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Mike Baxter can't remember the last time he had a catch at the wall like he did in the first inning of the Mets' 6-1 win over the Padres Friday night.

"That's probably the first time at this level," the outfielder said.

Then again, it'd be hard for any prior catch to top Friday's acrobatic snare. Baxter's fantastic grab started an inning-ending double play in the first inning that proved to be a momentum-changing play that helped galvanize the Mets to their win.

"Held them to the one run in the inning instead of a multi-run inning and I think it really lifted Dillon (Gee) and everybody else," manager Terry Collins said. "It was a tremendous play."

With runners on first and third and one out in a scoreless game, Jesus Guzman hit a deep drive to left that Baxter snared with his right arm extended before crashing into the wall. While the runner from third scored, Baxter was able to get the ball back in time to nail Yonder Alonso at first to end the inning. Gee, shaky in the first inning, didn't yield another run.

Baxter said the ball carried and he was able to get a decent break on the ball and make the big play. He also contributed by driving in the go-ahead run with a double in the third, and he later came around to score. He's hitting .352 on the year.

"For him to have a play like that and get me out of the inning is huge," Gee said. "It gives me confidence going the rest of the game."

IKE AND DUDA PITCH IN: David Wright can't be the hero every night, so when he has 0-for-3 games like he did Friday, the team needs others to step up. Friday night, that support came from Lucas Duda and Ike Davis, who drove in three in the win.

"It's huge for our team," Collins said.

Davis drove in a pair of runs for the second straight day with his single in the fifth inning. Collins wondered if this is what Davis needs to get going offensively, as the team recently told him he won't be demoted to the minors despite his slow start to the year. He's 3-for-8 over the last three games and has boosted his average to .168.

"I've felt a little bit better, my swing feels a lot better," Davis said. "BP has been really good the last two days, it's just nice to contribute."

For Duda, his second-inning home run off the Subway sign in front of the second level of seats in right field snapped a span of 77 at-bats without a home run. Duda now has 23 RBIs, which is the second-most on the team behind Wright. He scored two runs in the win.

"I think for me to be a productive big leaguer I have to hit home runs," Duda said. "Just continue to battle and play the game hard."

One of the few bright spots in the Mets' 11-5 loss to the last-place San Diego Padres on Thursday was third baseman David Wright.

Wright continued his torrid pace by going 3-for-5 on the night, upping his batting average to a major league-leading .405.

He had a double in the first inning, and a single in the eighth. But the biggest hit was his two-run blast over the center-field wall in the sixth, his fifth home run of the year.

"He’s in a zone like none other," said manager Terry Collins after the game.

Wright, for one, isn't caught up in his batting average right now. "It's May," said Wright. "It’s really, really early, so you can’t get caught up in looking up at the [scoreboard].

"The important categories are I wanna be able to drive runs in and score runs. Those are things that don’t fluctuate. Once you drive in a run and score a run, that never goes away. Batting average is gonna fluctuate, go up and down depending on whether you’re a little lucky that night or not."

ANOTHER POSITIVE: Ike Davis was not in the starting lineup, but he did get to pinch-hit in the eighth inning and laced a single into right field, driving in two runs.

This was his first at-bat since Collins informed Davis that he was not in danger of being demoted to Triple-A, despite entering Thursday's game batting just .159 on the season.

"I thought Ike was certainly being himself today," Collins said after the game. "I only talked to him briefly, a little bit on the field, but I had three or four people tell me today that they thought he was a different person today, personality-wise. And the intent was to try to ease off a little bit and let him take a deep breath and get himself thinking about what he’s gotta do to be successful, and not what’s hanging over his head."

"In [batting practice] I was hitting balls on the line that were going out of the ballpark. I hadn’t done that really all year," Davis said. "It’s a positive, but I still have a long way to get back, and just have to keep grinding it out."

ANOTHER INJURY? Ramon Ramirez, the only Mets pitcher to not give up a run on the night, may have injured himself before leaving the game.

"I’m hoping that Ramon’s OK," Collins said. "I saw him come off the mound, he was limping going to first base, covering first base, so I wanna go check on him."

There is no further update on Ramirez at this time.

Ramirez pitched 1-1/3 innings on Thursday night, giving up no runs on one hit, with two strikeouts.

On the season, Ramirez has a 4.07 ERA in 20 appearances and 25-2/3 innings pitched.

WHAT IT MEANS: The Mets open up their longest homestand of the season (11 games) with a loss to the Padres, the second-worst team in the National League record-wise.

New York falls to 24-21 on the season -- 2-1/2 games behind first-place Washington -- while San Diego improves to 17-29.

ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT: The Mets' Jeremy Hefner made the first start of his major league career, and it didn't go very well. To be fair, Hefner had to endure a 68-minute rain delay after pitching two scoreless innings to start the game. But once he got back on the mound, he was shelled by the third-worst hitting team in the major leagues. (The Padres' No. 5 through No. 9 hitters Thursday night were all batting .171 or lower coming into the game.)

