It is hard to believe that just a few short months ago I wrote that Mike Pelfrey wasn’t ready for the majors.  Boy was I wrong!  Pelfrey dazzled the Amazin’s crowd last night, pitching the first complete game of his young career and earning his twelfth win of the season.  Not only did Mike pitch well, but he also drove in a run on a single in the first inning.  Pelfrey allowed just three runs on three hits walking three and striking out three.  Clearly with the bullpen where it is right now, the fact the Pelfry went nine throwing only 108 pitches was a good thing.  However, as Gary, Keith and Ron were talking about before the game, do we have to worry about how many innings Pelfrey has thrown because he as the season progresses he will end up pitching more innings than he ever has before.  I guess we can only wait to see what happens.   

The Mets scored early of Jair Jurrjens last night.  Jurrgens struggled with his control walking two in the inning, but was his defense didn’t help him either, as runs scored on throwing errors by both Chipper Jones and Yunel Escobar.  The Mets scored five in the inning all of those runs coming with two out.  There were only two charged errors in the inning, but Kelly Johnson showed that he has no range at second base.  One ball went right under his glove and while it wasn’t an error, it is a ball that most second basemen get to.  The Mets added one more run in the fifth inning, when David Wright hit his 24^th homer of the season.  David is still third in the NL with 97 RBI.   

Again though, the Mets bats were quiet after the first inning.  It is so strange that they just outscore every body in the first three innings and then do nothing there on out.  That is why Tuesday night’s win was such a big deal because we aren’t use to seeing the Mets score runs like that late in the game.   

The Mets and the Braves wrap things up tonight.  Pedro Martinez will be on the mound for the Mets and the Braves will counter with Mike Hampton.  Game time is set 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 

The Mets were swept three straight in Houston over the weekend, leaving all of us as baffled as Robinson Cancellooked when he was thrown out at third in Sunday’s game.  And while it is only three games, the Mets are winless in August and are coming off a 2-4 road trip, and were swept by the Astros for the first time since 1993. 

There is plenty of blame to spread around in this terrible streak that the Mets have put together.  They seem to have gone into a slump at the plate; unable to hit with guys on base.  They didn’t run the bases well for example in Sunday’s game Carlos Beltran was picked off first and for some ungodly reason, Robinson Cancel was tried to steal third in the third inning with David Wright up at bat-that was a good move there. 

The Mets were unable to score in 16 innings against the Astros.  In Saturday’s game, they scored a total of four runs two in the second and two in the third.  From there on out, they did nothing.  On Saturday night, the Mets left eight guys on base, and failed to even show up for the later part of the innings.  In Sunday’s game it was pretty much the same issue, only they didn’t score at all.  The Mets left 11 guys on base, they had the bases loaded in two consecutive innings and failed to even get one run home. 

Ah-but it isn’t just the offense that was terrible, the defense had their share of problems as well.  The Mets were only charged with one error, but they didn’t do what they had to in the field.  Nick Evans and Fernando Tatis both misplayed balls in the outfield-and that is what is going to happen when you have ”converted” infielders playing the outfield.  The Mets don’t seem to have a an outfield prospect that they can bring up to help them out.  With Marlon Anderson on the DL they brought up Daniel Murphy to take his roster spot, and while he did have a great play in Saturday night’s game, he too is primarily and infielder.  Well all know that the Mets made no moves at the trade deadline to get any outfielders, and we’re all waiting for the return of Ryan Church-because if you at least have Ryan Church in the line up, you can play Endy Chavez in the outfield, you might not get the offensive production you would like to have from Tatis, but his defense will save runs. 

