Mets' Martinez sharp in Class A start (AP) New York Mets ace Pedro Martinez pitched six sharp innings in a Class A start Wednesday night, staying on track to return to the majors next week. The three-time Cy Young winner strained his left hamstring in his only start for New York on April 1 against Florida and has been on the disabled list since. Tatis' 2-run double in 12th rallies Mets (AP) In the end, the heroes for the New York Mets were ... Read More

NEW YORK -- Two negatives don't always yield a positive. So it was Friday night when Damion Easley served as a pinch-hitter in the seventh inning of the Mets' loss to the Braves. He was to lead off the inning against Will Ohman, the Braves reliever he had faced once previously. And Ohman just had entered the game. "Not much of an opportunity to prepare," Easley would say Saturday morning. "[I] didn't know much about him, didn't get a chance to see him ... Read More

NEW YORK -- Scrawled on the message board near the door to the Mets' clubhouse each day is the pregame agenda; nothing fancy, just the facts, the what and when of it. An outsider might find the terminology a bit odd at times. The information the Mets read upon arrival Saturday, for instance, was this: "Report: 11:30. No hitting. Game: 1:10." All snide remarks aside -- "No hitting" was neither a commentary on the Mets' performance on Friday nor a cynic's view of ... Read More

Pedro optimistic about return date Pedro optimistic about return date One day after Mets general manager Omar Minaya suggested Pedro Martinez might not return to active duty until late May or early June, Martinez was quoted as having said his recovery may be shorter instead of longer. Read More

NEW YORK -- It was, the Mets said, the perfect play. Johan Santana was in trouble in the second inning on Saturday, and the Brewers, knowing that much, called on starting pitcher Ben Sheets to bunt. It was a beauty. Hugging the third-base line, the ball rolled too far for catcher Brian Schneider to make a play on it, and not far enough for third baseman David Wright to take a stab. Santana was the only hope, so with Brewers outfielder Corey Hart ... Read More

NEW YORK -- Defense, as much as anything, hurt the Mets on Saturday, when two errors and a fair share of other blunders led to their first loss in four games. So defense, they know, is what can help them win this series against the Brewers on Sunday. "It's not just fielding the ball," manager Willie Randolph said. "It's communication, also." Third baseman David Wright was at the center of Saturday's struggles, making both errors and playing a prominent role in another run-scoring play, ... Read More

NEW YORK -- Eight people crammed into Nelson Figueroa's humble three-bedroom home on Coney Island on Thursday, the place where he grew up and first allowed these big league dreams to seep into his head. There, Figueroa couldn't be nervous. His first Major League start in nearly four years loomed for the following evening, but the mood in Brooklyn on this night was festive. Figueroa, gone for so long, had returned. Most of Figueroa's life was spent there on Coney Island, before he ... Read More