On the Mets beat

10:18 -- A fitting ending to a pathetic offensive performance by the Mets. Carlos Delgado did in fact pinch hit for Sanchez and struck out swinging. Perhaps they would have been better off taking their chances with the pitcher at the plate. Willie Randolph's seat just got a little hotter. Easley and Casanova both grounded out to end the game and put the Met's bats out of their misery. Braves win 6-3. Clearly, this loss can be blamed on the absence of Delgado. Sarcasm at its finest. Final score: Braves 6, Mets 3.

10:07 -- Decent performance from Duaner Sanchez. Mets head to the bottom of the ninth with a whopping two hits. Lets see if Delgado will pinch hit for Sanchez.

9:58 -- 1-2-3 inning. Mets go down without a fight. Something must be done to ignite this Met offense. They look more lost at the plate than a bunch of ducks in the middle of the desert.

9:51 -- The Braves go down in order. An unprecedented event.

9:47 -- It seems the only way the Mets have been able to draw baserunners tonight is via walks. Back-to-back walks to Casnova and Chavez brought the tying run to the plate, but Reyes and Castillo were unable to deliver the timely hit the Mets so desperately need.

9:35 -- The bullpen continues to live up to its reputation. Joe Smith started off well but then gave up consecutive singles. Pedro Feliciano relieved Smith and allowed an RBI single to Johnson. The Mets unreliable bullpen and inability to get timely hits is not a good combination for success, evident by the fact that their record is hovering around .500. Let's see if the Mets can add to their two hits tonight in the bottom of the inning. Braves 6, Mets 3.

9:20 -- I wonder what would draw more boos at this point, Aaron Heilman emerging from the bullpen or Carlos Delgado coming in to pinch hit? It's too close to call. Anyway, the Mets are going down faster than Delgado's batting average. Another perfect inning for Jurrjens who has been flawless since the third.

9:12 -- Kelly Johnson took advantage of a pitch Pelfrey left up in the strikezone and put it over the fence in right to give the Braves a two-run lead. A Reyes throwing error would mark the end of the night for Mike Pelfrey. Scott Schoeneweis promply came in and gave up a double down the line to Teixeira but struck out McCann to end the inning. I still put the over/under for the number of runs the bullpen gives up tonight at four. Braves 5, Mets 3.

8:57-- Reyes can't seem to catch a break at the plate. In his previous at-bat Jurrjens made a nice stab on a ball hit up the middle, and he just made good contact but hit it directly to Francouer in right. He is now 1-for his last-17. At least he is hitting the ball hard. Baby steps. Jurrjens puts the Mets down in order for the second consecutive inning.

8:49 -- After retiring the first two batters, it finally looked as if Pelfrey was going to have his first 1-2-3 inning of the game. But back-to-back doubles by McCann and Jeff Francoeur spoiled those plans and tied the game at 3-3. By the way, the Bobby Cox ejection was the 136th of his career, the most all time. There's a record to tell his grandchildren about. Mets 3, Braves 3.

8:38 -- After walking everyone except Mr. Met in the third inning, Jurrjens managed to find the plate again and retired the Mets in order.

8:32 -- Pelfrey seems to have trouble retiring the leadoff man each inning which is always recipe for disaster for pitchers. Pelfrey walked Matt Diaz to lead off the inning and he came around to score on a Kelly Johnson sac fly. Mets 3, Braves 2.

8:22 -- There is nothing like a gift from the home plate umpire when you are mired in an 0-for-16 slump. David Wright worked his way out of an 0-2 count with the bases loaded to draw a walk and tie the game at 1-1. Wright took some pitches that could have very easily been called strikes to end the inning, much to the chagrin of Jurrjens and Bobby Cox, who had some words for the umpire, resulting in his ejection. Jurrjens seemed to have lost his composure after the Wright at-bat and walked in Beltran and Church for two more runs. Mets 3, Braves 1.

7:57 -- Pelfrey gave up two singles to Chipper Jones and Brian McCann but managed to turn a double-play on a comebacker to the mound to end the inning.
He may have bought himself some time with that play. It's time to start putting the Braves down in order.

7:50 -- A nice diving play by Teixeira to take away a base hit from Ryan Church. Teixeira is headed for free agency and would look pretty good in a Mets uniform at first base. Then again, most people would look good at first for the Mets considering the recent performance of their currrent first baseman, Mr. Delgado. Jurrjens has looked impressive, Mets go down 1-2-3.

7:46 -- Pelfrey still looks somewhat erratic but got out of the inning with no damage after a leadoff single. After two innings, his pitch count has already reached the mid-40s. With his command problems he will be lucky to pitch five innings which spells doom for the bullpen.

7:34 -- The left side of the Mets infield continues to struggle at the plate as Jose Reyes strikes out and David Wright grounds out. Mets go down in order.

7:25 -- Pelfrey is having trouble finding the strikezone already. He walked three batters in the inning, two of which were on four pitches. An RBI single by Mark Teixeira put the Braves up 1-0. The Mets need a solid outting by Pelfrey in order to give their overworked, underachieving bullpen a rest. But if the first inning is any indication, the bullpen better be prepared to work some innings tonight. Braves 1, Mets 0.

6:55 -- Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Mike Gavin here for another night of Mets baseball. In an interesting move, Willie Randolph has decided to bench the struggling Carlos Delgado for tonight's game in favor of Marlon Anderson. Randolph is probably trying to delay the inevitable booing that will rain from the stands once Delgado's .198 batting average appears on the Shea scoreboard. First pitch is just minutes away.

Pregame chatter

Atlanta Braves (11-11) at Mets (11-10), 7:10 p.m.

Starters: Jair Jurrjens (2-2, 3.20) for Atlanta and Mike Pelfrey (2-0, 3.18) for the Mets.

Last starts: Pelfrey won his first two starts of the season, but looked shaky and got a no-decision Sunday in Philadelphia. He gave up four runs on 10 hits over five innings against the Phillies. Jurrjens allowed season-lows of one run and three hits with a career-high eight strikeouts in seven innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday.

Previous series: The Braves swept a rain-shortened two-game series from the Mets earlier this month.

Be back later after the first pitch.