Mets Win an Opener Light on Fans and Runs Though much of the sheen has disappeared from their interborough rivalry, the Yankees and the Mets still found ways to generate bursts of electricity Monday night during their 91st regular-season meeting. It was a crisp game, wrapped tautly around a few key plays. The most critical one, the one that sent the largest jolt through the crowd, came in the bottom of the eighth inning, when Daniel Murphy rapped a single into center field to drive in the decisive run in the Mets" 2-1 victory at Citi Field. "I know it's the Yankees, and they're used to playing in these games, and they're used to all this stuff," said Terry Collins, the Mets" manager. Well, for us, it's a big win. They way we've been going, it's huge for us. Few things have gone right for the Mets this season, and it appeared at first that they would squander their eighth-inning scoring chance. The score was tied at 1-1 and there was one out when Mike Baxter doubled and Jordany Valdespin walked. The two advanced to second and third when catcher Chris Stewart dropped a first-pitch strike for a passed ball. Baxter tried to score on Ruben Tejada's sharp grounder to second base, but Robinson Cano made a nifty stop and fired home to prevent the run. Then came Murphy, to ensure the rally would not go to waste. On a 3-1 count, he slapped a cutter from reliever Dave Robertson up the middle, sending Valdespin home. As the ball rolled into center field, Murphy lifted his bat and slammed it on the grass in foul territory in celebration. It was a bit of redemption for Murphy, who had been robbed of a home run earlier. "It's been a little bit of a frustrating time for us," Murphy said of his display. It felt like it was a big moment, and I was really excited. Robertson bemoaned his lack of command. "I definitely want to go back out there," he said. I want to redeem myself after being horrible tonight. Robertson and the Yankees will get their chance Tuesday, when the teams return to Citi Field, and on Wednesday and Thursday nights, when the series closes out at Yankee Stadium. The teams were on divergent paths entering the series. The Yankees, fielding a lineup below their normal standard, are one game behind the first-place Boston Red Sox in the American League East. The Mets remained in fourth place in the National League East, trying to end a downward spiral. A recent stream of defeats has darkened the mood around Citi Field this year. The crowd Monday was larger and more boisterous than for a typical game this season, but the atmosphere nevertheless fell well short of past meetings between the teams. Yankee fans infiltrated the park in large numbers, yet there were still big patches of empty seats visible throughout the game. The announced crowd of 32,911 was the smallest crowd for a game between the city rivals. Those who showed up were treated to 2 hours 44 minutes of tightly played baseball. Jon Niese and Phil Hughes matched each other all night, each allowing only one run in seven innings. Niese allowed eight scattered hits and walked one batter while striking out four. Hughes was slightly better, allowing four hits and no walks and notching seven strikeouts. "I thought my fastball was good at the start, and it got better as the game went on," Hughes said. After a tense, scoreless start, the game first turned in the sixth, when Brett Gardner floated a ball down the left-field line that fell underneath the glove of Lucas Duda, who made an awkward diving attempt to catch it. Duda's gamble allowed Gardner to cruise to third, and he scored when Jayson Nix sliced a single to right. Gardner galvanized his team in the field, too. In the bottom of the sixth, with two outs and a man on first, Murphy blasted a changeup from Hughes deep to left-center field. But before the ball dropped beyond the fence, Gardner leapt into the air and caught it, crashing into the wall. The play roused a huge approving roar from the Yankee fans present. Murphy, who thought he had hit his fifth home run of the season, slammed his helmet into the dirt. "It was just a tremendous play," said David Wright, who watched it from the on-deck circle. But we did a nice job rebounding. Wright led the charge, awakening Mets supporters and retying the score when he blasted a home run to start the bottom of the seventh. Wright, who fouled off four pitches from Hughes, hammered the eighth pitch of the at-bat, an inside fastball, deep into the left-field stands. It was his ninth Subway Series home run. And not to be outdone by Gardner, Wright showed his defensive skills, too, by stylishly grabbing a hard-hit grounder from Vernon Wells in the eighth to start an inning-ending double play. "Big players make big plays, and that's what he is," Collins said of Wright. That's why he's the captain. That set the stage for Murphy, who provided the biggest play on a night when a few key moments loomed large. Zack Wheeler, the Mets" top pitching prospect, gave up five runs in four innings Monday for Class AAA Las Vegas. Wheeler, who should be promoted next month, walked three batters, struck out four and gave up two homers. ... All 30 major league teams wore specially designed camouflage caps and jerseys on Monday in observance of Memorial Day. Baseball will donate all proceeds from sales of the items to the charity Welcome Back Veterans.