All told, Hefner lasted just 3-2/3 innings on the night, giving up six runs on nine hits, with three strikeouts and no walks. We'll have to wait and see whether manager Terry Collins gives him another chance in five days, or looks for another option to plug into the rotation.

THE REST OF THE WAY: Ramon Ramirez, Manny Acosta and Robert Carson handled the final 5-1/3 innings for the Mets. Acosta surrendered three more runs in his two innings of work, his ERA ballooning to 10.97. Carson allowed a run in the eighth, and another one in the ninth.

The Padres entered the game batting .220 as a team, but scored a season-high 11 runs on a season-high 18 hits Thursday night.

BRIGHT SPOTS: Two of the Mets' three runs came on David Wright's fifth home run of the season, a blast to dead-center field in the sixth inning. Wright also had a double in the first inning and a single in the eighth, upping his batting average to a major league-leading .405.

Also, Ike Davis -- who found out yesterday that he's not in danger of being demoted to Triple-A, despite his .159 batting average entering Thursday night's game -- pinch-hit in the eighth inning and laced a two-RBI double to right field.

WHAT'S NEXT: The Mets have three more cracks at the Padres over Memorial Day weekend. On Friday night at 7:10 p.m., Dillon Gee (3-3, 5.44 ERA) will be on the mound for the Mets, opposed by fellow righty Anthony Bass (2-4, 2.89 ERA) for the Padres.

The Mets won't be sending Ike Davis down to Triple-A Buffalo anytime soon, according to manager Terry Collins.

Collins gave the news to Davis after the team arrived home from Pittsburgh on Wednesday evening, and informed reporters before Thursday night's game against the Padres.

"This game’s all about confidence," Collins said. "It’s all about believing in yourself. When you’re going through a slump like Ike is, you lose that confidence, you lose how you feel about things. It wears on you. He’s not sleeping well. So I thought one of the things we'd try to do is make sure he understands we believe in him. We trust him. He’s an outstanding player. We told him he’s the first baseman."

A possible demotion of Davis has been a hot topic around the Mets in recent days. Through 145 at-bats so far this season, the 25-year-old is hitting just .159, with five homers and 15 RBIs. The batting average is the second-lowest in the major leagues, behind only Milwaukee's Rickie Weeks (.155).

"Obviously they have confidence in me, and they’re backing me and they know I’m gonna get through this," said Davis. "So I’m gonna be here for a while, and it’s just up to me to start playing better."

Davis admitted that being sent back to Triple-A had weighed on his mind of late. "It’s just nice to get that out of the way and know that if I go 0-for-4 tomorrow I’m not gonna get sent down."

However, the left-handed Davis is not in the lineup on Thursday night, with the Mets facing a lefty starter, Eric Stults (Vinny Rottino will play first base and bat sixth). Collins also sat Davis against two other lefty starters on the team's just-finished road trip, but said that this will not be a strict platoon situation -- Davis will be in the lineup against some lefties.

Collins also said he liked the fact that Davis has been more aggressive at the plate of late.

As for why Collins decided to take demotion off the table for now, the manager said, "It was the easy way out. And this game’s not easy. And if he’s gonna be an outstanding major league player, he’s gotta learn to fight through some tough times.

"Every time somebody goes through a slump, we’re not sending 'em out. They gotta learn how to fight through it, and grind out at-bats, and make it work, and learn how to adjust, and he’s not gonna learn how to adjust in Buffalo."

"It’s more about winning than just me," said Davis. "Whatever Terry thinks is gonna be the best way to win this game, he’s gonna have to do it, and I back him whatever decision he makes. If I face all righties, I face all righties. If I play against lefties, I play against lefties. It doesn’t really matter to me. I’m just gonna show up every day and work, and try to get better."

The Mets begin a season-high 11-game homestand on Thursday night against the San Diego Padres.

Terry Collins has elected to drop Andres Torres in the batting order. Torres is just 1-for-33 over his last 11 games and batting .187 on the season.

Also, Ike Davis is on the bench again with the Mets facing another left-hander, Eric Stults. Davis' batting average stands at .159.

Here's the full lineup:

Ronny Cedeno, ss
Daniel Murphy, 2b
David Wright, 3b
Scott Hairston, lf
Lucas Duda, rf
Vinny Rottino, 1b
Andres Torres, cf
Rob Johnson, c
Jeremy Hefner, rhp

The Mets notched a series victory over the Pirates on Wednesday afternoon, courtesy of their 3-1 win in Pittsburgh. Starter Jonathon Niese was outstanding, collecting his first win since April 14, after some extra pregame work.

After playing 18 of their past 25 games on the road, the Mets will now begin an 11-game homestand on Thursday night against the San Diego Padres. It's their longest stretch of the season at Citi Field.

Thursday's news reports:

• After Niese went 7-2/3 innings on Wednesday, allowing just one run on five hits, the bullpen got the job done as well. Bobby Parnell came on with two outs in the eighth, and with runners on second and third and the Mets leading 3-1, he struck out the dangerous Andrew McCutchen to end the threat. Then Frank Francisco pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 12th save. Read game recaps in the Daily News, Post, Times, Journal, Newsday, Star-Ledger and Record.

