tankwg

PITTSBURGH — Terry Collins might do a handstand the next time the Mets hit a home run.

Though Collins’ team isn’t built around the long ball, the manager yesterday admitted it would be nice to occasionally see the Mets clear the fences and build on early leads.

“In certain hitters’ counts, take a shot at it,” Collins said after the Mets went homerless for the fifth straight game but beat the Pirates 3-1 at PNC Park.

The Mets’ 25 home runs this season are the second-lowest total in the major leagues, ahead of only the Padres, who entered last night’s play with 16.

Hitting coach Dave Hudgens said the Mets’ lack of pop shouldn’t be a concern.

“I think they come in streaks,” Hudgens said. “You can hit five in a week and then all of a sudden guys are hitting homers — as long as we have good at-bats.

“Jason Bay not being in the lineup, Ike [Davis] with his struggles, that contributes. Once those guys are on target and healthy, things will be a little bit better.”

BOX SCORE

Scott Hairston’s three-run blast on Friday in Toronto was the Mets’ last homer. Davis remains the team leader with five home runs.

* Davis finished 1-for-4 with a single, but will remain under the microscope on the next homestand, during which he could be shipped to the minors if he doesn’t produce. Lucas Duda would likely be shifted to first base if Davis gets demoted, but Collins said there have been no discussions about that possibility.

“If the case comes where Ike is not the first baseman here, you’ve got to decide who it’s going to be because it’s not a one or two-day thing,” Collins said. “We haven’t really talked about who that might be yet.”

* Frank Francisco pitched a perfect ninth for his third save in four games. Francisco has retired nine straight batters during that stretch.

* Collins said he isn’t concerned about overworking Tim Byrdak, who has appeared in 26 of the team’s first 43 games. The manager cited the fact Byrdak, as the lefty specialist, has often faced only one hitter.

Even so, Collins hopes to find a role for lefty Robert Carson, who has only one appearance since arriving from Triple-A Buffalo last Thursday.

Terry Collins, Mets, the Mets, Dave Hudgens, Lucas Duda

Nypost.com

Nasdaq chieftain Bob Greifeld continued to come under fire yesterday for one of the worst-botched IPOs in recent memory.

While some have called for Greifeld to step down, at least two Facebook shareholder lawsuits were filed against Greifeld’s exchange.

It’s quite a comedown for the CEO, whose executives just five days ago were popping champagne to celebrate the expected largest tech public stock offering ever.

But fame and glory turned to infamy and ridicule after Nasdaq fumbled the IPO.

Yesterday, Greifeld down played the Facebook IPO debacle during an annual shareholder meeting in Midtown Manhattan and said that he hopes that he can keep his CEO job.

“Clearly we made mistakes on Facebook,” Greifeld noted, trying to paint a rosy picture after the train wreck IPO in which some investors still don’t know the status of their Facebook orders.

In one lawsuit, one investor accused the Greifeld listing platform of badly mishandling the May 18 IPO — costing retail and institutional clients millions in lost dough.

A separate class-action lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court by Facebook investors is alleging similar wrongs.

At the meeting, Nasdaq officials appeared to have made a point of going relatively quiet over the technical glitches and prevented members of the media from asking Greifeld questions.

Bob Greifeld, Facebook, Greifeld, Facebook IPO, IPO

Nypost.com

NBA Playoffs

Favorite

Line

Underdog

76ERS

2

Celtics

Conference Finals

Sunday

SPURS

5 1/2

Thunder

Odds to Win Series

Favorite

Line

Underdog

Spurs

$155-175

Thunder

NHL Playoffs

Favorite

Line

Underdog

RANGERS

$110-130

Devils

Home team in CAPS
Nypost.com

Jonathan Niese looks to improveo on his 7.94 ERA in May when he takes the mound for the Mets against the Pirates this afternoon.

The two teams have split the first two games of the series in Pittsburgh.

Jonathan Niese, the Pirates, the Mets

Nypost.com

FIRST-6 fur; $14,000; clm($16,000); 3up

4

Lts Go Dnn (Lndrs)

15.80

4.80

3.80

3

Tanasi (Saez)

3.60

2.80

2

Bianca Neve (Delgado)

5.00

Scr: Corys Delight.

* Exacta (4-3) $46.20 * Superfecta (4-3-2-6) $1,119.00 * Trifecta (4-3-2) $189.40

SECOND-6 1/2 fur; $10,500; clm($5,000); 3up

4

Mssy Mnr (Cmch)

19.20

5.60

2.40

6

Super Girlie (Rodriguez)

2.40

2.10

8

Remember Lynn (Panici)

2.20

Scr: Lucky Afternoon, Clery's Magic, School Girl.

