Put game 1 in the books folks, Mets 3, Yanks 2. The Mets have a 2 game lead in the NL East. The Yanks fall to 10 games behind. The last time they were 10 games behind, 1995. That is not good.
The stories for the Mets involve 2 guys, Oliver Perez and Endy Chavez. For the second start in a row, Ollie went deep into the game, tonight going 7.2 with 5 k's, 2 bb's and giving up two runs, on a Matsui homer in the 4th inning. That's two straight strong starts in a row for Ollie. We are seeing a guy blossom right now. To think, we got him for Xavier Nady. Man, I love Omar.
Endy made an impact on defense and at the plate tonight. First, the field, as Damon led off with a ball hit down the left field line. Johnny seemed to think that all outfielders have arms as shitty as his, and tried to go for two. Big mistake. Huge, as Endy threw him out. Jeter would follow with a walk, and following an A-Rod grounder, Posada walked. Matsui lined out to end the inning.
The Mets got on the board in the bottom of the first. Reyes singled, Easley walked. Beltran grounded out to Pettitte, moving the runners to second and third. Delgado followed with a fly to short center, that, had anyone but Raggedy Arm Damon been playing center, would not have led to a run, but the combination of Reyes' speed and Damon's inability to throw a ball on the fly more than 50 feet, led to a run.
Ollie was good in the 2nd and 3rd. In the fourth, after A-Rod flied out, Posada singled, and Matsui hit a shot to right to make it 2-1 Yanks. That was all they would get.
Bottom of the fifth, PLD doubled to left, and Endy came to the plate. He drove a fastball to right center for a 3-2 Mets lead.
This was a very tight an quick game. Not a lot of hitting, 11 in total. Pettitte did a good job for the Yanks, kudos to him. But Ollie outpitched him, and got help from Joe Smith (who had a HUGE K of Captain Jeets (looking mind you) in the 8th for the third out) and Wagner, who got the save.
We'll have to see if they play Saturday. The forecast is for rain. The game is scheduled for Fox, they I would guess they will try to get it in. Let's hope Tommy can throw a good one.
Friday, May 18, 2007
I'm Not Gonna Lie To You...
The Subway Series scares me, for a lot of reasons.
Yes, the Mets come into the series extremely hot. And the Yankees are cold. But the Mets (and their fans) are in a no win situation here. If they win the series, the excuses will be that the Yankees used a couple of rookies as starters. If the Yanks win, the media and Yankee fans will destroy the Mets for losing this series. Most of the local papers seem to think the Mets will win this series easily. They have logical reasons for saying so. Let's start with the pitching matchups.
The Yankees will send Pettitte, Rasner and one of either Tyler Clippard, Chase Wright, or Wang to the mound. Pettitte has the ability to dominate any time out. I don't think he is a long term good fit, but he can take control of a game, and has an excellent history versus the Mets. As for the other two, they are classic SUCK ME opponents. Just yesterday, the Cubs threw Angel Guzman at the Mets, and he held them in check (albeit, he held the B Team in check, but still). So that worries me.
On the other hand, the Mets are sending out their top 3. Tonight, Oliver Perez, tomorrow Glavine, Sunday will be Maine. O Pea is good one start, then OK the next. He was great his last start, so the potential is there for a downer. That could hurt against Pettitte. In his favor is the Yankees abysmal record against lefties this year. That goes for Glavine tomorrow. I think Tommy is due for a good to great start, and will get it. Sunday night is Maine. He has struggled in May following an outstanding April. Will he get on track? Between Perez and Maine, the potential for a lot of walks exists. Ollie has kept them down, but the Yankees have a history of being patient at the plate. It is VITAL that all 3 Mets starters hit their spots early, to take the patience out of play. No nibbling, attack, attack, attack.
For all of the hype about how the Yankee offense leads the league in runs with 212, people forget the Mets have 211. And that is with Wright having been MIA for April, and Delgado still basically MIA. The Yankees are struggling now, they have gotten decent starts, but the lineup has gone cold. I fully expect them to do everything they can to beat the Mets this weekend. They know that George hates nothing more than losing to the Mets (save for losing to the Red Sox). But at this point in time, with the media poised to pounce on the Yankees and possibly move more coverage to the Mets, George would blow his top should they lose here. Plus, they then have 3 with the Red Sox in the Bronx next week. Going into that series losing to the Mets would be an invitation for disaster. In the back of my mind, I know Damon, Matsui and Abreu are too good to slump for much longer. They are due to break out, and it could happen this weekend.
