Mets 12 Los Angeles 1: The Mets ended their trip out West with a laugher. John Maine almost went the distance before tiring in the ninth, but he allowed only four hits and one run during the game. Maine also helped himself with the bat, driving in two runs and New York pounded out 13 hits overall. Every starter except for Jose Reyes had at least a hit and Ryan Church had a 3-for-4 game......

Cubs 7, Mets 1: After losing to the Phillies on Sunday and getting in to Chicago at 3:30 a.m. local time Monday, the Mets had to get ready for a game at 6:05. They looked like they could have used more rest. John Maine labored but got through six innings of two-run ball. But he got little if any help from his defense and bats. The Mets' only run scored a run on a double-play......

Rangers 5 Devils 3: There is justice in the hockey world. One game after inadvertently deflecting the winning goal for the Devils off of his skate, Marc Staal scored the winning goal for the Rangers. Staal’s slap shot beat Martin Brodeur through the five-hole with three minutes left in regulation of a 3-3 game and gave the MSG crowd another chance to serenade Brodeur. Staal’s goal was one of the many highlights for the Rangers,......

Photograph of the Mets' Jose Reyes scoring the game-winning run by Mary Altaffer/AP Mets 4, Phillies 3 (12 innings): This looked like it could be another bad loss to the Phillies. Aaron Heilman's best efforts to blow the game resulted in a two-run eighth, and the Mets had to go to extras despite leading most of the game. John Maine's strong start appeared in danger of being wasted. But Billy Wagner, Joe Smith, Scott......

Tampa 6 Yankees 3: After five games the biggest question in Yankeeland is what happened to the offense? 15 runs scored in five games is not what anyone expected from this team, but that’s where the Yankees stand thanks to some anemic hitting. It’s a collective slump with every regular not named Abreu, Rodriguez or Cabrera struggling. Some of the noteworthy failures right now are Jason Giambi is 1-for-12 (.083) Johnny Damon 2-for-18 (.111) and......

Photo of Carlos Beltran rounding third after a two-run home run against the White Sox in the Civil Rights Game by AP/Bill Waugh Few players can catapult a team from worriers to prohibitive favorites, but Johan Santana can put his name on that list. Before the Mets got him, they and their fans were looking over their shoulders to the Phillies and Braves. Now the team is almost overloaded with optimism. That hope --......

A day after the biggest end-of-season collapse in baseball history, New York Mets Carlos Delgado, John Maine and a few others cleared out their lockers at Shea (a few lockers, including Tom Glavine's and Billy Wagner's, were cleaned before reporters arrived). General Manager Omar Minaya made comments supporting manager Willie Randolph's leadership ("I believe in Willie Randolph"), and the Post reports that that kind of support will be important: "Mets ownership has ordered Minaya......

For a team used to making miracles, conjuring up a disaster had an especially bitter taste. With a sloppily played 8-1 loss to Florida and the Phillies' 6-1 win against the Nationals, the Mets' season ended about a month too early. The loss capped an agonizing stretch of two and a half weeks in which the Mets played some of the worst teams in the National League and still played their worst baseball of......

Mets 13, Marlins 0: For once, optimism abounds. John Maine struck out 14 and took a no-hit bid into the eighth inning -- he lost it on a bleeder up the third-base line -- to guide the Mets back into a tie for first place. For once, the Mets roughed up a pitcher they needed to rough up. If they hadn't gotten to Chris Seddon, they probably didn't deserve to make the playoffs. Even though......

A few months ago, a more unlikely scenario could not be imagined. The Yankees are barreling into the playoffs after recovering from one of the team's worst season starts in franchise history. The Mets, on the other hand, are staggering towards the end of the season having lost five straight and 11 of their last 15 games. A seemingly insurmountable lead in their division has been whittled to second place behind the Phillies, and the......

Nationals 9, Mets 8: If a four-run lead can't stand up against the Nationals, against whom will it last? The Mets are hoping what was a seven-game lead as recently as Sept. 12 stands up, but they're not helping their fans maintain regular heartbeats. John Maine hit before he threw a pitch and still couldn't get out of the fifth. That's against a team that's last in the Major Leagues in runs scored and playing......

Yankees 4, Blue Jays 1: Entering this game, who would have thought Joba Chamberlain would allow more runs than Mike Mussina? The rookie reliever's scoreless streak finally ended, but that's small potatoes in the Yankees' seventh straight win. Besides, his ERA's still at 0.00 because Alex Rodriguez's error allowed the run to score. Mussina's start makes a case for him to be of use in October, a month that each day seems more likely to......

Yankees 10 Seattle 2: A-Rod didn’t want to go for a MRI and while the results were negative, he had to talk Joe Torre into putting him into the lineup. Good thing he did, because A-Rod hit two home runs in the seventh as the Yankees exploded for eight runs in inning. A-Rod’s home runs and the Yankee explosion will overshadow a great start by Phil Hughes, but they shouldn’t. Hughes was brilliant over six......

Mets 7, Braves 1: What the? After getting swept by the Phillies, the Mets managed to get a win against a team they've had little success against all this season. Boy did they need it too after losing five straight games. John Maine pitched marvelously over 7 innings, only allowing 3 hits. The one run the Braves scored came on a wild pitch in a tense 6th inning when the Braves had the bases loaded.......

Tigers 5, Yankees 4: Joe Torre says the Yankees are "all right," and that's a good description. They're not in great shape, but they're not quite foundering. Phil Hughes allowed three early Tigers home runs -- while going in a pitchers' park -- and the Yankees couldn't make it up against Detroit's bullpen. After the Red Sox swept the White Sox, the Yankees sit 7 1/2 behind Boston in the American League East. That wild......

