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Perez looks to help Mets to fifth straight win

Sep 4, 2007 - 1:26 PM NY Mets (77-60) at Cincinnati (62-77) 7:10 pm EDT

CINCINNATI (Ticker) -- Buoyed by the successful return of Pedro Martinez, the New York Mets aim for a season-high fifth straight win against the struggling Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday.

Martinez threw five effective innings in his return from rotator cuff surgery while David Wright, Moises Alou and Carlos Delgado all homered in a 10-4 rout in Monday's series opener.

New York has opened a five-game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies (72-65) in the National League East. The Atlanta Braves (70-68) beat the Phillies, 5-1, on Monday and trail the Mets by 7 1/2 games.

Oliver Perez (12-9, 3.39 ERA) takes the mound for the Mets, who lead the majors with 42 road wins.

Perez has struggled with his command, issuing 17 walks in his last 23 2/3 innings. On Wednesday, the 25-year-old lefthander yielded three runs and five hits with 10 strikeouts in six innings of a 3-2 loss to Philadelphia.

Perez has been outstanding against the Reds, going 7-3 with a 3.98 ERA in 15 career starts. The seven wins are the most he has against any team.

While New York is shooting for its fifth straight win, Cincinnati is hoping to avoid its fifth straight loss.

Matt Belisle (7-8, 5.33) will try to prevent that from happening and earn his third straight winning decision. The righthander allowed two runs in five innings of a no-decision in a 5-4 win over Pittsburgh on Thursday.