Mets 58-59 vs D-Backs 65-53 Preview

Dillon Gee 10-3, 3.93 ERA

Ian Kennedy 14-3, 3.20 ERA

Mets Friday lineup at Arizona: Pagan-CF, Harris-2B, Wright-3B, Duda-1B, Bay-LF, Thole-C, Pridie-RF, Tejada-SS, Gee-RHPless than a minute ago via web Favorite Retweet ReplyNew York Mets
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"I can't keep giving speeches. I can't keep giving these guys pep talks. This is the big leagues. These are men. They have to realize what they're facing. They have to realize what it takes to play here 162 times. They know exactly what they're looking at." Manager Terry Collins, on his young team, after Thursday's loss, heading out on a six-game trip to Arizona and San Diego.

With the Mets season pretty much over, the only the thing the team can do is play .500 or better baseball. New York is currently 19 games back in the division and 10.5 back in the wild card. For them to make the post-season a mircale would have to happen, but its unlikely going to happen. With that being said, the Mets go on a 6-game road trip against the D-Backs and Padres. The Mets left 35 runners on base in the four-game series against the Padres, including nine Thursday. New York leads the major leagues in runners left on base. Angel Pagan (lower back spasms) left the Aug. 10 game, and he didn't play Aug. 11. He's day-to-day.

Back in April, the Mets swept a three game series against the D-Backs in which Dillon Gee won the middle game of the series. Gee won the middle game in that series en route to a 7-0 start to this season, but he’s 3-3 with a 5.44 ERA over his last eight outings. He gave up five runs over five innings Sunday against the Braves. The Mets rallied to tie the game, keeping Gee at 2-0 in four starts since the All-Star break, but lost 6-5. “I’m just really disappointed. Obviously, I didn’t get the job done,” Gee said. “I hate to see (Bobby) Parnell come in and get a loss for a game that I really lost. I never really gave us a chance today.” Gee allowed four runs, two earned and five hits in six innings during his win over the Diamondbacks. He’ll try to earn another while keeping the Mets, losers in eight of 11, from dropping two games below .500 for the first time since June 24.

Dillon Gee:

• 2-2, 5.22 ERA, 29.1IP 25H 17ER 13BB 16K 5HRs (Last 5 Games) 
• Away (This Year) - 5-1, 4.53 ERA, 53.2IP 48H 27ER 22BB 36K 3HRs .238BAA (9 Starts)
• April 23rd, 2011 vs D-Backs - 6.0IP 5H 4ER 1BB 5K 1HR (W)

Ian Kennedy:

• 5-0, 2.31 ERA, 35.0IP 25H 9ER 8BB 31K 4HRs (Last 5 Games) 
• Home (This Year) - 6-2, 3.19 ERA, 90.1IP 71H 32ER 22BB 74K 8HRs .216BAA (13 Starts)
• Career vs Mets - 2-0, 4.91 ERA, 11.0IP 7H 6ER 6BB 5K 2HRs .171BAA (2 Starts)

Worth Noting:
- Mets all-time record against the D-Backs ... 50-46 (96 Games)

- David Wright vs Ian Kennedy ... 4-for-6 (.667) 2 HRs, 5 RBIs

- Mets shortstop Jose Reyes insists that he will be ready to return after spending the minimum 15 days on the disabled list. So the team is getting a mere glimpse at 21-year-old Ruben Tejada in Reyes' absence.

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