So, what does this all mean? Do I really expect the Yankees to take this series? I have two words for you:
FUCK NO!
The Mets are in a prime spot here. The Yankees are struggling. The Mets are hot. Delgado has shown some signs of emerging from his slump. Wright already has. The rest of the guys are doing their jobs. Plus, they know the Braves are close, and are facing the Red Sox this weekend. The Braves are in for a tough series, and the Mets know they have an opportunity to increase their lead, leading into the visit to Atlanta next week. I fully expect the Mets to come out swinging, and to do everything possible to win. Beat up on the starters, and get to that overworked pen. The fact that they had to throw Vizcaino, Villone and Proctor yesterday hurts them. Their pen has been used more than Paris Hilton so far, and is as thin as she is as well. On paper, the teams are relatively even among the regulars. It is the pitching that separates them. The Mets pitching is superior. No ifs, ands or buts. From the starters to the bridge guys in the pen, to the closer so far this year, the Mets are better. Period.
I don't care about being perceived as the better team by the media. If the Mets win, the excuse that the Yankees are hurting is there for their fans to rely on. Giambi is going to be limited due to a bone spur in his heel and the lack of the DH in the NL. Of course, the old "Well, we have 26 Championships, what does a series in May mean" is there as well. To me, the important thing is to win series, no matter who the opponent is. The only reason a sweep for the Mets this weekend would be great is that the Braves could lose all 3 in Boston, and the Mets could put some distance between them. I don't care about the media being able to proclaim the Mets the "Best Team in NY". I care about the Mets winning the World Series.
Now, as I said up top, I'm not gonna lie to you. I would of course do my share of boasting if they won. I have had to deal with shit from Yankee fans for years, from co-workers, friends, neighbors. So far this year though, they have been quiet. I find that quite interesting. So I will give a little back. But at the end of the day, the only thing a series win in May means is that the Mets won a couple of games, and hopefully built some breathing room in the division.
I want to hear "Taking Care of Business at least twice this weekend. Three would be fantastic. All the while, I want a Sox sweep, and the Braves reeling as we head to Atlanta. That's the important series.
LETS GO METS!
Yes, the Mets come into the series extremely hot. And the Yankees are cold. But the Mets (and their fans) are in a no win situation here. If they win the series, the excuses will be that the Yankees used a couple of rookies as starters. If the Yanks win, the media and Yankee fans will destroy the Mets for losing this series. Most of the local papers seem to think the Mets will win this series easily. They have logical reasons for saying so. Let's start with the pitching matchups.
The Yankees will send Pettitte, Rasner and one of either Tyler Clippard, Chase Wright, or Wang to the mound. Pettitte has the ability to dominate any time out. I don't think he is a long term good fit, but he can take control of a game, and has an excellent history versus the Mets. As for the other two, they are classic SUCK ME opponents. Just yesterday, the Cubs threw Angel Guzman at the Mets, and he held them in check (albeit, he held the B Team in check, but still). So that worries me.
On the other hand, the Mets are sending out their top 3. Tonight, Oliver Perez, tomorrow Glavine, Sunday will be Maine. O Pea is good one start, then OK the next. He was great his last start, so the potential is there for a downer. That could hurt against Pettitte. In his favor is the Yankees abysmal record against lefties this year. That goes for Glavine tomorrow. I think Tommy is due for a good to great start, and will get it. Sunday night is Maine. He has struggled in May following an outstanding April. Will he get on track? Between Perez and Maine, the potential for a lot of walks exists. Ollie has kept them down, but the Yankees have a history of being patient at the plate. It is VITAL that all 3 Mets starters hit their spots early, to take the patience out of play. No nibbling, attack, attack, attack.
For all of the hype about how the Yankee offense leads the league in runs with 212, people forget the Mets have 211. And that is with Wright having been MIA for April, and Delgado still basically MIA. The Yankees are struggling now, they have gotten decent starts, but the lineup has gone cold. I fully expect them to do everything they can to beat the Mets this weekend. They know that George hates nothing more than losing to the Mets (save for losing to the Red Sox). But at this point in time, with the media poised to pounce on the Yankees and possibly move more coverage to the Mets, George would blow his top should they lose here. Plus, they then have 3 with the Red Sox in the Bronx next week. Going into that series losing to the Mets would be an invitation for disaster. In the back of my mind, I know Damon, Matsui and Abreu are too good to slump for much longer. They are due to break out, and it could happen this weekend.
