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GWINNETT 5, BUFFALO 3 (10 innings): A comeback and sweep fell short courtesy of a walk-off two-run homer from reigning International League Batter of the Week Stefan Gatrell against Fernando Cabrera. Buffalo allowed nine total runs in the four-game series. The Bisons trailed 3-1 in the ninth. After Lucas May was hit with a pitch with one out, Omar Quintanilla plated the Buffalo catcher with a double that rolled to the center-field wall. Pinch hitter Bobby Scales followed with a single to score Quintanilla and tie the score. Buffalo had a pair of runners on in the top of the 10th, but Josh Satin and Zach Lutz were left stranded after drawing walks. In the bottom half, Cabrera nearly worked around a one-out single by Jose Constanza. But after striking out Luis Durango, the righty gave up his first homer of the season, to Gartrell. Bisons starter Jeremy Hefner matched a season-high by tossing 7 2/3 innings. It was the fifth time in Hefner's six starts that he has at least completed seven innings. He allowed two runs on six hits to keep his season ERA to a league-best 1.77. Trailing 1-0 early, Buffalo scored its first run in the sixth inning on Valentino Pascucci's team-best 19th RBI, but his first in nine games. Fred Lewis batted in the lead off spot for the first time this season and went 2-for-5. Box

BINGHAMTON 9, NEW HAMPSHIRE 2: Trailing by a run in the sixth, Juan Lagares laced a two-run, bases-loaded single to center to give the B-Mets the lead for good and make a winner of Zack Wheeler in his return from the disabled list. The B-Mets produced 14 hits and pitching staff racked up a season-high 15 strikeouts. The Fisher Cats had opened the scoring, plating a run in the fourth on a sac fly against Wheeler. The righty was activated from the disabled list before the game after missing one start with a right middle fingernail tear. The B-Mets answered with a run in the fifth. Lagares shot a seeing-eye single to center and advanced to third when Mark Sobolewski uncorked a throwing error on Eric Campbell's groundball. Juan Centeno bounced a groundout to shortstop to plate Lagares, tying the score at 1. After the Fisher Cats grabbed the lead with another sac fly in the fifth, the B-Mets pieced together a two-out rally to take the lead in the sixth. Raul Reyes and Jefry Marte started the charge with consecutive singles. After Reese Havens walked to load the bases, Lagares chased Jenkins from the game by lining a two-run single into center. It was Binghamton’s first hit with the bases loaded since April 28. They had been 0-for-11. Wheeler (2-2) allowed two runs on six hits over five innings. Armando Rodriguez took over and struck out five over two scoreless innings. Binghamton added to its lead with more two-out hitting in the seventh. Josh Rodriguez doubled with two out and Reyes hammered an RBI single, giving the B-Mets a 4-2 lead. The B-Mets had a five-run ninth, pounding reliever Clint Everts for five hits and adding another against Matt Wright. After throwing a perfect eighth, Jeff Kaplan returned for the ninth. He loaded the bases to start the frame, but retired three straight to collect his first career Double-A save. The B-Mets (15-17) continue their four-game series against the Fisher Cats on Friday. Right-hander Gonzalez Germen makes his second Double-A start, against right-hander Deck McGuire. Box

ST. LUCIE 4, BREVARD COUNTY 3: Chris Young, in his first minor league start since shoulder surgery last May, tossed five scoreless innings. Ronny Cedeno, on the DL with a side-muscle strain and hoping to be activated this weekend, played a full game at shortstop and went 0-for-4. Danny Muno's solo homer in the top of the ninth gave St. Lucie a 4-1 lead, and the Mets needed that run to hold on. In the bottom half, Adam Kolarek left two runners in scoring position with two out for Adrian Rosario. Rosario issued a walk to load the bases, then surrendered a two-run single before notching his 10th save by retiring Nick Shaw on a groundout. Cory Vaughn returned to the lineup after missing two games with a glute bruise suffered while sliding. Box

SAVANNAH 7, HICKORY 2: Domingo Tapia and Marcos Camarena combined to take a no-hit bid into the seventh inning and the Gnats overcame five errors. Brian Harrison went 2-for-3 with three RBIs. Dustin Lawley had three hits and scored twice. The Crawdads were hitless until Jeremy Williams' leadoff single in the seventh against Camarena. Tapia was charged with one unearned runs on no hits and three walks while striking out six in 5 2/3 innings. Second baseman T.J. Rivera had two of Savannah's five errors. The Mets' last minor league no-hitter came on Aug. 23, 2009, by Brandon Moore with the Brooklyn Cyclones in a seven-inning game. Box

Compiled from team reports

Adam Kolarek’s numbers speak for themselves: In 16 2/3 relief innings with Class A St. Lucie, the southpaw has yet to allow a run. He has struck out 25 and walked two. He has four saves. And lefty batters are hitting only .130 against the 11^th-round pick in 2010 out of the University of Maryland.

He’s one of many reasons why St. Lucie is off to a 25-7 start this season.

“I think we’re a very fundamentally sound team -- moving runners, getting the runner in, playing strong defense -- and then both our starters and relievers have really put together a strong start to the season,” Kolarek said.

As for his striking-throwing ability, which starts with fastball command, Kolarek added: “I wouldn’t say I’ve always had the best control, but it’s definitely something I’ve been working on. I really started seeing a lot better control last year. And I worked on it again in the offseason. And so far this season I’ve had pretty good results. It’s right where I want to be.”

Kolarek, 23, had solid tutoring from a young age. His father Frank, who also played at the University of Maryland, caught in the minors for the Oakland Athletics in the late 1970s. He reached as high as Triple-A Ogden in ’79, and played alongside Rickey Henderson at multiple levels of the minors.

“He was a catcher, so he taught a lot to me about how to pitch batters,” Kolarek said. “I talk to him after every outing and we go over the hitters. … He’s definitely my go-to guy. I did it in college too. It’s nothing new. We just go over the outing. He can only hear so much when he’s listening on the radio or following online, so I fill in the story and go over things.”

Kolarek and Adrian Rosario both have accumulated saves for St. Lucie this season. Five of Kolarek’s 14 appearances have been two innings. Kolarek primarily worked as a reliever in college as well. This season, the slider has been a good out pitch, particularly against lefties, in inducing groundballs. His fastball sits at 90-92 mph. He also has a changeup, which he uses more against righty batters.

“We’ve all kind of been in different situations, whether it’s coming in for that certain matchup, or coming in for an inning or two at a time,” Kolarek said. “Being able to be versatile in any kind of relieving role is important.”

Kolarek’s college highlight actually came at the plate, not on the mound. After entering as a defensive replacement at first base against a ranked North Carolina team on April 2, 2010, Kolarek launched a two-out, walk-off homer in the bottom of the 10^th. Matt Harvey had tossed the first six innings of that game for the Tar Heels.

“I had some good moments on the mound, but the overall college moment, definitely that home run was something I’ll always remember,” he said.

Organization leaders

Average: T.J. Rivera, Savannah, .358; Bobby Scales, Buffalo, .350; Wilmer Flores, St. Lucie, .330; Vinny Rottino, Buffalo, .317; Jefry Marte, Binghamton, .315; Zach Lutz, Buffalo, .315; Travis Taijeron, Savannah, .314; Omar Quintanilla, Buffalo, .301; Oswaldo Navarro, Buffalo, .293; Eric Campbell, Binghamton, .286.

Homers: Cory Vaughn, St. Lucie, 8; Travis Taijeron, Savannah, 7; Valentino Pascucci, Buffalo, 6; Wilmer Flores, St. Lucie, 5; Omar Quintanilla, Buffalo, 5.

RBI: Travis Taijeron, Savannah, 23; Wilmer Flores, St. Lucie, 22; Aderlin Rodriguez, Savannah, 21; Cory Vaughn, St. Lucie, 19; Valentino Pascucci, Buffalo, 18.

Steals: Luis Nieves, Savannah, 9; Cesar Puello, St. Lucie, 7.

ERA: Alex Panteliodis, Savannah, 0.89; Jeremy Hefner, Buffalo, 1.64; Tyler Pill, Savannah, 1.65; Zack Wheeler, Binghamton, 1.75; Mark Cohoon, Binghamton, 2.06; Darin Gorski, Binghamton, 2.27; Chris Schwinden, Buffalo, 2.33; Chase Huchingson, St. Lucie, 2.51; Collin McHugh, Binghamton, 2.62; Dylan Owen, Buffalo, 2.96.

Wins: Chase Huchingson, St. Lucie, 4; Collin McHugh, Binghamton, 4.

Saves: Adrian Rosario, St. Lucie, 8; Fernando Cabrera, Buffalo, 8; Adam Kolarek, St. Lucie, 4.

