Isringhausen: 300 & close the door?

SAN DIEGO -- Life wasn't much different for Jason Isringhausen the day after No. 300. Or at least he seemed the same.

Hunched over at his locker, Isringhausen was approached by Josh Thole, who was behind the plate for Izzy's milestone save. Thole was holding a baseball from Monday night's win over the Padres at PETCO Park. "Whaddya want kid?" Isringhausen growled.

When Thole asked for his autograph, along with the number "300" scrawled next to it, Isringhausen took the ball, then acted as if he was about to peel off the hologram authentication sticker. "No, no, no!" Thole said.

Isringhausen smiled, signed the ball, and tossed it back. With 300 saves on his resume, he's ready to step into more of a closer emeritus role for the Mets as Terry Collins auditions Bobby Parnell and Pedro Beato.

"We were certainly really focused on getting him his 300th, there's no doubt," the manager said. "Now we've got to be realistic enough to know we've got to start searching. We've got to start giving some of these other guys an opportunity to pitch the ninth inning to see how they react."

Collins didn't get that chance Tuesday night as the Mets fell to the Padres, 6-1. The manger eventually called on Beato, but that was for the seventh inning, and he didn't look much like a closer -- or a good one anyway. Beato served up a leadoff homer to Cameron Maybin, who hammered a 3-and-2 fastball into the leftfield bleachers. One out later, Jesus Guzman ripped a double to leftfield and later blew through a stop sign at third to score on Orlando Hudson's single.

Beato's replacement was a little surprising as Collins went to Mike Pelfrey for the eighth. Pelfrey probably needed the work after throwing only 50 pitches on Saturday before getting struck on the right elbow by a line drive. In his first relief appearance since closing the 20-inning game on April 17, 2010 in St. Louis, Pelfrey allowed Nick Hundley's second triple of the night and an RBI single to Alberto Gonzalez before he was lifted.

Jonathon Niese (11-10) pitched six innings, but allowed 10 hits for the second time in three starts. The Padres scored two runs in the first inning on RBI singles by Hudson and Hundley, who also tripled and scored in the fourth.

After trading Francisco Rodriguez, the Mets paved the way for Isringhausen's 300th, and he followed by converting seven of eight chances to become the 23rd pitcher to reach 300.

He also tied Bruce Sutter for 22nd on the all-time list, and at age 38, is the fourth oldest pitcher to do it. Isringhausen earned his very first save with the Mets in 1999 and on Monday, he joined John Franco and Billy Wagner as the only closers to get No. 300 while in a Mets uniform. "It's kind of a cool story," Isringhausen said. "Getting the first one and the last -- maybe not the last, but 300. It's nice to get it over with. Now I can just go about worrying about pitching and get this nonsense out of the way."

Isringhausen mentioned that most of his body was aching, except for one spot -- and he pointed to the underside of his right elbow, the entry point for his three Tommy John surgeries. Isringhausen seems content to be more of a mentor.

Said Parnell, "I've had some rough days and I can go talk to him and see what I've done wrong and what I've done right. He's very helpful . . . For all he's done, he's given back more than he's done. For me to be able to experience that I'm very thankful."