Mets 6 Braves 3

Once again, Mike Pelfrey was magnificent.

And once again, it didn’t matter that the Mets don’t have a closer.

Pelfrey pitched a complete game, three-hitter as the Mets beat the Braves 6-3 — and it wasn’t even that close. Big Pelf was extremely efficient — 108 pitches, averaging a fantastic dozen pitches per inning — and never struggled. Even when he gave up two runs on two walks and an infield single in the sixth, it was effortless and hardly a cause for concern. If this guy ever develops a legit offspeed pitch, he will eclipse Johan Santana as the Mets’ ace.

The Mets scored five of their six runs in the first frame, giving Pelfrey plenty of support and an opportunity to relax and throw strikes. The big blow came off the bat of Daniel Murphy, who delivered a two-out, two-run single. Did you purchase a Murphy’s Law T-Shirt yet?

Notes

Argenis Reyes is making a strong case to stick around once Luis Castillo comes off the DL — which could be this weekend. And I’m not just echoing Keith Hernandez’s obsession with Reyes — I’ve also been impressed with his old-school approach and all-out hustle. However, I still question batting a man with a .306 OBP second in the lineup.

Speaking of OBP, I was astonished to see Brian Schneider’s is over .350. Do you realize he gets on base more often than Ryan Braun, Jimmy Rollins, Garret Atkins, and James Loney (among others)? Oh yeah, and his OBP is 30 points higher than that Milledge kid. Now if only he can squeeze out a few more extra-base hits, he might actually be an asset on the offense.

Jose Reyes was 0-for-4, and made both the first and last outs of the first inning. However he’s still stinging the ball and I wouldn’t worry about him dropping off anytime soon.

David Wright mashed a solo homer in the fifth, his 24th of the season.

Dan Murphy is still hitting over .400.

Next Game

Another 7:10 pm start on Thursday night, with Pedro Martinez going to the mound for the Mets. The Braves claim that Mike Hampton will throw their first pitch, but I’ll believe it when I see it.