The Mets woke up this morning to find themselves tied for first in the NL East and they can thank the Los Angels Dodgers for that. 

John Maine returned from the DL last night.  He has been out of the rotation since July 28th when he went only four and a third innings against Florida.  Maine pitched five solid innings of one hit ball, he walked four and stuck out six.  After the game he admitted to some soreness, but reiterated that it was nothing like he felt before. 

The bullpen did not cause any commotion in the game, recent call up Brian Stokes pitched four innnings in relife to get his first save.  In four innings of work he allowed three hits and struck out three.  Maybe the Mets have found the long man for the pen. 

Listen, I think that Maine looked much better last night, but I don’t think we can make any evaluation until at least his next start, because against a team like Washington, it is hard to gauge just how well he actually pitched.  Also, I thought that four walks in five innings was way too much.  That is something that was a problem for him well before he was injured. 

The Mets found plenty of offense scoring eight of their 12 runs in the third inning.  Washington’s starter Jason Bergmann really struggled, facing 13 Met in the inning, he walked five and allowed four hits.  Christian Guzman misplayed a ball that Jose Reyes hit, so only 6 of the 10 runs that Bergmann allowed were earned. 

Daniel Murphy continues to hit the ball well.  He was 3-6 last night with three RBI, including a two run oppostiefield homer in the top of the fifth.  Fernando Tatis also hit a homerun, and was 2-5 with two RBI and two runs scored.  Only two Mets were hitlessin last night’s game, both Carlos Delgado and Brian Schneider, but they both reached base three times via walks.

Last night was a great win for the Mets, one that they really needed.  It has been a long time since the Mets scored that many runs.  Although, I always worry that that means they won’t score any runs in the next two or three games.  New  York has just over 40 games left to the regular season and as we all know they are locked in a tight race for the top spot in the division.  The Mets really are going to have to win the division, because they are five games out of the wild card, and two teams ahead of them, the Brewers and the Cardinals and playing good baseball right now. 

Counting tonight’s game against the Nationals, the Mets will play eight more games in the month of August with teams that are  under .500.  The Metsproblems with these lowly teams have been well documents, just look what happendon Monday against the Pirates.  And, at the tail end of those eight games are with the Braves, and we are all aware of how the Mets play against the Braves.  So, the Mets are at a point where they should be able to keep pace with the Phillies, but time and time again, this team shows us that with them, anything is possible. 

The Mets and the Nationals wrap up the series tonight, game time is scheduled for 7:10 p.m.  The Mets will have Oliver Perez on the mound who is 8-7 witha 3.90 era.  The Nationals will counter with Collin Balester who is 2-4 with a 4.66 era. 

Mets Blog

The Mets finally got a decent performance out of their bullpen and held on to win 3-2 in Washington on Tuesday night.  With Johan Santana on the mound you almost automatically think the bullpen will blow it.  However, Santana did get his 10th win of the season, he pitched seven innings, allowing three runs on eight hits; he walked two and struck out six.  

Jerry Manual elected to pinch hit for Johan Santana in the top of the eighth inning.  Santana was visibly unhappy about leaving the game at that point.  Listen, considering how the bullpen has pitched as of late, and particularly how they seem to pitch in relief for Santana, I can imagine that he was not too happy about leaving the game in the hands of the bullpen.  Also, now he’ll have to hear that he only gave the Mets seveninnings, he hadn’t even thrown 100 pitches.  Listen, Santana wasn’t exactly stellar last night, he relinquished the lead on two occasions.  In the bottom of the first with a two run lead, Santana gave up two in the bottom of the inning.  Then, with the Mets winning 3-2 in the bottom of the seventh, he gave up a solo pinch hit homer to Ryan Langerhans-it was Langerhans’ first homer of the season.  However, Santana pitched well enough to get the win and after what he has been through with this bullpen, it was good to see that he finally got one. 

If someone had told you in March that Santana wouldn’t get his 10th winuntil the middle of August, you would think that something ridiculous had happened, and the truth is, the bullpen has been ridiculous.  If the bullpen had been able to hold leads in the games that Santana started he would be a 15 game winner right now.  Since the all star break, the Mets bullpen has a 6.82 era, the worst in the majors.  After the latest debacle against the Pirates in Monday’s make up game, Jerry Manual vowed to shake things up.  Scott Schoeneweis called a bullpen only meeting challenging guys to step up and go out and do what has to be done.  Apparently, it must have worked because both Joe Smith and Pedro Feliciano threw scoreless innings to finish out the game last night.  Smith worked the eighth, he allowed on hit and stuck out two.  Feliciano worked the ninth, he did not allow a hit or a walk and stuck out two, Feliciano also earned his first save of the season. 

The Mets scored two in the top of the first, Nick Evans singled with one out, and scored on a two out double by Carlos Beltran.  Beltran would score on a single to center by Carlos Delgado.  The Mets scored one in the third to go ahead 3-2 on a RBI double by Carlos Beltran.  Beltran had a better night at the plate last night, he was 2-4 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI.  He left two guys in scoring position when he stuck out with two outs in the top of the fifth inning.  However, hitting in the cleanup spot seems to agree with him, and given that winning these games against Washington and Pittsburgh are so important, hopefully, Beltran can really get it going.  The Mets left the bases loaded againin the top of the eighth inning. 