• Parnell has been so good this season out of the pen, Mets manager Terry Collins made a comparison between Parnell and Detroit Tigers ace Justin Verlander after Wednesday's game.

• Ike Davis went 1-for-4 on Wednesday, which actually improved his batting average from .156 to .159. But Davis is still in danger of being demoted to the minor leagues, although Collins said Wednesday that he's not sure who would replace Davis at first base. Read more in the Daily News.

Newsday's Anthony Rieber says Lucas Duda and Daniel Murphy are both options at first base.

• Wednesday's game was the fifth in a row in which the Mets did not hit a ball out of the park. The Mets have just 25 home runs on the season -- that places them second-to-last in the major leagues, behind only the Padres, who have 16.

Collins would like to see his players swing for the fences a little bit more. Read more about it in the Post.

• Reliever Tim Byrdak received a rare day off on Wednesday -- Byrdak leads the major leagues in appearances this season, with 26. But neither Byrdak nor Collins seem too concerned about the workload at this point -- read more in the Record.

• Jeremy Hefner is slated to make his first major league start on Thursday for the Mets. It's a big opportunity for the 26-year-old, who left most of his belongings in a Ford F-150 parked outside Coca Cola Field in Buffalo.

Read more in the Star-Ledger, which reports in the piece that Chris Young actually went home for more than the birth of a child. He also is experiencing a lack of arm strength, which pitching coach Dan Warthen suggested was a standard spring-training "dead-arm" period. Young’s next start, originally expected for Friday, is now Saturday with Class A St. Lucie.

TRIVIA: In what year did the Mets draft Jeremy Hefner?

Wednesday's answer: The Mets own the 12th pick in next month's amateur draft.

WHAT IT MEANS: The Mets split a six-game road trip to Toronto and Pittsburgh with a 3-1 rubber-game victory against the Pirates on Wednesday afternoon along the shores of the Allegheny River.

Frank Francisco produced a 1-2-3 inning for a save for the second straight day.

HOW NICE: Coming off an outing in Toronto to open the road trip in which he matched a career high by allowing eight runs, Jon Niese took a scoreless effort into the sixth inning. He then allowed a leadoff double by Josh Harrison and one-out RBI single by Andrew McCutchen that pulled the Pirates within 3-1. Niese held the line there that frame, though, coaxing a 6-4-3 double play from Neil Walker.

Niese departed with two out and two runners aboard in the eighth after walking Gorkys Hernandez. Bobby Parnell entered to face McCutchen, and catcher Rob Johnson tried to catch Hernandez straying too far off first base. Johnson’s snap pickoff attempt was missed by first baseman Ike Davis, and an E-3 was charged as both runners advanced.

Parnell made it immaterial by striking out McCutchen on a 98 mph fastball to strand the two runners in scoring position and preserve a two-run lead.

Niese’s final line: 7.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K. It was his longest outing since also going 7 2/3 innings on Aug. 11, 2011 against the San Diego Padres.

PIRATE CASTAWAY: The Pirates declined a $3 million option on Ronny Cedeno last offseason and instead signed Clint Barmes to serve as their shortstop. Cedeno then settled for a $1.1 million contract and backup role with the Mets. He got a little payback against his former club this week. Cedeno went 5-for-10 during the three-game series while manning shortstop in place of soon-to-be-returning Ruben Tejada. Tejada (quadriceps) appeared in his first extended spring training game Tuesday.

MR. .400: David Wright briefly dipped under .400 after being retired in his first two at-bats Wednesday. Wright then delivered an RBI double against Charlie Morton in the fifth inning that staked the Mets to a 3-0 lead. But after striking out in his fourth AB to finish 1-for-4, Wright’s average ended the trip at .399.

It’s the first time Wright completed a day under .400 since May 14.

Kirk Nieuwenhuis had preceded Wright’s fifth-inning at-bat with a sacrifice fly. The Mets had opened the scoring in the first inning on Lucas Duda’s RBI single.

IT’S A HIT: Davis, who entered the day mired in a 2-for-33 rut, singled in his first at-bat. He finished 1-for-4, striking out on a pitch in the dirt and well out of the strike zone in his final plate appearance.

WHAT’S NEXT: The Mets return to Citi Field for an 11-game homestand during which they face San Diego, Philadelphia and Carlos Beltran’s St. Louis Cardinals. Jeremy Hefner (0-1, 2.25 ERA), after two quality relief appearances, makes his first major league start in Thursday’s series opener against the Padres, opposite left-hander Eric Stults (0-0, 2.70). Hefner takes the slot formerly held by Miguel Batista, who landed on the DL on Sunday with a lower back or oblique strain.

R.A. Dickey struck out a career-high 11 batters before departing for a pinch hitter, Lucas Duda had a tiebreaking, two-out RBI single in the eighth and the Mets ultimately held on for a 3-2 win against the Pirates behind a three-up, three-down save from Frank Francisco on Tuesday night.

