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After bouncing back to win the final two against Pittsburgh, the Mets started a four-game set against the Padres on the wrong foot as they lost 11-5 to San Diego at Citi Field on Thursday.

Friday's news reports:

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

• As Ike Davis continues to struggle, he will not be demoted to Triple-A Buffalo. Davis had a two-RBI double pinch-hitting in the eighth inning Thursday. Read more in the Post, Daily News, The Record, Star-Ledger and New York Times.

• The Daily News' Tim Smith writes that it would be more beneficial to send Davis down to the minors as he struggles. Writes Smith:

Collins and GM Sandy Alderson probably envision Davis someday being the kind of hitter that Wright is right now. I’m not sure that day ever arrives for the Mets. Right now Davis, who is batting .164 and has struck out 43 times, is nowhere near the player the Mets think he will become.

• The Star-Ledger's Jeff Bradley writes that Davis is searching to find himself at the plate during this tough year. Writes Bradley:

Davis is searching. Like all hitters who have ever been in a slump, he’s searching for clues, trying to remember just how the bat is supposed to feel. How it felt when the game didn’t seem so difficult. Where, as Davis says, “I get the bat in a good position and I can just get my hands through.” Only problem is, feeling good in batting practice means little.

• Three players are working their way back from the disabled list. Ruben Tejada will run the bases Friday, Josh Thole will catch an inning of extended spring training, and Jason Bay is taking live batting practice.

• Ronny Cedeno moved up to the leadoff spot in the order, while Andres Torres was moved to the No. 7 hole. Cedeno is batting. 254 with an on-base percentage of .362, while Torres is hitting .192 with a .332 on-base percentage. Cedeno's first night as the leadoff hitter didn't go so well, as he went 0-for-5.

• Jeremy Hefner's first start did not end well, with him giving up six runs on nine hits in 3-2/3 innings. He threw two scoreless frames to start the game but he didn't pitch well after the rain delay and only recorded five more outs before being pulled.

• David Wright is batting over .400 after a 3-for-5 night. He's at .405 on the year. Read more in the Star-Ledger.

TRIVIA: Which former Padres outfielder has a son who is a rising star in the Mets farm system?

Thursday's answer: Trick question. Hefner was actually drafted twice by Mets, 46th round in 2004, 48th round in 2005, but didn't sign with the team either time.

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.

Jeremy Hefner's first major-league start certainly did not go according to plan.

It started off well -- Hefner recorded two scoreless frames, giving up just a single in the first two innings. But then a heavy rainstorm interrupted play for 68 minutes.

Hefner returned to the game despite the long delay, but wasn't nearly as effective. He only recorded five more outs, giving up six runs on nine hits overall in the Mets' 11-5 loss to the San Diego Padres.

"Just real disappointed," said Hefner, still emotional after the game, despite having been lifted way back in the fourth inning. "I gotta be able to keep us in the game, regardless of rain delays, or whatever the circumstances are."

When asked about the decision to bring Hefner back after such a long delay, manager Terry Collins said, "He hadn’t thrown many pitches, and he kept himself active during the break. He said he was fine, and we brought him back out. I think he just lost the edge a little bit."

Hefner said he could not remember having a start interrupted by rain in his career, let alone coming back after a delay. "I felt fine [though]," said Hefner. "I just didn’t execute my pitches, the ball was up."

The Padres came into the game hitting just .220 as a team, the third-worst batting average in the major leagues. But they pounded out season-highs in runs (11) and hits (18), pushing three more across against Manny Acosta and two against Robert Carson.

Collins wasn't sure after the game whether Hefner will get another start in five days. The 26-year-old did pitch well in relief last Saturday, going five innings and giving up just two runs on four hits in Toronto against the Blue Jays.

"We haven’t even thought about that, even talked about that," said Collins. "We haven’t had time to discuss it yet, where we’re headed and what we’re gonna do. So we’ll just wait a couple days and make that decision."

Hefner, who had his parents, his sister, his wife and his son at Citi Field on Thursday night, is hoping for at least one more chance.

"It was pretty difficult, but I still think I had the ability to go in and shut down the lineup," Hefner said. "It’s a learning experience, and if I ever have to face it again, I now know what to do."

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.

After a 68-minute rain delay interrupted Thursday night's game after two innings of play, the Mets are offering ticket-holders for Thursday night's game free tickets to Friday night's game against the Padres.