Strikeouts: Matt Harvey, Buffalo, 32; Collin McHugh, Binghamton, 31; Gonzalez Germen, Binghamton, 30; Zack Wheeler, Binghamton, 30; Jeurys Familia, Buffalo, 29.

Short hops

• After tossing six scoreless innings against Gwinnett (Atlanta Braves) on Tuesday night, Harvey is 3-0 with a 0.78 ERA in his past four starts. Three of the outings have been scoreless. The lone non-win came against Syracuse last Wednesday, when a 23-minute rain delay forced Harvey to depart after four innings. A new organization policy mandates starting pitchers be pulled following a rain delay of any length if they already have logged two innings.

• Jack Voigt, the Mets’ highly regarded minor league outfield and baserunning coordinator, will serve as hitting coach for Magallanes in Venezuela during the next winter league season. Carlos Garcia, who manages Class A Bradenton in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization, will serve as that winter league club’s 2012-13 manager. Ex-Yankee Luis Sojo is the bench coach.

• Zack Wheeler (1-2, 1.75 ERA) should reenter the rotation later this week with Binghamton after landing on the seven-day DL with a partially torn fingernail. Wheeler threw a bullpen session Monday and reported no difficulty. He had the issue on the middle finger of his pitching hand with San Francisco in May 2010 as well -- with a growth underneath the nail pushing it off. That time, with the Giants officials being cautious, Wheeler was out of action for seven weeks.

With Wheeler temporarily inactive, 24-year-old right-hander Gonzalez Germen was promoted to Binghamton from Class A St. Lucie, where he had been 3-0 with a 3.04 ERA in five appearances (four starts). Germen, signed in October 2007 out of the Dominican Republic, made a deceptively solid Double-A debut Friday against Harrisburg. Although he was charged with five runs in six innings, he struck out nine and walked none and the damage was limited to a five-run second inning. Germen is likely to remain with Binghamton even with Wheeler’s return, although Mets brass was sorting out how to juggle the rotation given a rainout Monday and the extra starter. Germen’s fastball sits in the low 90s. He has a solid, deceptive changeup in which the bottom falls out.

• Jacob deGrom’s first official minor league game since July 26, 2010 nearly was perfect. The 23-year-old right-hander returned from Tommy John surgery to retire 20 of the 21 batters he faced with Savannah on Monday. DeGrom suffered the elbow injury and subsequent surgery shortly after signing with the Mets as their ninth-round pick in 2010 out of Stetson University. He primarily played shortstop in college, but was drafted as a pitcher because scout Steve Nichols saw potential in his arm.

• Andy Pettitte’s convenience became an inconvenience for Triple-A Buffalo.

(Read full post)

Mets minor leaguer catcher Dock Doyle and right-hander Scott Moviel have been suspended 50 games apiece after testing positive for a second time for a "drug of abuse," Major League Baseball announced.

Another Mets right-hander, Brandon Moore, was suspended by MLB in September for a "drug of abuse" -- which is not performance-enhancing drug use.

Doyle, 25, hit .296 with two homers and 11 RBIs in 71 at-bats with Class A St. Lucie last season.

Moviel, who stands 6-foot-11, went 5-10 with a 5.10 ERA in 26 appearances (23 starts) for the same Florida State League team.

The Mets scored their most runs in a game at Turner Field since the stadium opened to baseball after the 1996 Olympics as David Wright homered twice and drove in five runs in a 12-2 victory against the Braves. Atlanta's loss allowed St. Louis to pull within 3½ games of the wild-card lead.

Saturday's news reports:

• Wright smirked as he downplayed the impact of Terry Collins' passionate Thursday rebuke of the team causing Friday's 20-hit night, which matched the season-high output. “I give him a lot of credit, but I’m not quite ready to give him credit for 20 hits,” Wright said. Watch Wright video here.

• Collins said pregame Friday that his quibble was not with the team's level of caring, but with its execution. The manager tinkered with the lineup Friday, moving Angel Pagan to second and restoring Wright to third. That was the order he planned out of spring training.

• Jose Reyes went 3-for-5 with a walk and his second steal since returning from the DL. He is now hitting .334, four points better than runner-up Ryan Braun of Milwaukee, who nonetheless joined the 30-homer, 30-steal club Friday. Collins said similar exertion by Reyes on Saturday would prompt the manager to sit Reyes in the series finale out of caution.

Meanwhile, in San Francisco, Carlos Beltran told reporters he believes Reyes is a perfect fit for the top of the Giants lineup. Beltran even suggested adding a weapon like Reyes might be a prerequisite to the outfielder re-signing with San Francisco. Reyes, for his part, laughed it off. “No way. He said that?" Reyes asked. "I’m going to call him, ‘What are you talking about?’”

• ESPN's Jayson Stark says the Mets will not patiently wait for Reyes to decide where he will sign this offseason. Writes Stark:

If Reyes' preference is to test the market, collect offers and then ask the Mets to counter, there are indications that the Mets don't want to play by that script. And Reyes' lackluster second half (.277/.316/.378, with only six stolen-base ATTEMPTS) only figures to reinforce their reluctance to do anything crazy right out of the chute to keep him from exploring the market.

• Double-A right-hander Brandon Moore, a sinker/slider pitcher who was due to represent the organization in the Arizona Fall League, was suspended 50 games for testing positive for the second time for a "drug of abuse," Major League Baseball announced. An MLB official said Moore is now ineligible for the Fall League, but the 50-game suspension clock will not start until the beginning of the 2012 regular season.

• Savannah was one strike away from capturing the South Atlantic League title, but instead lost a one-run lead in the ninth for the second time in the championship series. An 11-inning defeat sets up a winner-take-all Game 5 on Saturday night in Savannah with Angel Cuan on the mound for the Gnats.

• Jason Bay robbed Alex Gonzalez of a home run by leaping at the left-field wall, and later was deprived of an RBI when Gonzalez gunned him out at first base with the bases loaded. Bay, despite the highlight-reel play at the wall, said Endy Chavez did it better. Read more in the Star-Ledger.

• Chris Schwinden will get two more starts for the Mets this season. The staff could have delayed Schwinden's next start until next Saturday because of an upcoming off-day, but will keep the rookie on turn to get a better gauge of his major league readiness.

• Rick Tomlin is out as minor league pitching coordinator, sources told ESPNNewYork.com. It's the second straight year there has been a change at that position.

• Read more on the Mets' 12-2 win Friday/response to Collins' remarks in the Star-Ledger, Newsday, Daily News, Post and Record.

• Newsday's Neil Best reports ratings for the Mets are down on SNY. Writes Best:

SNY is averaging 2.23 percent of area homes for its Mets games this season, down from 2.75 at this time last season and headed for the lowest full-season Mets ratings in the network's history. (SNY's best full-season ratings were 3.3 in both 2007 and '08, when the team was locked in close playoff races to the bitter end.) Yankees games on YES are averaging 4.31 percent of area homes, down from 4.47 at a similar point in 2010.

• Wright had a clean game at third base on Friday. Collins said pregame there was no thought of even bringing up the third baseman's eight errors in the previous 10 games to Wright, or to provide more instruction. “He’s so aggressive in the way he plays the game, I don’t even want to put it in his head that there’s something wrong,” Collins said. “Like the yips. I don’t even want to bring it up.” Read more in the Star-Ledger.

• Third base coach Chip Hale aspires to be a manager, and was a finalist for the position that went to Collins. Hale told Mike Puma in the Post that the team's lack of success this year and the relatively few projected openings make it an uphill battle to secure a managerial gig this offseason. On the flip side, Hale noted, working for Sandy Alderson deputies J.P. Ricciardi and Paul DePodesta with the Mets could pay dividends at some point, since they both are capable of returning to GM roles. "The more people you work for, the more people you know," Hale told Puma.

• D.J. Carrasco talks with Mike Sielski in the Journal about throwing exclusively sidearm his past three relief appearances trying to find success. Carrasco is under contract for next season at $1.2 million, but has struggled this year, and even found himself at Triple-A Buffalo for a prolonged stretch of this season. Writes Sielski:

With nothing left to lose, and with the blessing of Mets pitching coach Dan Warthen, Carrasco has set to tinkering again. In his last three appearances, he's thrown exclusively sidearm. "I've done it strictly just to see what that's like because I've struggled so bad here," he said. "If it's something where I can help the team out more and throw more often and come into more situations to help out or give that different look, then shoot, I'm all for it." So far, the results haven't been spectacular. As a sidearm pitcher, Carrasco has surrendered five hits and one earned run in three innings.

• Braves starter Derek Lowe lasted only 2 1/3 innings on Friday night. Lowe is 3-8 with a 6.12 ERA in his past 11 starts. (Remember, the Mets flirted with Lowe three winters ago, before signing Oliver Perez to a three-year, $36 million deal instead. Lowe went to Atlanta for four years, $60 million.) “This was terrible," Lowe said in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution about Friday's start. "It was non-competitive pitching from the first pitch. ... Honestly, what can you say? They did anything they wanted. You tried to make competitive pitches, and it just didn’t happen. Again, bad game at the wrong time."

