Frank Franklin II, Associated Press Starter Kip Wells hangs his head after the Mets' Cliff Floyd scored on a wild pitch in the first inning. Wells gave up five runs on four hits through six innings last night. Click photo for larger image. Today Matchup: Pirates (Gorzelanny 0-0) vs. Mets (Trachsel 7-4). Where: Shea Stadium, New York. TV/radio: FSN Pittsburgh/KDKA-AM (1020) and Pirates Radio Network. Related articles Pirates Notebook: Burnitz, Randa amenable to being traded Collier: Could Canseco be on truth serum? All-Star Week '06: A FanFest guide Game Statistics Provided by Forecaster Pirates vs. Mets box score Game play-by-play

NEW YORK -- If someone had given Kip Wells a mulligan, this might have been his big night.

It might have been a small slice of baseball history, too, for all anyone knows.

As it was, a five-run, all-over-the-place first inning dwarfed all the scoreless and hitless ones that followed -- five by Wells, two by John Grabow -- in the Pirates' 5-0 blanking by Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez and the New York Mets last night at Shea Stadium.

Manager Jim Tracy shook his head afterward and said, "It goes to show what one half-inning can do to you."

But, oh, what a half-inning it was ...

Wells opened with three balls to leadoff man Jose Reyes and, after the count went full, Reyes ripped a shot to center field. Jose Bautista froze momentarily, then backtracked too late. The ball zipped to the wall for a triple.

Paul Lo Duca rifled a single past shortstop Jack Wilson to bring Reyes home.

Carlos Beltran walked on five pitches.

After Carlos Delgado struck out, Cliff Floyd had a two-strike count but was hit on the knee.

Jose Valentin doubled to the right-field line, golfing an inside changeup for two more runs.

A wild pitch during the next at-bat brought the fifth run.

Wells' pitch count: 31.

The count in the five innings that came next: 68.

After falling behind five of eight batters in the first, Wells attacked the strike zone and worked every aspect of his arsenal in limiting New York to two base-runners, each on a walk. He was not dominant, registering only three strikeouts and seldom topping 91 mph on the gun, but it was by far the best stretch of his four starts since rejoining the rotation following spring surgery.

"I hope the light went on," pitching coach Jim Colborn said with a slight smile. "It isn't as hard as he thinks."

The primary problem in Wells' first three starts was a lack of aggression. This time, at least early on, it was accuracy.

"I think the aggression was there all along," Tracy said. "What he was having trouble doing in the first inning was locating his fastball. It was up, and it got hit."

Wells shifted to leaning on the fastball less, at least as a setup pitch.

"I was able to have better sequences and establish my off-speed stuff," he said. "That enabled me to get outs with my fastball."

Wells did not seem terribly comforted by the performance -- that 0-4 record and 12.42 ERA might have a little to do with that -- but he expressed hope it could resonate.

"To pitch that way for those five innings, I hope it's something I can build off for the second half. They didn't run me off when they were in a position to. It was kind of a soul-searching moment for me after that first inning. I wanted to get some quality innings in after that, and I did."

So did Grabow, striking out two in his two perfect innings, but it mattered little.

That was because Hernandez tore through the Pirates for the second time this season, going seven scoreless innings and allowing just four hits. In the first meeting May 22, while with the Arizona Diamondbacks, his line was one run over seven innings.

The Pirates managed just two more hits off Chad Bradford and Duaner Sanchez, wiping away that 47-run count and .350 batting average in the previous six games.

"We weren't able to do a whole lot," Tracy said. "El Duque's breaking ball was good, and he especially was able to freeze our right-handed hitters with it."

New York manager Willie Randolph pointed to Hernandez's heavy reliance on the slow stuff -- one gimmicky changeup arrived at just 51 mph -- as the perfect antidote to the Pirates' production of late.

"He's a good matchup for this team," Randolph said. "He uses his breaking ball, and they're an aggressive, fastball-hitting team."

Hernandez shook off a question about the apparent ease of his outing in improving to 5-8.

"It's not easy," he said. "I have a lot of respect for them."

But he conceded that the Mets' early outburst against Wells created a comfort zone.

"Anytime you get that support, it's good."

In dropping to 1-2 on this seven-game road trip, the Pirates also dropped into last place overall in Major League Baseball for the first time since early April. Their 29-57 record is a few percentage points lower than the Kansas City Royals, who won last night to improve to 29-54.