Good thing Damion Easley got hit in the head by a pitch in the top of the eighth ( he wasn’t actually “hit”more like the ball just grazed his helmet), otherwise the Mets would not have gotten a run home from third withless than two outs at all in the game.  What a terrible job by the Met’s hitters in that spot.  Dan Murphy pinch hit for Ramon Castro and struck out.  Then Brian Schneider pinch hit in the pitcher’s spot and struck out also, for that Santana could have batted and stayed in the game. 

A win is a win, and because the Phillies lost to the Dodgers on Tuesday night, the Mets sit in second place just one game out.  This is really a make or break road trip for the Mets.  The bullpen has got to get straightened out because the Mets are in a situation where a couple of losses in a row could be very hard to overcome.  Yes, the Mets do have five games left with the Phillies, so there is that to keep in the back of your mind, but the Marlins are not going away just yet.  The Mets meet the Marlins six more times, three of those games are the last three games of the regular season.  While we are discussing the last week of the season, the Mets are at home but play three with the Chicago Cubs and three with the Marlins; at that same time the Phillies will be at home for three against Atlanta and Washington.  So, really, the time to make up ground is getting short so the Mets must take advantage of the next two series and win some games. 

Ryan Church had a good work out down in Florida and is feeling good.  The Mets have still not set a time frame for his rehab assignment.  Carlos Muniz was sent down to Triple A New Orleans and Brian Stokes will stay with the team.  Luis Castillo’s return from the DL has been delayed “indefinitely” because he has been away from workouts attending to a personal family matter.  That or he realizes that when he returns he will be sitting on the bench.  Either way, let him stay down in Florida. 

The Mets and the Nats meet up again Wednesday night.  John Maine, fresh off his stint on the 15 day DL will start for the Mets and the Nationals will have Jason Bergmann on the mound.  Maine is 9-7 with a 4.13 Bergmannis 2-8 with a 4.13 era.  Game time is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. 

Mets Blog           

Powered by the bat of Fernando Tatis, the Mets survived Aaron Heilman’s ninth inning outing to take the first of three from the Padres 5-4.  Tatishad a great night at the plate, going 2-4 with two homers and four RBI.  The crowd was so excited that Tatis was actually called from the dugout for a curtain call (as seen in the picture above).  Not only was Tatis really the main source of offense last night, but he continues to swing a hot bat, extending his hit streak to 11 games.  The Mets got a little a little help from the rookies as Daniel Murphy hit an RBI double in the seventh to record his first major league RBI and Nick Evans hit an RBI double in the eighth inning-that run ended up being really important.  The other guys in the line up really struggled Jose Reyes, David Wright, Brian Schneider, Damion Easley and Carlos Delgado all were hitless in last nights game.  However,  Carlos Beltran; who has been moved back down in the order had a good night at the plate as well going 2-4 with two runs scored-if this guy would ever get hot the Mets could really put a nice win streak together (again). 

Mike Pelfrey pitched a decent game.  He gave up two runs, both solo homers.  He worked just six and two thirds innings, walked one and stuck out three to earn his 10th win of the season.  I know the Mets hoped that Pelfrey would have worked deeper into the game, espeically considering that the bullpen was without Wagner, but Pedro Feliciano worked an inning and a third without giving up anything.  Because Billy Wagner was placed on the 15 day DL prior to last nights game, manager Jerry Manual said that the bullpen would be a closer by committee.  I thought maybe because the Mets had a four run lead that we might see Eddie Kunz, guess not.  And really, would he have been worse than Heilman?  This whole bullpen by committee thing, never works but if this is the way they are going to have to do it, I hope Heilman has been thrown off the committee.  What a terrible outing!  He left the game giving up three runs retiring only one batter that he faced.  Granted, there was a ball that was misplayed by Argenis Reyes, but Heilman walked the lead off hitter which was an indication that the things were not going to go well and I had a sinking feeling they were about to get worse after he gave up the three run homer.  But, Joe Smith and Scott Schoeneweis each faced one batter to close out the game,  Schoeneweis actually got credit for his first save of the season. 

This was a win the Mets needed, and because the Marlins beat the Phillies 8-2 last night, the Metswho are still in third place are now just two games out.  With the Marlins and Phillies playing each other, it is a win-win for the Mets, if they play well.  They might not be in first when that series is over, but if they play well against San Diego, they may make the race just a little tighter. 

I know that the Mets are going to have to fill roles in the bullpen without Wagner there-but I just don’t see Aaron Heilman filling that role.  He has been a disaster recently, and I know you have to tip toe around and not hurt any one’s feelings, but this guy is a freakin’ headcase.  I am so sick of him out there. What is frustrating is, he can be good, and we’ve seen him pitch well, but I think deep down he is still pouting about not being a starter.  Geez Aaron, get over it.  As for the rest of the guys, I feel a little about relief pitching like Bill Parcells feels about kickers, you have one job to do-go out and do it! 

