Houston, TX (Best E Casino) - Randy Wolf and four relievers combined on a nine-hit shutout, and the Houston Astros completed a three-game sweep of the suddenly sputtering New York Mets with a 4-0 win at Minute Maid Park.

Wolf (7-10) allowed six hits in five innings while striking out seven and walking three for the Astros, winners in six of seven overall. Chris Sampson tossed a pair of scoreless innings in relief.

Ty Wigginton homered, doubled and scored twice for the Astros, while Hunter Pence and Darin Erstad each went 2-for-3 with a run batted in and a run scored.

Carlos Delgado went 3-for-4 for the Mets, who are riding a four-game losing streak. Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran added two hits each, but New York was a dismal 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position. The Mets now sit in third place in the National League East, three games behind first-place Philadelphia and a half-game behind the Florida Marlins.

Oliver Perez (7-7) allowed all four runs on eight hits in six frames to take the loss. Perez started in place of John Maine, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to July 29 with a strained rotator cuff. The Mets also got bad news regarding their closer, Billy Wagner, who will undergo an MRI Tuesday in New York to examine his injured left forearm.

Wigginton gave the Astros a lead they would never relinquish in the second, as he led off the frame with a homer to left-center.

The Mets threatened in the fourth when Wolf walked David Wright, allowed a single to Delgado and hit Damion Easley to load the bases with one out. But, the lefty fanned both Nick Evans and Robinson Cancel to escape unscathed.

Houston then pulled away with a rally in its next at-bat. With two outs, Wigginton doubled to left, then Pence plated him with a double. Erstad followed with a run-scoring single, and Humberto Quintero capped off the burst with an RBI double to left.

The Houston bullpen had a shaky moment in the eighth when Wesley Wright allowed a leadoff single to Delgado and Doug Brocail gave up a single to Fernando Tatis. But, Brocail induced Easley into a double play, then got Evans to ground out to end the inning.

Jose Valverde finished off the win with a scoreless ninth.

Game Notes

It was the first sweep of the Mets by the Astros since September 6-8, 1993. Darryl Kile finished off that sweep by throwing a no-hitter...Since taking first place in the NL East on July 24, the Mets have gone 3-6...With Maine on the DL, the Mets selected the contract of reliever Eddie Kunz from Double-A Binghamton. Kunz made his major league debut Sunday, allowing one hit in a scoreless inning out of the bullpen...The Mets stranded 11 men on base, while the Astros left just four runners on.