Collins manages 1,500th career game

NEW YORK -- Terry Collins wasn't sure he would ever reach this mark. But Collins blasted past a personal milestone on Saturday, managing his 1,500th career big league game.

Only eight other active managers have reached that plateau: Bruce Bochy of the Giants; Terry Francona of the Indians; Ron Gardenhire of the Twins; Clint Hurdle of the Pirates; Bob Melvin of the A's; Mike Scioscia of the Angels; Buck Showalter of the Orioles and Ned Yost of the Royals.

"It means I'm really, really lucky," Collins said. "That's exactly what it means: I've been very, very lucky. This has been a great experience, I've been in pennant races -- it's a lot of fun. I'm lucky to be able to do it as long as I've done it, and hopefully it can continue for a while."

Collins entered Saturday night with a 732-767 combined record at the helm of the Astros (1994-96), Angels (1997-99) and Mets (2011-present). He is 288-333 over nearly four full seasons in New York.

Last September, the Mets gave Collins a two-year contract extension with a team option for 2016.