BIRTHDAY: John Franco, who has volunteered to mentor Bobby Parnell, turns 51.

Minor league right-hander Brandon Moore, one of the organization's picks to attend the Arizona Fall League, has been suspended 50 games for a second positive test for a drug of abuse, Major League Baseball announced.

Moore was 10-8 with a 4.47 ERA in 26 games (25 starts) this season at Double-A Binghamton.

UPDATE: An MLB official said Arizona Fall League games do not count toward the suspension, but that Moore is nonetheless ineligible to participate.

Reese Havens has learned baseball skills as a professional, including the transition to second base from shortstop, the position he played at the University of South Carolina. The 24-year-old Havens also has learned of the need for patience, after injuries have slowed his path to the majors.

Havens was the 22^nd overall selection in 2008, four slots after the Mets used their other first-round pick on Ike Davis out of Arizona State that year.

Fourteen of the top 17 college picks from that draft class now have appeared in the majors. The exceptions: Josh Fields (Mariners/University of Georgia), Havens and Allan Dykstra (Padres/Wake Forest). Dykstra is now Havens’ teammate with Double-A Binghamton, after being acquired during spring training for reliever Eddie Kunz.

“It’s tough to stay patient,” Havens said. “It’s definitely tough, because you always want to be on the fast track. You have former teammates and friends up there. It’s awesome playing in the big leagues, and that’s the goal from when you’re 5 years old.

“I’ve had the opportunities. That’s for sure. It’s been wide open for me to make an impact and get my foot in the door and get up there. It hasn’t happened that way. The only thing I can do is keep working and try to make the best out of getting up there as soon as possible.”

Havens is hitting .292 with six homers and 25 RBIs in 192 at-bats and has a .373 on-base percentage with Binghamton.

The injuries may finally be behind him.

Havens was limited to 32 games last season because of what was suspected to be oblique trouble. It turned out that a second opinion from outside the organization during the offseason revealed a different root cause -- one rib grating on another. Havens underwent surgery to remove an inch of a rib. The procedure was performed at Dr. James Andrews’ clinic in Birmingham, Ala., by colleague Dr. William Clancy. The issue is labeled “rib tip syndrome.”

Havens has had setbacks this year. Irritation from suspected scar tissue forced a late start to the season. And he landed on the DL with back trouble this year, although Havens believes that may be related to the original issue, since his offseason was spent idle and then rehabbing without any baseball activity.

Now, though, he has been back with Binghamton for more than a month and issue-free.

“Dr. Andrews and Dr. Clancy did the surgery on me. I was real confident in their opinion and what they thought the problem was,” Havens said. “I was also confident that it fixed it because I could tell pretty immediate results once I got all the inflammation out of there and started working out again. Everybody knows that scar tissue is part of surgery. That’s what got me in spring training. I didn’t work out this past (offseason). All I did was rehab to get back to where I didn’t feel the side, and started doing some baseball stuff once I got down to Florida. So I definitely think it’s what it was. But I don’t feel it at all now. It’s gone.”

After the regular season’s completion, Havens will make up for lost time as part of the Mets’ Arizona Fall League contingent. It’s actually Havens’ second trip to the AFL. He was teammates with Davis two years ago in that showcase for top prospects. Havens lived with Davis in the first baseman’s Scottsdale home that time, and they commuted the 45 minutes to Surprise, Ariz.

Actually, Havens was selected in ’09 for the taxi squad, which allowed for two AFL games per week while practicing with the team. Before arriving in the AFL two years ago, Havens exclusively had been a shortstop.

Mets instructor Kevin Morgan worked with him during that period on the transition to second base. His AFL teammate, Daniel Descalso, who is now with the St. Louis Cardinals, also gave Havens some tips.

“I don’t even know if I took a groundball over there (at second base) before I went to the Fall League,” Havens said. “I had about a week to just work a little bit before they threw me in there. I kind of learned as I went along. I kind of got thrown in the mix and learned along the way, but it was fun that way, too.”

Havens said it now feels like a natural position.

“I love it over there,” Havens said. “I’m comfortable over there. I’m constantly working on footwork around second base.”

Organization leaders

Average: Juan Lagares, Binghamton, .356; Danny Muno, Brooklyn, .337; Josh Satin, Buffalo, .322; Cam Maron; Kingsport, .318; Greg Pron, Kingsport, .318; Travis Taijeron, Brooklyn, .311; Julio Concepcion, Kingsport, .299; Jordany Valdespin, Buffalo, .296; Pedro Zapata, St. Lucie, .294; Luis Figueroa, Buffalo, .292.

Homers: Brahiam Maldonado, Binghamton, 27; Valentino Pascucci, Buffalo, 21.

RBI: Valentino Pascucci, Buffalo, 91; Aderlin Rodriguez, Savannah, 77; Wilmer Flores, St. Lucie, 76; Josh Satin, Buffalo, 76; Brahiam Maldonado, Binghamton, 72.

Steals: Jordany Valdespin, Buffalo, 36; Pedro Zapata, St. Lucie, 33; Darrell Ceciliani, Savannah, 25; Matt den Dekker, Binghamton, 22; Rafael Fernandez, Savannah, 21.

ERA: Darin Gorski, St. Lucie, 2.08; Taylor Whitenton, Savannah, 2.51; Jeurys Familia, Binghamton, 2.92; Marcos Camarena, Brooklyn, 3.13; Matt Harvey, Binghamton, 3.19; Gabriel Ynoa, Kingsport, 3.21; Carlos Vazquez, Brooklyn, 3.31; Jeff Walters, Brooklyn, 3.45; Greg Peavey, St. Lucie, 3.51; Ryan Fraser, Savannah, 3.62.

Wins: Matt Harvey, Binghamton, 13; Greg Peavey, St. Lucie, 11; Darin Gorski, St. Lucie, 11; Angel Cuan, Savannah, 10; Brandon Moore, Binghamton, 10.

Saves: Josh Edgin, St. Lucie, 26; Dale Thayer, Buffalo, 21; Hamilton Bennett, Savannah, 13; Jeff Kaplan, St. Lucie, 12.

Strikeouts: Matt Harvey, Binghamton, 154; Darin Gorski, St. Lucie, 140; Chris Schwinden, Buffalo, 134; Collin McHugh, Binghamton, 128; Jeurys Familia, Binghamton, 124.

Short hops

• The Mets will send left-hander Robert Carson, right-handers Collin McHugh, Brandon Moore and Taylor Whitenton, catcher Juan Centeno, second baseman Reese Havens, third baseman Jefry Marte and outfielder Juan Lagares to the Arizona Fall League. St. Lucie skipper Pedro Lopez will serve as the manager for the Peoria Javelinas, which will include prospects from the Brewers, Cardinals, Mariners and Padres in addition to the Mets. The Mets also will be able to add a catcher and another pitcher. Lagares is on the taxi squad, making him eligible to play on Wednesdays and Saturdays and otherwise practice with the team.

• With one regular-season start remaining, Savannah’s Whitenton (2.51) narrowly trails Augusta’s Shawn Sanford (2.47) for the ERA title in the South Atlantic League.

• St. Lucie left-hander Darin Gorski, who tossed five scoreless innings Tuesday against Fort Myers in a no-decision, has been named Florida State League pitcher of the year. The 23-year-old Gorski is a seventh-round pick in 2009 out of Kutztown University in Pennsylvania. Gorski’s 2.08 ERA is a half-run better than FSL runner-up Nestor Molina’s 2.58 ERA with Dunedin. Gorski ranks third in the league in strikeouts with 140, trailing Clearwater pitchers Trevor May (203) and Julio Rodriguez (160).

• Hicksville, L.I., native Cam Maron was named to the Appalachian League postseason All-Star team. The 20-year-old catcher, who went 4-for-4 Tuesday, ranks second in the league with a .434 on-base percentage.

• Outfielder Jesus Feliciano has amassed 369 hits in three seasons with Buffalo. That trails only Bill Selby (378) and Greg Tubbs (370) on the Buffalo modern-era hit list. The Bisons have seven games remaining this season, giving Feliciano a legitimate shot at that record. Feliciano made his major league debut last season at age 31 with the Mets. After four straight seasons hitting .308 in Triple-A with the Mets, through stops in New Orleans and Buffalo, Feliciano’s average has slipped to a still-respectable .272 this season.

• 2010 first-round pick Matt Harvey has won five straight starts. He has a 2.67 ERA and .210 opponent batting average during that span.

• In five starts since joining the organization in a trade that sent Carlos Beltran to San Francisco, right-hander Zack Wheeler is 2-2 with a 2.16 ERA with Class A St. Lucie. Wheeler has allowed 23 hits while walking five, hitting two batters and striking out 26 in 25 innings.