The starting pitching wasn’t terrible in the three games, it wasn’t stellar though either.  Pedro Martinez pitched the opening game.  It was his first start in nearly three weeks, he was on a pitch count allowing him only to work through the fifth inning, he gave up three solo homers, walked two and struck out five-he did not figure in the decision, because Aaron Heilman gave up a grand slam to blow the game wide open for the Astros.  Johan Santana pitched only 6.1 innings on Saturday, he allowed just one run on three hits, walked two and struck out two.  He left the game, and the Mets had a lead.  Oliver Perez gave up four runs in six innings in Sunday’s game, he was charged with the loss as all four runs were earned.  Perez though, and even Pelfrey have pitched much better, granted Pelfrey struggled against the Marlins and Perez wasn’t great against the Astros, but they have cut down on walks-which was a tremendous problem for them and are a big reason why the Mets had such a good July.  I’m  not going to get crazy just yet as they have both had about four plus good starts, until they revert back to how they were performing earlier in the season, I won’t panic just yet. 

The bullpen continues to be the achilles of this team.  Billy Wagnercouldn’t hold a two run lead.  The bullpen over all has just been putrid.  Since the all star break, the Mets bullpen has pitched 32.1 innings.  They have allowed 30 earned runs on 45 hits.  Aaron Heilman-10 runs in 10 innings of work,  Pedro Felicano-six runs in four and a third, Joe Smith-six runs in five and a third, Scott Schoeneweis-four runs in five and two thirds and Duaner Sanchez has given up four runs in six and two-thirds innings.  (New York Post August 5, 2008)

So, with John Maine on the DL and Billy Wagner probably soon to follow the Mets are in trouble.  They have called up Eddie Kunz and it seems that John Niese will make a start against the Marlins over the weekend.  Also, there is talk that the Mets will be in the mix for Freddy Garcia who is trying to make his way back to the majors after shoulder surgery.

Not to fear though, I think I have found the reason why the Mets pen is struggling so.  I think it is the fact that they really miss Matt Wise.  Yeah, remember him?  Last I heard the guy had shoulder tendinitis, and now has just fallen off the face of the earth.  Seriously, what happened to him?  Is he in the witness protection program?  Did he witness Tony Soprano getting whacked or something?  One minute  you complain that you have shoulder pain and then the next you are wearing cement shoes.  Remind me to keep any shoulder injury I suffer to myself. 

The Mets open a three game series with the Padres and if they can some how find what they had in July, they might just make some headway as the Phillies and the Marlins will be beating up on each other for three games.  The Marlins come to New York for the weekend while the Phillies open a three game set with the Pirates.  So, how important is it for the Mets to play well in the next six games?  As it stands the Mets are three games out of first and in third place.  Yes, there is still almost two months of baseball left and the Mets have five game left with the Phillies, the question is, will they be battling for the division or will they be playing spoiler? 

Tueday’s Starters: Mike Pelfrey 9-7 with a 3.91 era and Chris Young 4-4 with a 4.12 ear.  Game time is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. 

Mets Blog

What are the Mets doing?  I realized that they were 18-8 in July, but if it doesn’t carry over into August, then July isn’t going to matter much.  I know, I know not exactly time to panic just yet.  Even though the Mets lost, the Phillies and Marlins did too; the Mets remain one game out of first with the Marlins trailing close behind. 

Pedro Martinez was making his first start in nearly three weeks.  He threw 87 pitches in five innings, giving up three runs (all of which were homers) on five hits, he walked two and stuck out five.  Knowing that Pedro would not be in it for the long haul tonight, the bullpen had to know that the team would be counting on them to keep them in the game. 

The trade deadline has passed so we pretty much know that this team is our team and this is the bullpen we are going to have to count on.  There might be some additions, but it will be of guys who made us better by subtraction-think Luis Castillo.  But the Mets bullpen right now has been atrocious.  I have heard talk this week from guys on SNY and on WFAN trying to tell us that the Mets bullpen isn’t that bad.  These guys then must not watch them night after night like the fans do, because I can tell you, and I’m sure you know it-this pen is horrible right now. 