Here's the full press release:

FLUSHING, N.Y., May 24, 2012 -- In appreciation for fans waiting out tonight’s rain delay, the New York Mets have announced that tickets from tonight’s game against the Padres (marked “Thursday, May 24 -- Game 21”) can be redeemed tomorrow for complimentary tickets to tomorrow’s 7:10 p.m. game against San Diego at Citi Field. This includes paid, complimentary and tickets marked “NO RAIN CHECK.”

The first 25,000 fans in attendance will receive a Mets Cap Presented by Parts Authority.

Tickets can be exchanged in person starting tomorrow at the Citi Field Advance Ticket Windows or two hours prior to game time at the Day of Game Ticket Sales Windows located next to the Jackie Robinson Rotunda and the Left Field Gate.

Complimentary tickets will be available in the Baseline Box, Right/Left Field Reserved, Caesars Box, and Promenade Reserved, subject to availability.

Tickets can only be exchanged for tomorrow night’s game.

For complete information, please visit Mets.com or call (718) 507-TIXX.

The good news? The Mets lead the Padres 1-0 after two innings of play Thursday night.

The bad news? The game was put on pause at 7:37 p.m., with hard rain continuing to fall here at Citi Field.

The Mets got their run in the bottom of the second. With runners on first and second and one out, Vinny Rottino and Andres Torres attempted a double steal. The throw to third by Padres catcher Nick Hundley sailed over the head of third baseman Chase Headley, allowing Rottino to score.

Mets starting pitcher Jeremy Hefner, making his first major league start, has hurled two scoreless innings, giving up just one hit, a single to Jesus Guzman.

Stay tuned to the blog for more information as we get it.

The Mets have a new leadoff hitter on Thursday night, as shortstop Ronny Cedeno was penciled into the top of the lineup card by manager Terry Collins.

The 29-year-old Cedeno, who's playing in place of the injured Ruben Tejada, is batting .278 this season, with a .391 on-base percentage, in his first season with the team. Those numbers are significantly higher than his career averages of .246 and .289, respectively.

"Cedeno’s done nothing except buy in [to] exactly what we want him to do," Collins said. "He walks, his on-base [percentage is] almost .400. He’s swinging the bat very good right now.

"We’ve been looking for someone to get in that leadoff spot to get on base so that when [our] 3, 4 and 5 [hitters] come up, there’s some people up there they can drive in."

Dropping to seventh in the batting order is center fielder Andres Torres, who is batting just .187 on the season, and is just 1-for-33 in his last 11 games.

"Andres has been struggling, so I thought, 'Well, I’ll hit him down where I hit him when he first came back to the lineup, which really got him going," said Collins.

Torres missed almost all of April with a calf injury, before returning on April 30.

Don't worry, Mets fans -- general manager Sandy Alderson isn't desperate enough to add Armando Benitez to his roster. (Not yet, anyway.)

But you will be able to see Benitez pitch again soon. On Thursday, the Long Island Ducks of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball signed him to a contract.

The 39-year-old last pitched in the major leagues way back in 2008, when he made eight appearances for the Toronto Blue Jays. He last pitched professionally in 2010, for the Newark Bears, also of the Atlantic League, before being signed by the Florida Marlins and assigned to their Triple-A affiliate.

Benitez collected 160 of his 289 career major-league saves with the Mets from 1999 to 2003, when he was traded to the Yankees mid-season.

(Benitez spent less than a month with the Yankees, before being shipped to the Seattle Mariners, with the Yanks re-acquiring Jeff Nelson.)

In 762 career major league appearances and 779 innings pitched, Benitez has struck out 946 batters and allowed just 545 hits.

“Armando Benitez is a well-known name to the baseball fans of the tri-state area,” said Ducks president/GM Michael Pfaff in a statement. “He has had success in this league and at the big-league level previously, and we’re confident he will contribute positively to our club’s championship mission.”

Before Thursday night's series opener against the San Diego Padres, manager Terry Collins provided updates on the three Mets regulars who are currently on the disabled list:

• Shortstop Ruben Tejada will run the bases on Friday, and Collins hopes Tejada will be playing in minor-league rehab games by Monday. Tejada has been out since May 6 with a strained right quadriceps.

