Young: Too early for accolades
The Mets' Chris Young pitched well during his first outing in Philadelphia last week. (Apr. 5, 2011) Credit: Getty Images
Chris Young already has put the first start of his Mets career behind him.
The pressure he feels is self-imposed, a result of his need to prove his worth on a new team that currently is in desperate need of good starting pitching. And as much as the righthander was pleased by his performance in the Mets' 7-1 win over the Phillies on Tuesday, he's focused on doing even better Sunday against the Nationals.
"That's not even a quality start," Young said of his first outing, in which he gave up five hits, struck out seven and walked four in 51/3 innings. "There's room for improvement there. I'm not satisfied with it. There were some good results. We won the game, ultimately."
Young clarified his expectations: "I'm not getting too excited about one start. I've got a long way to go. It's going to be a tough game tomorrow. This team's good, they can swing the bat, going against a veteran pitcher [Jason Marquis], and certainly I'll have my work cut out for me."
Manager Terry Collins praised Young and Saturday's starter, Chris Capuano. Said Collins, "They think two and three pitches ahead -- 'Hey, look, if I do this and I get this reaction, I can do this and this.' It's pretty amazing. They're so alert and so attentive. It's pretty impressive.''
Bay progressing
Jason Bay hit off a tee Saturday and is scheduled to take batting practice off live pitching from a coach Sunday, Collins said. The outfielder has been on the disabled list since March 25 with a strained left rib cage. "So step two is in the process," Collins said.
Izzy ready?
Jason Isringhausen looks good and is throwing well in Port St. Lucie, Fla. The only question now is: When will the Mets bring him up? But Collins hasn't quite figured that out yet. Rehabilitation coach Randy Neimann told Collins that Isringhausen is "ready when you need him," but the manager was noncommittal about an arrival date.
Extra bases
Jose Reyes snapped a string of 58 at-bats without a walk dating to Sept. 28, 2010. His two-run double in the eighth snapped an 11-game streak without an RBI . . . Scott Hairston is 5-2 in games against his brother Jerry, according to Elias Sports Bureau.