* Daily Double (4-4) $52.40 * Exacta (4-6) $39.00 * Superfecta (4-6-8-3) $125.20 * Trifecta (4-6-8) $90.60

THIRD-6 fur; $28,000; alw; 3YO(f)

3

Snster Tle (Dlgdo)

5.40

2.80

2.20

2

Gven Enchantment (Jar)

6.20

4.20

1

Funny Belle (Rios)

4.00

* $1 Pick 3 (4-4-3) 3 Correct $89.40 * Exacta (3-2) $30.20 * Superfecta (3-2-1-7) $405.40 * Trifecta (3-2-1) $102.80

FOURTH-5 fur; $10,500; clm($6,250); 3up

8

Cecl Sys (Bernrdn)

35.80

12.60

10.40

7

Our Plum Puttng (Rdrgz)

5.40

4.40

2

Descuidada (Camacho)

3.20

* $1 Pick 4 (4-4-3-8) 4 Correct $3,839.90 * $1 Pick 3 (4-3-8) 3 Correct $1,349.70 * Exacta (8-7) $305.20 * Superfecta (8-7-2-3) $4,665.60 * Trifecta (8-7-2) $1,292.60

FIFTH-6 fur; $13,000; clm($20,000); 3,4&5YO

7

Rose Soltre (Leyv)

33.40

13.60

7.00

5

Back Bayou (Panici)

6.40

3.40

1

The Sense Angel (Rodriguez)

2.40

Scr: Wildcat Honey, Destiny's Diva.

* $1 Pick 3 (3-8-7) 3 Correct $1,327.00 * Exacta (7-5) $158.80 * Superfecta (7-5-1-6) $1,388.40 * Trifecta (7-5-1) $642.00

SIXTH-1m(T); $15,000; clm($16,000); 3up

11

Prmry Wtnss (Brrs)

9.20

4.40

3.80

7

Rapid Runner (Delgado)

12.60

6.80

12

Zuber (Santana)

4.20

Scr: Surely Sent, Importuno, Southern Glitter, Bidham, Uffizi, Michael Rules, Winner Jak.

* $1 Pick 3 (8-7-11) 2 Correct $61.10 * Exacta (11-7) $72.60 * Superfecta (11-7-12-14) $2,091.00 * Trifecta (11-7-12) $405.00

SEVENTH-5 fur; $10,500; clm($12,500); 3YO

9

Strm D Chsr (Pnc)

7.40

5.60

3.60

2

I Run Fast (Camacho)

10.00

7.20

6

Andrea's Dream (Rodriguez)

7.80

Scr: Escandalosa.

* $1 Pick 3 (7-11-9) 3 Correct $301.30 * Exacta (9-2) $65.20 * Superfecta (9-2-6-4) $2,245.00 * Trifecta (9-2-6) $659.60

EIGHTH-7 fur; $14,000; clm($16,000); 3up

4

Wre Trnzfer (Ros)

6.00

4.00

2.80

5

Tormento (Gonzalez)

9.00

5.00

6

Call in Rich (Rodriguez)

2.40

Scr: Our Mr. Bud.

* $1 Pick 3 (11-9-4) 3 Correct $151.50 * Exacta (4-5) $54.60 * Superfecta (4-5-6-1) $314.20 * Trifecta (4-5-6) $127.80

NINTH-1 1/16m(T); $17,000; clm($32,0); 3YO

11

Jame's Boy (Garc)

3.80

3.40

3.00

9

Soul of the North (Dlgdo)

10.00

6.80

5

Joropo (Saez)

4.80

Scr: Dreaming of Danny, Straightsuccess.. Knickerbocker, Crexent, Steel Hammer, Xpostfacto, Mr. Topia, Sun Time, Goldsome, Cossio

* $0.5 Pick 5 (7-11-9-4-1/11/14) 5 Correct $3,304.00 * $1 Pick 4 (11-9-4-1/11/14) 4 Correct $673.70 * $1 Pick 3 (9-4-11) 3 Correct $59.30 * Trifecta (11-9-5) $348.80 * Superfecta (11-9-5-12) $9,130.60 * Daily Double (4-11) $14.80 * Exacta (11-9) $47.40

Attendance N/A

Trifecta, Trifecta, Superfecta, Superfecta

Nypost.com

Despite a streak of 40 at-bats without a homer and unimpressive stats through a quarter of the season, struggling Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez declared that when the year’s over, he will have delivered his customary big production.

“My numbers are going to be there at the end of the year — there’s no question about it,” Rodriguez said after yesterday’s 6-5 loss to the Reds. “The thing is, we’ve got to put it to work right away because our team needs victories and our offense, our coaches, players expect a lot from me. And I’ll be there.”

