Mets' Triple-A starting pitchers on a roll

PHOENIX -- The Mets' Triple-A pitchers continue knocking on the Major League door.

One day after Daisuke Matsuzaka carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning for Triple-A Las Vegas, Rafael Montero did likewise in a win over Fresno. Montero ultimately allowed two hits and two runs over 6 1/3 innings, improving to 2-0 while actually increasing his ERA to 2.60.

Matsuzaka has been even sharper since the Mets demoted him to Las Vegas at the end of Spring Training, stringing together a 2.25 ERA over his first two starts despite a pair of no-decisions. Jacob deGrom has been better than all of them, posting an 0.82 ERA. And Noah Syndergaard has at least held his own, putting together a 1-1 record with a 4.09 ERA.

The 51s have not yet used any of those pitchers in relief, but they could soon. Mets manager Terry Collins recently said that he would like to see Montero and deGrom -- though not Syndergaard, the organization's top overall prospect -- pitch out of the Vegas bullpen to see if they might be able to contribute in relief at the Major League level.