Berkman, Backe lead Astros in 8-3 win over Mets

Houston Astros' Lance Berkman follows through on a single to drive in a run during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets Saturday, Aug. 23, 2008 in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

NEW YORK—Lance Berkman hit a three-run homer, Brandon Backe brought his best stuff to the mound and the Houston Astros roughed up John Maine early in their 8-3 victory over the New York Mets on Saturday night.

Berkman finished with three hits and drove in four runs, finally figuring out the Mets in his fifth try against them this season. He'd been 2-for-15 and hadn't driven in a run, leaving three stranded in New York's 3-0 win Friday night.

David Newhan added his first homer of the season and Miguel Tejada drove in a pair of runs for the Astros, who have struggled recently after an eight-game winning streak. They've won just three of their past eight games while falling well out of playoff contention.

The Mets lost for just the second time in 12 games and their NL East lead was cut to 1 1/2 games over Philadelphia. Brian Schneider hit a two-run homer, his fourth in his last six starts, and Ryan Church added a pair of hits and drove in a run in his second game back from the disabled list.

Backe (8-12) has been awful one game and excellent the next, so it figured that he'd throw a gem against the Mets after matching a career high by allowing 11 runs his last time out.

The right-hander didn't permit a base runner until Daniel Murphy drew a two-out walk in the fifth, the first time the Mets put anybody on base since Schneider's home run off Roy Oswalt in the second inning Friday night. Oswalt retired his final 20 batters in a complete-game loss, and Backe set down his first 14.

Church followed with an RBI double, but by then Houston already had a big lead.

Maine (10-8) has been struggling with a mild strain to his right rotator cuff that landed him on the disabled list, and manager Jerry Manuel jokingly said before the game that a good outing from the right-hander would be 100 pitches -- over nine innings.

Well, he threw 105 but didn't make it out of the sixth, allowing a season-high 10 hits and eight runs in a sharp contrast to his recent outings. Even with a sore shoulder, Maine had been 1-0 with a 0.63 ERA in his last three starts.

Maine cruised through the first inning on eight pitches before Berkman doubled leading off the second. Geoff Blum followed with a run-scoring double.

The big blow came in the third, when Backe led off with a single and Darin Erstad walked. Both moved up on Michael Bourn's sacrifice and Tejada followed with an RBI single before Berkman hit a 94 mph fastball over the left-field wall for his 26th home run.

Newhan's drive to right leading off the sixth was his first since May 12, 2007, when he was a member of the Mets. Four straight singles capped by Berkman's base hit made it 8-1.

Schneider's two-run homer in the eighth was sixth of the year. It chased Backe, who allowed three runs and five hits in seven-plus innings.

Notes:@ Houston improved to 54-24 when scoring at least four runs. ... The Mets decided to wait on activating 2B Luis Castillo (strained hip flexor) for at least a few more days, Manuel said. ... Mets RHP Mike Pelfrey probably will be pushed back in the rotation to avoid starting against Florida, a team he's struggled with.