Perez leads Mets to 2-game sweep at Yankee Stadium

New York Mets' Carlos Delgado, left, congratulates David Wright after Wright scored on Moises Alou's eighth inning sacrifice fly in a baseball game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in New York, Sunday, May 18, 2008. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

NEW YORK—Oliver Perez shut down the slumping New York Yankees, Jose Reyes homered for the second consecutive game and the Mets cruised to an 11-2 rout Sunday night for a rain-shortened sweep of their crosstown rivals.

Ryan Church also homered and Moises Alou drove in three runs for the Mets, who beat Chien-Ming Wang and won a series at Yankee Stadium for only the second time since interleague play began in 1997. They took two of three in 2005.

This one was a two-game sweep after Johan Santana beat the Yankees 7-4 Saturday. Friday night's scheduled opener was rained out and is likely to be made up when the teams meet again June 27-29, possibly with a two-ballpark doubleheader.

Perez (4-3) pitched three-hit ball for a season-high 7 2-3 innings, handing the Yankees their fifth loss in six games. The so-called Bronx Bombers, missing injured sluggers Alex Rodriguez and Jorge Posada, have scored only 12 runs during that stretch while falling to a season-worst 20-24.

The margin Sunday night could have been bigger, too, if not for a blown call that cost Carlos Delgado a three-run homer. Perez won his second consecutive outing following a three-game skid, and the Yankees dropped to 4-10 against left-handed starters.

Wang (6-2) gave up seven runs and six hits in 7 2-3 innings, falling to 0-2 in his past three starts. Hideki Matsui homered for the Yankees.

The Mets loaded the bases in the fourth and took the lead on Church's RBI grounder. Alou followed with a two-run single to right on a half-swing, and Delgado sliced a line drive down the left-field line that should have been a three-run homer.

The ball barely skimmed over the wall, right above the white foul line painted on the padded blue fence, and glanced off the bottom of the foul pole, which is set back just a bit from the wall.

Third base umpire Mike Reilly originally signaled home run, but shortstop Derek Jeter argued and the umps quickly huddled before reversing the call -- foul ball. Mets manager Willie Randolph argued to no avail.

Sitting next to the foul pole, fan Chris Rom picked up the ball after it hit him in the hip and was soon showing television cameras the mark Delgado's shot left on the pole -- and the smudge on the ball, too.

"It was a home run. It's indisputable. That's why you need replay for home runs," said Rom, a Mets fan who works in Brooklyn. "CSI can come take DNA off the pole -- it was a home run."

As Delgado continued his at-bat, Mets bench coach Jerry Manuel kept barking and pointing at plate umpire Bob Davidson, who shouted back and ejected Manuel.

Delgado ended up hitting an RBI single that made it 4-0.

Jeter singled in the bottom half and Matsui followed with his sixth home run.

Church connected leading off the sixth to make it 5-2, the second homer Wang has allowed in 10 starts this year. David Wright hit a leadoff double in the eighth and scored on Alou's shallow sacrifice fly, chasing Wang.

Brian Schneider and Luis Castillo added two-out RBI singles off Ross Ohlendorf before Reyes' three-run drive made it 11-2.

Notes:@ Marlon Anderson started in LF for the Mets and Alou was their DH because Alou's 41-year-old body has felt sore lately. ... Jeter got his first stolen base of the season. ... Injured C Jorge Posada (right shoulder) began catching bullpen sessions in an attempt to speed up his rehabilitation. Posada also made throws from 75 and 90 feet, and hopes to return to the Yankees by early June. ... The teams took batting practice indoors because of wet weather. ... Neither team had a hit until the fourth. ... The Yankees began the day 12th in the AL in runs with 177. ... Church scored three times and made a sliding catch in RF to save a run in the second. ... Yankees 1B Jason Giambi was twice hit by a pitch.