|
The
New York Mets
welcome back a piece of their past when
Mike Piazza
and the NL West-leading
San Diego Padres
begin a three-game series at Shea Stadium on Tuesday.
Piazza - the all-time leader in home runs by a catcher with 390 - became a free agent following last season after hitting
.251 with 19 homers and 62 RBIs in 113 games for New York. It was the future Hall of Famer's lowest batting average since
he hit .232 in 69 at-bats with the
Los Angeles Dodgers
in 1992, his first season in the big leagues.
Piazza, who joined the Mets in 1998 after a trade with Florida, is second on the Mets' all-time home run list with 220, trailing
only
Darryl Strawberry
's 252. He is hitting .297 this season and is second on the Padres with 16 homers.
''It's going to be fun,'' said Piazza, who has hit .292 with 103 homers and 325 RBIs in 494 games at Shea. ''(The fans) spoiled
me the last year I was there. They gave me a great send off. I'm excited about it.''
In a series against the Mets earlier this season in San Diego, Piazza had only two hits in 10 at-bats, but homered off
Pedro Martinez
on April 22. He enters this game with 413 homers and needs one to tie
Darrell Evans
for 39th on the all-time list.
Piazza will face one of the Mets' most consistent pitchers when he was in New York as
Steve Trachsel
(10-5, 5.12 ERA) looks to win for the ninth time in 10 decisions. Trachsel's last outing at Shea was his worst of the season,
allowing eight runs and 10 hits over 4 2-3 innings of an 8-7 loss to the
Chicago Cubs
on July 24.
He rebounded with a win in his last start Wednesday at Florida, allowing three runs and seven hits in 5 2-3 innings of a 6-5
victory. It was the fifth time in six seasons with New York that Trachsel has reached the 10-win mark.
''I felt great. My curve and split were much better, location was good,'' Trachsel said.
The right-hander did not get a decision in New York's 7-2 win in San Diego on April 20. He is 6-8 with a 5.44 ERA and two
complete games in 17 starts against the Padres.
New York (66-44) increased its lead over Philadelphia in the NL East with an 8-1 rout of the Phillies on Sunday.
Jose Reyes
' grand slam capped a seven-run fourth inning as the Mets won for the seventh time in their last 10 games.
Reyes, who signed a $23.25 million, four-year extension on Thursday, set the team single-season record for homers by a shortstop
with his 11th, breaking a tie with
Kevin Elster
and Ed Bressoud.
''I do that deal and today I hit a grand slam,'' Reyes said. ''It's a great feeling for me and hopefully for my family also.
They're watching on TV at the house and they are going to be happy.''
Reyes' slam was the Mets' eighth of the season, tying a team record set in 1999 and matched in 2000.
Woody Williams
(4-3, 3.84) goes for just his second win in six starts since returning from the disabled list when he takes the mound for
San Diego on Tuesday. The right-hander was out from May 13-July 1 with a torn left calf muscle.
Since rejoining the team, Williams is 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA and has failed to win in his last four starts. In a 7-1 loss to
Houston on Wednesday, he retired 14 of the first 16 batters he faced, but was lifted after 6 2-3 innings in which he gave
up five runs and six hits, including back-to-back homers to
Craig Biggio
and
Mike Lamb
.
''Fourth, fifth and sixth innings, I faced too many hitters,'' said Williams, who is 5-2 with a 4.64 ERA in 13 starts against
New York.
San Diego (58-53) picked up its third win in four games with a 3-2 victory in 10 innings over Washington on Sunday.
Brian Giles
hit a two-run homer in the seventh and singled home David Roberts with the winning run.
''That was a good win,'' said Giles, who leads the team with 59 RBIs. ''Obviously you don't want to leave home after a six-game
homestand with a losing record.''
The Padres' recent good play came after a stretch in which they dropped five of six.
|