 Wednesday’s Starters: Pedro Martinez 3-2 6.16 era and Cha Seung Baek 3-6 5.22 era.  Game time is scheduled for 7:10 p.m.  

Mets Blog 

 If you watched the All Star game, you realized that Billy Wagner hasn’t just let the Mets down this year, but he has now let the whole National League down, as he blew a save opportunity to close out the game for the National League.  This performance got me to thinking, and with a suggestion from a reader, I have decided to write my own midseason report card for the Mets.   

Position Players: 

First Base: Carlos Delgado-Delgado’s performance is really the tale of two halves in its own right, the early part of the season (April-Mid June) and the late part of the first half (late June-break).  Early on, I’d have given Delgado an F, not just because he wasn’t hitting, but because he didn’t hustle on the field, he wasn’t helping the Mets out with his fielding.  But, since late June and right on through the All Star break Delgado has almost looked like a different player.  He has raised his average to .248 with 17 homeruns and 52 RBI.  But it isn’t just his hitting that has been better.  He has started to do the little things, like making an effort to field the ball, and taking the extra base when he can.  It is an all around hustle that this team has not had and it is good to see it out of a veteran guy.  So over all I think Delgado deserves a B-/C+.   

Second Base: Luis Castillo-Oh, where do I begin?  I think this guy stinks.  I do not like his body language or his attitude.  I think this signing was a huge waste of money and time.  And, let me tell you this, It does not bother me a bit that he will not have his starting job waiting for him.  He is a terrible fielder, and maybe that has to do with the fact that he can hardly walk, I think he is a nightmare at the plate, that slap crap hitting annoys me.  Also, I just don’t think that he is a good guy.  There was a lot of chatter about his relationship with Jose Reyes last year claming that he really isn’t a great influence on him-especially when you consider the mentoring relationship that Reyes had with Jose Valentin.  I think this guy is a problem in the club house and an all around lazy guy.  Someone also said that part of the reason Castillo is a Met this year is because he and Santana a great friends from their time together in Minnesota, but if that is true, I would say to Santana-you need new friends.  Overall grade-F 

Third Base: David Wright- David is a hard guy to grade.  We all know that this has not been his best season at the plate, yet he leads the team in almost every offensive category hitting .282 with 17 homeruns, 70 RBI and 11 stolen bases.  David has struggled this year, and he has not been himself at the plate.  He has shown glimpses of coming out of it but has been unable to sustain that for any extended period of time.  His fielding has been pretty good, he does have 12 errors, the majority being throwing errors, but they have also been costly errors, especially early on when the Mets were struggling to win games.  David is such a likeable guy, even when he is not performing up to the standards he set for himself by what he has done in past years.  He says the right thing, does the right thing, answers questions the right way, and an all around good guy.  I would take a team full of David Wrights any day.  That being said, he is a huge part of this team, and if the Mets are really going to make a run at this, he is going to have to continue to do his part, and work on getting runners home from third with less than two out and work on his strikeouts.  Overall grade B+ 

Short Stop: Jose Reyes-Reyes went into a slump last September and didn’t come out of it until the end of May.  But, the good news is he did eventually come out of the slump.  He has gotten his average up to .302 with 43 RBI.  He has fourth most hits in major league baseball with 119, having hit 10 homeruns, 10 triples, and 23 doubles.  He is tied for fifth in the majors with 32 stolen bases.  His offensive production is probably one of the factors why the Mets are sitting where they are now.  However, Reyes has  uncharacteristically struggled with his defense at times.  He has already made 12 errors-as a measuring point, he made only 12 errors all last season.  He does also still make some mental mistakes but I do think that it is all a process, and when he came up with the Mets we knew he was going to be good, and every year he continues to get better.  I think Jose will continue to swing a hot bat and will have a better second half defensively.  Over allgrade-B+/A- 

Left Field: Obviously this is one position you can’t give a grade to.  If you were going to say Endy Chavez, then he scores off the charts solely because of his defense, however, as a whole the position gets an INCOMPLETE because they really are in trouble out there, and what’s to come remains to be seen.   

Center Field: Carlos Beltran-Beltran has quietly had a good season.  He is hitting .268 with 15 homeruns and 66 RBI, he has suddenly become more aggressive on the base paths and has 15 stolen bases.  He started the season out slowly, and I think it had a lot to do with some trepidation coming back after having knee surgery in the off season.  His fielding is probably superior to most of the outfielders in the game.  While I do think a lot of balls fall in front of him because he plays too deep, rarely do they go over his head, and more often then not he tracks down balls in the gap that almost nobody gets to.  Early in the season, I really felt that he and the other Carlos were not doing what they should, and I also thought they were causing a division in the clubhouse.  With the departure of Willie Randolph, I think we’ve seen a new Beltran.  I loved the fact that he go thrown out of the game against Seattle, I know that he is not typically a demonstrative guy, but it was great to see him stand up for himself and Jerry Manual.  Overall grade: B+ 

