NEW YORK -- David Wells had always thrived in situations like this.
The Mets had loaded the bases in the fifth inning Sunday, and the hostile crowd at Shea Stadium was using its raucous energy and leather lungs to squeeze a hit out of Moises Alou's lively bat.
Wells has always loved those confrontations, and he has defused that pressure more often than not in a career that has spanned 21 seasons and included a World Series title.
But this time, the 44-year-old left-hander didn't have a routine to fall back on. Nor did he have a comfort level built over months of solid outings.
This was his first start with the Dodgers, his first appearance since a seven-run outing for the Padres on Aug. 6 had seemed to turn Boomer into a bust.
After being released by his hometown team, Wells spent three weeks surfing, golfing and doubting himself.
"I basically thought I was done for my career," he said.
Apparently, he's not done.
His performance against Alou on a hot New York summer night was an instant classic. It blended art and craft in three well-chosen and well-executed pitches, a gritty effort Wells wasn't sure he had within him but one that went a long way toward launching the Dodgers to a 6-2 victory -- and toward reestablishing Wells' shaken confidence.
"It felt weird out there, but I've been doing this for a long time," he said after a five-inning, two-run effort that resulted in his first victory since July 16.
"It was a big game. Gimme the ball. It was a big night, national TV.
"I wasn't expecting to do this well. I was just trying to keep the team in the ballgame and just mixing it up."
Wells had benefited from Mets baserunning blunders in the first and third innings, but he put himself under duress in the fifth inning.
He had tweaked his right leg in the top of the inning while running to first on a surprise bunt, forcing him to sidestep on that leg when he returned to the mound. But he easily got the first two outs in the bottom of the fifth, and wasn't concerned.
Then, Lastings Milledge beat out a grounder to short, and Wells walked David Wright and Carlos Beltran, each on five pitches. That brought up Alou, who had singled in the fourth.
"I was going to throw the whole at-bat curveballs. I made up my mind," Wells said.
Catcher Mike Lieberthal put down the sign for a curve. Alou fouled it off, a pitch measured at 69 miles per hour.