So, what does this all mean? Do I really expect the Yankees to take this series? I have two words for you:
FUCK NO!
The Mets are in a prime spot here. The Yankees are struggling. The Mets are hot. Delgado has shown some signs of emerging from his slump. Wright already has. The rest of the guys are doing their jobs. Plus, they know the Braves are close, and are facing the Red Sox this weekend. The Braves are in for a tough series, and the Mets know they have an opportunity to increase their lead, leading into the visit to Atlanta next week. I fully expect the Mets to come out swinging, and to do everything possible to win. Beat up on the starters, and get to that overworked pen. The fact that they had to throw Vizcaino, Villone and Proctor yesterday hurts them. Their pen has been used more than Paris Hilton so far, and is as thin as she is as well. On paper, the teams are relatively even among the regulars. It is the pitching that separates them. The Mets pitching is superior. No ifs, ands or buts. From the starters to the bridge guys in the pen, to the closer so far this year, the Mets are better. Period.
I don't care about being perceived as the better team by the media. If the Mets win, the excuse that the Yankees are hurting is there for their fans to rely on. Giambi is going to be limited due to a bone spur in his heel and the lack of the DH in the NL. Of course, the old "Well, we have 26 Championships, what does a series in May mean" is there as well. To me, the important thing is to win series, no matter who the opponent is. The only reason a sweep for the Mets this weekend would be great is that the Braves could lose all 3 in Boston, and the Mets could put some distance between them. I don't care about the media being able to proclaim the Mets the "Best Team in NY". I care about the Mets winning the World Series.
Now, as I said up top, I'm not gonna lie to you. I would of course do my share of boasting if they won. I have had to deal with shit from Yankee fans for years, from co-workers, friends, neighbors. So far this year though, they have been quiet. I find that quite interesting. So I will give a little back. But at the end of the day, the only thing a series win in May means is that the Mets won a couple of games, and hopefully built some breathing room in the division.
I want to hear "Taking Care of Business at least twice this weekend. Three would be fantastic. All the while, I want a Sox sweep, and the Braves reeling as we head to Atlanta. That's the important series.
LETS GO METS!
Thursday, May 17, 2007
The B Team Strikes Again
This was the lineup the Mets started today:
Chavez
Gotay
Green
Delgado
Franco
Newhan
Castro
Gomez
Vargas
At least we have a strong bench today.
So you take a look and think, "We're Fucked".
We continue to doubt Willie when he trots out the B team, yet pretty much every time, they get the job done.
Today, Vargas did well for 5 innings, then gave up 4 runs in the 6th on two home runs. He wound up going 7, 6 hits, 5 ER, 2 k's. Not terrible, not great. It was 5-1 when he left, and Burgos came in and held the Cubs for the final 2 innings.
The Mets scored a run in the 5th to tie it at 1 on a single by Endy, followed by a stolen base and a run scoring double by Gotay. Otherwise, not much fun.
The fun came in the ninth.
Ryan Dempster, the Cubs closer was on the mound. Newhan singled to lead off. Following a Castro line out, Gomez singled, moving Newhan to third. Gomez took second on defensive indifference with Beltran at the plate for Burgos. Beltran walked. Then, in a repeat of Monday, Endy walked, making it 5-2. Gotay followed with a single to make it 5-3. Pinella then pulls his closer for Scott Eyre, and Willie responded by pinch-hitting Wright for Green. First pitch, DW singles to make it 5-4. Delgado came to the plate, bases still juiced, and gets the game winning single, driving in 2.
I think it's time for all of us to stop doubting the B Team.
And I think someone better check to see that Lou took his blood pressure medication today.
That's twice this series the Cubs blew a game in the 9th.
The Braves lost as well, the lead is now 1.5 games.
A good day.
Chavez
Gotay
Green
Delgado
Franco
Newhan
Castro
Gomez
Vargas
At least we have a strong bench today.
So you take a look and think, "We're Fucked".
We continue to doubt Willie when he trots out the B team, yet pretty much every time, they get the job done.
Today, Vargas did well for 5 innings, then gave up 4 runs in the 6th on two home runs. He wound up going 7, 6 hits, 5 ER, 2 k's. Not terrible, not great. It was 5-1 when he left, and Burgos came in and held the Cubs for the final 2 innings.
The Mets scored a run in the 5th to tie it at 1 on a single by Endy, followed by a stolen base and a run scoring double by Gotay. Otherwise, not much fun.
