NEW YORK — For one night — albeit against the pitiful Pittsburgh Pirates — R.A. Dickey, Carlos Beltran and the New York Mets showed they might be able to end this season on a positive note.

Dickey took a three-hitter into the ninth inning, Beltran had his first three-RBI game in more than a year and the Mets might have knocked Zach Duke out of the Pirates' rotation with a 9-1 victory Tuesday night.

"When you get some young guys and get somewhat healthy you feel like we can do some of the things we did tonight," Mets manager Jerry Manuel said. "Carlos Beltran is getting his legs underneath him. Obviously (Jose) Reyes. And young guys coming in and giving us a little energy — (Nick) Evans and (Ruben) Tejada — some good things can happen."

Dickey's tricky pitch — he threw one knuckler at 57 mph — was no match for the inexperienced Pirates.

Pitching into the wind for the first time this season, Dickey didn't allow an extra-base hit until pinch-hitter Pedro Ciriaco tripled to lead off the ninth. John Bowker's grounder to shortstop ended the shutout bid. The 35-year-old Dickey (11-6) finished the five-hitter for the third complete game of his career.

The Pirates lost their 57th road game and must win three of their final nine away games to avoid matching the 1963 Mets for the worst road record (17-64) in a 162-game season.

Coming in, opponents had a .320 average against Duke, and the soft-hitting Mets put on one of their best offensive displays of the season.

Pirates manager John Russell is not sure if Duke will continue to start for the Pirates this season. Duke (7-14) has a 5.78 ERA and has given up 20 runs — 19 earned — over his last four starts.

"We'll consider what our options are," Russell said. "I'm sure he's frustrated."

Beltran homered and hit a two-run double, driving in more than two runs for the first time since June 11, 2009.

Evans followed up his game-winning hit in the 10th inning Monday with a single and a monstrous home run in his first two at-bats, and Tejada had a career-high three hits to lift his average above .200. Tejada also started two splendid double plays to back Dickey.

Duke followed up his last start of one-plus inning, six hits and four runs with an effort of 3Z\c innings, nine hits and eight runs — seven earned.

"Obviously I've been not good at all the last two starts and this team's been battling much too hard for me to do that to them," Duke said.