The Mets got a great performance out of their bullpen as Niese failed to even get out of the fifth inning.  Knowing how well the Mets bullpen has pitched this season, I was figuring that we’d be in a for a long night.   But, for a second straight night, the bullpen did not allow a run and kept the Mets in the game.  Obviously, the Mets have the added benefit of the expanded roster which allows Jerry Manual to basically work match ups, but also I think it adds a little competitive nature to the bullpen-competition is a good thing especially for a bullpen that has been awful! 

 

Carlos Beltran who suffered a bruised knee when he slid into the home plate umpire on Monday night did play last night, he hit a three run homer and as of late is swinging a hot bat.  I know that there was some discussion as to whether he would even be in the line up yesterday and it seems that Manual basically said to him that unless he had a broken leg he would be in the line up.  And, when you are in a pennant race, that is how it has to be.  Nobody is healthy, but  you’ve got to play through it.  Not only did Beltran have a great night with the bat, he also had a great defensive play, throwing a runner out at home to keep the game tied at five. 

 

While Niese’s outing last night didn’t go as well as Mets fans might have hopped, the rookies are making a statement on this team.  Daniel Murphy and Nick Evans continue to play well.  And while I sometimes cringe when I see those guys go back on a ball, they have really played well for guys who are natural infielders.  Murphy has been great with the bat, he knows how to prolong at bats by working the count.  Not only that, Murphy also seems to run the bases well, and in fact the reason the Mets won the game was because of smart base running by Murphy.  I know Minaya said that the organization expects that Evans will actually hit for power as he matures, Evan’s hasn’t quite shown that just yet, but he did hit his first homerun in the bigs over the weekend. 

 

So the Mets will wrap up their though road trip with a 2:05 start in Milwaukee this afternoon.  Thus far, with only one left to play the Mets are 5-2 on the road trip.  This was a big test for the Mets as they played games not only against their division rivals, the Phillies, but against the Marlins-who aren’t totally out of it, and the Brewers who are trying to hold on the the wild card.  The Mets will return home and after an off day will play three with the Phillies-this marks the last series of the regular season between the Mets and the Phills. 

 

Also, Pedro Martinez has returned to New York to work out with a personal trainer.  The Mets have been careful not to say too much, but it seems that Pedro is having trouble getting lose both prior and during his starts.  The issue of him loosening his shoulder is something that Gary, Keith and Ron have talked about especially in response to the trouble Martinez seems to have in the first inning.  Clearly with the off days in the next two weeks, the Mets can get by with a four man rotation, but a three man rotation isn’t going to work.  I would be surprised if Niese get another start, and given how  Nelson Figueroa and Brian Stokes have kind of etched out places for them in the bullpen, does it makes sense to have one of them start?