“Right now” are the key words.  These are the same guys we’ve seen be really good.  And in fairness, the guys who have said that the Mets pen isn’t that bad, preface it by saying that if the pen actually pitched the way it is capable of, then they are actually pretty good.  But, they haven’t pitched like they are capable of anything, and in order to be in the thick of it, the Met have to have all parts working.  Again, the problem is that it isn’t just one guy who is struggling.  From night to night you don’t know who will blow it.  Last night it just happend to be Aaron Heilman.  He gave up a grand slam to Mark Loretta in the bottom of the eighth that really put the game out of reach for the Mets, but why was Heilman ptiching a second inning?  Can no one else pitch in relief and get an out?  Joe Smith finally got someone out, he pitched a scoreless sixth inning, and Pedro Felicano, who came into the game after the Astros had blown it wide open retired both batters that he faced. 

Clearly part of the problem last night was that Pedro Marinez only pitched five innings and the Mets bullpen was going to have to pick up the slack.  But, isn’t that their job?  Seriously, Damion Easley, Endy Chavez, and Fernando Tatis have (for the most part) done their jobs and continue to go out and do them night after night.  Tatis is probably one of the biggest reasons that the Mets played so well in July.  The point is, the bench guys picked up the slack when other guys went down, it is a little concept known as “team.”  And, no, I do believe that the bull pen is stinking up the joint because they want to, but it just seems more often than not they are the problem rather than the solution. 

Pitching wasn’t the Mets only problem.  They had plenty of scoring chances against Brandon Backe on Friday night and didn’t make the most of them.  They left seven guys on base and with no one out in the top of the seventh the Mets loaded the bases but failed to score-Endy Chavez struck out, David Wright grounded into a force play, and Carlos Delgado hit a fly ball to left.  I realize that the Mets have no other option, but Endy Chavez is not a good two hitter.  He struck out in a bad spot last night, and was 0-3.  I know the they are thinking that when Ryan Church comes back that he will hit in the five spot with Carlos Beltran will hit in the two hole.  And really, I am not bagging on Chavez because I believe that he has done a good job stepping in and when he is in the game the Mets have two of the best defensive outfielders in the game.  He isn’t the worst thing out there, he is hitting .268 and has had some big games, but I think that the Mets need a little more consistency, espeically at the top of the lineup. 

John Maine will not start on Sunday instead we will see Oliver Perez.  The Mets a hoping that the rest will work for Maine, he is scheduled to pitch at home on August 8th against the Marlins.  Meanwhile, in his first Triple-A start Jon Niese allowed just one run on three hits in seven innings of work on Wednesday.  Niese could make his major league debut with the Mets on August 11th in a rainout make up game against the Pirates, he will make one more start at Tripple-A before possibly pitching for the Mets.  Daniel Murphy’s promotion lasted just one day in Triple-A as newspapers here in New York are reporting that he will join the Mets tonight against the Astros.  He was hitting .308 with 13 homers and 67 RBI at Double-A-Binghamton and just one day ago was promoted to Triple-A.  I’m not sure what moves the Mets are making to place Murphy on the active roster, the transaction pages have yet to be updated. 

Tonight’s starters: Johan Santana is coming off his first complete game as a Met.  He is 9-8 with a 2.93 era.  Roy Oswalt is 8-8 with a 4.67 era.  Game time is scheduled for 7:10 p.m.

Mets Blog    

Well, it appears that the Marlins are bad luck for Mike Pelfrey.  The last time Pelfrey “lost” a game was against the Marlins in late May.  He didn’t fare to well in this start either.  In four innigs of work he allowed five runs on eight hits, he struck out three and didn’t walk a batter.

For whatever reason, Pelfrey just lost it in the fourth inning.  He didn’t really give up much to the Marlins in the first three; but in the fourth, Jeremey Hermdia tripled to lead of the inning and scored on a single by Jorge Cantu.  Cantu would advance to second on a single by Josh Willingham.  After Dan Warthen visited the mound, Pelfrey then got Dan Uggla to strike out swinging and Mike Jacobs flied out to center.  With two out, the Marlins put together three straight extra base hits.  Cody Ross tripled, scoring both Cantu and Willingham.  John Baker hit a double to center, scoring Ross; the the pitcher Josh Johnson hit a RBI double.  In all the Marlins would score five in the inning and take a 5-1 lead. 

