Martinez Marvels Again

In their 40 plus years as a franchise, the Mets have never had a no hitter. And while they didn't get one last night's 3-1 win over the Astros, one of their newest members came within three innings of securing the first no no in franchise history. Pedro Martinez took a no hitter into the 7th inning, but Chris Burke ruined his bid when he hit his first career home run. Despite the home run, Martinez had a complete game, two-hitter, with 12 strikeouts. Three of those K's came in the 9th as Martinez struck out the side. For the season, Martinez has 104, good enough to lead the National League.

As if his pitching wasn't enough, Martinez also had a hit and a run scored. Very impressive for someone who just got his first hit since the 1997 season last week. Tempers flared in the hot night when Cliff Floyd was hit by Roy Oswalt in the bottom of the 7th inning. There was jawing, finger pointing, and bench clearing, but no charging, ejections, or retaliation. At least not yet.

The Mets are also close to signing former Reds pitcher Danny Graves. Graves was released by Cincinnati last week after struggling in the bullpen this season. Graves has also criticized the fans in Cincinnati for booing the players and gave the finger to a fan in May. Hmm...if Graves can't take booing, maybe New York isn't the best place for him. Then again, his use of the bird might come in very handy as well. Either way, it can't be too bad for the Mets as the Reds are responsible for most of his salary this year.

Photo by Newsday/Kathy Kmonicek