ATLANTA -- Bartolo Colon was expected to just be a place holder in the New York Mets rotation until Zack Wheeler returned from Tommy John surgery in the second half of the season.Wheeler, though, had a setback and the Mets have been hit by plenty of other bad pitching news, with Matt Harvey out for the year and most of the other projected starters ailing.Colon, who turned 43 in May, has gone from a veteran luxury to an ultra-necessary contributor as the Mets, winners of six straight games, try to make it make to the postseason.In fact, it wouldnt be a stretch to call the stocky right-hander a savior for the Mets season as they battle for a National League Wild Card spot.Colon takes a 13-7 record and a 3.22 ERA into Saturday nights start against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field and he has been even better than that has the season has worn down.The native of the Dominican Republic is 4-1 with a 2.25 ERA in his past seven starts, including six scoreless innings in a victory at Cincinnati on Monday.Hes been the mainstay, Mets manager Terry Collins said. Hes the guy that every fifth day takes the baseball. We dont have to worry about pitch counts, we dont have to worry about innings. He just goes out there and does it.Hes had two starts where our bullpen was tired and we needed him to get deep in the game, and you looked up and he was in the eighth inning. Hes been a tremendous addition to the staff.Colon tossed eight scoreless innings in a victory over the Braves in New York on May 2 and is 9-3 with a 2.35 ERA in 13 career starts against Atlanta.Despite what seemed like a deep rotation, the Mets brought Colon back as a free agent on a one-year deal after he went 14-13 last year following a 15-13 season in 2014.Colon has been even better this season and his 231 career victories rank third among Latin American-born pitchers.One Braves hitter who has flourished against Colon, though, is Freddie Freeman. The first baseman has a .481 average and one of his 17 homers against the Mets have come against Colon.Of course, Freeman is hitting well against everyone right now, as shown by his 15-game hitting streak and 31 consecutive games reaching base safely.Im not doing anything different than when I was slumping. Im just actually hitting the ball, Freeman said. Early on in the season I was striking out a lot.Rookie John Gant, who will face off against Colon, returned after missing nearly eight weeks with an oblique strain and worked five innings at Philadelphia in a no-decision, giving up four runs (three earned) and striking out six last Saturday.Gant is 1/3 with a 4.70 ERA in 14 games, including five starts. His only major league victory came against the Mets in New York on June 17, when he allowed just two hits and a run over 6 2/3 innings while striking out five and walking two.Gant, 24, was taken by the Mets in the 21st round of the 2011 draft. He was dealt to the Braves in July last year as part of the trade that brought veteran infielders Kelly Johnson and Juan Uribe to New York. Ken Dryden Jersey . Olli Jokinen, Mark Scheifele, and Bryan Little each had a goal and an assist as Winnipeg won 5-2, handing Calgary its record-setting seventh consecutive loss on home ice. Jordie Benn Jersey . MORITZ, Switzerland -- Fog prevented downhill racers from getting their Olympic dress rehearsal. http://www.canadiensauthority.com/authentic-ales-hemsky-canadiens-jersey/ . - Blake Griffin had 30 points and 12 rebounds, J. Tomas Plekanec Jersey . Nathan MacKinnon, Jamie McGinn and Jan Hejda also scored for the Avalanche, who won despite being outshot 38-23. MacKinnons goal, also on the power play, came with just over a minute remaining. Peter Holland Jersey . Calgary scored on the first shift, and Michael Cammalleri scored twice as the Flames cruised to a 5-2 win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday. BERKELEY, California -- Jabari Bird and Sam Singer scored 14 points apiece and California beat South Dakota State 82-53 on Friday night in the season opener for both teams.The Golden Bears hardly seemed to miss preseason All-American Ivan Raab, who sat out with an injured toe he suffered two weeks ago.California built a 16-point lead in the first half and pulled away with a 30-3 run early in the second half to extend its home winning streak to 19 games -- the second-longest streak in team history.Grant Mullins added 13 points and seven rebounds while Roger Moute a Bidias added a career-high 12 points, six rebounds and five assists.The Bears had little problem against the smaller and outmatched Jackrabbits, who kept things close in the first half before falling apart in the second half of coach T.J. Otzelbergers debut.Cal, which finished 23-11 in 2015, outrebounded South Dakota State 54-26 and had 10 blocks, matching its season high of a year ago and one shy of the school record.Reed Tellinghuisen had 14 points and five rebounds but shot just 5 of 13 for South Dakota State. Mike Daum also scored 14 for the Jackrabbits.BIG PICTURESouth Dakota State: The Jackrabbits showed good poise after the rocky start and kept the game somewhat close in the first half before things got out of hand after the break. Those are part of the groowing pains Otzelbergers young team figures to go through early in the season.dddddddddddd Daum, who set the schools freshman scoring record a year ago, was hindered by foul trouble much of the might and shot just 5 of 14.California: The Bears had the Jackrabbits on the ropes early but let them off the hook with sloppy defense that allowed too many easy layups in the first half. Coach Cuonzo Martins squad also lost its cool early in the second half when Kingsley Okoroh was hit with a technical foul. Both are issues that have to be cleaned up. Raabs absence was noticeable, particularly from the perimeter where the Bears were sporadic much of the night. The feeling at Cal is that Raabs injury isnt too serious and he is expected to be back in the lineup soon.UP NEXTSouth Dakota State: The Jackrabbits will continue their swing through the West Coast when they play at UC Irvine in the first round of the Sanford Pentagon Showcase on Monday night. It will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams.California: The Bears stay at home and will get a chance to extend their streak at Haas Pavilion to 20 games when they host UC Irvine on Wednesday. Cal has won four of the six games against the Anteaters. Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Nike NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys Store Wholesale Jerseys China Jerseys NFL China ' ' '