The fun came in the ninth.
Ryan Dempster, the Cubs closer was on the mound. Newhan singled to lead off. Following a Castro line out, Gomez singled, moving Newhan to third. Gomez took second on defensive indifference with Beltran at the plate for Burgos. Beltran walked. Then, in a repeat of Monday, Endy walked, making it 5-2. Gotay followed with a single to make it 5-3. Pinella then pulls his closer for Scott Eyre, and Willie responded by pinch-hitting Wright for Green. First pitch, DW singles to make it 5-4. Delgado came to the plate, bases still juiced, and gets the game winning single, driving in 2.
I think it's time for all of us to stop doubting the B Team.
And I think someone better check to see that Lou took his blood pressure medication today.
That's twice this series the Cubs blew a game in the 9th.
The Braves lost as well, the lead is now 1.5 games.
A good day.
Mountains out of Mole Hills, Also, the Mets won
Well, one thing Mets fans have wished for is more coverage from the local papers, including some back page shots. Well, we've taken a couple of shots the past two days. Nothing like a little issue to be blown up into a "Major Crisis" (see the Post today for that one).
First, as I noted yesterday, Lastings Milledge puts a rap song up on his record label's web site where he uses a few words that can be heard in raps by pretty much most rappers out there. The Daily News uncovered this "problem" and ran to a NYC councilman for comment. Of course, the councilman was outraged stating that the Mets need to tell Lastings that is not how to act basically. So, a young man makes a (bad) rap song and is pilloried. Of course, the News uses this latest "outrage" to remind everyone that when Milledge was 17, he had sex with a 15 year old. (Now, as the father of two girls, I want to state this very clearly, any boy who tries to have sex with either of them at that age is going to be in deep shit.) But the fact is, this happens all the time, Lastings was little different from most 17 year olds. Kids have sex. That is a fact unfortunately. The News also re-prints unsubstantiated claims that he had sex with girls younger than 15. These claims were investigated and found to be without merit, no criminal charges were filed. But the News seems to have a hard-on for Milledge, and re-prints all this crap in pretty much every story about him. I get the feeling that if he hit a World Series winning home run they would work it into the story.
The fact is this, the words he used are used by plenty of rappers. I'm not saying I agree with it, frankly, I think it is abhorrent, but even I have a few rap songs on my iPod that contain the words. Let's take a look at the New Jersey Nets. Jay-Z has part ownership of the team. This is a guy who is looked up to by plenty of people. Guess what, he uses the same damn words. I do not see the News, Post or Newsday going after the Nets for that. Let's take a listen to the intro songs used by myriad players. Players use rap songs all the time. Guess what, even some rock songs carry bad messages. Yet, there is no outcry about that.
So today, all of the papers have picked up this story. The Mets of course released a statement saying they do not approve of the lyrics. Some use this as a sign that the Mets are going to cut ties with Milledge. I disagree. What else were they going to say? "We like the song, and plan to use it as the theme song at Shea?" No. They had to release that statement. Jay Greenberg called Lastings selfish. Why? Because he made a bad rap song? Give me a fucking break. Plenty of athletes has a side business in music. Some are tame, like Bernie Williams. Others, not so much.
In my opinion, there are two main reasons why this is a big deal. First, some of the local papers flat out do not like Milledge. They wil use their power to sway opinion against him. Am I supposed to believe that the Councilman found that song all on his lonesome, and then called the Daily News? I'm thinking the News found it, and called him, knowing they would get a reaction. Some are calling for Milledge to be traded. That is the height of stupidity. First of all, with all this news, what will they get back? Second, it's a stupid fucking rap song. Trading the guy over this is asinine. We've had a lot worse guys on this team and they have stayed. Ever team has its share of idiots, or guys who made mistakes. Don't cut off your nose to spite your face. Sit the guy down, talk to him, and explain this stops. Omar spoke to him already, so I don't think we will see anymore rapping from Lastings.
The second reason is the climate right now, thanks to Imus. Had this song come out a couple of months ago, I firmly believe there would be no issue. But since the media hammered Imus, and took heat for not hammering rappers, this was a prime opportunity to bash a rapper. The icing on the cake was that he was a Met who had some issues in the past, both prior to joining the organization, and after. But Imus changed everything. Now, anyone who says a stupid thing is going to be called out. I personally find the words in question awful, but I'm not going to sit here and kill the guy over it.
