New York Mets

NEW YORK - Carlos Ruiz couldn't catch, but hitting clearly wasn't a problem Wednesday night. Out of the starting lineup for the third consecutive game with a strained right hamstring, Ruiz drilled a pinch-hit two-run home run that tied the score in the seventh inning. The Phillies got the lead in the next inning on their way to beating the New York Mets, 10-6, at Citi Field. They won two of three in New York and will take Thursday off before hosting the Miami Marlins in a weekend series.

New York Mets rookie Matt Harvey started his big-league career in style Thursday night, becoming the first major-leaguer since 1900 to strike out more than 10 and get multiple hits in his debut. Harvey (1-0) struck out 11 and gave up just three hits in 51/3 innings in a 3-1 win over Arizona. He looked sharp at the plate as well, notching a double in the second and a single in the fourth. The Diamondbacks gave him credit, rather than claiming to be, uh, snakebit. "He had good life on the fastball and spotted the ball well.

What kind of season has it been for the New York Mets? Their top three hitters - Jose Reyes (.336), David Murphy (.320), and Ike Davis (.302) - all are on the disabled list. Not to be outdone, the top two pitchers, in terms of ERA - Chris Young (1.88) and Taylor Buchholz (3.12) - also are on the DL. And Johan Santana , languishing on the DL since March 22, hasn't pitched all season. Leaves you all choked up, doesn't it?   1,200 home runs After a month and a half on the DL, Alex Rodriguez returned to the Yankees lineup to face the Minnesota Twins.

Bobby Valentine took over as manager of the Boston Red Sox on Thursday, promising to be hardworking, open-minded, and even humble as he tries to help the franchise return to the playoffs and forget the disappointment of this season's unprecedented September collapse. "It's more than a special day. It's the beginning of a life that's going to extend beyond anything I thought of doing," Valentine said. "The talent level of the players we have in this organization is a gift to anyone, and I think I'm a receiver of this gift.

Jose Reyes had Citi Field buzzing from the moment he stepped out of the dugout right up until he quashed a rally in the eighth inning with his glove. Carlos Beltran impressed everyone, too, swinging the bat as if losing 5 pounds in 3 days and having a 105-degree fever had no effect on him at all. With their two All-Stars back in the lineup, the New York Mets showed some spunk in a crisp, 4-2 win over St. Louis last night. "Our lineup certainly changes with those two guys in that order," manager Terry Collins said.

FOR THE SECOND time in 3 days, the Miami Marlins walked up to the winter meetings podium to introduce a high-priced free agent while working doggedly behind the scenes to bring more sparkling stars to baseball's newest ballpark. The Marlins, dominating the market under art dealer-owner Jeffrey Loria, increased their spending spree to $191 million in less than a week, agreeing yesterday to a 4-year, $58 million contract with lefthander Mark Buehrle just hours after finalizing a deal with All-Star shortstop Jose Reyes.

NEW YORK - Cole Hamels can only hope another terrible start will lead to another terrific finish. Hamels began the second half of the season the same way he kicked off the first half: scuffling through a short outing in a lopsided loss to the New York Mets. This time, Hamels lasted just 41/3 innings, allowing eight hits and seven runs in an 11-2 loss to the Mets Saturday afternoon before 41,166 spectators at Citi Field. It was Hamels' worst work since his first start this season, when he allowed six runs in 22/3 innings in a 7-1 loss to the Mets April 5 in Citizens Bank Park.

There's more to it than just Jack McKeon. There's the timely hitting, the stingy pitching, the proper execution with runners on base. Now matter how anyone tries to explain it, though, the Florida Marlins simply look like a new team under their old manager. Clay Hensley came off the disabled list to win his first major league start in three years and the visiting Marlins beat the New York Mets, 4-1, last night for their ninth victory in 10 games. "We're interested in winning," McKeon said.

After nine games, we can definitively say this about the 2012 Phillies: It could go either way. It went their way Sunday at Citizens Bank Park. After they tried for six innings to single the New York Mets and their own manager to death, the Phillies finally mixed in three doubles and seven runs during their final two at-bats and avoided a three-game sweep with an 8-2 win that sent them on a 10-game West Coast trip with a 4-5 record. That's not the start they were hoping for, and one 14-hit afternoon against the Mets is not going to ease the offensive concerns that were in place when the team left spring training.

The announced crowd at Citizens Bank Park Tuesday night was 43,821. As usual, that news was followed by the familiar sellout addendum, a streak that has reached 216 games. Left unspoken by the Phillies was the fact that the latest crowd was the smallest since July 7, 2009, the date that the sellout streak began. Also left unspoken was this: Customer satisfaction is rapidly declining. It dwindled again on this night when the Phillies squandered a four-run lead and wasted another solid effort by a starting pitcher in a 7-4 loss to the New York Mets.