The Mets had plenty of scoring chances but they hit into double plays in the first, second and third innings.  The heart of the order, David Wright, Carlos Delgado, and Carlos Beltran were a combined 0-11.   Damion Easley hit a three run pinch hit homer in the top of the seventh.  The Mets tacked on one more run in the top of the ninth on an RBI single by Ramon Castro, but with two on and two out Jose Reyes flied out to left to end the inning. 

Wednesday nights loss  was a combination of things, the Mets didn’t hit, they didn’t get great starting pitching and Joe Smith didn’t help matters.  So, the Mets are now a half game out of first place and we knew that the lead would change hands a bunch of times before all is said and done.  This is the first series the Mets lost in the month of July.  No need to panic, but just a little reason to be disapointed.  We all know that the Mets were bound to lose a series at some point, I was just hoping they would lose the game on the night that the Phillies lost. 

While the Mets play three in Houston, the Marlins will play four with the Rockies and the Phillies will wrap up a four game series with the Nationals on Thursday and then play three in St. Louis. 

Friday’s pitching match up Pedro Martinez will take the mound for the first time in two weeks he is 3-2 with a 6.25 era.  Brandon Backe 6-10 with a 4.73 era.  Game time is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. 

Mets Blog 

What if I had said to you in May that by the end of July Carlos Delgadowould have hit more homeruns than ARod?  You would have told me I was crazy, right?  Well guess what?  As of the end of play on Tuesday, Carlos Delgado has hit 23 homeruns, Alex Rodriguez has 21.  And while that isn’t a huge difference, it puts into perspective just what Delgado has done to turn things around after a dreadful start. 

The Mets opened the game with three straight doubles, however, Jose Reyes was thrown out at third for trying to stretch his double into a triple.  Nick Evans then doubled to left and would score on a double by David Wright.  The amazing thing was that all three of those doubles were virtually in the same spot, hitting off the scoreboard in left field. The Mets took an early 1-0 lead, but Perez gave it back in the bottom of the inning.  In the sixth inning, Nick Evans singled and would come around to score on a single by Carlos Beltran.  Carlos Delgado added two insurance runs in the top of the eighth when he hit his 23 homerun of the season, the Mets would win 4-1.  

Oliver Perez earned his first victory since the end of June.  He worked six innings, allowing just one run on five hits, he walked three and struck out five.  Ollie has really come around since he started working with Dan Warthen.  Last night he was probably not as good as we’ve seen him recently, but instead of completely falling apart, he kept it together and ended up pitching pretty well. 

Aaron Heilman came in and worked two scoreless innings in relief.  It looked a little scary at first when he walked two batters in the seventh, but Heilman hung in there and pitched two innings, allowing just one hit, and no runs.  Once he got past the walks he made some great pitches striking out four.  It would be great if we could get the “setup” Heilman back, he was so good in the role last year and the Mets could really use a go-to eighth inning guy.  Billy Wagner retired the side in order to close out the game and earned his 27th save of the season.  After the meltdown by the pen on Monday night, the bullpen needed to come out and shut the Marlins down.  Clearly, the Mets really need to get their pen woes in order.  The race for the NL East appears as if it is going to go down to the wire, and the Mets really need to get everyone playing their best baseball because three teams are battling for the top spot. 

John Maine got the resutls of his MRI, the Mets are saying that he has a mild strain of the right rotator cuff.  He is likely to miss at least one start, but because of the off day, the Mets will not have to call up a spot starter.  Pedro Martinez will pitch on Friday.  Obviously it will be an emotional start for Pedro with everything that he has been through recently.  Ryan Church took batting practice for a second straight day and said that he felt good afteward, based on how he is in the next few days the Mets will sent a time frame for his return to the lineup, I know Jerry Manual has said he’d like Chruch to have a few rehab starts before returning to the lineup. 

