Mets Video

Pelfrey's recent struggles

Pelfrey's stingy start

Dodgers Video

Monasterios' strong start

Carroll's sac fly

One thing he's not experiencing, though, is nervousness.

"I'm anxious about it," Manuel said. "I'm not nervous about it. I'm anxious to see if he makes the adjustments that we talked about."

Manuel and Mets pitching coach Dan Warthen have been working with the right-hander's fastball efficiency. The former first-round pick (No. 9 overall in 2005) started the season 10-2 before taking losses in his last three starts. His most recent -- on July 19 against the D-backs -- was the worst. He allowed seven hits and six runs in 1 1/3 innings, struggling to make it out of the first.

"He needs to be aggressive in the strike zone early, make them on their heels," Warthen said. "I think he went through a little bit of a stage where he didn't have a good fastball and he started to pick with it. And that isn't the way to do it -- you have to be more confident with it, get it over the plate early and make sure their swinging the bat early."

In two career starts against the Dodgers, Los Angeles has hit .341 against Pelfrey. But the Dodgers have lost seven of their last nine, including a 6-1 loss on Friday.

To help turn things around, manager Joe Torre is calling upon Rule 5 rookie Carlos Monasterios to start on Saturday. The right-hander, who has also come out of the bullpen for the Dodgers, is 2-2 with a 5.40 ERA this season as a starter.

James McDonald replaced Monasterios, who is 1-0 with a 1.75 ERA in relief, in the bullpen.

"The only other option on the club right now was J-Mac and we just think we need his ability in the bullpen," Torre said. "He's durable and can come out of the bullpen and strike somebody out."

Dodgers: Kemp lights up Mets
Center fielder Matt Kemp is batting .354 (40-for-113) with six homers and 21 RBIs in 33 career games against the Mets. ... After hitting .170 in 18 July games going into Friday, third baseman Casey Blake went 2-for-4 in the 6-1 loss.

Mets: Offense enjoys big night
In scoring six runs Friday, the Mets notched more than four runs for the first time in their last 14 games. It was the longest such stretch for the club since a 17-game streak from Aug. 23 to Sept. 8, 1981. ... New York is 2-7 through nine games of its current 11-game road trip.

Worth noting
With Friday's win, the Mets improved upon their 4-10 mark at Dodger Stadium since 2007, which was their second-worst record at any ballpark in that span. ... Both teams made roster changes Friday, as the Dodgers designated pitcher Justin Miller and recalled pitcher Kenley Jansen from Double-A Chattanooga. The Mets recalled pitcher Manny Acosta from Triple-A Buffalo and sent down pitcher Fernando Nieve.