Right Field: Again, if Ryan Church were playing out there, he would get an A+, his defense has been superb and his offensive production is something, until just recently, the Mets lineup was really missing.  I can’t believe how the Mets front offices screwed this situation up, but I do know they remain optimistic that he may be able to rejoin the team after the all star break.  If the Mets can get Church back, and he is able to pick up where he left off, then they might be in good shape out in right field.  Overall grade: INCOMPLETE 

Catchers: Ramon Castro/Brian Schneider the grade here actually goes to Jerry Manual.  I like the way he has played Castro and Schneider.  I don’t know if it is the rest that Schneider is getting or the reps that Castro is getting but this quasi platoon seems to be working in the Mets favor.  Overall grade B+

Starting Pitching:

Johan Santana he is 8-7 with a 2.84 era, with 114 strikeouts, and has allowed fewer hits than innings pitched.  The only concern is that he does give up the long ball, and has given up 14 so far this season.   However, Santana has shown that he has the guts to pitch out of trouble, and to pitch in big spots.  If Santana actually got some run support, or a good job by the bull pen, Santana could easily be 11-4.  However, things haven’t quite worked out that way for Santana.  Some fans get on him, suggesting that he isn’t any good, and as I’ve said before I believe that is because they have unreasonable expectations about his performance.  For me, has he been as good and I “thought” he was going to be, no-but he has been good.  And if you can believe what people say, that he is a second half pitcher, then we have a lot to look forward to.  Overall Grade B+/A-  

Pedro Martinez-Having Pedro back on the bench is a big plus.  I think he brings something to the clubhouse that no other player on the Mets does.  That being said, he has been unimpressive since his return.  Can Pedro be affective?  Can he stay healthy?  In his last start he pitched only four innings because of a sore groin and a stiff shoulder.  Overall Grade D 

Mike Pelfrey- Pelfrey is 8-6 with a 3.64 era.  Again, if you were just grading him on his last three starts then the guys deserves an A, but early on he was less than stellar, and was a big contributing factor to the Mets early season woes.  However, he never shied away or played the blame game, he kept going out there and working, he has had three good starts and has shown that he can in fact pitch with the big boys.  Overall Grade C 

John Maine-after hearing about how Maine was dominating spring training, I thought for sure he was in for a big season.  Maine is 8-6 with a 3.99 era.  He has failed to go deep into the game because he continuously has terribly high pitch counts.  We’ve seen more players foul pitches off with Maine on the mound, then I think I’ve ever seen before.  He seems to be lacking a real put away pitch and has yet to find that.  I think that all of us, Maine included, are disappointed in his season thus far.  Overall Grade C- 

Oliver Perez-With the addition of new pitching coach Dan Warthen, Oliver has had a chance to reinvent himself.  Oliver has an overall record of 6-5 with a 4.44 era, but in the two games he pitched in July he has allowed just one earned run.  He has pitched much better in his last three or four starts and seems to have tinkered with his windup and delivery.  If Perez keeps this up, he might just get the money he was looking for next year.  Perez seems to be either “Good Ollie” and or the “Bad Ollie”, there really isn’t any in between with this guy.  Clearly, he too, is a big reason why the Mets’ found themselves in such a hole early on.  But, as of late he has been in the middle of the Mets’ resurgence.  In the beginning of the season, I would have given him an F, and in his last four starts he deserves an A-.  Overall Grade: C+/B- 

Bull Pen:

The bullpen has had its fair share of issues so far this season.  Since Manual has taken over, I think we’ve seem a mostly better job out of the bullpen.   

Scott Schoeneweis- 2-1 with a 2.65 era.  In the month of June, this guy was terrible he had a 7.20 era in his 14 appearances and it didn’t seem like he could get anyone out.  However, early in the season, he was practically lights out, and he has rebounded stellarly in July, he has allowed no runs in his five appearances. Individual Grade C  

Pedro Feliciano- 2-2 with a 2.86 era.  Pedro too has struggled; he has given up 34 hits in his 34 2/3 innings of work.  Lefties are hitting just 1.72 against Feliciano, but righties are hitting a whopping 3.79 against him.  After getting off to a great start, he has really had a rough go of it.   Individual Grade C

Duaner Sanchez-I think everyone was happy to have Sanchez back, but he has yet to show that he has returned to his pre-injury self.  He is 3-1 with a 3.57 era.  He has really struggled, he was pitching to a 6.00 era in May, but was somewhat better in June appearing 13 games and pitching to a 3.60 era.  However, in July he has pitched in 7 games, and has only allowed only 1 run. Individual Grade  C 

Joe Smith-has a 2.97 era.  He has had 44 relief appearances so far this season, and has allowed 14 runs on 29 hits in 39 innings of work.  He struggled in the early part of the season, and again in June when pretty much the whole bull pen stunk.  Again, pretty much like everyone else, he has been much better as of late.  Individual Grade B-/C+ 

I saved my two favorite bull pen guys for last! 

