Mets Hang On to Give Dickey His 19th Victory Contrary to some recent evidence, Citi Field can host life - and not just one form of it, either. The ballpark in Queens, for so long a habitat of monotony and tomblike quiet, was briefly alive Saturday afternoon as R. A. Dickey, aiming to strengthen his candidacy for the National League Cy Young Award, earned his 19th victory as the Mets handled the Miami Marlins, 4-3. Dickey will have two more opportunities this season - including the home finale next Thursday - to try to become the first Mets pitcher since Frank Viola in 1991 to reach 20 victories. For now, his individual quest has generated some welcome tension on the field and in the stands. "There's added pressure on every play," Manager Terry Collins said. We're in a situation almost like a no-hitter, where guys are willing to give themselves up to get an out that can save a win or save a game. For the Mets, that represents a significant change. The mood has been dour for much of the month, as games at Citi Field, most of them losses, have lacked meaning. Their 16-1 loss Thursday night, for instance, was seen by only a few thousand fans. This sort of futility has often tugged the atmosphere at the ballpark into the realm of the absurd, and the quirkiness continued early Saturday. Before the game, a horde of cheerleaders from area schools, along with a few members of the Jets" professional squad, occupied the width of the outfield grass for a long and chaotic dance routine. Four people in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle costumes participated in the ceremonial first pitch to promote the Nickelodeon channel. And after 396 dogs were paraded around the warning track - part of a benefit for North Shore Animal League America, a pet rescue and adoption organization - high-pitched yapping could be heard from the right-field stands for much of the remainder of the day. "The overall energy in the park today was great, and I don't think it was because it was Dog Day," Dickey said. Dickey had a lot to do with it. He pitched eight innings, allowing two earned runs and six hits while striking out four. He lowered his earned run average a percentage point, to 2.66, and for the first time since Sept. 5, his teammates gave him enough support to win. Jason Bay - who started the day with a batting average 6 points lower than Dickey's - put the Mets ahead in the second inning when he blasted a changeup from Mark Buehrle 415 feet to the batter's eye in center field for a two-run homer. Scott Hairston then led off the fourth with a home run. And after failing to reach the four-run plateau for a franchise-record 16 straight home games, the Mets notched at least that many for the second straight day when Marlins first baseman Carlos Lee bobbled a potential double-play ball hit by Daniel Murphy, allowing another run in the fifth. "You see the last couple of days, pretty quiet, pretty stagnant, and then all of a sudden, today, a much different feel," Bay said. Unfortunately, we're not playing for anything record-wise. But there are certain things that come up during the course of the year, like what Dickey's going through, that create a little bit of a different atmosphere. The large and engaged crowd, announced at 30,332, chanted Dickey's name for much of the latter part of the game. The fans suffered through a bit of anxiety, though, in the ninth, when Dickey was removed after putting two runners on base to start the inning. Nervous energy shot through the crowd when reliever Jon Rauch promptly gave up a three-run homer to John Buck, bringing the Marlins to one behind. But the murmurs turned to cheers when Rauch struck out Gorkys Hernandez to end the game. The victory kept Dickey one win behind Gio Gonzalez of the Washington Nationals, who earned his major-league-leading 20th victory earlier in the day. Afterward in the clubhouse, the Mets were already looking toward Dickey's next start. "We've got to figure out a way to score some runs on Thursday for him," Collins said, "because I think our fans deserve to see him get 20, certainly our club needs it, and the organization should be very proud of the fact they stuck with this guy." Those that were on hand to witness No. 19 earned the gratitude of Dickey, who also credited his teammates, the umpires, and plain luck for his career-high total. "I don't know how many were here," Dickey said of the crowd. But whoever was here, it was pretty loud, and it was nice. It is funny, the effect some engrossed fans, a few hundred dogs, four mutant turtles, and a shared cause can have on a generally lifeless building. David Wright went hitless for the second straight game Saturday, leaving his career hit total at 1,414, four behind Ed Kranepool for the Mets" franchise high.