Starters for Wednesday  Mike Pelfrey 9-6 with a 3.67 era and Josh Johnson with a 3.71 era .  Game time is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. 

Mets Blog

That was a pathetic performance by the Mets bullpen last night in the 7-3 loss to the Marlins.  The Mets lead is now just a half game over the Phillies and the Marlins are now just one game out. Listen, I know you can’t win them all but after what they did last week against the Phillies and after what we saw last night, we should be worried.  Yes, Maine had to leave the game early, so we had to figure that it wasn’t going to be easy, but the bull pen was dreadful.  Can you imagine how much pressure the performance of the bullpen puts on the starters?  First off if you want a win you have to pitch a complete game, and if you have to leave early, you will be fearful that the other guys can’t do their job.   

Obviously the Mets are in trouble in the bullpen department.  In his last five outings, Joe Smith is pitching to a 13.50 era.  It appears that Pedro Felicano will only face one guy (the lefty), and I’m sick of Scott Schoeneweis too, he has really been a disappointment since joining the Mets, yeah he has had some spots where he was doing a good job, but by and large he has been a disaster.  Who knows what will happen with Duaner Sanchez, I bet he never rides in a cab again.  He certainly hasn’t been his old self and who knows if he ever will be.  But, if the Mets are going to stay in the thick of it, they have to be able to trust their relievers.  Is there anyone in the pen that you can say you trust right now?   

For the most part, the offense was dead last night.  Jose Reyes was 0-5 and popped up at least twice, I hate when he has hit a few homeruns, it messes with his game, because instead of putting the ball in play, he tries to hit it out of the park.  The lone bright spot in the lineup last night was Fernando Tatis, on the day when Jerry Manual anointed him the starting left fielder he went 2-4 with a triple and two RBI.  

The unsettling thing about John Maine leaving the game with shoulder stiffness is that he may not be able to make his next start.  Because the Mets have two off days in the next two weeks they may not have to move guys in and out of the rotation; however, we have to be worried if it turns out that he needs more than just a little rest.  The coaching staff was aware of the stiffness, and when pitching coach Dan Warthen said he saw a hitch in Maine’s delievery they decided to pull him.  Clearly Maine did not want to leave the game and you could see him arguing with Jerry Manual when Manual came to the mound.  After the game, Maine said he understood the decision to pull him; he also talked about his shoulder and described the pain as like nothing he has felt before.  Warthen said he didn’t think that Maine’s problem was serious because the pain isn’t exactly coming from the shoulder, but rather in the back area, under the shoulder, stating that that it is not usually a “red-flag area.”  But, this is also the club who screwed up the Ryan Church thing, so I’m not putting a lot of faith into what we are hearing right now.  On a side note, I actually like Maine a lot, but I’m getting a little tired of him.  I know he is having a rough year, but the sulkiness gets old after a while.  And also, for the second consecutive game, his bunt attempt was awful-you have to be able to do a better job than that.  Why don’t these guys know how to bunt?   

David Wright made a spectacular catch in the fifth inning on a pop up in the seats on the third base line-he totally knocked two guys over-it was great.  So, later in the game, I think it was in the seventh inning when Wright went into the same area to see if he could make a play on a ball, if you saw replay in slow motion there was a big doofy guy in the red shirt, you could read his lips, he said to Wright, ”Hey , dat was a good play before!”  (think really thick NY accent-you know the guy!)  I don’t know why, but it stuck me as seriously funny!   

Ryan Church is supposed to take batting practice with the team on Tuesday.  I was wondering if they had him go on the road trip to see how he does with the flying.  It seems that most of his problems have all come after he has been on an airplane.  The soonest he’ll rejoin the team is August 5^th.  Pedro Martinez will make the start for the Mets on Friday, and it is possible that he could work an inning of relief in Tuesday night’s game.   