• Catcher Josh Thole has begun baseball activities again, including hitting, but has not gotten back behind the plate yet. Collins is hoping Thole will catch for an inning in extended spring training on Friday. Thole has been out since May 7 because of a concussion.

• Left fielder Jason Bay has begun taking live batting practice, and will hopefully start playing in a minor-league rehab game as a DH next week. Bay has been out since April 23 with a fractured rib.

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

Jenrry Mejia made his second start of the season with Double-A Binghamton on Thursday -- his fourth minor league start overall in his comeback from Tommy John surgery last May.

Mejia went five innings against the New Britain Rock Cats, giving up four runs (all earned) on five hits, with five strikeouts and three walks. He threw 75 pitches, 44 for strikes.

Mets manager Terry Collins has indicated that Mejia could help the big-league club in relief at some point this season, despite the fact that he's currently starting in the minor leagues.

METS (24-20, third place/NL East) vs. SAN DIEGO PADRES (16-29, fifth place/NL West)

Thursday: RHP Jeremy Hefner (0-1, 2.25) vs. LHP Eric Stults (0-0, 2.70), 7:10 p.m. ET

Friday: RHP Dillon Gee (3-3, 5.44) vs. RHP Anthony Bass (2-4, 2.89), 7:10 p.m. ET

Saturday: LHP Johan Santana (1-2, 3.24) vs. LHP Clayton Richard (2-5, 4.63), 1:10 p.m. ET

Sunday: RHP R.A. Dickey (6-1, 3.45) vs. RHP Edinson Volquez (2-4, 3.49), 1:10 p.m. ET

Padres short hops

• Closer Huston Street, who was acquired from Colorado in December for the final year of a guaranteed three-year, $22.5 million deal, landed on the disabled list May 5 with a strained right lat.

Right-hander Dale Thayer, who made 11 relief appearances with the Mets last season, signed with the Padres as a minor league free agent and now has stepped into the closer’s role and excelled. Thayer retired the first 10 batters he faced this season, has retired 28 of 36 overall and has worked a scoreless inning in each of his 10 appearances. He is 5-for-5 in save chances since recording his first as a Padre on May 7. Thayer had only one previous save -- on May 22, 2009, by pitching the final three innings of a 15-2 win with the Tampa Bay Rays in his major league debut.

• Left-hander Eric Stults was claimed off waivers from the Chicago White Sox on May 17. Stults, 32, is making his second Padres start. He allowed two runs in 6 2/3 innings against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday. Stults had made two appearances (one start) for the Sox this season. He was 1-1 with a 2.20 ERA in five starts at Triple-A Charlotte. Starters Cory Luebke and Joe Wieland landed on the DL eight days apart earlier this month. Luebke required Tommy John surgery.

• Rampant injuries have forced the Padres to use 39 players this season, tied with the Boston Red Sox for most in the majors. The Padres have 13 players currently on the DL. The absentees also include shortstop Jason Bartlett and outfielder Carlos Quentin, who was acquired from the White Sox after slugging a combined 107 homers in four years with Chicago.

• Former Mets GM Omar Minaya is an assistant to San Diego GM Josh Byrnes. Byrnes was a finalist for the Mets job that went to Sandy Alderson.

• The Padres released Orlando Hudson, who was hitting .211 through 123 at-bats. Alexi Amarista was acquired in a trade with the Angels on May 3 and is manning second base.

• Third baseman Chase Headley denied an ESPN.com report that he and ex-teammate Ryan Ludwick, now with Cincinnati, had a clubhouse altercation with Mike Adams last season, before Adams was dealt to Texas. The report stated that Adams had told the players to stop griping about Petco Park’s spacious dimensions.

• First baseman Yonder Alonso has hit safely in 22 of his past 25 games. He is hitting .362 (34-for-94) during that span, upping his average to .300. He leads NL rookies in average, hits, on-base percentage and doubles. Alonso arrived from Cincinnati in a steep package with Edinson Volquez, Yasmani Grandal and Brad Boxberger in December for Mat Latos.

• Catcher Nick Hundley has thrown out a major league-high 14 would-be base stealers.

• Center fielder Cameron Maybin, a former Marlin, is hitting only .212.

• San Diego has scored 139 runs and has a team .220 batting average. Both rank 15^th in the NL, ahead of only the Pirates (126 runs/.217). The Mets rank second-to-last in homers with 25. San Diego is last at 17.

