(Best E Casino) - Matt Belisle tries to help the Cincinnati Reds string back- to-back wins together this evening when they open a three-game series with the New York Mets at Shea Stadium.

Belisle lost for the second time in his three starts this season on Saturday against Atlanta, as the Braves managed two runs and eight hits off of him in 5 1/3 innings.

The 27-year-old right-hander, who is pitching to a 6.91 ERA this season, has yet to record a decision in three games against the Mets, but has pitched to a 3.86 earned run average in those outings.

Cincinnati enters tonight's opener on the heels of an impressive offensive showing. The Reds belted seven home runs in a 9-0 win on Wednesday over the Chicago Cubs at Great American Ball Park.

Joey Votto matched a team record with three of the blasts, while Adam Dunn, Paul Bako, Jerry Hairston and Brandon Phillips added homers for the Reds, who also received seven shutout innings from Edinson Volquez to win for just the second time in their last eight games.

The seven homers were two shy of the club's single-game record of nine, set on September 4, 1999 at Philadelphia.

Votto belted a solo shot in the second off Jon Lieber -- one of four home runs against the Chicago starter in the inning -- and added another solo blast off Sean Marshall in the fifth before drilling a two-run shot in the sixth against Sean Gallagher. He also walked in the third and grounded to short in the eighth, becoming the 23rd player in Reds history to hit three homers in one game. The last was Aaron Boone against St. Louis on May 8, 2003.

Volquez (5-1) bounced back nicely from his first loss of the season last Friday against Atlanta. He limited the Cubs to four singles, walked six and struck out 10.

The New York Mets also enter tonight's fray following an impressive offensive showing of their own.

On Wednesday at Dodger Stadium, Raul Casanova finished 2-for-4 with two RBI and a pair of runs scored as New York crushed Los Angeles, 12-1, in the finale of a three-game set.

Luis Castillo and David Wright also drove in a pair of runs while Ryan Church homered and scored three times for the Mets, who salvaged a game in the series and finished one run off their season-high set April 2 in a 13-0 win over Florida.

John Maine (4-2) scattered four hits and one run over 8 1/3 innings en route to his third straight winning start. He also knocked in two runs.

Hoping to keep the Mets on track tonight will be right-hander Mike Pelfrey, who is winless in his last three starts. Pelfrey lost his second straight start on Saturday in Arizona, as he allowed five runs and nine hits in five innings to fall to 2-2, while raising his ERA to 5.27.

Pelfrey is 1-0 in his career against the Reds with a 3.68 ERA in two games (one start).

The Mets won five of their seven meetings with the Reds last season and have won eight of their last 11 in the series.