NEW YORK -- Noah Syndergaard kept it close, manager Terry Collins won a pair of replay challenges and the New York Mets threw out three runners on the bases.They just didnt do quite enough to beat the St. Louis Cardinals.The Mets remained stuck in a recent holding pattern, falling to St. Louis 3-2 Tuesday in the opener of a doubleheader. New York has alternated wins and losses for the last 11 games.I dont know how many times I got to say it, this is crunch time, Collins said. Say whatever you want, this is the time where we got to win games, string them together, win eight out of 10.Jedd Gyorko homered for the sixth time in eight games, hitting a two-run drive off Syndergaard (9-5). Rene Rivera hit a two-run homer off Carlos Martinez (10-6).The Mets played at home for the first time since the All-Star break and lost in a matchup of NL wild-card contenders. Citi Field was nearly empty at the start, a day after a rainout forced the twinbill.Syndergaard has won only one of his last five starts. The All-Star had a tough sequence in the second -- he got hit in the lower right leg by Tommy Phams one-hop single to load the bases, then made a wild, off-balance throw home on Martinezs comebacker to let a run score.Gyorko homered the next inning.I just think the Cardinals did a really good job of getting my pitch count high in the first two innings, Syndergaard said.There was some series of unfortunate events that happened in the second inning that got my pitch count elevated. And from that point Im just trying to last as long as I can out there, knowing that its a doubleheader, trying to give the bullpen a break, he said.Syndergaard struck out eight in six innings.Martinez left after the fifth inning. Three relievers finished, with Seung Hwan Oh getting his fifth save in six chances.Curtis Granderson led off the Mets ninth with a single but was thrown out trying to tag up on Yoenis Cespedes drive that Pham caught in deep center field.Gyorko was hitless in his previous 10 at-bats when he connected in the third. St. Louis has homered in 16 straight games, its best streak since a team-record 19-game string in 2006.The Cardinals opened a 10-game trip that also takes them to Miami and Cincinnati. They arrived at their New York hotel around 8:30 a.m. Monday after plane trouble, and the rainout gave them some much-needed rest.TWO TIMINGThis was the first doubleheader between the Cardinals and Mets since 1999. ... The Cardinals swept a twinbill from San Diego last Wednesday.26TH MANThe Cardinals recalled RHP Sam Tuivailala as the 26th player for the second game. Hes made three relief appearances for St. Louis this year. The Mets brought up 27-year-old lefty Josh Smoker -- hes made 43 relief appearances for Triple-A Las Vegas, and has never been in the majors.UP NEXTCardinals: LHP Jaime Garcia (7-6, 3.98) pitches Game 2. He is 2-1 with a 1.29 ERA in five career starts against the Mets. Thats his lowest ERA vs. any opponent.Mets: RHP Bartolo Colon (8-5, 3.48) faces the Cardinals in the second game. He went 0-2 with a 15.58 ERA against them last year. Jamal Adams Jersey Authentic . Pirlo limped out of Sundays 1-0 win over Udinese after just 13 minutes. Juventus says Pirlo underwent tests on Monday which revealed he has "a second-degree lesion to the collateral medial ligament in his right knee. Ny Jets Jerseys For Sale . 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SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said he had the same feelings a parent would have when he heard six Fighting Irish football players had been arrested in two separate incidents over the weekend.Like any other father, my first one was disappointment. Then I think that disappointment kind of moved on to embarrassment for the university. Then I was mad as hell, he said Wednesday in his first public comments since the arrests. Those are the three stages I went through.Starting safety Max Redfield, running back Dexter Williams, linebacker TeVon Coney, receiver Kevin Stepherson and cornerback Ashton White were in a car stopped Friday night for allegedly speeding in Fulton County, about 40 miles south of South Bend. A state trooper said he detected the odor of marijuana and with the help of a drug-sniffing dog, he found the marijuana and a handgun in the car.The five face preliminary charges of misdemeanor marijuana possession. Redfield, Stepherson and Williams face an additional misdemeanor charge of possession of an unlicensed handgun. The Fulton County prosecutor has not yet filed formal charges.In a separate incident, cornerback Devin Butler was accused of tackling a police officer and punching him during an altercation outside a bar near campus. He is charged with felony counts of resisting law enforcement and battery against a public safety official.A not guilty plea was entered on Butlers behalf Wednesday by St. Joseph Superior Court Magistrate Elizabeth Hardtke during his initial court appearance. Butler told Hardtke he plans to hire a lawyer. He declined to comment to reporters afterwaard.dddddddddddd He is scheduled for an initial hearing on Sept. 1.On Sunday, Kelly kicked Redfield off the team and indefinitely suspended Butler, who already was out until October with a broken foot. Redfield had been sent home before the Fiesta Bowl for violating team rules.Kelly said the other four players are practicing with the team and will be available to play in the opener against Texas unless the university takes action.Asked about the different discipline, Kelly said each case is separate.A lot of these decisions are joint in there are other implications and the university is involved in these matters as well, he said.Kelly called the arrests life lessons.Its more than just you, he said. So we talk about selfish decisions. We talk about representing more than just yourself; you represent the university, you represent the program, you represent an entire fan base. So thats the thing we talk about more than anything else, its not just about you.Kelly said it will be a challenge to replace Redfield, a senior and former five-star recruit.Max was an outstanding player and he was having a great camp. He had a great spring. Hes athletic, fast. So youre taking a really good player off your defense. But well be able to plug in a guy there that I think will get the job done for us.He said among those who will vie for playing time are Avery Sebastian, a transfer from California who broke a bone in his foot in the opener against Texas last season, and freshman Devin Studstill. ' ' '