Mets 7, Padres 6: When Trevor Hoffman enters a game, more often than not, it's over for the opposing team. Then again, the all-time save leader with 513, has never been good in New York. Last night, the Mets came back from a one-run deficit in the 9th with Hoffman in the game for a dramatic victory. From the Mets standpoint, the bottom of the 9th was perfect and they looked like the Mets of......

Braves 7, Mets 6: There was a 9th inning rally, but the Mets fell short and lost their 4th series against Atlanta this season. Down by 4 runs entering the 9th, the Mets clawed back to within one run before Oscar Villarreal picked up his first career save. In the 9th, Carlos Delgado almost tied the game with a home run, but Willie Harris robbed him with a leaping catch over the wall. It was......

Yankees 16, Royals 8: It was bound to happen and it took a little while, but Alex Rodriguez became the 22nd player in Major League history to hit 500 career home runs and the youngest player to reach that mark. A-Rod got it done early in the game, hitting a three-run shot in the 1st inning of yesterday's win against the Royals, which is the same team he hit #499 off of on July......

Mets 5, Nationals 0 (5 innings): John Maine lasted five innings. Normally that wouldn't that be that good, but then the rains came, the game was called 90 minutes later and Maine had a complete-game one-hitter. Don't look past Maine's battery-mate, Ramon Castro, who went 2-for-2 with a home run and has looked great when he's seen the time. Would the Mets be a better team with him as the regular catcher and Paul......

Mets 8 Pittsburgh 4: It’s funny to think now about how much criticism Omar Minaya took for the John Maine trade. In fairness, it was never called that, it was all about Kris Benson and Jorge Julio with Maine considered a minor part of the deal, but what a deal that has become for the Mets. Maine improved to 11-4 Tuesday with seven solid innings of pitching and a home run while batting. Lastings Milledge......

Reds 8, Mets 4: Double, bunt single, walk, grand slam. That's how this game started for John Maine, and the Mets never recovered. The Reds needed four batters to score four runs. The Mets took all nine innings. With the Braves' win over the Pirates, the Mets' National League East lead has dwindled to 1 1/2 games. That said, there's no shame to losing to the Reds with Aaron Harang on the mound. Dumping one......

Yankees 7 Minnesota 6: The Yankees showed some grit Thursday, overcoming another lousy start from Kei Igawa and a lack of clutch-hitting to get the win. Things looked great in the first couple of innings as New York rebounded from a two-run deficit take a 5-2 lead thanks to home runs from Cano and Cabrera. But, Igawa was awful again, giving the lead back in the fourth by allowing three runs to score with two......

Mets 6, Phillies 5; Mets 5, Phillies 2: Things couldn't have gone much better for the Mets. Brothers Carlos, who have been struggling of late, combined for three homers. Orlando Hernandez and John Maine combined to hold the Phillies in check. New York leads Philadelphia by five games in the National League East. Of all the developments, Beltran's and Delgado's homers have to be the most welcome. Billy Wagner also deserves plenty of recognition, even......

Mets 10 Oakland 2: What a difference a week makes, the Mets snapped out of their recent slump and swept Oakland this weekend, finishing them Sunday with an easy win. As usual, Jose Reyes got things going, 3-for-4 with a RBI and a double. Valentin and Gomes added three hits and John Maine pitched seven great innings to send the Mets to the victory. The division lead is now 3-games and a big series......

Mets 8, Twins 1: The Mets went 16 days between wins that came on days other than a Friday. What does that prove? Nothing, except that they hadn't been winning that frequently. John Maine put together a good start Monday, however, and the Mets followed suit. Carlos Delgado improved on his .290 on-base percentage by going 2-for-4 with a home run. The other half of Brothers Carlos, Carlos Beltran, took until the eighth inning to......

Yankees 4, Diamondbacks 1: The Yankees are rolling, winning seven games in a row and now stand at .500 for the first time since May 9th. The fact that they're only .500 after their win streak shows how awful their record was before. Bobby Abreu extended his hitting streak in the 1st inning with a three-run homer off Brandon Webb, last year's Cy Young winner in the NL. That was all the team needed as......

Yankees 9, Red Sox 5: Now the Yankees only trail their rivals in the American League East by 12 1/2 games. They rocked Tim Wakefield -- again -- and then held on for a 9-5 win in the first of three games at Fenway Park this weekend. A four-run sixth, including a three-run double by Jorge Posada, didn't hurt. Wakefield has been great against the American League this season but not against the Yankees, against......

Mets 7, Marlins 2: Reports of Carlos Delgado's demise have been greatly exaggerated. At least for now. He hit two home runs as the Mets romped past the Marlins and moved 3 1/2 games in front of the Braves in the National League East. Delgado's poor play -- he has fewer homers than Damion Easley, after all -- had been a source of concern for the Mets. But his two-homer game backed John Maine,......

Cubs 10 Mets 1: For the first time this year, John Maine started, but the Mets didn’t win. Maine was shaky in the first two innings, giving up three runs, but settled down after that. The problem was, Carlos “don’t call me Victor” Zambrano showed the form that has made him one of the best pitchers in the league. Coming into the game, Zambrano had been a mess, but Tuesday he was back in form,......

Mets 5, Giants 3: John Maine was on the hook for his first loss of the season, but late-inning heroics by the Mets bailed him out. While he only allowed 3 runs over 6 innings, San Francisco's Matt Morris was better, allowing only 2 runs over 7. Carlos Delgado hit a home run, only his 2nd of the season, in the 4th inning into McCovey Cove. Delgado also drove in the game-tying run with a......