David Wright, Daniel Murphy, Jon Niese put on show as Mets beat Phillies, 11-1

Looking around Citi Field Tuesday night, the Mets realized there was something different about their ballpark.

It was completely full.

The largest crowd in the four-year history of the stadium -- 42,516 fans -- showed up to see the Mets complete the actual first half of this surprising season. A postgame pyrotechnic display probably helped fill a few seats, too.

"Well, we need some fireworks for sure to get us going," Terry Collins said of the huge attendance spike.

The manager's statement carried a dual meaning, however, as the Mets pummeled the Phillies with a 15-hit attack that resulted in an 11-1 rout.

The resurgent Daniel Murphy finished a home run short of the cycle, Ruben Tejada had three hits from the leadoff spot and David Wright delivered a spectacular three-run homer that landed on the blacked-out batters' eye in centerfield.

With the win, the Mets reached the halfway point of the season at 44-37, in second place, and 3 1/2 games behind the Nationals. But if history has taught us anything about this team, it's not how they start -- but how they finish. In the past five seasons, they have been over .500 three times at this juncture, and even had a one-game lead in 2007, yet failed to make the playoffs.

"We're very pleased where we are," Collins said. "But we've got 81 more to go, and in the next 81, we've just got to play better than we did in the first 81. And we'll see where we are when it's over."

The win also featured another pitching gem from Jonathon Niese, who held the Phillies to three hits in eight innings. His only run came on Carlos Ruiz's leadoff homer in the second. Niese (7-3) struck out three, walked two and allowed just one runner to reach as far as second base as he improved to 5-1 with a 2.00 ERA in his last eight starts. "I think we've got good talent," Niese said, "and I think that it's showing right now. We're a team that likes to work together."

Wright's home run, his 10th, marked his ninth season of double-digit homers, a Mets record, passing Mike Piazza, Darryl Strawberry and Ed Kranepool. He also moved into sole possession of third place on the franchise all-time list with 193. "It just seems like with each win, we gain confidence," Wright said, "and that's a big thing to build on for the second half."

As for Murphy, he tied a career high with four hits -- a triple, a single and two doubles. Along with Wright, he also had four RBIs, and now has 14 RBIs in his last five starts. After starting with a triple and double, Murphy realized that a cycle might be possible. But in joking about his lack of power, he added later, "not unless they let me hit from second base."

The Mets took a 4-1 lead in the second and never looked back. Not only did they score three runs -- two on Niese's one-one out single -- they had runners thrown out at third and home. Normally, those would be costly mistakes. But not on this night, when Tejada and Murphy each had RBI singles in the fourth and Wright his three-run blast in the sixth.

Niese made sure the Phillies never got within shouting distance. After Ruiz's homer, Niese retired 10 of 11, and also benefited from some great defense -- not exactly a strength of the Mets during the first half. They entered with 63 errors, the most in the National League, and their .979 fielding percentage ranked 15th.

But Murphy went airborne to rob Hunter Pence with a great reaching grab in the second and Tejada made nearly the same play to deny Pence again in the fourth. Wright did a great job lunging to his left to spear Shane Victorino's grounder to start the fifth. Those flashy plays made the error-filled loss in L.A. on Sunday night seem like a distant memory.