Wednesday's news reports:

• Dickey told Mike Puma in the Post that he would appreciate the front office already picking up his 2013 team option and talking about an extension beyond that. “I feel like the team is moving in the right direction, and I want to be a part of the solution," Dickey told Puma. "Now it’s up to them. If I’m in those plans, (addressing the contract) is one way to make it known." Dickey signed a two-year, $7.8 million deal during the 2010-11 offseason that includes a $5 million option for next year. The Mets signed Jon Niese on the eve of the season to a five-year, $25.5 million deal that includes two team options. Niese would not have been eligible for free agency until after the 2015 season.

• Terry Collins said it was not a comfortable decision to remove Dickey with the score tied at 1, but the Mets needed offense in the top of the eighth. Andres Torres ended up striking out as a pinch hitter to increase hit rut to 1-for-his-last-34, but the Mets scored two runs in the inning anyway. Dickey notched his MLB-leading sixth win, matching fellow National Leaguers Chris Capuano, Cole Hamels, Gio Gonzalez and Lance Lynn. Dickey did not record his sixth win until Aug. 29 last season. It's the earliest he ever has reached that mark. Read game recaps in the Star-Ledger, Times, Record, Newsday, Daily News and Journal.

• Ike Davis, who met with Collins before the series opener, described that chat to Puma in the Post as "the same (expletive) as I've been talking about for days." Davis went 0-for-4 Tuesday with two strikeouts as his average slipped to .156.

• Collins believes Torres, who did not start the game, is overswinging. Read more in Newsday, the Times, Record and Star-Ledger.

• Ruben Tejada (quadriceps) batted in an extended spring training game Tuesday, suggesting a return from the disabled list as soon as this weekend is realistic.

• David Wright went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts Tuesday. His average now stands at .403. Can he finish above that .400 threshold? Obviously it's not the likelihood, but Collins believes Wright has enough speed to get infield singles and complement his power that at least there's a shot. Read more in the Daily News.

• Collin McHugh took a scoreless effort into the seventh inning in another solid start for Double-A Binghamton before getting ejected and Double-A Binghamton lost to New Britain, 3-0. Read the full minor league recap here.

TRIVIA: What number pick do the Mets have in the first round of next month's amateur draft?

Tuesday's answer: Jose Reyes owns the Mets record for most runs scored with the organization, at 735. David Wright is closing in, though. Wright has 728.

Recap | Box score | Photos

WHAT IT MEANS: Lucas Duda produced a two-out, tiebreaking RBI single and third baseman Pedro Alvarez's error on a would-be inning-ending grounder by Daniel Murphy resulted in another run in the eighth.

And the Mets ultimately held on to beat Pittsburgh, 3-2, Tuesday night at PNC Park.

Barely.

Jon Rauch surrendered a one-out double to Jose Tabata in the bottom of the eighth. And Tabata scored when Murphy, racing backward into right-center from second base, could not hold on to the baseball on an over-the-shoulder catch attempt on Andrew McCutchen's flare.

With the Mets leading by a run, Tim Byrdak entered. And although McCutchen reached scoring position with a steal, Byrdak bailed the Mets out yet again by striking out the lefty-hitting Alvarez to preserve the one-run lead. It was appearance No. 28 for Byrdak, putting him on pace for 98 this season.

Frank Francisco closed it out in the ninth in unusual 1-2-3 fashion.

AARGH: R.A. Dickey nursed a 1-0 lead into the sixth inning, when Josh Harrison delivered a one-out triple. McCutchen then had a sacrifice fly to even the score.

Terry Collins opted to pulled Dickey from the tie game in the top of the eighth, with the knuckleballer’s pitch count only at 88. Andres Torres pinch hit and struck out, extending his skid to 1-for-his-last-34.

Dickey recorded a career-high 11 strikeouts. He limited the Pirates to one run on five hits with no walks in seven innings.

WRIGHT WATCH: David Wright went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts as his average dipped to .403. He left two runners on base in the eighth when he fanned against reliever Juan Cruz, before Duda came through with the two-out RBI single. Wright had struck out three times in a game on only one other instance this season -- April 30 at Houston against Bud Norris (twice) and Brandon Lyon.

NOT O-K: Ike Davis went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts -- both looking. He now has fanned 43 times in 141 at-bats. Davis is 2-for-his-last-33 with 11 strikeouts since homering against Miami's Mark Buehrle on May 11.

WHAT'S NEXT: Jon Niese (2-2, 4.85 ERA) opposes right-hander Charlie Morton (2-4, 4.35) in Wednesday's 12:35 p.m. series finale.

