Reyes drops to 0-10

~ The Mets downed the Cardinals 2-0 in a rain-shortened game.

NEW YORK -- Tom Glavine nearly gave the New York Mets their first no-hitter -- with a major explanation attached.

Glavine earned his 297th win, pitching one-hit ball for six innings in a rain-shortened shutout to lead New York past the St. Louis Cardinals 2-0 on Wednesday night.

Scott Rolen's second-inning infield single was the only hit off Glavine, who walked two and struck out one in his 25th shutout.

"He wants it the real way. He don't want the asterisk by it," teammate David Wright said. "He'll live. He'll take the win I'm sure."

St. Louis Cardinals' Ryan Ludwick, right, heads off the field as the grounds crew rolls out the tarp at the start of a rain delay in the sixth inning against the New York Mets Wednesday, June 27, 2007 at Shea Stadium in New York. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)

Wright hit a two-run homer off winless Anthony Reyes in the first, and the NL East leaders made it stand up for their fifth victory in six games.

After walking Aaron Miles with two outs in the second, Glavine (7-5) retired his final 13 batters. The 41-year-old left-hander threw his 56th complete game and first since a two-hit shutout of Colorado on Sept. 29, 2005. He also improved to 20-6 in 37 starts against St. Louis.

"I hope he's back on track -- I think he is," Mets manager Willie Randolph said.

It was Glavine's second one-hitter, both with the Mets, and the first time New York allowed only one hit in a weather-shortened game.

The Mets, born in 1962, have never had a pitcher throw a no-hitter. This would have been quite a way to change that.

Back in the lineup after missing two starts with a bruised left foot, Rolen hit a grounder down the third-base line with one out in the second. Wright made a backhand stop and tried an off-balance throw, but it was way wide and Rolen beat the play easily.

"If I would have known it would have been a rain-shortened outing, I would have tried a little harder," Wright said, joking. "I was giving Tom a hard time. Maybe next outing."

The start was delayed 54 minutes by rain, and heavy showers returned in the fifth. Umpires halted play before New York came to bat in the sixth, and the game was called after a 91-minute delay.

"They were talking like two hours of rain, a lot of stuff kicking around," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said.

Paul Lo Duca singled off Reyes (0-10) in the first. With two outs, Wright drove a 1-0 pitch 425 feet to right-center for his 13th home run and first since June 9. The Mets hung on and moved to 5-1 this season against St. Louis, who beat them in a seven-game NL championship series last October.

"It's my luck right now. It's just biting me," Reyes said. "It was a bad pitch. He was looking for it and he hit it."

Demoted to the minors last month, Reyes is winless in 12 major league starts since he tossed a gem in Game 1 of the World Series last year as a rookie, pitching into the ninth inning for a 7-2 victory over Detroit.

The right-hander has dropped 12 straight regular-season decisions, tying Bill Kissinger's franchise record set from 1896-97. The Cardinals, who didn't score in Reyes' previous start, either, have managed only 29 runs in his 12 outings this year -- just 14 while he was on the mound. That's the worst run support in the majors.

"He's pitched better than his record. Today was a good example. It's difficult to accept. He deserves better," La Russa said. "He pitched better than we hit. We made a lot of soft outs. Glavine had a lot to do with that, but it's happened before."

Glavine got some defensive help from speedy rookie Carlos Gomez, who robbed Juan Encarnacion of extra bases with a leaping catch in the left-field corner in the fourth. Gomez banged his back against the fence and grimaced after throwing the ball back to the infield.

Gomez also made a nice grab on Miles' drive in the fifth.

Glavine has won consecutive outings after going 0-4 in five starts from May 24 to June 16 -- and he was hit hard in his final two appearances during that stretch.

After getting roughed up at Yankee Stadium, Glavine worked on his mechanics and tempo. Now, he's allowed one run and seven hits in his past 14 innings, against Oakland and St. Louis.

"It's a lot of me making better pitches and a little bit of me having better luck," Glavine said.

The two-time Cy Young Award winner is closing in on becoming the 22nd major league pitcher to win 300 games.

Noteworthy

• It was New York's seventh shutout this season. The Cardinals were blanked for the eighth time, tied for most in the majors.
• Cardinals center fielder and leadoff batter So Taguchi grounded to second all three times up, ending his hitting streak at a career-best 18 games.
• Wright also homered off Reyes in the 2006 NLCS.
• Mets LHP Dave Williams (neck surgery) pitched 6 1/3 innings for Class AAA New Orleans in a rehab start.