game was called with no outs in the top of the sixth inning after a delay of 1 hour 6 minutes. With the victory, the second straight in this three-game set, the Mets won their first road series against a National League team this season. Jon Niese allowed only one run for the fourth straight start and improved to 8-5. David Wright had the big blow, blasting a three-run homer over the center-field fence in the fifth inning. It was his 18th home run of the season and his second in five games. Before his home run Tuesday in Houston, Wright had not hit one in 14 games. When Manuel labeled the Mets’ offense pathetic, it certainly did not reflect well on Johnson, who felt the need to take action. Johnson’s timing for the meeting was impeccable. It not only came after Manuel called out the players in public, but also prior to a series against the worst team in baseball. The Pirates pitching staff has an earned run average of 5.06, which ranks 28th among the 30 teams in baseball. The Mets went into Saturday’s game ranked 14th in the 16-team N.L. with a .248 batting average and 13th in runs scored, ahead of only the Pirates, the Nationals and the Astros. They were averaging 4.06 runs per game going into Friday’s contest. (NY Times)