Do the Mets have a new ace?
It sure looked that way in a 6-0 rout last night at Shea Stadium as Mike Pelfrey mowed down the lowly Nationals for seven innings on the way to his second win in as many starts this season.
Throwing forcefully and with confidence on a chilly night, the big right-hander allowed just five hits and eight baserunners while striking out four. In the process, Pelfrey brought the Mets back to .500 (6-6) and lifted their spirits after a pair of ugly weekend losses to the Brewers.
Pelfrey got huge assists from Jose Reyes and David Wright, who turned all those boos at Shea last week into cheers by celebrating Jackie Robinson Day with a combined 7-for-9 performance at the plate.
Although Wright supplied the muscle with two doubles, a homer and five RBIs, Reyes was the prime source of energy for the Mets in a game he wasn’t even expected to make. Sidelined since Friday by a strained left hamstring, Reyes fought through the pain and came up a homer short of the cycle, going 4-for-5 with a run.
The Mets also got an emotional lift in the ninth, when reliever Duaner Sanchez pitched a scoreless inning in his first regular-season appearance since July 2006 after enduring two shoulder surgeries.
But make no mistake: This was Pelfrey’s night.
Given the comfort of a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first on Wright’s third homer in as many games, Pelfrey made it stand up with a sinking fastball in the mid-90 mph range that repeatedly frustrated Washington hitters.
Pelfrey was rarely threatened by a Nats lineup missing ex-Met Paul Lo Duca (thumb injury). The only time he ran into serious trouble was in the third, but the former first-round pick fought his way out of that bases-loaded jam by blowing a 93 mph third strike by Nick Johnson.
Not even another shaky outing by the fans’ newest boo target, Aaron Heilman, could prevent the Mets from picking up the shutout while handing Washington its 10th loss in 11 games after a 3-0 start.
But while Heilman struggled, giving up a double and a walk while drawing a mound visit in just one inning of work, Pelfrey was the picture of calm and determination.
It was a far cry from the Pelfrey the Mets saw in spring training, when he all but conceded the fifth and final rotation spot with an almost uniformly terrible showing. Only a foot injury to Orlando Hernandez prevented Pelfrey from opening the season at Triple-A New Orleans.
Pelfrey never backed down, throwing fastball after fastball during a crisp, 99-pitch outing.
Pelfrey was staked to a cushion right away, thanks to a two-run shot to left by Wright off Nationals starter Odalis Perez (0-3) just three batters into the bottom of the first.
It was the third homer in as many games for Wright, who had spent his time off the day before taking swings for comedic effect against David Letterman during a “Late Show” appearance.
There was nothing funny about this shot, however. Wright crushed the 1-1 change-up from Perez for his fourth homer of the season while scoring newly minted No. 2 hitter Ryan Church.
Wright then put the game out of reach in the eighth with his second double of the game, driving in Church and Luis Castillo.