Tuesday’s Starters: Oliver Perez 6-6 4.15 era and Scott Olsen 6-5 4.07 era.  Game time 7:10 p.m. 

Mets Blog 

The Mets took the first of three games against the Cardinals on Friday night, 7-2.  They have now won three straight and have a two game lead in the NL East.   

The Cardinals came to town fresh off a four game sweep by the Brewers, so it was important for the Mets to jump on them fast and keep them down.  And the Mets did just that.  They got a great performance out of Mike Pelfrey and the offense did their job too.   

Mike Pelfrey, was great.  He pitched seven innings giving up just one run off seven hits.  He issued no walks and struck out five.  The Mets have now won the last seven games that Pelfrey has started.  Pelfrey, who earlier in the season was 2-6 and had a 5.27 era (as of May 20^th), now has a 3.67 era with an 8-6 record.  It is amazing, the turn around in this guy, it is like a light went on.  He has been great!

David Wright hit a RBI double in the third that scored Endy Chavez (4-5 on the night) to give the Mets an early 1-0 lead.  The Mets added two more on Jose Reyes 12 triple of the year.  Carlos Delgado continues to make the case to be the player of the Month of July, he is not going to want to see July end.  He had only one hit last night, but it was a big two run homer.  Argenis Reyes had a big night, he hit a RBI single and then in the seventh he hit his first big league homerun, a solo shot to right centerfield.  

The bullpen, once again, tried to make things interesting.  Duaner Sanchez allowed three straight Cardinals to reach base.  With the bases loaded, Pedro Felicano came in and got Skip Schumaker to pop up.  With one out, and the bases still loaded, Aaron Heilman got Ryan Ludwick to fly out, but allowed the run on third to score.  Heilman got Albert Pujols to ground out to third to end the game.   

So, the Mets have a two game lead, and Jimmy Rollins isn’t sweating it.  Glad to know that the Phillies went out and lost to the Braves last night, I guess they are looking just to make things interesting, huh?  Funny, I officially hate the Phillies, for so long they had been a nonentity and Mets fans were always so focused on the Braves, well I guess all of that has changed.   

And also, while we are on the subject of the Phillies, maybe their broadcast guys need to shut the hell up.  Tom McCarthy didn’t seem to have much of a problem with Jose Reyes when he was broadcasting Mets games.  And, isn’t it socially irresponsible for Larry Anderson to advocate throwing at someone’s head?  Everyone’s all pissed off at the fact that Reyes hotdogged the homerun, and while that is not my favorite part of the game these days, Reyes is right, he came through in a big spot.  Also, I would like to hear what Larry Anderson, and Charlie Manual have to say when Ryan Howard strikes his homerun pose?  If you are going to bag on Reyes, then you better start saying the same things about your hotdogs too!   

OMG-Are you kidding me?  Why would anyone trade with the Yankees?  And seriously, Russ Ohlendorf?  Wow, so is this the dialogue between the Yankees and Pirates?  Yankees: “We want Nady and Marte.”  Pirates: “Uh, ok.  We would like “Russ Olendorff, a bag of balls, and throw in a hotdog, cuz you guys have those funny looking hotdog rolls!”  This might be the worst trade I’ve seen since I saw a minor league hockey player was traded for the other team’s bus-no telling who got the better deal there.  This trade makes me so angry-I hate the Yankees!  I know the Pirates have been eyeing Phil Coke for quite some time!  WOO-HOO!!  I just don’t understand how other teams make these trades with Yankees, giving them their gems and getting nothing in return.   

In other trade talk, it seems that the Dodgers on the verge of acquiring Casey Blake from the Indians.  So that is one player less likely to end up with the Mets.  Also, are the Mariners living in reality?  Do they really think the Mets would trade Fernando Martinez for Raul Ibanez? 

Brandon Knight will start for Pedro Martinez on Saturday night, and the Cardinals will have Joel Pineiro on the mound.  Game time is scheduled for 7:10 p.m.