Aaron Heilman-Heilman is a head case; I think that every time he goes out to pitch, he keeps thinking to himself, “I’m a starter!”  And, maybe he is inside, but not with the Mets.  Anyway, he has appeared in 48 games this season and has allowed 29 runs in 50 innings of work. He has a 4.50 era and a 0-3 record.  Early on he was getting killed with the long ball, and it seemed like he couldn’t get anyone out.  However, when everyone else struggled in June, he was great.  I just looked at his numbers and realized that although I think he has been better recently-like since the winning streak, he is still pitching to a 3.52 era in July.  From what I understand he has added a third pitch, a slider, that seems to help make his fastball and change up more affective, he has been able to keep the ball down in the zone which has kept the ball in the park.  He is a big part of that bullpen whether he realizes it or not.  The Mets need for him to get his head on straight if they are going to over take the Phillies.  Individual Grade C-

 Billy Wagner-has 22 saves in 28 opportunities, his era is 2.31.  He has allowed 15 runs (only 10 earned) in 39 innings.  What I think about Billy is he is the guy who passes all of his quizzes and then bombs the midterm.  What I mean to say is, that Billy got some saves for the Mets when they were easy to get.  But, put Billy in a big spot, and he is going to blow it.  That has become his reputation, and he has done little to dispel that.  I think Mets fans thought he was going to finally get the job done, after  years of watching Franco, Benitez, and Looper blow games, Wagner was the missing key.  Turns out he took over where the other guys left off.  I don’t trust Wagner in a big spot, can’t imagine anyone else does either.  Individual Grade F 

Bullpen Overall Grade: C 

Bench: I am not going to break it down player by player, but I do think the Mets have gotten more out of Endy Chavez, Fernando Tatis, and Damion Easley than anyone thought they might.  It is great that they’ve stepped in to be productive. 

So, overall I think the Mets get a C, there is no question that they have underperformed.  But I do think they have to get some credit for where they are today.  The Mets have lucked out and got hot at the right time to pull within a ½ game of the Phillies.  I hesitate to get too excited, while the Mets have won 9 in a row, I also know they are capable of playing as terrible as they did in the early first half.  I do have more hope for the Mets going into the second half because they have shown that the can and want to win.

Mets Blog

Pedro Martinez and the Mets bullpen combined to throw a one hit shut out against the Colorado Rockies on Saturday afternoon and won the game 3-0.  Eight in a row!  Wow, this is exactly what the Mets needed, a good streak heading into the all star break.  What a great win on Saturday.  Their win streak of eight is the Mets longest since June of 2006 and it is currently the longest streak in MLB.  Since June 13^th, the Mets have reduced the Phillies lead of 7 games to just half a game going into play today.   

The Amazin’s seem to be coming together as a team and it looks like they have found what was missing.  Do you realize if the Mets can continue their winning ways, and if they get a little luck and a little help from Arizona, the Mets could conceivably be in first place at the all star break?   

The Mets are finally getting the pitching they expected.  Pedro Martinez started the game Saturday.  He left after just four innings of work because of shoulder stiffness and I have also heard that he is nursing a sore groin.  Pedro has been examined and has been cleared to make his next start after the all star break.  He worked four scoreless innings, allowing just one hit while walking three and striking out three.  

The bullpen continues to perform in dominant fashion.  Carlos Muniz came into the game for Pedro in the top of the fifth, he worked two innings, walking one and striking out two, and got credit for the win.  Aaron Heilman and Scott Schoeneweis pitched an inning each and both struck out one batter, walked none, and allowed no hits.  And Billy Wagner, with out any drama or undue stress earned his 22^nd save of the season by retiring the side in order.    

The Mets had been scoring a lot of runs, but they have only managed to score five runs in the first two games of this series.  Saturday’s win was good old fashioned baseball.  The Mets manufactured runs, they stole bases, they ran hard on the base paths and they got a homerun.  The Mets stole four bases yesterday and now lead the National League with 91 steals, just nine behind the Tampa Bay Rays who lead the majors with 100. 

In the fourth inning, Carlos Beltran doubled to right, stole third and would score on a single by Fernando Tatis to score the first run of the game.  Jose Reyes hit his 10^th homerun of the season in the bottom of the fifth to make the game 2-0.  In the bottom of the sixth, Carlos Delgado singled to start the inning; he advanced to second on a sac bunt by Endy Chaves and would come around to score on a double by Brian Schneider.   

The Mets look good right now.  If you’d asked me just a few weeks ago, I would not have been able to say that.  But, they are finally getting the pitching they thought they would have.  Both Mike Pelfrey and Oliver Perez have really taken their games to a new level.  And while Pedro has been cleared to make his next start after the all star break, you will always worry about his health.  This winning streak is nice, and it has put the Mets in a good position, but they are going to have to continue to work and play the kind of baseball they have been playing since the beginning of July.  No one, including myself imagined that the Mets would have started out as poorly as they did this season, and after everything they have been through and after watching them play just awful baseball, I would have never thought that they would be sitting in this spot at the all star break.  

If the Mets can take advantage of their good play and their ability to beat sub par teams, the schedule plays in their favor when play resumes after the all star break.  The Phillies and Marlins will be playing each other at the same time the Mets play an under achieving Cincinnati Red’s team.  It is all starting to really heat up and get exciting.  

