Manuel's practice plan fell flat for the Mets as they were defeated by the Braves at Citi Field in a bubbling cauldron of a night, with both excitement and anger simmering just beneath the surface. Indeed, an eventful May led into a night of anticipation for the Mets' fans last night as their team took the field. Ace hurlers, Johan Santana and Derek Lowe were locked in a match of will for six innings, enduring the labour of their work, but the mano a mano was ended at the start of the seven inning as Santana was pulled out of the cauldron by Jerry Manuel, Mets' skipper, who thought that his ace had spent far too much time on the mound. Once the cauldron's lid had been lifted it was too hot to be handled to put it back and the Braves took proper advantage of Santana's leaving as they scored runs against Parnell, Feliciano, Stokes and Takahashi in the seven, eight and nine inning to put the game safely to bed for the Braves. Final score:  Braves   8  Mets  3.

P. Figueras