High-spending Mets shake 0-5 start

NEW YORK -- Mike Piazza is batting .150, the bullpen has been shaky and the new-look New York Mets are still in last place.

This certainly wasn't the start they were hoping for after an expensive offseason makeover. But the Mets are finally beginning to feel better about themselves thanks to consecutive comeback wins.

"We got some tough breaks the first three or four games," rookie manager Willie Randolph said Monday after the Mets beat Houston 8-4 in their home opener. "That's all passed."

To his credit, Randolph never seemed fazed by the 0-5 start, the club's worst since 1963. He called it "a slight bump in the road" and said he still had plenty of confidence in all his players.

Back home in New York, there was pure panic.

After three straight losing seasons, the Mets spent $172 million on Pedro Martinez and Carlos Beltran last winter -- and fans expected immediate results.

Instead, closer Braden Looper blew a ninth-inning lead on opening day in Cincinnati, costing Martinez a victory, and the Mets were outscored 24-10 in their next four games against the Reds and Braves.

They went 43 innings without having a lead until Sunday in Atlanta. John Smoltz struck out 15 New York batters, but Beltran's go-ahead homer in the eighth sent the Mets to a 6-1 win behind Martinez's two-hitter.

At last, Randolph could light up that victory cigar Piazza gave him before the season.

"I enjoyed it. It was a good one, too. Couple puffs -- you know, my wife won't let me smoke in the house so I had to go out on the deck," Randolph said.

The Mets were the last major league team to win a game, but at least they didn't head home empty-handed.

"If we would have come back 0-6 you wouldn't have seen anything different from me," Randolph said. "I believe in my team, I feel good about them. I think they're going to get the kinks out. I think they're going to start to reveal themselves."

Maybe that's what the Mets did with a gritty victory Monday. Playing before a sellout crowd of 53,663 at Shea Stadium, they got big hits from Kaz Matsui and Cliff Floyd to rally past the Astros.

For the second day in a row, New York scored five runs in the eighth inning.

"We're going to fight and play hard. There's no reason to doubt ourselves," Floyd said. "We knew we'd go through some downers in the season. You put that behind you."

During the losing streak, Randolph received calls of encouragement from former boss Joe Torre and Baltimore manager Lee Mazzilli, who coached with Randolph on the Yankees.

They told him to remain positive and not worry about the slump.

"Better early than late," Randolph said.

By Sunday night, he was getting messages congratulating him on his first win -- and it didn't take long to get No. 2.

"I had a good sense that coming home with the crowd rooting for us this would happen," Randolph said. "This is the kind of team I'd like us to be and I felt in my heart we could be. You take a deep breath and say, 'Let's play ball."'

But while Martinez, Beltran and shortstop Jose Reyes are off to strong starts, the Mets have plenty of other areas to worry about.

The 36-year-old Piazza has only one RBI and his bat looks slow. Starting pitchers Kris Benson and Steve Trachsel are on the disabled list, along with right fielder Mike Cameron. The team's ERA is 5.43, and New York could end up searching all season for reliable relievers at the back of the bullpen.

The road to .500 doesn't get any easier this week, either. After facing Smoltz and Andy Pettitte the past two days, the Mets get seven-time Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens on Wednesday night.

"The last two days this team showed a lot of heart. Smoltz was so dominant, but we never quit," Looper said. "Hopefully, we don't have to come back a lot."