• Buffalo infielder Josh Satin was named to the Eastern League postseason All-Star team for his body of work with Double-A Binghamton before a promotion. Satin actually was held hitless in consecutive games Sunday and Monday for the first time since joining the Bisons. He has a hit in 30 of his 38 Triple-A games. Satin has made six straight starts at third base. The overall breakdown with Buffalo: 10 games at first base, seven games at second base and 20 games at third base.

• Lagares has a 19-game hitting streak with Binghamton. After leading the Florida State League at the time of his promotion, Lagares is now hitting .397 with two homers and 21 RBIs in 136 at-bats in the Eastern League.

• Fifth-round pick Jack Leathersich may have lost the no-hit bid in the eighth inning at Lowell that was started by Carlos Vazquez, but the Brooklyn southpaw nonetheless had a triumphant return to the city where he played college ball for UMass-Lowell. Leathersich struck out four in two scoreless innings. He has struck out 26 in 12 2/3 professional innings in the New York-Penn League, and has a 0.71 ERA.

• Buffalo corner infielder Zach Lutz is in a 4-for-23 rut that has dropped his average below .300 for the first time since the season’s opening week. Lutz nonetheless has six homers and 16 RBIs in his past 20 games while regularly playing since returning from the disabled list for a second concussion Aug. 6.

• Middle infielder Jordany Valdespin has a seven-game hitting streak with the Bisons. Since beginning his Triple-A career 8-for-38 in his first 10 games, Valdespin is hitting .382 (16-for-42) in his last 10.

• Bisons closer Dale Thayer converted saves on three straight days to up his total to 21. That is the most by a Bisons pitcher since Jake Robbins had 23 in 2005, when the team was affiliated with the Cleveland Indians. Thayer is one of five players in modern Buffalo history with 20-plus saves. Thayer’s career high is 27 saves, which he achieved in consecutive years with Double-A Mobile as a Padres farmhand, in 2005 and ’06.

• Center fielder Brandon Nimmo (first round) and shortstop Phillip Evans (15^th) moved to Kingsport for the end of that season after the Gulf Coast League completed play Saturday. Nimmo is 1-for-9 with three walks through three games. Evans is 4-for-11 with two doubles, three RBIs and a walk.

Adam Rubin’s farm report appears Wednesdays during the regular season

Chris Capuano struck out a career-high 13 batters and tossed his first shutout since July 6, 2006 with the Milwaukee Brewers. "I purposely kept not looking at how many pitches, so I wouldn't know how many I'd thrown," Capuano said.

The Mets won a homestand opener for the first time this season. They had been 0-10. Losing 10 straight homestand openers had matched the record for major league futility, previously done by the 1979 Mets.

The Mets, like the rest of the Northeast, now brace for Hurricane Irene, with play slated to resume Monday with a doubleheader against the Florida Marlins. Dillon Gee and R.A. Dickey take the mound that day in a revised rotation schedule.

Saturday news reports:

• ESPN Stats & Information's Mark Simon compares Capuano's outing to Tom Seaver's best as a Met on July 9, 1969. "That's probably the only time I'll be talked about in the same sentence as Tom Seaver," Capuano said.

• Jose Reyes went 1-for-3 with a homer and played seven innings at shortstop in his second rehab game with Double-A Binghamton. He is due to play a full nine innings on Saturday with the B-Mets, weather-permitting, and plans to be activated Monday. Reyes continued to suggest his strained left hamstring appears to have healed. "He said the first day he wasn't going to steal any bases," B-Mets manager Wally Backman said Saturday night. "Tonight, he didn't have to steal any bases, he just had to trot around the bases. Jose has told me he feels great. His legs look great. That's a good thing. He's got a shot at winning the batting title. We'll have fun with it tomorrow for the last day." Read more in the Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin.

Terry Collins still is planning for Reyes to be back in 2012. He said the shortstop will definitely get sporadic rest next year in a Mets uniform, because it's better to have Reyes in the starting lineup for 150 games healthy than to lose him periodically throughout the year because of injury and for him to only play only 100 games. Read more in the Post.

• Jason Bay was scratched from Friday's game after jamming his right shoulder in Philadelphia attempting a diving catch against Placido Polanco Tuesday. The team reported an MRI came up clean. Read more in the Star-Ledger.

• In a non-story that persists, David Wright was asked Friday about being placed on waivers by the Mets earlier tis month. Virtually all players in the majors are placed on waivers in August and then either clear or are pulled back. It is nothing specific to Wright. Wright noted the difference is that these days the secretive process is leaked more than in years' past.

"It just seems like this year has become more of one where front-office people are talking about what happens on waivers," Wright said, as quoted in Newsday. "I'm sure that I've been put on waivers before. I'm sure that I've been claimed, so I just think it's part of the process. But this is the first year I can remember it being somewhat of an issue. I don't really remember so many players, kind of the cat getting out of the bag, and who claimed them and this and that. But I guess that's the direction it's going. It doesn't affect me one way or another. I'm not going to lose any sleep over it or think twice about being put on waivers."

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

• With Scott Hairston (strained oblique) joining Jon Niese (strained intercostal muscle) on the disabled list, the Mets promoted 40-year-old right-hander Miguel Batista before Friday's game. Batista, or possibly D.J. Carrasco, will start Thursday against the Florida Marlins. Rosters expand that day, Sept. 1. The Mets will need a starter Friday as well in D.C. Presumably, Chris Schwinden and Pat Misch would be candidates.

• The postponed weekend games will be made up with a single-admission doubleheader against the Braves on Sept. 8, with first pitch at 4:10 p.m. Saturday tickets are good for that date. Sunday tickets must be exchanged for a ticket of comparable value. Read more in Star-Ledger.

• Where will the Mets go during a hurricane/tropical storm? Bay, who lives in Westchester, said he will just ride it out in his home. But Justin Turner, who lives in a Long Island City evacuation zone, is going to spend time on higher ground with Jason Isringhausen. Gee is going to join Josh Thole in Binghamton, where Thole's in-laws reside. A handful of players were considering riding out the storm at Citi Field. Read more in the Record and Times.

• The Mets' Arizona Fall League contingent will include right-handers Collin McHugh and Brandon Moore, second baseman Reese Havens and outfielder Juan Lagares, according to Lynn Worthy in the Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin.

BIRTHDAYS: Former outfielder Brian McRae turns 44. ... Texas Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux, a reliever for the Mets in 1993 and '94, turns 50.

Double-A Binghamton right-handers Collin McHugh and Brandon Moore, outfielder Juan Lagares and second baseman Reese Havens have been informed they will be part of the Mets' contingent in the Arizona Fall League, according to Lynn Worthy of the Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin.

They will play for the Peoria Javelinas, which is due to be managed by St. Lucie skipper Pedro Lopez.

Mets VP Paul DePodesta, who oversees the farm system and amateur scouting, takes time with ESPNNewYork.com to break down the organization's minor leagues.

You have almost completed a full minor league season, had a draft. What’s the state of the farm system in a general sense?

“I certainly think we’re making progress. It’s been probably well-documented from the draft, and even to what we did at the trading deadline. One of the things we really sought out is potential impact talent. To the extent that it works out, we won’t know for a while. But it’s certainly been a target. And we’ve been able to bring some of these guys into the system. Some other guys that already have been in the system, we’ve been able to move them along fairly rapidly. I think in that sense I’m very pleased. I think the overall depth of the system is pretty solid. Our goal is to certainly make it better.

“On the impact end, I think we’re making some progress. Again, I think there was probably a little bit more here when we first arrived than was sort of generally accepted. There were a couple of guys last year that didn’t have great years who I think have high-end talent. So when we came in, they weren’t heralded as maybe they should be. A guy like (right-hander) Jeurys Familia, he has a chance to be a big-time guy, and probably hasn’t gotten at least that type of attention. Having him now with (2010 first-round pick Matt) Harvey and having (fellow right-hander Zack) Wheeler (from the Carlos Beltran trade) behind those guys, it’ll start to show what kind of talent he is. Overall, I’m pleased. There’s certainly still room for us to get better, both on the scouting side and on the development side. But I like where we are as of right now.”

In terms of the upper levels of the system, is it bad luck with injuries to players such as Kirk Nieuwenhuis (shoulder surgery), Zach Lutz (pair of concussions, broken ring finger)? Or have there been a lack of available players to where you had to, say, call up a third catcher?