The Mets are on Sunday Night Baseball tonight.  (Oh joy, three hours of Jon Miller and Joe “I just keep on talking even if I say nothing of value” Morgan.  Mike Pelfrey will pitch for the Mets and the Rockies will have Mark Redman on the mound.  Game time is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. 

 Mets Blog

Wow-the Mets are on a roll!  They have now won five straight, the longest winning streak since May and are 3 games over .500.  The Phillies won last night so the Mets stay at 1.5 out of first, and 3.5 out of the wild card. 

Johan Santana finally got the win last night.  The game was stopped for rain in the middle of the fifth inning and Santana did not come back out to start the top of the sixth.  However, in his five innings he allowed just 3 hits, no earned runs, while walking 3 and striking out 5.  It was a great outing by Santana and I think the Mets offense feels better about getting him some runs.  According to the New York Post, after the game, Santana said, “In the past I was doing my job, I was working and trying to help as much as I can…[T]onight it was about the whole team.”  Clearly Santana has been frustrated by the lack of run support that he has gotten during his losing streak.  I can’t say I blame him, the Mets had averaged just two runs in his last six starts.  Santana has pitched well, his era is under three, his hits/walks to innings pitched is good, and everyone says he is s second half pitcher so I think we have a lot to look forward to. 

The Mets offense was quiet early on.  They took a 3-0 lead on Ramon Castro’s three run homer in the bottom of the fourth.  I like the way that Jerry Manual is playing his catchers.  Not to take anything away from Brian Schneider, because I think he is an good catcher and I think Schneider does a good job with Mike Pelfrey behind the plate, but it is also good to get Castro’s bat in the line up.  I know Willie Randolph last year said something to the affect that Castro could be an every day guy but didn’t really seem willing to do the work necessary for the role.  For the most part, when Castro has been in the game he has made a contribution to the offense, last night he was 2-4 with three RBI.  On the season, his average is .274 in 73 at bats, with three homeruns, 14 RBI. 

Carlos Delgado continues to be hot at the plate, last night he was 3-4 with two doubles and a long single.  His average is up to .249 and he has 50 RBI.  In the month of July (I know 9 games) he is hitting .429 with two homeruns 5 RBI.  The Mets could really use his bat, especially with the absence of Ryan Chruch and the inability to rely on the health of Moises Alou, getting Delgado going could be huge.  In Tuesday’s game Argenis Reyes got the first hit of his MLB career, last night he entered the game as a pinch hitter in the bottom of the seventh and stayed in to play second base,  he was 2-2 on the night with an RBI-this guy has good speed on the base path, I would like to see what he can do at second base. 

The bullpen did a great job last night.  Aaron Heilman entered the game in the 6^th inning and pitched two strong innings of relief.  Duaner Sanchez pitched the eighth inning and Joe Smith closed it out working a scoreless ninth.  I was so glad that the Mets scored two in the bottom of the 8^th, I really wasn’t up for watching another Billy Wagner last night. 

The Mets are playing good right now, they are hitting and getting good pitching.  They are also doing something that they have failed to do up to now, and that is beating the teams they are supposed to beat.  They took three of four from the Phillies, they have taken the first two in the series against the Giants, and if they get a good outing from John Maine today and the bats stay hot, they may just get a the sweep here.  We all saw their terrible play against the Mariners (sub .500 team) when they were here as well as watching them get their butts handed to them by the Padres (another sub .500 team). It would be great for the Amazin’s to close this series out with with a win and then have a good series against the Rockies, sending them into the all star break on a high note. 

Even a few weeks ago if you would have told me the Mets were sitting right where they are I would not have believed you.  Two weeks ago, I watched the Mets at to see what they would do to make me made for another night in a row.  I must admit, the Mets are playing better, looking better as a team.  They are getting some confidence back and it is showing on the field.  I don’t know what it is that has changed, but I like it, and for the first time in a long time, I am excited about the Mets again! 

Thrusday’s game is set for 1:10 start, John Maine will be on the mound for the Mets and the Giants will have an unimpressive Barry Zito going for them.  LETS GO METS!

Mets Blog

Can you actually give Billy Wagner credit for a save last night?  I guess when you see official scoring you realize how absurd some of this stuff really is.  The guy almost blew the game, yet got credit for his 20^th save of the season.  What are the Mets going to do about this guy?  No one fears him, as a fan I don’t trust him in a big spot; actually, I don’t trust him at all.  And, it wasn’t just his pitching that was bad last night, on the error by Carlos Beltran on the throw to David Wright in the bottom of the ninth-where was Billy Wagner?  I can tell you he wasn’t backing up third.  First, yes, Beltran should not have made that throw, and since he did, Wright needed to knock it down, but even still Wagner needed to back up the play.  All weekend long, Keith Hernandez has been been talking about fundamentals (fundies as Keith calls them)-I guess Billy forgot both of fielding and pitching “fundies” last night.