Last series results

Mets won, 2-1, at Petco Park, Aug. 15-17, 2011 (AP game recaps)

Mets 5, Padres 4 (10 innings): Everybody with the Mets wanted to make a big deal about Jason Isringhausen’s 300th career save except the pitcher himself. Isringhausen notched his milestone save with runners on second and third. The save came after Scott Hairston drove in the go-ahead run with a fielder's choice in the top of the inning. The Mets had a small champagne party in the clubhouse afterward. More

Padres 6, Mets 1: Nick Hundley had three hits, including two triples, to lead a 15-hit attack as the San Diego Padres defeated the slumping Mets. Orlando Hudson drove in two runs and Cameron Maybin hit his eighth homer, a leadoff drive in the seventh, for San Diego, which reached double figures in hits for the second straight game. Hundley's second triple led off the eighth inning and came off Mike Pelfrey. More

Mets 7, Padres 3: After hitting a big home run, David Wright faked out Cameron Maybin. Wright hit a three-run homer and Angel Pagan added three RBIs to lift the Mets to their first series win in San Diego in more than nine years. Maybin was on second base when Logan Forysthe hit a hard grounder down the third-base line with two outs. Wright dived and stopped the ball some 15 feet behind the bag and then popped to his feet and faked the throw to first when he saw Maybin wasn't watching him. More

PITTSBURGH -- Jeremy Hefner went to Hat World at an Oklahoma mall and bought his wife and son Pirates hats after being claimed off waivers by that organization Nov. 18.

The following month, he needed new headgear.

Designated for assignment by Pittsburgh when it acquired Yamaico Navarro from Kansas City and needed to free a 40-man roster spot, Hefner was claimed off waivers again, this time Dec. 12 by the Mets.

Now, after a pair of appearances this season in games started by Miguel Batista, including three scoreless innings against the San Francisco Giants in his major league debut on April 23, Hefner is poised for his first big league start.

He is scheduled to face his original organization, the Padres, as the Mets open an 11-game homestand Thursday. San Diego drafted Hefner, 26, in the 10^th round in 2007 out of Oral Roberts University.

Sandy Alderson and Paul DePodesta were running the Padres when Hefner originally was drafted, although the right-hander does not recall either personally scouting him in college. The Mets previously had drafted Hefner twice -- in the 46^th round out of high school in '04, then in the 48^th round the following year out of junior college. Neither time did Hefner entertain signing.

Hefner will be the fourth person to hold that rotation slot -- following Mike Pelfrey (Tommy John surgery), Chris Schwinden (demotion) and now the DL'd Batista (oblique strain). Hefner may be a temporary patch, too, since Chris Young -- after an interruption -- is poised to make his third start with Class A St. Lucie this weekend since returning from surgery to repair a torn anterior capsule in his right shoulder. Young has contract outs on June 1 and July 1 if he is not promoted to the majors by those dates.

Hefner limited a solid Blue Jays hitting corps to two runs in five innings Saturday in relief of Batista. He earned praise for sparing the bullpen.

His fastball averaged 90.2 mph in the two major league appearances. He was leading the International League in ERA with Triple-A Buffalo at 1.77 before getting roughed up by Gwinnett in a couple of innings in his final start. He was charged with six runs in 5 2/3 innings to up his ERA to 2.72. The subpar outing came on a rough travel day. The Bisons had flown the day of the game from Charlotte to Buffalo and landed at noon.

A native Oklahoman who has lived in the state his entire life except for a three-year detour to Kansas, Hefner has been a mentor for Michael Fulmer, who was taken by the Mets with the 44^th overall pick last June out of high school in that state. Hefner's family had Fulmer, 19, regularly come over during spring training. They have since spoken by phone about three times.

Hefner said he would have been content had he never had another opportunity after his major league debut in the doubleheader against the Giants, after which he made a U-turn and returned immediately to Buffalo.

The Triple-A Bisons were playing at Lehigh Valley when word came he was needed. He had never been to New York before, so his car-service driver for the two-hour trip took him on the "scenic route," which provided Hefner views of the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building.

"Even if I just had that one day, and I never got called up again, that would have been fine. You know what I mean?" Hefner said. "Just the opportunity to see how I could do."