Mets Have Faced Parade of Lefties PHILADELPHIA - The sample size is small, but the Mets have faced 15 left-handed starters in 31 games this season. Are teams trying to manipulate their pitching rotations to have lefties face the Mets" lefty-heavy lineup? "I think it's happenstance right now," Manager Terry Collins said. "I wouldn't be surprised if, during the season, perhaps someone's going to get skipped or someone's down for a few days, they'll look at that, "We're playing the Mets and they're going to run five left-handed hitters at us, let's have a left-handed starter in there."" Ike Davis, Daniel Murphy, Lucas Duda, Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Josh Thole all bat from the left side. The Mets" record is 6-8 against left-handed starters compared with 11-5 against the right handed-starters. The Philadelphia Phillies started the former Cy Young winner Cliff Lee against the on Mets on Wednesday night. The Mets actually have a superior batting average against those lefty starters (.271) than they do against righty starters (.246). But the Mets" left-handed hitters are batting just .236 against all left-handed pitchers, the worst of any of the club's platoon stats. Murphy and Davis were the only lefties in the lineup Collins posted on Wednesday, which included the righties Scott Hairston as the cleanup hitter and Vinny Rottino as the No. 5 hitter. Collins said the lineup was designed to give starters an off day and not as a sign that he is satisfied taking two out of three games in the series against the Phillies. Collins said he would have had the same lineup against a right-handed pitcher. But Collins would also like to see his left-handed hitters improve against pitchers from their side. The key for those players, Collins said, is to use the entire field and to focus less on driving the ball. "Giving up something to get something," Collins said. You have to give up the power stroke to get the base hit. Catcher Gets a Chance Catcher Rob Johnson made his Mets debut on Wednesday. Johnson, a 28-year-old journeyman who has played for the Seattle Mariners and San Diego Padres, was promoted from Class AAA Buffalo after Thole sustained a concussion on Monday. Upon arriving in Philadelphia on Tuesday, Johnson was told that he would be the starting catcher on Wednesday. He immediately met with starting pitcher Dillon Gee to watch video. Johnson expected that there would be an adjustment during the early innings on Wednesday and that Gee might need to shake off some signs, but did not anticipate major issues in their first time together. "I know the arsenal that he's bringing into the game," Johnson said. It's basically keeping the other guys off balance and hitting your spots. Johnson also draws from his experience facing Gee last season while with the Padres. He was 0 for 5 with a walk in two games against the Mets. He was 0 for 1 with one walk against Gee. He compared it to his experience going from Seattle to San Diego, two clubs that face each other in interleague competition. Johnson was able to catch Padres pitchers with the help of information accumulated as an opposing hitter. "As a catcher, you're always watching pitchers" Johnson said. It's something I take a lot of pride in. I'm trying to be on the same page. I've spoken to several pitchers already. The length of Johnson's stay with the Mets is unclear, because his promotion came as a result of the new seven-day disabled list established for players with concussions. Normally, a player like Johnson would know he had at least two weeks in the majors. With Thole's status unknown - he was not in Philadelphia and will not travel with the club to Miami - Johnson hopes he can impress the Mets for however long he is with the team. Johnson looked across the clubhouse on Tuesday and saw R.A. Dickey, whose break came after after years of struggle. As a former fourth-round pick who could not stay with the Mariners or the Padres, Johnson hopes for a similar revival. "You bounce around, bounce around and find an organization that really likes you, appreciates you, you come up and it's just a fit," Johnson said. If that opportunity arises here, great. Lee and the Mets The Phillies activated Cliff Lee from the disabled list on Wednesday after he missed two weeks with a left oblique strain. It was his first start since April 18, when he pitched 10 innings against the San Francisco Giants. One of Lee's three previous starts of the season came against the Mets on April 13. He allowed four runs in seven innings - the only time in his career that he allowed more than one run against the Mets.