Mets Blog

If it isn’t Billy Wagner who blows games for the Mets, it is Billy Joel.  Yep you read that right.  If you caught Johan Santana’s four innings of work you know he was awful.  He allowed five runs on six hits, two of those hits were homeruns, he walked three and struck out two.  But, no worries, because it wasn’t his fault!  Nope, the culprit is Billy Joel.  Because Joel was performing the last concerts ever at Shea Stadium, Santana could not get in to do his side work.  So, I guess that means he should be right on track before his next start. 

The Mets scored four runs in the top of the ninth to win 10-8.  This win extends their streak to 10.  The last time the Mets won 10 in a row was 1991, they are now just one shy of the Mets all time team record.  They also accomplished something they had yet to do this season.  They came back from three runs down to win the game.  They are the last team in the bigs to accomplish that this season.  

The pitching was terrible last night.  Not only did Santana stink, but Aaron Heilman was worse.  Heilman entered the game in the bottom of the seventh inning and in just 2/3 of an inning of work, he gave up three runs.  After retiring the first two hitters he faced, he allowed a double to Edwin Encarnacion, he then intentionally walked Joey Votto, and (unintentionally) walked David Ross.  At that juncture, Heilman would leave the game, and Scott Schoeneweis (who also stunk) would enter and gave up a double to Javier Valentin, giving the Reds an 8-6 lead.   

The offense was terrific last night.  It took them a few innings to get going.  The Mets scored first on a Carlos Delgado monster shot to right field that went out of the park, and looks like it was just shy of landing in the river.  In the fifth inning the Mets added two on an RBI single from David Wright.  In the sixth inning, Fernando Tatis hit a two run homer to give the Mets the lead.  The bats were quiet until the ninth inning; Argenis Reyes singled with one out, Wright hit his 18^th homer of the season, a two run blast that just cleared the glove of Ken Griffey Jr., tying the game at 8.  But, the Mets were not done.  Carlos Beltran singled and took third on a single by Damion Easley,  Easley would advance to third and Beltran would score on a single by Carlos Delgado, and Fernando Tatis, came up big again, he hit a RBI double to left that scored Easley.   

David Wright had a big game last night, and had four RBI.  David’s two out RBI single in the top of the 5^th cut the lead 5-4 after the Mets had gone down 5-2 in the bottom of the 4^th, and then of course his 2 run homer in the top of the 9^th tied the game for the Mets.  It was a great job by Wright who had struggled some in that area.  Not only does Wright deserve credit but so does Fernando Tatis, his two run blast gave the Mets the lead in the top of the 6^th, and his RBI double game the Mets an insurance run in the top of the 9^th.  Carlos Delgado continues to swing a hot bat, as he was 3-4 with three RBI.  Jose Reyes who is usually in the thick of it was 0-5 last night that ended his 9 game hit streak.   

So, for the first time since April 20^th when you opened the paper this morning, the Mets were sitting in first place.  Ok-technically they are tied for first, but their name was listed first!  This is an exciting time, especially given how the Mets played last night.  I really didn’t know what to expect from them after the break.  After they went down like that last night, I wasn’t sure they would bounce back, but more and more this team is rebounding and finding ways to win games.  I just have to say though, that it was a terrible job by Santana.  The Mets won the game, so it is what it is, but for him to come back and pitch like that is just a bad job by him.  I don’t want to hear the excuses; I don’t want anything but for him but to win games.  It is infuriating when your team gives your guy a lead and you turn around and give it (and then some) back.  

Ok, so here is something else that will come as a shock to you.  Pedro Martinez will not make his next start.  He had a cortisone shot over the weekend and will not be available to pitch.  Pelfrey will make the start from him on Sunday.  Also, El Duque, left after one inning of work in a rehab start for the B-Mets due to discomfort in his foot.   

The Mets play the second of four against the Reds tonight.  Game time is 7:10 p.m.  The Mets will have John Maine on the mound and he will be opposed by Bronson Arroyo. 

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