SAN DIEGO -- With nothing left to do but wait, Dillon Gee tossed a baseball as he stood atop the pitcher's mound. Through four innings of stinging line drives, and the added complication of bumbling defense, Terry Collins had seen enough.
So the Mets manager began his tortured walk from the dugout to retrieve Gee, who was rocked in Wednesday night's 7-3 loss to the Padres.
The Mets made things interesting in the ninth, rallying off struggling closer Craig Kimbrel. After Will Middlebrooks' error gave the Mets life, Lucas Duda came to the plate as the tying run, with the bases loaded and two outs.