Pirate rally halts Mets' six-game winning streak

Baseball Betting Lines

08/18/2008 - Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Steve Pearce and Jack Wilson got to the Mets' bullpen in the eighth, combining to knock in three runs in the inning to lift the Pirates to a 5-2 win over New York in the finale of a four-game set in Pittsburgh.

Wilson finished the game 2-for-4 with two RBI while Adam LaRoche contributed his 16th homer of the season, a two-run shot to help the Pirates avoid a sweep and snap a four-game skid.

Pittsburgh's Paul Maholm went seven strong innings, giving up two runs on five hits. The Pirates' best starter this season, Maholm struck out four and walked three in his third consecutive quality start. Sean Burnett (1-1) earned the win after getting out of a bases-loaded jam in the eighth.

John Grabow earned his fourth save of the season, working around two walks to pitch a scoreless ninth.

John Maine didn't factor into the decision despite a good outing. The Mets' righty threw five shutout innings on only two hits, striking out three and walking four. The bullpen didn't fare as well, giving up all five runs on seven hits in four innings.

Pedro Feliciano (2-3) took the loss after giving up a run in only one-third of an inning.

Nick Evans went 2-for-3 with two doubles for New York, while Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado knocked in a run each in the loss.

The loss snapped the Mets' six-game winning streak and shrunk the team's lead in the NL East to 1 1/2 games over the idle Philadelphia Phillies. It was New York's first loss since the bullpen blew a 5-1 lead to Pittsburgh last Monday at Shea Stadium.

Feliciano started the eighth inning in a tie game by allowing a one-out single to Adam LaRoche. Duaner Sanchez came on in relief and yielded a single to Jason Michaels, moving LaRoche to third. Michaels took second on the throw to third and Andy LaRoche was intentionally walked to get to Pearce, who singled home a run to give the Pirates a 3-2 lead.

Wilson then gave the Pirates some breathing room, lining a bases-loaded double down the left field line to score two and make it a 5-2 game.

Grabow flirted with trouble in the ninth, issuing a one-out walk and a two-out free pass. However, he got Argenis Reyes to ground to short for the final out.

The Mets got the lead in the first. Reyes led off with a single and Evans doubled him over to third. Two batters later Beltran lifted a sacrifice fly to center for an early 1-0 lead.

New York added a run in the fourth. David Wright singled and Beltran doubled down the left field line to put runners at second and third with nobody out. Delgado followed with an RBI groundout to increase the lead to 2-0.

Pittsburgh threatened in the fifth, loading the bases with only one out, but Freddy Sanchez killed the rally by grounding into an inning-ending double play.

The Pirates tied it in the sixth off Brian Stokes. Ryan Doumit singled and Adam LaRoche crushed a pitch deep into the right field seats to make it a 2-2 game.

Pittsburgh was able to escape a jam in the eighth. After the first two batters were retired, Daniel Murphy stroked a pinch-hit single. Tyler Yates walked Wright and Beltran to load the bases, ending his stint on the mound. Burnett came in to face Delgado, who popped out to third to end the inning.

Game Notes

New York won the season series 4-3...Mets shortstop Jose Reyes was given the day off...Wright extended his hitting streak to 12 games with a single in the fourth inning...Mets manager Jerry Manuel was ejected in the third inning arguing a call at first base...To make room on the roster for Luis Ayala, who was acquired Sunday from the Washington Nationals for a player to be named later, the Mets optioned pitcher Eddie Kunz to Triple-A New Orleans...The Pirates set a record for attendance during a four-game series, attracting 129,473 fans during the series. The old record was 129,066, set in 2001 against the St. Louis Cardinals.