CINCINNATI — Subliminal messages — the same kind manager Terry Collins says have no place in the Mets’ universe — are starting to permeate the clubhouse walls.
Negative vibes hit Mike Pelfrey just about every time he hears another trade rumor about Carlos Beltran, who will likely be dealt before Sunday’s non-waiver deadline.
“I understand that if you want to get something back for him you have to trade him,” Pelfrey told The Post before the Mets beat the Reds 4-2 last night. “But in the same sense I would think if we ended up getting rid of him, the front office’s view is that we don’t have a chance, because he gives us our best chance to win. If he’s not here, then they felt we can’t rebound from where we’re at.”
The Mets (51-51) desperately want to believe they are alive. Last night they received 6 2/3 strong innings from R.A. Dickey and a four-run outburst in the seventh to snap a two-game skid.
Pelfrey’s pessimism — or is it pragmatism? — is exactly the kind of talk Collins doesn’t want to hear. The manager conducted his pre-game chat with the media several minutes after Pelfrey made that comment, unknown to Collins, and was asked what kind of chatter in the clubhouse would alarm him in the aftermath of a Beltran trade.
“You’re going to hear guys say, ‘The front office is giving up on us,’ or ‘We don’t have a chance now’ or ‘We didn’t get much for him,’ ” Collins said.
Then he offered a warning shot: “We’ve got guys that are playing for their jobs, too. The minute they give up and quit, they won’t be here next year. I want the guys to play 162 [games] and play hard.”
Pelfrey said there are too many professionals in the clubhouse for the Mets, who began last night’s play 8½ games behind the Braves in the wild-card race, to give up. But he also has been with the team long enough to question the organization’s mentality around the trade deadline.
“In the past we’ve kind of been close, and moves are kind of made at the deadline where guys are kind of like ‘We could have used this, we could have used that and been right there,’ ” Pelfrey said. “It hasn’t happened a couple of times, and I know it’s kind of gotten to some guys.”
Pelfrey wants the best for Beltran.
“For his sake, I hope he goes wherever he goes and wins it all,” Pelfrey said.
Beltran played a supporting role last night, with a sacrifice fly in the seventh that accounted for the Mets’ first run. Daniel Murphy’s 2-for-5 performance that included a two-run double in the seventh fueled the Mets’ 11-hit attack.
Dickey (5-8) allowed two earned runs on eight hits with seven strikeouts and one walk to record his first victory since June 28. Jason Isringhausen loaded the bases in the ninth before striking out Brandon Phillips to end it and earn career save No. 296. Dickey said his faith in Isringhausen never wavered.
“I believe in the old man,” Dickey said. “He has a lot of tricks up his sleeve.”
Collins, as much as anybody, would miss Beltran. But the manager says it’s his job to remind the players they can still be successful without their All-Star right fielder.
“I want to see how they react to the whole situation,” Collins said. “What the mood in the clubhouse will be, what the conversations are about and then have a feel for it, and if it’s stuff I don’t like and it needs to be addressed, certainly address it immediately.”