Amazin' Avenue, a New York Mets community

Disappointing news for the play-the-kids crowd: A team source said yesterday that GM Omar Minaya and interim manager Jerry Manuel would prefer to avoid a situation where Niese is called up for just one start and then returned to Triple-A New Orleans. That would leave the Mets to choose between right-handers Claudio Vargas and Brian Stokes for Saturday, with Nelson Figueroa as a long-shot possibility.