PITTSBURGH -- Mike Baxter and Kirk Nieuwenhuis had a communications gaffe on an eighth-inning fly ball, resulting in a three-base error, and Clint Barmes followed with a game-deciding sacrifice fly as the Pittsburgh Pirates rallied from a four-run deficit to beat the Mets, 5-4, Monday at PNC Park.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, it was Pittsburgh's biggest come-from-behind victory since June 1, 2009, also against the Mets -- when a five-run lead for the Amazin's turned into an 8-5 loss that included five straight batters reaching against J.J. Putz in a five-run eighth. Putz made only one more appearance as a Met, also in that series, before undergoing season-ending elbow surgery.

The Pirates' string of 160 straight games trailing by four-plus runs without a comeback victory was the second-longest in MLB history, according to Elias. Only the the Washington Senators, who had 178 straight losses when they trailed by four-plus runs from 1906 to 1910, had a longer drought.

Tuesday's news reports:

• Johan Santana could not hold a four-run lead. He surrendered a game-tying two-run homer to No. 8 hitter Michael McKenry in the seventh. His record stands at 1-2 after nine starts this season.

• Read game recaps in the Post, Record, Star-Ledger, Newsday, Times and Daily News.

• Josh Thole and Jason Bay have headed to Florida to ramp up activity, while Ruben Tejada could be the first of trio to return from the disabled list -- as soon as next weekend. Thole, cleared for baseball activities two weeks after suffering a concussion, is aiming to appear in a minor league game for the first time May 28. Tejada (quadriceps) has been running in Port St. Lucie. He could be in a minor league rehab game as soon as Wednesday. Bay (fractured rib) is due to start taking batting practice from coaches that day, and soon thereafter may advance to minor league action, initially as a DH. Read more in the Star-Ledger.

• Andres Torres is 1-for-his-last-29. Terry Collins plans to sit him Tuesday and start Nieuwenhuis in center, with Baxter in left field.

• Ike Davis sat against another left-hander, Erik Bedard, but entered Monday for defense in the sixth inning and eventually struck out in both of his ensuing at-bats. Davis is now hitting .161. A demotion may be looming, potentially coinciding with the return of a player from the DL. Collins met with Davis in the visiting manager's office at PNC Park before Monday's game. Read more in the Journal, Post, Newsday, Times and Daily News.

• Vinny Rottino rejoined the Mets on Monday from Triple-A Buffalo and made his first major league start at first base. Chris Schwinden was optioned back to the Bisons. With Miguel Batista landing on the DL, Jeremy Hefner has been confirmed as Thursday's starter against the San Diego Padres at Citi Field.

• Terry Collins expressed appreciation for umpire Brian Knight acknowledging missing Saturday night's call, when Baxter was ruled out at second base in Toronto.

• Michael Salfino in the Journal tries to reconcile the Mets' winning record with their run differential. He notes a few lopsided losses skew the results somewhat, but counters that the Mets have been outslugged with homers by a wide margin. Writes Salfino:

In the standings, they look like a contender. Entering Monday, they were a surprising 22-19. But on the stat sheet -- and we're not talking doctorate-level statistics here -- they look overmatched. They've been outscored by 31 runs, the fifth-worst mark in baseball. Even the 15-25 Colorado Rockies (minus-27) have been better. The Mets are on pace to finish 87-75 while being outscored by 122 runs. This would be a rather historic achievement: All-time, the worst run differential by a winning team belonged to the 1905 Detroit Tigers (minus-90), who went 79-74. The Mets' current record is about five games better than what's expected from a team with that poor of a run differential, according to Baseball-Reference.com.

• Salfino also notes in the Journal that the Mets bullpen has protected leads for R.A. Dickey remarkably well -- in 21 of 22 games in which the knuckleballer has left in a position to win during his Mets career. According to the article, the bullpen has failed to hold 14 of 50 potential wins for Santana during his Mets career.

• Pitching coach Dan Warthen wants Jon Niese to prepare more for unfamiliar opponents, Mike Puma writes in the Post. "He’s had a couple of poor games against teams he doesn’t know very well,” Warthen told Puma. “A couple of us talked to him the other day and told him he could do a little bit better with the studying of hitters.”

TRIVIA: Who holds the record for career runs scored in a Mets uniform?

Monday's answer: The yellow bridge spanning the Allegheny River adjacent to PNC Park is named for the late Roberto Clemente.

WHAT IT MEANS: Johan Santana could not protect a four-run lead and the Mets dropped the ball in the eighth inning -- literally -- en route to 5-4 loss against Pittsburgh in Monday’s series opener.

Santana served up a game-tying two-run homer to No. 8 hitter Michael McKenry in seventh inning.

In the eighth, after each pinch-hitting in the top half, Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Mike Baxter headed to the outfield. They miscommunicated on Neil Walker’s leadoff fly ball to left-center and Nieuwenhuis dropped it for a three-base error. Walker then scored the decisive run on a sacrifice fly by Clint Barmes against Jon Rauch narrowly ahead of a throw from right fielder Lucas Duda.

It was the second time this season Nieuwenhuis had a high-profile drop while manning center field. Against the Giants on April 21, Nieuwenhuis overran a ball to prolong the game, although the Mets salvaged that one, 5-4, on San Francisco miscues.

