The Mets beat the Astros 5-1 to take the weekend series and close out the homestand.

Game Notes

R.A. Dickey took the mound and pitched another gem for the Mets on Sunday. The 35-year-old Dickey  stumped the Astros for seven superb innings, yielding just six hits in seven-plus innings, and lowering his ERA to 2.56 for the season. How good is that? Well check this out… Dickey has re-qualified for the NL ERA title. His 2.56 mark ranks 7th between Josh Johnson (2.36) and Ubaldo Jimenez (2.71). That’s some pretty nice company.

Dickey also had a nice day at the plate with a pair of singles, two runs batted in, and a run scored on the day. This guy’s freaking amazing!

Also, when asked about how he likes playing in New York, he told the NY Post,

“Outside of the traffic, I feel like it’s a great place for me. And that’s the honest answer. I enjoy the culture. I enjoy the people. The fans, they’re tough fans, but they just like to win. And I get that. As a Tennessee Titan fan, I feel the same way a lot. I can relate and empathize with their plight.”

It’s time to start talking about a two year extension for this season’s most surprising Met. Surprising in a good way that is…

Bobby Parnell and Hisanori Takahashi pitched a scoreless inning each out of the bullpen. I still sense that Parnell struggles in high pressure situations.

Give it up for Josh Thole who belted his second home run of the season, a solo shot in the sixth inning to give Dickey and the bullpen some breathing room. Thole had two hits in the game as did Angel Pagan who had been slumping going into the game.

The Mets are back at .500 and if they are going to make some sort of a miracle comeback this season, they can begin by reeling off a nice 10-12 game winning streak and proving that they can win on the road.

Game Ball

R.A. Dickey gets the nod not only for his outstanding performance on the mound, but he wasn’t too shabby at the plate either. Nice job!

On Deck

The Mets are off to Atlanta to open a four game series tonight against the Braves at Turner Field. Pat Misch takes on Jair Jurrjens and game time is at 7:10 pm. LGM