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Schneider helps Mets pull away

Jul 6, 2008 - 4:47 AM By Vince DiGregorio PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

PHILADELPHIA (Ticker) -- Brian Schneider made sure that the New York Mets did not waste another strong outing from a starter.

Schneider snapped a tie with a pinch-hit two-run double with two out in the eighth inning as the Mets posted a 9-4 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on Saturday.

Ryan Howard hit a three-run homer for Philadelphia, which had its four-game winning streak snapped.

The Mets were trailing, 4-3, in the eighth inning and facing J.C. Romero (4-2), who got the first out but gave up consecutive singles to Damion Easley and Carlos Delgado that put runners on first and third.

Tom Gordon entered the game and uncorked a wild pitch that scored Easley to tie the game. Gordon walked pinch hitter Marlon Anderson before the runners advanced on a groundout. Schneider then lined a 1-1 pitch into the gap in right-center to give New York a 6-4 advantage.

"I hit one in the alley and scored two runs," said Schneider, who went to high school in the Philadelphia suburb of Northampton. "I was just happy to get a hit and help the team out, especially against the Phillies. It always feels good to do it here."

The light-hitting Schneider has been losing time at catcher to Ramon Castro, but came up big and helped the Mets improve to 9-9 under interim manager Jerry Manuel.

"Schneider has always faced me tough," Gordon said. "I wasn't throwing strikes early (in the count) and they sat on pitches they needed to sit on."

New York tacked on three more runs in the ninth off Rudy Seanez before a brief rain delay halted play for 14 minutes. Pedro Feliciano (1-2) was credited with the win in relief.

"Once we got a couple of runs there in the eighth, we put a couple of more (runs) together," Schneider said. "That's what you need to do. You can't just score one or two and get the lead and stop right there. When you go up five, it's tough for a team to say that they have a chance to come back."

Jayson Werth had given the Phillies a 4-3 lead with a two-out, pinch-hit RBI single in the seventh.

The Mets had dropped a 3-2 contest to the Phillies on Friday despite a strong eight-inning outing from ace Johan Santana. On Saturday, John Maine was on his way to an excellent performance before he was forced to leave the game in the bottom of the sixth inning after suffering a cramp in his left forearm.

The righthander clutched the arm after throwing a 1-2 pitch to Howard and was unable to continue. Aaron Heilman came on and struck out Howard on the only pitch he threw to end the frame.

Maine went 5 2/3 innings, allowing three runs on only one hit with two walks and five strikeouts.

"John Maine just had a cramp in his left forearm," Manuel said. "It's never happened to him before. It was something that caught him completely by surprise."

"I tried to throw another pitch and I felt it again," Maine said. "I don't know where the pain is. I still feel it a little bit. At least, it's not my right arm. I think I'll make my next start."

Howard's three-run home run accounted for the only Phillies' offense off Maine.

"The one time that I missed my spot, (Howard) gets a three-run home run," Maine said. "Just a bad time for it to happen. We ended up winning. That's the most important thing."

The Mets also lost right fielder Ryan Church, who returned from the disabled list on Sunday, in the eighth inning due to dizziness. The 29-year-old Church suffered a mild concussion on May 20, and pinch-hit in seven games before being placed on the DL on June 10. Endy Chavez replaced him.

"I told (the doctors) I was feeling dizzy," Church said. "My eyes were hurting and that's when the dizziness came on."