NOT WRIGHT: David Wright went 2-for-4 with a walk and RBI to lift his average to .415, but he also committed his second and third errors this season.

Wright’s RBI single had lifted the Mets to a 4-0 lead against Pirates starter Erik Bedard.

Neither error proved costly. With the bases loaded in the fourth inning shortly after Wright’s throwing miscue to first base, Santana coaxed a 6-4-3 DP to preserve a two-run lead. In the seventh, after Santana served up the game-tying two-run homer and a walk, Wright misfielded a grounder that advanced the potential go-ahead run into scoring position. But Bobby Parnell struck out Andrew McCutchen and Tim Byrdak fanned Pedro Alvarez to keep the score tied.

LEADING MAN? Andres Torres went 0-for-4 with a walk. He twice struck out and also popped out on a bunt. Torres is now hitless in 14 at-bats and 2-for-38 in his last 11 games. His eighth-inning fielder’s choice stranded the go-ahead run at third in the eighth.

OUT: Scott Hairston was pulled for the bottom of the sixth inning, with Vinny Rottino moving from first base to left field and Ike Davis entering the game.

It was not immediately known if that was a strategic move or Hairston needed to be removed.

Davis and Lucas Duda consecutively were retired in the top of the seventh inning with two runners aboard while facing lefty reliever Tony Watson as the Mets failed to build on a 4-2 lead at the time.

AHOY: Ronny Cedeno returned to Pittsburgh, where he had been the starting shortstop last season and hit .249. He went 2-for-4.

WHAT’S NEXT: R.A. Dickey (5-1, 3.76 ERA) opposes right-hander James McDonald (3-2, 2.68) on Tuesday at 7:05 p.m.

PITTSBURGH -- Terry Collins originally intended to start Ike Davis on Monday against Pittsburgh left-hander Erik Bedard. But in meeting with his coaches, Collins decided loading his lineup with righties against Bedard would be a better option.

So the struggling Davis will sit for the second time in four games on the road trip. He also sat Friday when the Mets faced left-hander Brandon Morrow in Toronto.

Bedard is holding lefty hitters to a .161 average this season, versus .280 for righties.

“I just thought maybe some right-handed bats would be a better option,” Collins said.

Righty-hitting Vinny Rottino instead makes his first major league start at first base on Monday night. Rottino did appear there as a midgame replacement on Sept. 5, 2007 while with the Milwaukee Brewers. He has logged 164 minor league games at the position.

Lucas Duda is the lone righty-hitting position player starting against Bedard. Duda is hitting .293 against southpaws this season -- 29 points higher than against right-handers.

“Besides making sure we have patience with Ike, we’re trying to also win baseball games,” Collins said. “When you’ve got a guy who is dominating left-handed hitters, when you’ve got a guy who is struggling, that’s a bad match. So the worst thing I want to do is put this guy in a situation where he’s going to fail. I’m trying to get him in a situation where there’s going to be success more than failure.”

Davis is 3-for-29 in his past 10 games. And Collins pointed to Davis swinging at the first pitch in each of his first three at-bats Sunday as a concern.

“Every day you feel you want to be in the lineup,” Davis said. “That’s why we play. But obviously a lot of people are off today because it is a lefty, and we’re going to the righty-matchup thing. I’m not the manager.”

Davis actually has a modestly better average this season against lefties than righties (.188 versus .145).

“Obviously, there’s tough lefties out there that give me trouble, give every lefty trouble, like (Cincinnati’s Aroldis) Chapman,” Davis said. “Lefties really don’t hit him. Usually a starter I can sneak out a hit or something.”

Collins said hitting coach Dave Hudgens extensively has reviewed video. While Davis appears to be jumping at balls, his mechanics are comparable with last season, according to Collins.

“The mechanical side is not the issue,” Collins insisted.

As for a potential demotion, Davis said: “Everyone here can get sent down besides, like, maybe three people. That’s the way it is. … Nothing is etched in stone. It’s a true statement. I’m not sent down yet, so I don’t know what to tell you guys. I’m just going to play until something happens.

“The last five or six games I’ve hit the ball solid, I just haven’t gotten hits,” Davis added. “I’ve lined out like four or five times.”

PITTSBURGH -- Here's the lineup for the series opener at PNC Park against the Pirates.

Ike Davis sits against left-hander Erik Bedard. Terry Collins had said in Toronto when he sat Davis against southpaw Ricky Romero that Davis would play in the opener in Pittsburgh, even with a southpaw on the mound again.

Daniel Murphy gets a pre-scripted day off at second base. Collins did say Davis was under the weather in Toronto, so we'll see if that's partially a factor.

Andres Torres, cf
Justin Turner, 2b
David Wright, 3b
Scott Hairston, lf
Lucas Duda, rf
Vinny Rottino, 1b
Ronny Cedeno, ss
Mike Nickeas, c
Johan Santana, lhp

The Mets salvaged the finale of their interleague series in Toronto, holding on for a 6-5 win when former Blue Jays closer Frank Francisco struck out three straight batters in the ninth after allowing a leadoff walk to Yunel Escobar, then single by Jose Bautista through the barren right side of the infield.