Rodriguez, who took an 0-for-4 yesterday, has not gone deep since May 6 and has one home run in his past 20 games. In 40 games, approximately a quarter of the year, he has five homers and 15 RBIs, meaning he is on pace for just north of 20 homers and 60 RBIs.

Rodriguez is hitting a respectable .278 and has a lofty .377 on-base percentage. But his OPS is just .787, which would be a career low for a full season.

In the offseason, Rodriguez talked boldly about what he would do in 2012.

“I expect to be who I have been in the past,” he told The Post’s Joel Sherman.

Rodriguez also said, “The standard is always 30-100, and no question I can perform at a really high level.”

Yesterday Rodriguez, who will turn 37 in July, insisted his confidence is unshaken and he still forecasts a major season.

“Extremely confident,” he said. “I’m in a good place. My body feels good. Working very, very hard every day with [hitting coach] Kevin Long.”

Rodriguez popped out in the second inning, then nearly shattered his homer-less streak in the fourth. He cracked a drive to deep center off Reds righty Homer Bailey, but the fly was caught just short of a two-run homer.

“I thought I had one there in the second at-bat,” Rodriguez said. “One of the things I’m working on is improve the ratio of ground balls to fly balls. Just been putting the ball on the ground a little bit too much. The last two or three days have been much better, so I’m very encouraged.”

Still, Rodriguez continues to deliver troubling images. In addition to his limited offensive production, he barely moved on a Chris Heisey RBI double down the left-field line in the second inning, showing a lack of range and quickness on defense at third base.

mark.hale@nypost.com

Alex Rodriguez, Rodriguez, Joel Sherman.Rodriguez, Yesterday Rodriguez, Homer Bailey

Nypost.com

FIRST-6 fur; $20,000; clm; 3up

5

I'm Nt Myslf (Crmch)

7.60

4.40

2.20

3

Narbona Pass (Ayuso)

14.20

3.60

1

Downtowncndybrown (Trujll)

2.10

Scr: King Henry.

* Ex (5-3) $44.40 * $1 Tri (5-3-1) $39.30

SECOND-1 1/16m; $16,000; clm; 3up

1

Full N Sssy (Sntgo)

3.60

3.20

2.20

4

Secret Tracker (Serpa)

5.80

3.00

3

D'lucci Girl (Carmouche)

2.60

* Dbl(5-1) $21.80 * Ex (1-4) $24.60 * $1 Tri (1-4-3) $34.00; Winner picked by Vic C

THIRD-1 mile; $40,000; mdn; 3up(f)

1

Assyria (Lopez)

6.20

4.20

2.80

6

Party Hardy (Crmouche)

5.80

3.80

4

Rockport Picture (Santiago)

5.20

* Dbl(1-1) $13.40 * Ex (1-6) $29.00 * $1 Tri (1-6-4) $70.20

FOURTH-6 fur; $50,000; mdn; 3up(f)

5

Nn's Prde (Frgoso)

5.60

3.40

2.80

2

Dance With Go (CottoJr.)

5.60

4.00

3

Hotnslick (Uske)

3.80

Scr: Lit'l Edna.

* Dbl(1-5) $22.00 * Ex (5-2) $36.40 * $1 Tri (5-2-3) $84.80

Winner picked by Vic C

FIFTH-1 1/16m; $20,000; alw; 3up(f)

1

Little Pnke (Lopez)

4.40

3.20

2.40

6

Sweet Ll Cherokee (Coa)

7.20

4.40

5

Say It With a Kiss (Serpa)

3.40

* Double (5-1) $19.40 * Ex (1-6) $35.40 * $1 Tri (1-6-5) $89.10

SIXTH-1m(T); $40,000; mdn; 3up(f)

5

Dncng t Twn (RccJr.)

16.40

7.60

6.20

6

Cosmic Energy (Serpa)

9.40

7.00

11

Morethanvictorious (Lopez)

12.20

Scr: Inner Joy.

* Double (1-5) $39.80 * Ex (5-6) $128.60 * $1 Tri (5-6-11) $1,136.70

SEVENTH-6 fur; $52,500; alw; 3up(f)

7

Gky Grgus (Trujll)

14.80

7.60

4.20

3

Old Soul (Lopez)

10.80

5.60

6

Aliraven (Lopez)

2.80

Scr: Don Six's Number, Soccittomebaby.. S, Stategic Command, Double Desert, Mon Ma Mia, Precious Paula

* Dbl (5-7) $158.20 * Ex (7-3) $141.00 * $1 Tri (7-3-6) $244.90

EIGHTH-1 1/16m(T); $26,000; clm; 3up

8

Blazen (Rocco,Jr.)

