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Mets bats pound Penny; Maine cruises in 12-1 win

Mets pitcher John Maine, center, gets support from teammates as he is taken out of the game in the ninth inning while two outs shy of a complete game. The Mets dominated the Dodgers, 12-1. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon / May 7, 2008)

BY DAVID LENNON | david.lennon@newsday.com

May 8, 2008

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LOS ANGELES - Sitting down the likes of Moises Alou, Carlos Delgado and Brian Schneider for yesterday's noon start at Chavez Ravine was a decision that Mets manager Willie Randolph felt perfectly comfortable with heading into the series finale against the Dodgers.

Was it false bravado on the manager's part? Did Randolph fail to notice that Brad Penny was pitching for L.A.? Was he already wondering whether to pick chicken or beef for dinner on the overnight flight back to New York?

If Randolph is to be believed, the answer is none of the above. Despite swapping out 30 percent of the regular lineup, the Mets dealt Penny the worst start of his career in cruising to a 12-1 win over the Dodgers.

Ryan Church, back down in the No. 5 hole vacated by Alou, went 3-for-4 with his sixth home run and every Mets starter had at least one RBI, including pitcher John Maine, who delivered a bases-loaded single in the fifth inning.

"Offense, offense, offense," Randolph said. "It makes a world of difference."

The Mets, who stranded 13 runners in Tuesday's 5-4 loss, benefited from the ego boost as they raked Penny, who allowed a career-high 10 runs. After averting a sweep, they head home with some degree of satisfaction after finishing 3-3 for the six-game trip through difficult stops in Arizona and LA.

"It was just a matter of time," said Church, who homered for the second time in as many games. "It was good to see that we were finally able to do it."

No one appreciated the effort more than Maine, who came within two outs of a complete game for the longest start by a Mets pitcher since Oliver Perez went 8 1/3 innings against the Brewers on May 13 last season. Maine (4-2) did not give up a run until the ninth, when pinch-hitter Andruw Jones lifted a bloop double just beyond the reach of Luis Castillo's glove and Matt Kemp smacked a one-out RBI single.

After Kemp's base hit, on Maine's 117th pitch, Randolph began his slow walk to the mound and the infielders gathered around Maine to congratulate him. After Maine handed the ball to Randolph, Jose Reyes clapped inside his glove.

"I threw a lot of pitches," Maine said. "What are you going to do?"

Angel Pagan, who replaced Alou in leftfield, chipped in with an RBI and stolen base before he was forced to leave the game with a sore right shoulder. Pagan tumbled over the retaining wall down the leftfield line to make a head-over-heels catch of Andre Ethier's foul ball in the first inning, but aggravated the shoulder stealing second in the third inning.

From an offensive standpoint, Pagan wasn't missed. The Mets batted around in the second inning to take a 4-0 lead with a rally fueled by Raul Casanova's two-run single. In the fifth, the Mets sent 10 hitters to the plate as their cushion grew to 11-0 after the six-run inning.

Penny was pulled after a walk to Reyes loaded the bases and Scott Proctor didn't provide much relief when he walked Castillo to force in another run. David Wright snapped an 0-for-13 skid that included seven strikeouts when he ripped a two-run double off Proctor that same inning.

"It's always good to get a hit," Wright said. "It just seems like so far this year, there's been a lot of inconsistency. It's a lot easier for me personally when the team is clicking offensively. I'm a lot harder on myself when we're losing games and struggling offensively."

That definitely was not the case yesterday. Even Castillo, who returned to the No. 2 spot for the first time on the trip, broke out of a 1-for-21 slump with two hits and two RBIs. Marlon Anderson, filling in for Delgado at first base, jump-started the Mets with a ground-rule double that scored their first run.

"Every team that's going to win a championship has a good bench," Anderson said, "and we're going to need everyone on the team to get it done."

Tomorrow

Reds at Mets

7:10 p.m.

TV: SNY

Radio: WFAN (660)