Mets 7
Phillies 5
PHILADELPHIA – The Mets insisted that Double-A call-up Jeff Duncan was ready for the big leagues.
Frankly, Duncan is everything Roger Cedeno used to be – and more.
Buoyed by the emergence of their rookie center fielder and the methodical consistency of Steve Trachsel, the Mets completed a two-game sweep at Veterans Stadium yesterday afternoon with a 7-5 victory over the Phillies.
The 24-year-old Duncan rapped two singles, walked twice, swiped a bag and executed a perfect fifth-inning squeeze that gave the visitors a 6-1 lead.
“It’s been a great experience for me,” the ex-Binghamton Met said. “You work so hard for this opportunity, the first day you get called up, you’ve got to believe [you’re ready].
“You feel like you prepared, and you let the chips fall where they may.”
Trachsel (9-6) earned the victory with 51/3 innings in the stifling 89-degree oven. A continually shaky John Franco was removed from a save opportunity in the ninth once the lead closed to two, reminding Met fans of why they once preferred Armando Benitez to the 42-year-old lefty.
But Dan Wheeler slammed the door with a game-ending strikeout of Pat Burrell despite working two innings on Monday night.
“I was [ticked] off at my location, not [ticked] off of being taken out of the game,” Franco said. “It was the right move to make.”
Said Wheeler: “For some reason I’ve always been able to rebound pretty good.”
Duncan, a speedster whose spot on the roster was ensured when Jeromy Burnitz was dealt to the Dodgers, has quickly be- come one of the most exciting players on the last-place club. He dropped down a textbook bunt on a 2-1 pitch from Carlos Silva to plate Joe McEwing with one out in the fifth.
“That’s the first time I’ve ever squeezed,” he said. “Right now we’re trying to do whatever we can to get runs, and I’m trying to do whatever I can to help the team.”
The seventh-round pick in 2000 was installed as the leadoff man on Monday night after previously batting second. This is his second call-up, and he’s hit safely in nine of his last 11 games while collecting four multi-hit games in that span.
The Illinois native is a welcome addition to a clubhouse where there’s been a lot to grouse about lately, and he’s content wearing No. 61.
“I’m not going to say anything about it until they change it for me,” a smiling Duncan said. “It’s working for me.
“My first preference is 12. You guys gonna help me out?”
THE DUNCAN FILES
Full name: Jeffrey Matthew Duncan
Born: 9 19 1979
Birthplace: Miami, Fla.
College: Arizona State
Marital status: Single
Height: 6’2
Weight: 190
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
Acquired: Selected in seventh round of 2000 First-Year Player Draft
Highlights
*Hit .288 with 4 HR, 23 RBI and 49 runs in 76 games this year at Binghamton (AA).
*In 2002, hit .373 in 69 games at Capital City (A) and St. Lucie (A), including hitting safely in 31 0f 40 games at Capital City.
2003 stats with Mets
G AB H R HR RBI SB AVG
13 32 13 5 1 6 3 .406