5.00

3.40

2.80

2

Custer (Carmouche)

5.00

4.00

3

Fagedaboudit Sal (Mangalee)

6.20

Scr: Pampered Sir, Ciro's Clearance.

* Double (7-8) $67.80 * Ex (8-2) $25.40 * $1 Tri (8-2-3) $104.90

NINTH-1 1/16m; $42,000; alw; 3up(f)

8

Mnesve (RoccoJr.)

17.00

7.80

6.20

6

My Sweet Emly (Frgoso)

9.80

5.60

4

Rage of Aquarius (Canchari)

5.00

* Double (8-8) $61.40 * Ex (8-6) $127.80 * $1 Tri (8-6-4) $243.80

TENTH-1 mile(T); $75,000; 3up

Elkwood Stakes

8

Corprt Jungl (Lpz)

3.40

2.40

2.20

5

Successful Msson (Lopz)

5.60

4.00

1

Gourmet Dinner (Serpa)

6.60

Scr: Sleepless Knight, Awakino Cat, Hudson Steele.

* Dbl (8-8) $39.00 * Ex (8-5) $18.40 * $1 Tri (8-5-1) $81.60

ELEVENTH-$40,000, mdn spl wt, 3up, 1mi 70yd

1

Unbrdld's Wy (Srp)

2.60

2.10

2.10

4

Joey Whspers (MrquzJr.)

4.00

3.00

7

Oppy (Lopez)

3.00

Scr: Steele Road, Colony Strike, Magic Harbor.

* DD (8-1) $6.00 * Ex (1-4) $9.80 * $1 Tri (1-4-7) $29.50
Winner picked by Vic C.

TWELFTH-$26,000, cl, 3YO up, 1 1/16mi, tf.

6

Glss Art (Crmuch)

6.00

3.80

3.40

4

Jersey Jazz (Cotto,Jr.)

6.40

4.20

2

Scavezzato (Panas)

12.20

Scr: School House.

* $1 Pk 4 (8-8/9/10/11-1/5/6-6/11) 4 Cor $215.90 * $1 Pk 3 (8-1-6) 3 Cor $20.10 * DD (1-6) $11.00 * Ex (6-4) $38.80 * $1 Sup (6-4-2-1) $3,383.40 * $1 Tri (6-4-2) $320.50

Winner picked by Vic C.; Handle $522,071.
Nypost.com

NBA: Stephenson sorry; LeBron asks, ‘Who?’

Pacers reserve guard Lance Stephenson apologized to his coach for making a choking gesture toward LeBron James during Indiana’s Game 3 win over Miami.

After James missed a technical foul in the second half, Stephenson — the former Lincoln High School superstar — wrapped his hands around his throat to mock the league MVP. A dismissive James didn’t seem to care.

“Lance Stephenson? You want a quote about Lance Stephenson?” James said. “I’m not even going to give him the time. Knock it off.”

golf: Dufner leads Nelson after third round

Nine players had or shared the lead during the third round of the Byron Nelson Championship.

Yet when play ended in Irving, Texas, J ason Dufner was alone atop the leaderboard for the second day in a row.

Dufner shot a 1-under 69 for an 8-under 202 total for a one-stroke lead over Jason Day, J.J. Henry and Dicky Pride.

Morgan Pressel inched closer to her first LPGA Tour title since 2008, posting two very different victories to reach the semifinals of the Sybase Match Play Championship in Gladstone, N.J.

Pressel rallied from 2-down with three holes to play to stun No. 2 ranked Na Yeon Choi in 19 holes in the morning and rolled over Anna Nordqvist 5 and 4 in the afternoon.

Pressel will face former NCAA champion Azahara Munoz in one of the semifinals this morning. The winner faces the Vicky Hurst-Candie Kung winner in today’s final.

AUTO: Johnson outfoxes field in NASCAR All-Stars

In Concord, N.C., Jimmie Johnson used a calculated strategy to win NASCAR’s All-Star race and its $1 million prize for the third time in his career. Johnson won the first 20-lap segment, meaning he was guaranteed to be the first driver down pit road for a mandatory stop before the 10-lap sprint to the finish. He edged Matt Kenseth across the line then pulled away from Brad Keselowski on the restart.

In the closest pole duel in Indianapolis 500 history, Team Penske sent points leader Will Power onto the track with two minutes left in the Pole Day shootout, holding off three Andretti drivers and making Ryan Briscoe the surprise winner of his first Indy pole. He completed the 10-mile qualification run .0023 seconds quicker than James Hinchcliffe.