“I think there are a couple of things. One is, a lot of the talent at the upper levels we have seen here (in the majors). I’d say Dillon Gee, Ruben Tejada, Lucas Duda, I mean those guys were all projected to be at Buffalo this year and have been pretty significant contributors at this level so far. Beyond that, the saving grace for me in (corner infielder Zach) Lutz and (outfielder Kirk) Nieuwenhuis and (Fernando) Martinez and all the guys who have had some injuries is when they’ve played, they’ve all played extraordinarily well. Nieuwenhuis is a guy who is a really interesting case. Admittedly, from my standpoint, he’s not a guy I knew a lot about. I didn’t see him as an amateur at Azusa (Pacific University) when he was coming out. But he’s one of those guys from sort of a smaller school, and as he’s been in the minor leagues and moved up levels, he continues to get better at every level. His production continues to increase at every level, which is rare. So I’m excited about him. It’s really too bad he had the shoulder injury and is going to miss the rest of the year. I think he certainly has a bright future.

“I think at the Double-A level, a lot of the guys we had there weren’t necessarily ready to come here. But (infielder) Josh Satin had a terrific year and is now in Triple-A and hasn’t missed a beat. (Middle infielder) Jordany Valdespin had a great year, and has actually played shortstop extremely well and has gotten better month after month and is now, I think, absolutely a viable major league shortstop. (Second baseman) Reese Havens is sort of like Lutz and Nieuwenhuis. When he’s played, he’s been awfully good. And then on the pitching side, we did fill in an awful lot at Triple-A with some veterans. Gee was sort of the one young guy we felt like was poised and ready. One guy that had a real breakout year was (right-hander) Chris Schwinden. He’s put himself now in a position to help us.

“And then in Double-A we had some nice talent, but guys who were not quite ready to be here and we were probably pushing them even a little at Double-A -- guys like (left-hander Robert) Carson and now, through the course of the year, with Familia and Harvey there. Some other guys have had nice years. (Right-handers Brandon) Moore and (Collin) McHugh have pitched well. Both (right-handers Brad) Holt and (Josh) Stinson I think have pitched well now that they have been moved to the pen, which we all think is their ultimate roles. They seem to have adjusted well to that transition.

“But admittedly once (Jenrry) Mejia went down (with Tommy John surgery) and Gee came up, we didn’t have the stable of young, major league ready pitching. We were a little thin. But I think that layer that’s right behind them has a chance to be pretty darn good.”

You still project Mejia and Familia as rotation as opposed to bullpen guys?

“Yeah, I do. We’ll see as it happens. I think any player development system’s hope is you get to a point where players sort of force themselves on the major league roster -- they sort of force the front office to make a move for them because their performance is so dominant and they’re so clearly ready to be here, as opposed to bringing guys up just because you need them, you don’t have anybody else and something has happened. If we can get to that point on a pitching staff where our starting five is so good that some of these other guys are ready and knocking at the door, who knows what role they may end up in at that point? History will tell you a lot of quality minor league starters end up being quality bullpen guys. But as we sit here today, we certainly still project those guys as starting pitchers?”

If you conceivably are going to devote a lot of dollars to Jose Reyes in the offseason and you have to be more creative at other positions, are there any minor league players who have yet to make their debuts who can be introduced early next season and have an impact? Maybe Josh Satin?

“You mentioned Satin. I think he’s a guy who can contribute here. I think (Monday call-up) Mike Baxter is a guy who can contribute here. He has a different story because we just recently acquired him. I think Lutz is a guy. I think Nieuwenhuis is certainly a guy that can help. And I sort of hesitate to say this, because you never know what’s going to happen when guys do move to the pen -- but sometimes those guys can really come quick, because if they have the stuff, and they have the command, it almost doesn’t matter if it’s in A-ball or Double-A or in the big leagues. It plays and will continue to play at each level.

“In that respect, we’ll see what Stinson is able to do and we’ll see what Holt is able to do as they continue to adjust to that role. One other guy, and I hesitate to say it, because it’s a long way away, is Josh Edgin. He’s a left-handed reliever currently in St. Lucie. He started the year in Savannah. But he’s got major league stuff and he’s left-handed. Again, you just never know how quickly those guys can come. He’s in Port St. Lucie right now, which is why I’m squeamish about talking about 2012."

If Baseball America re-ranked the farm system after the trade deadline and placed Zack Wheeler No. 1, does that mean you made a great trade? Or is it a commentary on the system a little?

“I don’t know. Harvey is awfully good. It’s starting to show at Double-A too. His last few starts have each gotten better, and his last one was just absolutely dominant. Technically, he’s a little closer. Some of their midseason lists, I don’t know if it was Baseball America or somebody else’s, I think Harvey was maybe a couple of slots ahead of Wheeler. I think it’s debatable. We moved Familia to Double-A before Harvey. Certainly part of that was for development reasons. He was just ready earlier. But I don’t know why his ceiling is different than those guys. He throws just as hard. He’s got a good slider. He’s generally in the zone. He’s awfully good too. Look, Wheeler was the No. 6 pick in the country (in 2009). Harvey was the seventh (in 2010). Maybe that gives Wheeler an edge.”

Does something have to give with Fernando Martinez? Or he does have an option for next year, so he could go back to Triple-A in 2012 if need be?

“He has another option after this year.”

St. Lucie’s Wilmer Flores has been ranked atop many rankings in the past. What is his future? Will you move him from shortstop?

“We’ll see. I think with any of these guys, when we’ve considered position changes, it will be well-discussed. We have talked about it with (Wilmer Flores) at different times. We’ve talked about the benefits of him staying at shortstop and it will help him regardless of where he moves. We do think that the next move, if there is a move, and I think it’s probably likely at some point, it will be in the infield. The play at shortstop has been solid. It actually has been quite solid. The question is whether or not we think it’s going to hold up, and ultimately from his standpoint where he’s most comfortable.

“He’s played some third in winter ball. There’s been some talk about second base. We’ll discuss this as we sort of wind down the season and head into the offseason. I think we feel like regardless his time at short has been well-spent, and will continue to be well-spent if he continues to stay there. To his credit, he’s really played it well.

“He just turned 20 years old. And one thing I feel strongly about, and one thing I think we feel strongly about organizationally, is that one of the things that improves dramatically with repetitions is infield defense probably as much as anything in the game. Guys might get a little bit better in the outfield. They get better with routes and jumps. But there are limitations in terms of how much better they can get. Hitting is tough. There are limitations with how much better a guy is going to get. But infield defense, there are just a lot of stories of guys who made 30, 40, even 50 errors in the minor leagues and went on to become very solid defensive infielders in the major leagues.”

I had just heard the range, the foot speed and first step weren’t where it would need to be for shortstop.

“And that could be. I think that’s probably a question. I don’t think the question right now is with the hands or with the arm. It’s an untraditional arm stroke, but he gets it over there and it’s accurate for the most part. I think you’re right. I think that’s a fair point about whether or not he stays there. I think that will be probably the defining question in terms of whether or not he stays there.”

People have visions of a rotation in two or three years of Matt Harvey, Zack Wheeler, Jenrry Mejia and Jeurys Familia. As a development person, I’m sure you want to go 4-for-4. But if you hit on two of those four in the rotation, would you be thrilled? What’s good return on that type of inventory?

“I think that’s probably fair. If we hit one out of every two, I think we’d be thrilled. We feel it’s a very good group. We’re going to try to add to the group. Maybe this time next year we’ll be talking about (second-round pick) Cory Mazzoni in that group or (44^th overall pick Michael) Fulmer right behind those guys. Who knows?

“We’ve actually got a lot of good arms in short season that were here before I got here that are young, young kids, but with power arms and have a chance to come quickly. Guys like (U.S. Virgin Islands native) Akeel Morris, Miller Diaz, Domingo Tapia, there are a handful of them. These are guys who are consistently throwing in the mid-90s, some of them touching high-90s. Tapia is throwing 100 mph this year. Every outing has been in the upper 90s.

“One thing you can be sure of is we’re going to continue to try to stockpile them, sort of knowing that we’re not going to be 100 percent on these guys. I use this in a much broader context than just those four that you mentioned that are at the upper levels, or close to the upper levels, but shoot, I think we’d be killing it if we hit at 50 percent.”

Was there anyone signed internationally this year, even if it was a low signing bonus, that you were particularly pleased you got?

“There are a handful actually. There’s one who is already over here in the States and has moved past the GCL and is into Kingsport. Rafael Montero is a right-handed pitcher. He’s a little older. He’s 20 already and I think was just about 20 or already 20 when we signed him. But he has a good arm, a good feel and it’s a legitimate three-pitch mix. It’s low- to mid-90s. Good body. Good command. He’s an interesting package.

“I was just down in the Dominican last week and saw some of the kids we had signed. Pedro Perez, who we signed, is technically a shortstop. He’s playing third base. A switch-hitter. He’s a good-looking young hitter. And there’s an outfielder named Vicente Lupo -- the kid who got really sick last fall. Really, really sick. He’s an outfielder from Venezuela. He was the one who had malignant hypothermia. He’s back and playing. He’s swinging the bat well. There’s another pitcher named Luis Mateo, who is also a little older. He’s 21. He has really good power stuff. He’s actually still in the Dominican. All those guys were signed this year.