So, with really no thanks to Wagner the Mets did pull out a win and are now over .500 for the first time since June 5, and are just 2.5 games out of first place.  There are two things I must say about the game.  1-that was NOT a homerun by Ryan Howard-and how is it that we are seeing so many of these blown calls on homeruns, we’ve seen two in Mets games this year, are the Umps trying to get instant replay?  And 2-The Mets could learn a few things from the Phillies, the Mets pitching let the Phillies chip away at that lead.  The Phillies did something last night that we have not seen the Mets do, and that is they never considered themselves out of the game.  Pedro Martinez looked much better last night, in 5 1/3 innings of work, he allowed two runs, both of which were homeruns, one by Chase Utley and here’s a surprise, one by Pat Burrell.  Pedro also walked three and struck out six.  Also, that ball park is awful, I can’t believe how balls just fly out of there, you almost shouldn’t even count the homeruns that are hit in that park, especially the bullsh*t ones that are nothing more than fly balls.

The Mets bullpen did not help much last night, Tony Armas Jr.,yeah, I know he is a “starter”, anyway, he gave up three earned runs in and inning and a third, and Aaron Heilman who pitched well the night before, didn’t pitch so well last night, he did have four strikeouts though, the biggest one was the Pat Burrell strikeout in the bottom of the seventh.  However, he is also the guy who gave up the two run homer to a guy who is mired in a 2-40 (well now 3-41) slump.  And, we’ve already been through the Billy Wagner outing, so I’ll leave it at that. 

The Mets were facing Adam Eaton who in his career has never had a loss to the Mets, but the Mets took it to him pretty hard early on scoring 8 runs in the first three innings.  The Mets had 17 hits Brian Schneider is the only one Met without a hit.  Even Pedro Martinez had a hit last night. David Wright was 2-5 with four RBI, hitting a homerun and a double.  Jose Reyes 2-4 with two runs scored and a stole base.  The bench guys continued their hot streak last night, Fernando Tatis was 3-4 and Damion Easley was 3-5.   

When the Mets left on this road trip, I said I would have liked for them to go 6-2, and thought realistically they would end up 4-4, but after Friday night’s debacle, I was worried that they wouldn’t even finish there.  However, the Mets complete the road trip 5-3 taking 3-4 from the Phillies.  This road trip and the fact that the Mets are now just 2.5 our with six to go before the all star break is bring a little life and excitement back to watching the Mets. 

The Phillies and the Marlins are the two teams ahead of the Mets so, as of today, the schedules for the Marlins and Philles before the all star break are as follows: Marlins have two more games with the Padres, and then four against the Dodgers and the Phillies play three with St. Luis and three with Arizona.  I guess that means that at least for this week, I am a Mets fan and a fan of any team playing the Phillies and the Marlins!  (Oh no!  That means I am actually rooting for the Cardinals!)

The Mets open a three game series with the San Francisco Giants-so if you see Chris “Mad Dog” Russo out at Shea-make sure to give him a hard time.  Giants will have Tim Lincecum on the mound and the Mets will throw Mike Pelfrey.  Game time is set for 7:10 p.m.    

Mets Blog

One thing is for certain, the Mets never fail to make things interesting, or maybe I should say make things frustrating.  I guess at least last night’s frustration had a happy ending as the Mets won 4-2 in 12 innings.  

Oliver Perez was great yesterday.  He struggled a little in the first inning, but was great there after. He pitched seven shut out innings, allowing just four hits, while walking two and striking out four.  The Mets took a 1-0 lead off a Carlos Beltran’s homerun in the third, and Perez did something that Johan Santana failed to do in Friday’s game-he held the lead and did not give up a run. 

With the exception of Billy Wagner the Mets bullpen did their job.  When the Mets resumed play after the rain delay, I was less than confident that Pedro Feliciano would actually get Ryan Howard out, but he retired Howard on three pitches. Then of course, Aaron Heilman came in with two on and walked Pat Burrell, and I can’t even tell you what I was screaming at the television-but Heartattack Heilman kept it in check as he got Pedro Feliz to hit a weak grounder back to the pitcher to end the Phillies’ threat in the bottom of the eight.   Joe Smith got the win, he came in with two out in the bottom of the 10th and did not allow a run.  The Mets really got what they needed from that group of guys. 

I don’t know what’s up with Billy Wagner, but is it too much to ask him to close out a game, with out drama, just for once?  Seriously, for a guy who tries to be such a hard ass and tough guy, I have never seen such a wuss.  He can’t enter the game in the middle of an inning because of lack of intensity, he can’t come in for two innings, because he doesn’t get the same adrenaline rush-I guess that is why Mariano Rivera is the real “Sandman”.  When Wagner signed with the Mets, I think we all thought, Yes! We finally don’t have to worry about the ninth inning.  After years of watching John Franco, Armando Benitez, and Braden Looper it looked as if the Mets had the ninth wrapped up.  All we know is, when “Enter Sandman” plays at Shea, the only intensity we feel, isn’t excitement, it is almost dread. 