EtC.: Hofstra reaches regional finals

Olivia Galati threw a complete-game two-hitter and sophomore second baseman Tori Rocha picked up Hofstra’s only RBI to propel the Pride to a 2-0 win over San Diego State in a women’s softball NCAA Los Angeles Regional.

Hofstra advanced to the Regional finals today against either SDSU, UCLA or Florida State. With a win, Hofstra would move on to the NCAA Super Regionals for the first time in program history.

UFC star Jon Jones was charged with DWI early yesterday after the 2012 Bentley he was driving struck a utility pole, Binghamton, N.Y. police said.

Top-ranked Novak Djokovic edged Roger Federer , 6-2, 7-6 (4), to set up another meeting with rival Rafael Nadal in the Italian Open final. Five-time winner Nadal eliminated fellow Spaniard David Ferrer 7-6 (6), 6-0.

Lance Stephenson, Stephenson, LeBron James, James, Byron Nelson, NASCAR, Na Yeon Choi, Jimmie Johnson, Hofstra, NCAA champion Azahara Munoz

Nypost.com

BALTIMORE — One of the most storied stakes races in America will be renewed today at Old Hilltop after a three-year absence when a field of nine older horses goes the Preakness distance of 1 3/16 miles in the Grade 3, $300,000 Pimlico Special.

The inaugural running was won by Triple Crown winner War Admiral in 1937, who the next year lost the Pimlico Special in his historic match race with Seabiscuit. Other winners include Triple Crown heroes Whirlaway, Assault and Citation, and Horse of the Year honorees Cigar, Skip Away and Invasor.

Today’s field is solid. Alternation is the horse to beat coming off three stakes wins in three starts this year at Oaklawn Park. Grade 1 Donn Handicap winner Hymn Book is a late-running threat.

Toby’s Corner and Nehro, two of last year’s top 3-year-olds before being injured, are on the comeback trail. Another interesting entry is Endorsement, who has two wins and two seconds in his last four starts while racing without Lasix.

Also on today’s card is the Grade 2, $300,000 Black-Eyed Susan for 3-year-old fillies at 1 1/8 miles.

The late-blooming Mamma Kimbo will go off the favorite in a field of nine for Bodemeister’s trainer and jockey, Bob Baffert and Mike Smith.

The daughter of Discreet Cat is 2-for-2 including a front-running score in the Grade 2 Fantasy.

ed.fountaine@nypost.com

Triple Crown, Preakness, Pimlico Special, older horses, stakes races, Discreet Cat

Nypost.com

Months before Bruno Iksil became famous as the "London Whale," the trader who contributed to a loss of more than $2 billion at J.P. Morgan Chase, he earned a different nickname: the "Caveman," for pursuing trades that rivals sometimes thought were overly aggressive but often led to huge profits.

Late last year, Iksil, a London-based trader in J.P. Morgan's Chief Investment Office, turned heads among fellow debt-market traders with a wager against a group of junk-bond-rated companies, traders say.

At the time, Iksil had an approximately $1-billion bet that at least some of these companies would default on their debt in a matter of months, according to traders. Many hedge funds and rival banks viewed Iksil's move as risky and took the other side of his trade.

But when the parent companies of American Airlines and power company Dynegy Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection last year, Iksil's positions brought a windfall of about $450 million to J.P. Morgan, saddling hedge funds and other rivals with similar-size losses.

For some in the market, this was their first experience trading against Iksil. Some of these traders would get their revenge on Iksil months later, taking the other side of bets that contributed to the more than $2 billion of losses for J.P. Morgan and raised questions about the bank's risk controls. Iksil is expected to leave the bank but it isn't clear when, said people familiar with the situation. Iksil didn't respond to a request for comment.

The previous trades and their huge winnings also could help explain why J.P. Morgan gave Iksil and the CIO unit so much money to trade with and why senior executives, including CEO Jamie Dimon, weren't concerned about the risks the faulty recent trades posed to the bank.

But the size of the group's profits and descriptions of Iksil's previous trades may deepen questions over whether the unit's activities have been aimed at countering the bank's risks or targeted short-term trading profits. On a call with analysts last Thursday to disclose the $2 billion-plus loss, Dimon said the CIO group's intent was to hedge the company's exposures in a difficult credit environment.

Now, J.P. Morgan is examining whether the past successes of Iksil and his group contributed to the recent losses, perhaps because the past trades made the bank overconfident about the CIO group, according to a person close to the matter.

To read more, go to The Wall Street Journal

Bruno Iksil, J.P. Morgan Chase, J.P. Morgan, Dynegy Inc., hedge funds

Nypost.com