“I believe there’s an outfielder name Mikais de la Cruz, who is in the Dominican, that I believe was signed in this cycle but before I got here. The international market, the fiscal year is July 2 to July 2. So I’m not counting anybody we have signed in the last month. It’s everybody we signed pre-July 2. There are a handful of them, but Montero has certainly been the quickest mover.

“There’s also a Cuban second baseman we signed named Jorge Rivero, who we’ve already brought over. He’s playing in the GCL and is swinging the bat pretty well. He’s also older. He’s 21, I think. He’s a good-looking hitter.”

"In-depth" appears Tuesdays during the regular season

Even right-hander Chris Schwinden is somewhat surprised he has settled into the Triple-A Buffalo rotation. In fact, he left most of his belongings, including his wardrobe, behind at Binghamton when he was called up for an April 16 start at Pawtucket.

After opening the season in Binghamton’s bullpen, the plan was for Schwinden to slide in the Double-A B-Mets’ rotation once right-hander Josh Stinson eventually was promoted from that Eastern League club to Buffalo.

Instead, Schwinden -- a 22^nd-round pick in 2008 from Fresno Pacific -- and Stinson both were summoned to plug depleted Buffalo’s rotation. And because of Schwinden’s immediate success, he stayed and Dylan Owen instead was returned from Buffalo to Binghamton when a pitcher needed to be dropped from the Bisons’ rotation.

“I was told it was just a spot start [at Buffalo]. I packed for two days,” Schwinden said. “I stuck around. And then Josh came up. Then I thought I was going to be sent back down. But it was a real shocker. I had to wear the same clothes for a few days. I’ve sent for the rest of my stuff.”

Schwinden, 24, is 1-1 with a 2.57 ERA in four starts for Buffalo. The Visalia, Calif., native has limited opponents to 14 hits while walking nine (one intentionally) and striking out 20 in 21 innings.

“He’s been doing a great job,” Buffalo manager Tim Teufel said. “I had him last year for a little while. His first outing was outstanding in Double-A (one run in six innings at New Britain on May 22, 2010). He really showed me a good fastball and a good cutter. He dominated his first outing when I had him last year. From there on out, he pitched just OK. He didn’t pitch great, dominating baseball.

“This year he seems like he’s coming in with more weapons. He has a curveball now he’s working with, and a changeup. Plus, he’s got that regular fastball and a cut fastball. He almost uses that as a slider. He still needs to mix in his changeup a little bit more, and he showed me a decent curveball. If he can mix all of those pitches up, he’s been very effective up here so far doing that and keeping the hitters off-balance.”

Said Schwinden: “I didn’t think I was going to do as good as I am now. It’s kind of shocking. It’s turned out for the best so far.”

Organization leaders

Average: Matt den Dekker, St. Lucie, .373; Pedro Zapata, St. Lucie, .343; Josh Satin, Binghamton, .333; Michael Fisher, Binghamton, .327; Jefry Marte, St. Lucie, .323; Kirk Nieuwenhuis, Buffalo, .316; Cory Vaughn, Savannah, .306; Wilmer Flores, St. Lucie, .298; Ruben Tejada, Buffalo, .279; Stefan Welch, St. Lucie, .277.

Homers: Brahiam Maldonado, Binghamton, 5; Jefry Marte, St. Lucie, 5; Aderlin Rodriguez, Savannah, 5.

RBI: Wilmer Flores, St. Lucie, 19; Jefry Marte, St. Lucie, 19; Matt den Dekker, St. Lucie 17; Aderlin Rodriguez, Savannah, 17; Sam Honeck, Savannah, 16.

Steals: Pedro Zapata, St. Lucie, 8; Jordany Valdespin, Binghamton, 7; Lorenzo Scott, Binghamton, 6; Robbie Shields, Savannah, 6.

ERA: Matt Harvey, St. Lucie, 1.37; Jeurys Familia, St. Lucie, 1.52; Chris Schwinden, Buffalo, 2.25; Mark Cohoon, Binghamton, 2.70; Jenrry Mejia, Buffalo, 2.86; Chase Huchingson, Savannah, 2.95; Brad Holt, Binghamton, 2.96; Scott Moviel, St. Lucie, 3.34; Ryan Fraser, Savannah, 3.75; Erik Goeddel, Savannah, 3.75.

Wins: Matt Harvey, St. Lucie, 4; Scott Moviel, St. Lucie, 3.

Saves: Jeffrey Kaplan, St. Lucie, 7; Josh Edgin, Savannah, 4; John Lujan, Binghamton, 4; Nick Carr, St. Lucie, 3; Ronny Morla, Savannah, 2.

Strikeouts: Matt Harvey, St. Lucie, 30; Jeurys Familia, St. Lucie, 30; Darin Gorski, St. Lucie, 30; Erik Goeddel, Savannah, 28.

Short hops

• Matt Harvey and Jeurys Familia suffered consecutive blemishes during otherwise-solid seasons with Class A St. Lucie as Mets brass watched firsthand. Harvey surrendered six runs (four earned) on nine hits, a walk and hit batter in 4 1/3 innings on Thursday against Bradenton. The 2010 first-round pick from the University of North Carolina had limited opponents to one unearned run in 22 innings spanning his first four professional starts. A day later, Familia -- who had allowed two runs (one earned) in his first four starts -- surrendered four earned runs in four innings as his Florida State League ERA rose from 0.35 to 1.52.

• Center fielder Kirk Nieuwenhuis has reached base in 26 of his 27 games with Buffalo this season. Nieuwenhuis is hitting .316 with four homers, eight RBIs and two steals in 95 at-bats. His .430 on-base percentage is tied for fourth in the International League, trailing only Toledo’s Scott Sizemore (.495), Colorado’s Cord Phelps (.439) and Pawtucket’s Yamaico Navarro (.436). Nieuwenhuis’ 10 doubles are tied for second in the league, trailing only Gwinnet’s Mauro Gomez. Scouts in spring training suggested Nieuwenhuis needed to improve on his approach when facing curveballs and against left-handed pitching. Nieuwenhuis has a .214 average in 28 at-bats against southpaws this season.

• With Ronny Paulino’s activation from the disabled list, catcher Mike Nickeas was optioned to Triple-A Buffalo. Nickeas hit .250 with three RBIs in 20 at-bats with the Mets, and produced his first major league homer on April 21, off Houston’s J.A. Happ. Nickeas made his season debut with the Bisons on Monday at Lehigh Valley and went 0-for-4 with a walk. Buffalo has three catchers, with Salomon Manriquez and Raul Chavez also active. Chavez is 5-for-9 with two doubles in two starts this week, although that merely lifted the 37-year-old catcher’s average to .192. Manriquez started at first base for the first time this season in Tuesday’s matinee at Lehigh Valley.

• Nick Evans, who has made four of his past six starts at third base with Zach Lutz on the Bisons’ DL with a right hamstring strain, has a four-game hitting streak. Since snapping an 0-for-10 drought, Evans is 7-for-last-13 and has produced three straight two-hit games. For the season, Evans is hitting .240 with four homers and 13 RBIs in 96 at-bats. The Mets had planned to expose Evans to some third base this season regardless of Lutz’s injury. Evans played all 21 games at third base in the Gulf Coast League during his first professional season, in 2004.

• Jenrry Mejia is headed for Tommy John surgery, although he plans to seek a second opinion from Dr. James Andrews. … Steve Matz, the organization’s top pick in the 2009 draft, who is at the one-year mark after Tommy John surgery, continues to throw bullpen sessions in Port St. Lucie. Matz, who turns 20 later this month, should be assigned to a short-season team next month.

• D.J. Carrasco allowed five runs (three earned) in three innings at Lehigh Valley on Saturday in his first Triple-A start since a demotion.

• Lucas Duda had five multi-hit games in an eight-game stretch, during which he collected three doubles, three homers and seven RBIs, before earning a promotion to the Mets with Jason Bay briefly given paternity leave for the birth of his third child.

• Binghamton right-hander Brandon Moore tossed seven scoreless innings Saturday, while limiting Akron to two hits and striking out nine batters. The performance snapped a stretch of three straight games in which the B-Mets’ starter (Brad Holt, Robert Carson and Edgar Ramirez) lasted three or fewer innings. Ramirez was making a spot start to plug the gap caused by Stinson’s recent promotion to Triple-A. Owen likely will step into Binghamton’s rotation after returning from Buffalo.

• B-Mets shortstop Jordany Valdespin has picked things up on the hitting end, raising his average 24 points, to .260, by going 5-for-9 in his past two games. Still, Valdespin -- who also has seen significant action at second base in his minor league career -- already has eight errors.

