Bumping umpire may cost Mets manager Jerry Manuel

Jerry Manuel showed a little more poise and patience during his postgame press conference Thursday night than he did in the top of the eighth inning, when he screamed at and brushed up against first base umpire Bill Welkefollowing an obstruction call onJose Reyes.

“I was basically, simply, asking him to get help,” said Manuel, who was promptly ejected for the first time this season. “That was the argument.”

Welke, who confirmed that Manuel leaned in and brushed his hat after getting tossed, awarded Shane Victorino second base after thePhillies‘ center fielder got caught in a rundown and bumped into Reyes between first and second. Victorino appeared to throw an elbow and initiate the contact on the play, but Reyes was still ruled at fault for being in the basepath.

“He can’t be there when Victorino makes that turn. He’s got to get out of the way. That was the reason for the obstruction call,” Welke said. “Jerry wanted me to get help on the play, but … I moved into position to take that end of the rundown. It was my call, and there was no reason to ask for help.”

Asked if any disciplinary measures would be taken against Manuel for initiating contact, crew chief Tim Welke - Bill’s brother and the second base umpire Thursday night - stepped in and said: “We’ll have to report on that.”

Manuel’s ejection fired up the crowd of 37,295 as the Mets went on to win their fourth straight, 7-5, and it may have sent a message to his players.

Less than a week after general manager Omar Minaya questioned the team’s intensity and wondered if the Mets lacked an “edge,” Manuel went out of his way to make a big issue over a subjective call that could have gone either way.

And he did so with the Mets holding a comfortable four-run lead.

“He didn’t want the game to get away from us. He showed the emotions tonight,”Gary Sheffield said. “I’ve known him for a long time and he’s always been a fiery guy underneath the surface.”

The call still had the potential to affect the final outcome: Instead of Victorino being wiped out on a double play, he ended up scoring on Jayson Werth’s homer to left as the Phillies pulled within two. But Manuel’s ejection put the Mets on edge, reinforcing the bottom line.

“He’s just trying to do his job, get a win no matter how,” Reyes said. “That’s the key, win no matter how.”

David Wright had a similar reaction, and displayed the kind of edge Minaya was talking about.

“The definition of edge is going out there and getting a few wins, and then all of a sudden you don’t have to worry about anyone talking about edge anymore,” Wright said. “That’s a thing in the past. Go ask Omar about that.”