Monday's news reports:

• Miguel Batista landed on the DL on Sunday morning with a strained oblique or lower-back muscle. Jeremy Hefner is likely to start Thursday's game against the San Diego Padres at Citi Field in that rotation slot. Chris Schwinden was promoted for Sunday's game as a hedge against Dillon Gee having a short outing, but was not needed. The Mets plan to make another roster move before Monday's series opener in Pittsburgh to add a position player. Vinny Rottino -- who had a three-homer game for Triple-A Buffalo on Saturday -- would appear a logical choice to return to the major league roster. Schwinden is the easiest to return to Buffalo. Manny Acosta would be an alternative, but seemingly less likely choice to get dismissed to free the roster spot.

• Terry Collins for the first time Sunday morning allowed for the possibility of Ike Davis getting sent to the minors if his performance does not show improvement on this trip. Despite a seeming roster crunch looming with Ruben Tejada slated to begin rehab games as soon as today and Jason Bay due to take batting practice in Pittsburgh for the first time this afternoon, there are demotion candidates. Davis is one. And Kirk Nieuwenhuis' production considerably has slowed since the rookie's torrid start.

The added benefit of Nieuwenhuis returning to the minors is it could delay his free agency a year. If Nieuwenhuis were to stay at the major league level continuously, he would be eligible for free agency after his sixth season, during the 2017-18 offseason. If he logs a total of 20 days in the minors this year, he would not get credit for a full major league season in 2012 and would be delayed in free agency at least until the following winter -- 2018-19. Read more in the Daily News, Post and Newsday.

• Andy McCullough in the Star-Ledger writes about Davis' issues:

- He’s hitting too many grounders (50 percent of his balls in play before Sunday, according to FanGraphs.com). In the first inning, Davis hacked at a low, 91-mph sinker and tapped the ball back to Alvarez. With the bases loaded in the fifth, he rolled a fastball into what should have been a double play, except second baseman Kelly Johnson fumbled the exchange.

- His luck has been poor. In the fourth inning, Davis smashed a fastball toward the opposite field -- right into the glove of third baseman Yan Gomes. Entering Sunday's game, Davis was hitting line drives 17.4 percent of the time, or slightly better than 2011’s 17 percent mark. Except his batting average on balls in play was a miniscule .184, nearly 200 points below his career average. “He just needs those [line drives] to fall,” hitting coach Dave Hudgens said.

- He’s not drawing walks. Davis saw exactly three pitches in his first three at-bats Sunday.

• Regarding Nieuwenhuis, Barbara Barker writes in Newsday:

A week ago, he led all major-league rookies with a .302 batting average and was second with 35 hits. He went 1-for-3 with an RBI double and two walks in the Mets' 6-5 win Sunday and is now batting .277 with 38 hits, seven doubles, two home runs, 13 RBIs and 16 walks. "This kid doesn't deserve to go back to Triple-A with the way he's swung the bat so far," Buffalo manager Wally Backman said. "But he needs to play. I think for his development, he needs to play every day." Nieuwenhuis says he can't worry about what the future holds, other than to try to perform his best each day he plays. "It's been pretty cool playing up here with the guys," he said, "but whatever happens, happens. I don't make those decisions. I just have to take one day at a time and focus."

• David Wright returned from a day off Saturday and delivered a two-run double in the first inning as part of a 2-for-4 series finale that raised his average to .412. Wright, still sick, passed Jose Reyes for second on the franchise's all-time hit list with 1,302. He needs 116 more hits to match Mets record-holder Ed Kranepool.

• Mike Baxter had a career-high three hits Sunday while starting for the second straight game with the Mets using an extra position player in their lineup in the AL ballpark. Collins pledged to find Baxter playing time in Pittsburgh, although the manager said not at first base yet, and not on Monday against Pirates left-hander Erik Bedard. Read more in the Star-Ledger.

• Gee had a new look and better results. Read more in the Post.

• Read game recaps in the Record, Times, Daily News, Journal, Newsday and Post.

• Collins reiterated Jenrry Mejia is far more likely to help the Mets as a reliever at the major league level in 2012. Read more in Newsday.

• Tim Kurkjian catches up with hot-hitting ex-Met Carlos Beltran at ESPN.com. Kurkjian notes Beltran is two steals shy of 300 swipes and 300 homers in his career, a club that is currently limited to Barry Bonds, Willie Mays, Alex Rodriguez, Andre Dawson, Bobby Bonds, Reggie Sanders and Steve Finley. Writes Kurkjian:

If it weren't for Matt Kemp, Beltran, 35, would be the most valuable player in the National League six weeks into the season. If it weren't for the remarkable Josh Hamilton, May would have been all about Beltran. Not only has he replaced the 2011 production of Albert Pujols in the Cardinals' lineup, he has greatly exceeded it while helping take St. Louis to the front of the National League Central, all while dazzling his new teammates. "When I ran out on the field with him the first time in spring training,'' said Cardinals third baseman David Freese, "I knew he was the most complete player I'd ever played with.''