• Right-hander Michael Powers was promoted from St. Lucie to Binghamton after going 1-2 with a 2.92 ERA in six appearances (one start) in the Florida State League. The 31^st-round pick in 2008 out of the University of Michigan looked jittery in his Double-A debut, allowing three runs in an inning against Akron, but should settle down and settle into a middle-relief role with the B-Mets.

• B-Mets right-hander Manny Alvarez landed on the disabled list with a strained right elbow strain.

• First baseman Allan Dykstra, acquired from the San Diego Padres at the end of spring training in a change-of-scenery trade for reliever Eddie Kunz, produced his first homer with the organization Saturday. Dykstra, who is hitting only .229 with the B-Mets, has been working with hitting coach Luis Natera, trying to translate terrific batting-practice power into games.

• Binghamton -- which remained 8-13 and in last place in the Eastern League’s Eastern Division after being rained out Tuesday -- got an earful from manager Wally Backman after getting routed, 10-1, by Akron on Friday. Backman told the Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin: “I'm going to have to talk with some people in the organization because I think that some changes have got to be made. Something has got to happen. I'm embarrassed for the [expletive] town here because we need to be better than that. It should be better for the fans than it is right now. I've never been through something quite like this, especially at this level. Every fricking day you get two or three hits through five [expletive] innings, that's not going to win you any ballgames."

Backman also said: “There are a couple of things in baseball you don’t need any ability to do -- that’s compete and hustle. I’m not seeing it out of everybody. There are going to be a lot of guys that are going to find themselves without jobs next year if they don't change their ways. … You know, we got picked off twice [Saturday]. Both times we had the hold sign. Nobody was running. ... We've missed so many signs this year, and my signs are so easy. It's just unacceptable play, especially at this level. Right now, the way that we're competing, we couldn't beat A-ball teams. We played pretty good in spring training too, the core of people that are out there. So it's time for people to look in the mirror and make a decision. You know, it's their career."

• St. Lucie center fielder Matt den Dekker, a fifth-round pick in 2010 out of the University of Florida, lifted his average to .373 with a 2-for-5 performance Monday. That ranks fourth in the Florida State League, trailing Clearwater’s Joe Savery (.438), Charlotte’s Hak-Ju Lee (.410) and Jupiter’s Kyle Jensen (.378).

• Third baseman Aderlin Rodriguez lost a nine-game hitting streak Tuesday at Lakewood, N.J. It nonetheless was the longest by a Savannah player this season, surpassing eight-game streaks by first baseman Sam Honeck and shortstop Wilfredo Tovar. Rodriguez had five homers and 11 RBIs during the nine-game stretch.

• UCLA product Erik Goeddel, who made only one Gulf Coast League appearance last season after signing for an over-slot $350,000 as a 24^th-round pick, earned his first professional win Monday at Lakewood. The right-hander limited the BlueClaws to three hits and a walk while striking out nine in six scoreless innings. Overall, Goeddel is 1-1 with a 3.75 ERA in five South Atlantic League starts.

• While it has not yet translated to batting average, farm director Adam Wogan is pleased with shortstop Robbie Shields’ improved approach at the plate and noted Shields is starting to drive the ball with Savannah. Shields is hitting .235 with two homers and eight RBIs with the Sand Gnats.

• Outfielder Darrell Ceciliani (hamstring) is due to rejoin Savannah after the team’s Wednesday off-day.

• Tobi Stoner, slowed by a shoulder impingement, is pitching in extended spring training games.

Adam Rubin’s farm report appears Wednesdays during the season

Manager Pedro Lopez was the last one in the visitors’ dugout at Aberdeen last Aug. 23 to realize right-hander Brandon Moore was working on a no-hitter in the first game of a doubleheader for the Brooklyn Cyclones.

“Rick Tomlin, the pitching coach, if we’re playing a seven-inning game, usually in the sixth inning he goes, ‘We got to this point. Who do you want up, (Brandon) Sage or (Matias) Carillo?’ Or whoever was setting up that day, because it was a 3-0 ballgame. But Tomlin is just sitting on a chair and he’s not getting up.

“The thing about it is, (Moore) threw well, but I would say he was effectively wild. He fell behind in the count. It was 3-0, strike one, 3-1, strike two, and then a ground ball or a fly ball. He was in the seventh inning and the first batter he goes to like 3-1. I was like, ‘Here we go. Make him earn it.’ Everybody’s not saying anything. I’m the only guy on the railing. Then, all of a sudden, I happen to glance up. … I didn’t know. I had no idea whatsoever.”

Moore, a 14^th-round pick in 2008 out of Indiana Wesleyan University, eventually did complete the first no-hitter in Cyclones history, and the first at any level for him -- amateur or professional. He walked three, hit a batter and struck out six. Minor league games are seven innings when doubleheaders are scheduled.

“I was behind hitters all day that day,” Moore said. “It seemed like I couldn’t throw my fastball that well for a strike consistently. But I’d come back with my slider -- and I could control the slider pretty well. So I was throwing that across the plate for strikes and guys were rolling over and getting themselves out. It was all pretty much routine plays to everybody, like a routine fly ball or just ground balls right at people all day long.”

Moore, 24, has continued his solid pitching this season with low-A Savannah. He is 1-2 with a 2.83 ERA and two saves this season in 28 2/3 innings with the Sand Gnats. Moore has displayed impeccable control, striking out 37 and walking five. The saves came because he was piggybacking teammates’ starts in his first two outings of the season and tossed three and four innings of relief, respectively.

On Friday in Lakewood, N.J., Moore struck out the first six BlueClaws batters he faced while effectively using a 87-89 mph two-seam sinker and his signature slider. He also tossed a handful of changeups at 80 mph and curveballs at 77-79 mph, all while using his low three-quarters arm angle.

Moore ended up taking a tough-luck loss at Lakewood while being charged with three runs on three hits and a walk along with 12 strikeouts in the Sand Gnats’ 3-1 defeat. In reality, while Moore gave up a fifth-inning solo homer, the two runs in the sixth inning against him were preventable. Center fielder Pedro Zapata misplayed a routine line drive into a run-scoring triple.

A scout watching Moore’s performance behind home plate wondered whether the right-hander’s “Frisbee” slider would translate to higher levels of the minors because those batters would lay off of it if it’s consistently thrown outside the strike zone.

Moore countered that he can throw the pitch for strikes, but he didn’t have to last week against Lakewood batters.

“If guys are going to chase all day long, there’s no reason to throw it over the plate,” Moore said.

The plan, he added: “Once you get them chasing, then they’re going to start to lay off. So then you bring it in and throw it across the plate and then they’re watching it go by. I can throw it for strikes any time I want.”

Moore is working to improve his changeup as well as “getting out in front” during his delivery to prevent his arm from dragging. He was encouraged by his two-seamer sitting at 87-89 mph Friday. He’s trying to revamp his between-starts routine because his velocity was sitting at 86-88 mph earlier this season.

His velocity isn’t where it sat his senior year at Indiana Wesleyan University, when he had a strong showing in Florida early in the season. That southern showing prompted 20 scouts and crosscheckers to swarm the school’s conference opener his senior year against perennial league power Spring Arbor University from Michigan. Moore responded with a three-hit shutout with 11 strikeouts and eventually became the first Indiana Wesleyan player drafted since 1970, when right-hander Charlie Arrendale was taken in the 20^th round by the Pittsburgh Pirates. (The school was known as Marion College then.)

“They were all there to see him,” Indiana Wesleyan coach Mark DeMichael said. “As soon as the scouts started seeing him sitting in the low 90s and then throw an 85 mph, ‘plus’ slider, that pretty much clinched he was going to have an opportunity.”

Moore, who hails from Crawfordsville, Indiana, is his college’s career leader in strikeouts (344) and wins (30). He logged 295 innings over four seasons. He did not get drafted as a junior, before his velocity jumped, and acknowledged about going unpicked: “I was kind of mind blown.”

The positive of going undrafted as a junior: With his professional career not yet launched, Moore could continue racing his Yamaha Raptor 660 four-wheeler in the GNCC Racing event in his hometown. The race annually concludes that circuit. Moore grew up attending the event in Crawfordsville and entered the race four or five times.

“Obviously now I’m not allowed to,” Moore said. “That’s something I love doing. I still have my four-wheeler, but I can’t get on it. It’s been sitting in my garage for two years.”

As for the no-hitter with Brooklyn, Moore offers no apologies about it being of the seven- rather than nine-inning variety. His originally scheduled start was rained out the day before.

“Hey, it’s not my fault we had a seven-inning game,” Moore said. “We had a doubleheader that day. You can’t control that.”

Organization leaders

Average: Jesus Feliciano, Buffalo, .341; Chris Carter, Buffalo, .336; Wilmer Flores, Savannah, .333; Josh Satin, St. Lucie, .327; Eric Campbell, St. Lucie, .324; Nick Evans, Binghamton, .313; Stefan Welch, St. Lucie, .311; Carlos Guzman, Binghamton, .305; Lucas Duda, Binghamton, .303; Kirk Nieuwenhuis, Binghamton, .302.