Mets offense was terrible, with runners in scoring position; they left a total of 14 guys on base.  No one was able to get the big hit to drive in some runs early in the game.  Maybe if the Mets offense had done their job we wouldn’t have to have the Wagner discussion today.  David Wright, had two big strikeouts, and stranded three guys on base, Marlon Anderson didn’t even get a hit.  Jose Reyes was 3-6 but none of those hits came with RISP.  Because of great pitching, (with the exception of Wagner, but I guess that goes without saying) it looked like the Mets would only need two runs to win.  Carlos Beltran gave them the lead with his homerun in the top of the third, and added what was thought to be an insurance run in the top of the ninth. 

Ryan Church did not start on Sunday after leaving the game on Saturday with a migraine, so Endy Chavez was in right field and made a great catch in the top of the second.  Fernando Tatis who entered the game as a pinch hitter for in Marlon Anderson in the top of the 8^th, came through big time for the Mets with his game winning hit in the 12th.  It is a big boost when your bench gets it done; you know they are guys you can count on, and when the bench comes through, they feel like they can contribute and make the most of their opportunity to do so.  I like the way that Manual has juggled things, I also think that the way he has played Brian Schneider and Ramon Castro has worked out for the Met, it is good to get Castro’s bat in the line up and I don’t know if it is the rest or watching his playing time diminish but whatever it is, but Schneider got the big hit in Saturday night’s game, and he had another hit yesterday.  Manuals managerial style seems to illicit the competitive nature in these guys. 

Look, all complaining aside, this was a good win for the Mets, they fought hard.  They are in position to take the series from the Phillies and leave town one game over .500, and only 2.5 out, but the Mets have to win tonight to make that happen.  A split here, the Mets are basically just spinning their wheels, they’ll go home having not gained any ground, and again under .500.  Going in, the Mets had to make some headway on this road trip and really had to take control over getting themselves out of this rut to have a chance of finishing over .500 at the all star break and maybe even being in the mix for a pennant race

Pedro Martinez will be on the mound for the Mets and the Phillies with counter with Adam Eaton.  The Mets have a chance to take a step in the right direction tonight, but Pedro had been dreadful and Eaton is 5-0 lifetime against the Mets.  However, if there is one thing we know about this team, it is that anything can happen.  Game time is 7:05 p.m.

Mets Blog

The Mets topped the Cards on Tuesday night 7-4.  A combination of some lineup changes and a spot start by Tony Armas Jr. did the trick for the Mets as they bounced back from the disappointing opening game of this series. 

Armas made his first start in the bigs since September 10^th of last year when he was with the Pirates.  In his six innings of work he allowed four runs on eight hits, while walking just one and striking out three.  He was no where near dominant but did pitch well enough to keep the Mets in the game.  He struggled a bit in the first, giving up a double to Aaron Miles and then a long homerun to Rick Ankiel.  In the second inning, Yadier Molina lead off the inning with a single to center, he would advance to second on a sac bunt by the pitcher, and score on a double by Skip Schumaker.  Armas also struggled some in the sixth inning; Troy Glaus doubled to lead off the inning, and would take third a single to right by Chris Duncan.  Glaus would score on a sac fly by Molina that was caught by Ryan Church in foul territory. 

The Mets finally found some offense last night; Jerry Manual made some changes to the line up, putting Ryan Church in the fifth spot, and dropping Delgado to the sixth hole.  Brian Schneider got a night off as Ramon Castro did the catching.  Damion Easley took Luis Castillo’s spot at second, hitting behind Delgado.  The changes seemed to benefit everyone as Church and Delgado were a combined 5-8.  Church also had an RBI and scored two runs.  David Wright had a great night at the plate too; he was 3-4 with an RBI, a homer and a walk.  Carlos Beltran continues to struggle; he is now in a 3 for 29 slump dating back to the Seattle series. 

Who can figure these guys out?  One thing is for sure though, when you sit down and turn the game on, you never know what you are going to get.  The Mets fell behind early, which usually means they are mentally out of the game and just go through the motions until their nine innings of torture are over.  Last night, that wasn’t the case.  They fought back, and actually chased Todd Wellemeyer out of the game after five, taking advantage of the fact that he wasn’t pitching well.  The Mets still left seven guys on base last night, but they did get two two out RBI hits by both Castro and Wright, and that is something that the Mets have not done with any consistency.  Not that they have done anything with any consistency. 

It is great to have Ryan Church back in the line up.  I think it is a boost that the Mets really need.  He has picked up right where he left off, in the three games since his return, he is 5 for 12.  The Mets have really missed his bat.  I am getting giddy thinking about the return of Moises Alou though.  If the Mets heat up and play well the rest of this series and play well in Philly, they could come home in first place.  Gee-I sound almost optimistic.  I know, I’ll probably have to eat my words tomorrow. 

Pedro Martinez is scheduled to pitch for the Mets.  We are hopping to see a better Pedro tonight as he has determined that the problem in his last two starts (or there about) is that he has been tipping his pitches.  The Cardinals will have Joel Pineiro on the hill; Pineiro is 2-4 with a 4.33 era.  First pitch is scheduled for 8:05 p.m.

Mets Blog