Lance Berkman, who also was Beltran's teammate during that prolific 2004 postseason with Houston that set up Beltran's seven-year, $119 million contract with the Mets told Kurkjian: "It's funny. An elite player has some things happen to him for three or four years, like injuries, then he becomes an elite player again, and people ask, 'What's going on here?' Just look at the back of his baseball card. He is as complete a player as I've ever played with. He does everything well, and he looks good doing it. When you look at what a player is supposed to do, he's about as good as it gets.''

• Corey Wimberly stole home for Buffalo's lone run in a 4-1 loss to Indianapolis on Sunday. It was the second time a Mets farmhand has swiped home this season. Wimberly had a pure steal of the plate, while Binghamton's Josh Rodriguez stole home on April 21 as part of a double-steal. Read Sunday's full minor league recap here.

• Forty-thousand Orthodox Jews packed Citi Field on Sunday to decry the internet. Read more in the Daily News.

• Michael Howard Saul in the Journal revealed that Citi Field, now in its fourth season, still does not have all its full permits from the city in order. Mayor Michael Bloomberg at last week's All-Star Game press conference dismissed the issue as procedural and insignificant and insisted the stadium was safe. Wrote Saul, alluding to the City Hall announcement about next season's Mid-Summer Classic:

Unmentioned was the embarrassing fact that the three-year-old stadium in Queens still hasn’t received a certificate of occupancy from the city. The stadium has a temporary certificate, which means it is “safe and legal to occupy,” said Tony Sclafani, a spokesman for the Department of Buildings, in an email.

TRIVIA: For which former Pirate Pirate is the yellow bridge spanning the Allegheny River adjacent to PNC Park named?

Sunday's answer: Jason Bay was the last Pirate to have a multi-homer game against the Mets. At Shea Stadium on July 24, 2007, Bay went deep off John Maine and Guillermo Mota.

WHAT IT MEANS: The weekend wasn’t a total loss, at least. In their first visit to Toronto in six years, the Mets salvaged the series finale, beating the Blue Jays, 6-5, Sunday afternoon at Rogers Centre.

Barely.

Bobby Parnell surrendered a pair of eighth-inning runs, including an RBI single to Colby Rasmus that snapped the ex-Cardinal’s 0-for-20 skid, as Toronto rallied to within a run. But Tim Byrdak made his 24^th appearance in 41 games to retire lefty-hitting Kelly Johnson on a flyout to right field and end that frame.

In the ninth, ex-Blue Jays closer Frank Francisco, who was loudly jeered upon entering, closed things out despite a leadoff walk to Yunel Escobar and ensuing single by Jose Bautista that placed the winning run on base with none out. Francisco struck out the next three batters.

WELCOME BACK: After scheduled day off, and with his illness having somewhat improved, David Wright delivered a two-run double in the first inning against Jays right-hander Henderson Alvarez. It was hit No. 1,301 of Wright’s career, which passed ex-teammate Jose Reyes for sole possession of second on franchise’s all-time list. Ed Kranepool has the highest hit total as a Met for now: 1,418. Wright now stands at 1,302. He finished Sunday’s game 2-for-4 with a walk, albeit with an eighth-inning strikeout that stranded the bases loaded and kept the score 6-3. His average now stands at .412.

(Wright wasn’t solely at fault for a scoreless eighth. Ike Davis doubled and advanced to third on a passed ball, but was thrown out at the plate on a pitch that similarly eluded catcher J.P. Arencibia.)

BAXTER BURNING: Mike Baxter, starting for a second straight game with the pitcher not batting in the American League ballpark, went 3-for-4 with a walk. He fell a homer shy of producing the second cycle by a Met this season (Scott Hairston at Colorado on April 27, in an 18-9 loss). Baxter’s hit total achieved a career high, and lifted his average to .390, in 41 at-bats. Baxter even was the subject of taunts from fans in the left-field stands.

After being deprived of a would-be ninth-inning double Saturday with an incorrect out call at second base, Baxter doubled and tripled in the first two inings Sunday while starting in left field. The latter extra-base hit scored Ronny Cedeno and staked the Mets to a 4-0 lead.

GEE MINOR: Clean-shaven Dillon Gee completed 6 2/3 innings and notched his first win since April 28 at Colorado. He departed after an RBI single by Jose Bautista pulled the Jays within 6-3. Parnell entered and stranded Bautista by coaxing a fielder’s choice groundout by Edwin Encarnacion.

Gee’s final line: 6.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 6 K, 1 HBP. He threw 113 pitches (67 strikes). He surrendered a third-inning solo homer to Bautista that pulled the Jays within 4-2 at the time.

WHAT’S NEXT: The Mets, in businesslike attire, head through customs and travel to Pittsburgh. Johan Santana (1-2, 2.89 ERA) opposes left-hander Erik Bedard (2-5, 3.07) in Monday’s 7:05 p.m. opener.