Remember the...

Strike Zone.

You thought I was going to say Maine, didn't you?

No, today's topic is the strike zone, and the inability of Met pitchers to find it, particularly of late. Of course, the biggest offender this season has been Billy Wagner. But this is an issue for all members of the staff.

On Sunday, we had Alay Soler, who for some reason known only to him refused to throw a strike with a 4 run lead. Of course, Heath Bell was able to find the strike zone, but the problem was, good hitters will hit straight pitches all the time, and Heath throws a very straight ball.

Last night, to my surprise, John Maine was remembered (there, I finally used the pun), and recalled from Norfolk, while Mr. Soler was bid a fond adios. For a few innings, he was fine, alas, the fifth was his undoing. He was followed by Mr. Oliver, who did his normal fine job. Alas, the same can not be said of MR. Bradford and MR. Feliciano.

Memo to Rick Petersen, time to talk to these guys about throwing strikes. Walks are killers, as are high pitch counts. Falling behind in the count is upping pitch counts, so starters are being pulled after 6 innings. The bullpen is being overworked. Plus, scouts from other teams are better able to pick up tendencies of the pen, allowing opponents an edge.

Tomorrow, a rant on the lineup, which is asleep right now.

Thanks to all who have commented on my posts thus far. I appreciate the support and hope to be able to keep it up.

Beezermess - I agree on JD, and look forward to your Ranger blog.

Darth Marc- thank you for the link and mention. I do hope you recall that in the end, the rebellion won.