Mets Vs. Braves: Starters In Relief Key New York’s Win

These must be desperate times for the New York Mets, who beat the Atlanta Braves Sunday afternoon, 3-2, with some desperate measures.

Having seen his team lose seven straight games -- including consecutive doubleheaders, Thursday against the Rockies and Saturday against the Braves -- Mets manager Terry Collins pulled out the stops Sunday.

With scheduled starting pitcher Chris Young going on the Disabled List this week, prospect Dillon Gee was called up from Triple-A for an emergency start. Gee, who did start five games for the Mets last September, pitched into the sixth inning and gave up just one run. But when Gee got into a jam with two outs in the sixth, Collins went to his bullpen ... and more specifically, he went to starting pitcher Chris Capuano, who'd thrown 101 pitches Thursday night against Colorado.

With rookie first baseman Freddie Freeman up next, Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez countered with pinch-hitter Chipper Jones. But Capuano retired Jones on a grounder to third base, preserving the Mets' 3-1 lead.

Collins wasn't finished. For the seventh inning, he turned to R.A. Dickey, who like Capuano had started one of the Mets' games against the Rockies on Thursday. Dickey pitched a scoreless frame, after which Collins went to his more conventional relievers. Jason Isringhausen gave up a run in the eighth, but Francisco Rodriguez pitched a scoreless ninth, striking out pinch-hitter Brooks Conrad to seal the Mets' 3-2 victory.

Nos. 1 and 2 hitters Jose Reyes and Josh Thole combined for two of the Mets' three runs. In the first inning, Reyes doubled and scored on Thole's single. In the fifth, Reyes singled, stole second, and scored again when Thole singled.