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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
NEW YORK (AP) -- Rick Reed and the New York Mets sweated one out.
On a humid night, Reed combined with two relievers on a
three-hitter to make a first-inning run stand up, and the Mets beat
the Houston Astros 1-0 Wednesday to hold on to their share of the
NL East lead.
|  | | Rick Reed was overcome by the humidity and ran out of gas in the seventh. Still, he allowed only three hits and struck out six. |
"The baseball purist gets a lot of pleasure, joy and
excitement," Mets manager Bobby Valentine said. "A manager feels a lot of joy when it's over and he has the one run."
Reed (9-4) didn't allow a hit until Bill Spiers singled with one
out in the fifth, winning for the fifth time in his last seven
decisions. Mets catcher Mike Piazza decided early to go with Reed's
fastball, and the pitcher dominated.
"He's been a lot more aggressive this year, using both sides of
the plate, challenging guys," Piazza said. "He's not nearly as
tentative in a big situation. With (Moises) Alou and (Jeff) Bagwell
tonight, we were charging them. It's as much attitude as making
good pitches."
Reed gave up three hits in seven innings, struck out six and
walked two. The Mets got him the run when Benny Agbayani scored on
Chris Holt's wild pitch.
"I was watching Piazza a lot," Astros manager Larry Dierker
said, "and when he went inside -- boom! -- the pitch went inside.
And when he went outside -- boom! -- the pitch went outside. I don't
think Reed threw more than five or six pitches over the middle of
the plate. You're going to beat a guy with control like that? You
have to hit practically every mistake, and we didn't do that."
Reed felt dizzy in the third inning, probably because of the
humidity. He went into the clubhouse, drank some fluids and took a
bite from a candy bar -- it tasted so bad, one bite was enough for
him.
By the seventh, Valentine thought about pulling him, but Reed
persuaded pitching coach Dave Wallace to leave him in.
"Our eyes had him as out of gas," Valentine said. "His
velocity dropped. His location went from below the belt to the belt
up, Rick just said, 'I'm here to do it. I can do it.' "
New York, a major league-best 31-16 since the All-Star break,
remained tied with Atlanta at 79-54, taking two of three from
Houston despite scoring just six runs in the series.
"It's been pretty much established that the bullpen can hold
their leads," Todd Zeile said. "Pitching in tight games, everyone
feels confident in them."
Holt (6-13), who dropped to 0-3 in four career appearances
against the Mets, walked Agbayani in the first and gave up a single
to Darryl Hamilton. Agbayani advanced when Edgardo Alfonzo bounced
into a double play and came home when Holt bounced a wild curveball
to Piazza.
"I jerked it. It was humid tonight and I just pulled it too
much," Holt said. "I gave them a run. I didn't think it was going
to hold up."
The Mets' third-base coach had warned Agbayani.
"Cookie Rojas told me to be ready for a wild pitch," Agbayani
said. "He had thrown a lot of sliders and throws sinkers."
New York only advanced one more runner past second, but it
didn't matter because Mets pitchers allowed no one past second and
only one runner past first.
Turk Wendell pitched a 1-2-3 eighth, and Armando Benitez -- who
hasn't allowed a hit to a right-handed batter in 35 at-bats since
July 14 -- struck out the side in the ninth for his 36th save in 40
chances.
"They've been doing a great job all year," Reed said, "and I
don't see any letup."
Game notes
The Mets acquired minor league infielder Jorge Velandia from Oakland for an outfield prospect after the game. Velandia, 25, was hitting .282 with nine homers and 57 RBI at Triple-A Sacramento and will be assigned to the Mets' Triple-A
Norfolk team. The Mets sent outfielder Nelson Cruz, who is in their Dominican
League program, to Oakland. ... The Astros lost a 1-0 game for the first time since Aug.
23, 1996, to St. Louis. ... New York, tied with Atlanta since
Monday night, improved to 26-15 in one-run games, while Houston
dropped to 10-27, the worst in baseball. The Mets also played their
fifth 1-0 game of the season, winning for the third time. ...
Houston was blanked for just the third time this year. The Mets got
their ninth shutout. ... Al Leiter felt better Wednesday, Valentine
said, a day after the pitcher left after three innings with a
strained muscle in his right buttocks in an 11-1 loss to the
Astros. ... OF Derek Bell (bruised left knee) felt better, but was
still a day or two from playing. ... Holt's seven wild pitches tied
Scott Elarton for the Astros' high. ... New York has won 19 of its
last 24 home games but plays just 12 of its last 29 games at Shea
Stadium. ... Piazza hyperextended his knee crossing the first-base
bag in the first inning but said it wasn't serious. ... Boston's
Nomar Garciaparra is the last right-handed batter to get a hit off
Benitez.
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AUDIO/VIDEO
 Rick Reed says he and Piazza had a game plan on Wednesday.
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