Homers: Mike Hessman, Buffalo, 9; Zach Lutz, Binghamton, 8; Lucas Duda, Binghamton, 6; Chris Carter, Buffalo, 6.

RBIs: Mike Hessman, Buffalo, 35; Lucas Duda, Binghamton, 31; Wilmer Flores, Savannah, 25; Juan Lagares, Savannah, 24.

Steals: Emmanuel Garcia, St. Lucie, 12; Cesar Puello, Savannah, 12; Pedro Zapata, Savannah, 11; Kirk Nieuwenhuis, Binghamton, 10; Jason Pridie, Buffalo, 9.

ERA: Chris Schwinden, St. Lucie, 1.57; Mark Cohoon, Savannah, 1.62; Jimmy Fuller, Savannah, 1.63; R.A. Dickey, Buffalo, 2.56; Brandon Moore, Savannah, 2.83; Armando Rodriguez, Savannah, 3.06; Josh Stinson, Binghamton, 3.33; Dylan Owen, Binghamton, 3.34; Dillon Gee, Buffalo, 3.67; Darin Gorski, Savannah, 3.71.

Wins: Mark Cohoon, Savannah, 4; Scott Shaw, Binghamton, 4; Elmer Dessens, Buffalo, 4; Jimmy Fuller, Savannah, 4.

Saves: Manuel Alvarez, St. Lucie, 7; Michael Powers, Savannah, 5; John Lujan, Buffalo, 4; Elmer Dessens, Buffalo, 4; Roy Merritt, Binghamton, 3.

Strikeouts: Jimmy Fuller, Savannah, 37; Brandon Moore, Savannah, 37; Armando Rodriguez, Savannah, 36; R.A. Dickey, Buffalo, 34.

Short hops

Carter Carter’s promotion to the big leagues and Fernando Martinez’s left hamstring injury resulted in D.J. Wabick joining Buffalo from Double-A Binghamton. Wabick, a 25^th-round pick in 2005 from the College of Charleston, hit .222 with one homer and eight RBIs in 63 at-bats with the B-Mets. He was hit by a pitch as a pinch hitter Tuesday at Louisville in his Triple-A debut. … Omir Santos, who was in line to be the Mets’ No. 1 catcher until Rod Barajas signed the first week of spring training, has fallen all the way to Binghamton. The Mets prioritized Josh Thole for playing time at Buffalo, and wanted to get Santos game action, even if it was at the lower level. Thole happens to be in the majors during Henry Blanco’s bereavement leave, but that may last only three days. Santos made his B-Mets debut Friday by going 0-for-3 with a walk and run scored against New Hampshire. He has since been sidelined with a mild rib issue, but is expected to resume playing shortly. … Former Tampa Bay Ray Shawn Riggans, who opened the season with Binghamton before quickly landing on the DL with a shoulder issue, was released Tuesday -- days after joining the Bisons. Riggans had requested to convert from catching to the outfield. As a result of Riggans’ departure and Thole’s brief promotion, Tony Maccani and Jean Luc Blaquiere were promoted from high-A St. Lucie to Buffalo. Blaquiere doubled twice in four at-bats in his Bisons debut Tuesday, in an 11-0 loss at Louisville. … Martinez, who averaged 78 games per season during his first four full years as a professional because of assorted injuries, suffered his latest injury running to first base Sunday. Martinez slowed up as he approached the bag, then grabbed his lower left hamstring after crossing the base. He likened the injury to a right hamstring strain suffered two years ago, which sidelined him for seven weeks. Martinez, 21, was hitting .244 with two homers and nine RBIs in 22 games with the Bisons. He primarily had been playing the corner outfield positions, with only two appearances in center field. … Carter’s promotion likely won’t result in Nick Evans getting a promotion from Binghamton to Buffalo, despite a .313 average with five homers and 21 RBIs in 25 games in Double-A. Mets officials want to ensure Evans gets everyday playing time, and believe Daniel Murphy is close enough to eventually joining the Bisons that it would detract from Evans’ development. … Right-handed reliever Kiko Calero’s career may be in its twilight. Calero, who had a 1.95 ERA in 67 appearances with the Florida Marlins last season, allowed 13 runs in 1 2/3 innings in a pair of relief appearances last week and has no life on his pitches. He returned to the mound Tuesday in Louisville and allowed two runs in two innings, including a homer. Buffalo’s bullpen has struggled this month. Adam Pettyjohn and Calero combined to allow five runs in four innings Tuesday. After allowing only 25 runs as a bullpen unit in April, Bisons relievers surpassed that total in May before even entering this past weekend. … Shortstop Ruben Tejada, who began the season with the Mets after Jose Reyes landed on the disabled list, went 0-for-10 in his first three games after joining Buffalo. But from April 19 through Monday, he hit .391 -- the top average in that span in the International League. … Mike Hessman’s 35 RBIs lead the International League. Runner-up Shelley Duncan of Columbus has 32. Meanwhile, Binghamton’s Lucas Duda picked up his Eastern League-leading 31st RBI Tuesday. … Brad Holt, the 33rd overall pick in the 2008 draft, which also yielded Ike Davis 18^th overall and infielder Reese Havens 22nd, had his best start since returning from a wrist injury in his latest outing. After tossing no more than two innings in any of his first three starts for the B-Mets, Holt allowed one hit and one walk in four scoreless innings at Portland on Monday. Minor league field coordinator Terry Collins said Holt showed a plus fastball and solid curveball, which he threw for strikes. He also tossed 10-12 changeups. … Left-hander Eric Niesen, who has been on the disabled list with a concussion, is due to start a throwing program. Niesen was struck in the back of the head with a throw from catcher Mike Nickeas intended for second base on a steal attempt April 23. The southpaw should re-enter the B-Mets’ rotation within two weeks. … Havens is nearing a promotion from St. Lucie to Binghamton. He had been ticketed to open the season and convert from shortstop to second base with the B-Mets this season, but injuries to oblique muscles on both sides in spring training stalled the start to his season. Collins wanted Havens to log 70 at-bats between extended spring training and St. Lucie before going to Double-A, and he’s approaching that total. Havens will receive tutoring at second base from B-Mets manager Tim Teufel upon joining that club. Havens is hitting .283 with two homers and six RBIs in 11 games with St. Lucie as a second baseman. … St. Lucie closer Manuel Alvarez had his season-opening 21 1/3-inning scoreless streak snapped Tuesday when he committed an error that led to two unearned runs in the eighth inning against Brevard County. … Hard-throwing St. Lucie right-hander Jeurys Familia (0-1, 7.71 ERA) has been out since allowing two runs on two hits in six innings against Bradenton on April 25 because of a freak off-the-field injury. Familia burned his left, non-pitching hand cooking. He’s due to reenter the rotation during the upcoming turn. … Eric Campbell, who has shuffled between left field and third base for St. Lucie, had five straight multi-hit games last week. The eighth-round pick in ’08 from Boston College is hitting .324 with three homers and 13 RBIs. … St. Lucie’s rotation has started to pick up, with Scott Moviel (five runs, two earned, in 12 1/3 innings) making consecutive solid starts and Robert Carson and Kyle Allen each completing six innings while allowing two runs in his most recent start. Chris Schwinden (2-0, 1.57 ERA) had been performing well all season. … Savannah first baseman Sam Honeck, an 11^th-round pick last year out of Tulane, suffered a broken tibia and fibula and underwent surgery as the result of a gruesome plate collision at Delmarva last Wednesday. Doctors indicated Honeck could miss as few as eight weeks, but Honeck likely is out for the remainder of the season. According to Lopez, the Gnats’ manager, Honeck’s brother -- a professional golfer -- suffered the same injury in a car accident in Mexico two weeks earlier in a freak coincidence. Minus Honeck, Jeff Flagg -- who snapped an 0-for23 skid the day after Honeck’s injury -- and Alex Gregory should share first-base duties with Savannah. … Nick Santomauro, highly regarded in the organization since his arrival in the 10^th round of the draft last year out of Dartmouth, was added to Savannah’s roster Friday. The North Caldwell, N.J., native -- a devout Yankees fan during his childhood -- should log significant playing time in left field for the Gnats. That will disrupt Savannah’s early season pattern of Pedro Zapata in center field, flanked by Juan Lagares and Cesar Puello. Santomauro hit .241 with six homers and 21 RBIs in 145 at-bats with Brooklyn last season after the draft. … Gnats right-hander Armando Rodriguez has allowed only one hit in each of his past two starts. Rodriguez, though, has walked six and hit two batters in those nine combined innings, contributing to four runs (none earned).

Adam Rubin’s farm report appears Wednesdays during the season