It is my feverent hope that this issue goes away soon. Thankfully, we have the Subway Series coming up, so the writers will be distracted by that.
**********************************************
The other news was Lino Urdaneta being suspended for 50 games for Performance Enhancers. Of course, all the papers are blasting the Mets for this, and are citing the re-signing of Mota as a bad precedent. Look, what Mota did was wrong. I was pretty pissed that he did it, and frankly, wish the Mets had not given him a contract that helps him earn the money he lost through the suspension by back-loading the deal. Yes, this is the 4th player in the organization in the last year or so to be caught. Yes, that is bad. But you know what else is bad? Barry Bonds being treated like a king, when there is a lot of proof that he used PED's. Yet, ESPN is following him all over until he brakes Hank's record. He was re-signed to a deal as well. Now, I know he has never tested positive for anything, but let's be serious here. Take a look at him from his first couple of years, and look at him now. I grant, it is easy to gain weight as you get older (I'm living proof), but to increase your shoe size and head size? My feet stopped growing when I was 17.
The guys that have tested positive, with the exception of Mota, were minor leaguers. Did they do it on purpose? Who knows. Did they buy something that had something that wasn't on the label? Who knows. I'm not going to sit here and say "My team is OK." I am pissed about this. To me, the Mets need to tell every player, from the big league club down to short season, to their Academy in the Dominican, that the use of PED's is not tolerated. Following the suspension, they will be cut. No ifs ands or buts. This shit stops NOW. I don't care who it is, Beltran, Reyes, Wright, Wagner. You fail, you go.
***************************************
Overshadowed by all of this shit was another STRONG outing by Jorge Sosa last night. Sosa went 7, allowing 1 run and 1 hit, to move to 3-0. Sosa is looking like another gem that Omar found. Otherwise, Damion Easley hit another home run. David Wright drove in two runs. Carlos Gomez had two hits and his first two ML RBI's. The highlight to me though was the double steal by Beltran and Delgado. I don't know when Delgado last stole a base, but he got a decent jump. Fun stuff. Every starting position player had a hit. The only worry was Jose Reyes leaving the game in the 7th with a tight hamstring. He said after the game that he would play today, but if I'm Willie, I sit him out. We cannot risk him being out for an extended time, and with the quick turnaround and wet field, this is not a good time to risk further injury.
In other news, Moises Alou was put on the DL, and Jason Vargas will take the mound today at 1 PM, facing Angel Guzman.
Tomorrow, the Yankees come to Shea for 3. We'll talk more about it Friday AM.
First, as I noted yesterday, Lastings Milledge puts a rap song up on his record label's web site where he uses a few words that can be heard in raps by pretty much most rappers out there. The Daily News uncovered this "problem" and ran to a NYC councilman for comment. Of course, the councilman was outraged stating that the Mets need to tell Lastings that is not how to act basically. So, a young man makes a (bad) rap song and is pilloried. Of course, the News uses this latest "outrage" to remind everyone that when Milledge was 17, he had sex with a 15 year old. (Now, as the father of two girls, I want to state this very clearly, any boy who tries to have sex with either of them at that age is going to be in deep shit.) But the fact is, this happens all the time, Lastings was little different from most 17 year olds. Kids have sex. That is a fact unfortunately. The News also re-prints unsubstantiated claims that he had sex with girls younger than 15. These claims were investigated and found to be without merit, no criminal charges were filed. But the News seems to have a hard-on for Milledge, and re-prints all this crap in pretty much every story about him. I get the feeling that if he hit a World Series winning home run they would work it into the story.
The fact is this, the words he used are used by plenty of rappers. I'm not saying I agree with it, frankly, I think it is abhorrent, but even I have a few rap songs on my iPod that contain the words. Let's take a look at the New Jersey Nets. Jay-Z has part ownership of the team. This is a guy who is looked up to by plenty of people. Guess what, he uses the same damn words. I do not see the News, Post or Newsday going after the Nets for that. Let's take a listen to the intro songs used by myriad players. Players use rap songs all the time. Guess what, even some rock songs carry bad messages. Yet, there is no outcry about that.
So today, all of the papers have picked up this story. The Mets of course released a statement saying they do not approve of the lyrics. Some use this as a sign that the Mets are going to cut ties with Milledge. I disagree. What else were they going to say? "We like the song, and plan to use it as the theme song at Shea?" No. They had to release that statement. Jay Greenberg called Lastings selfish. Why? Because he made a bad rap song? Give me a fucking break. Plenty of athletes has a side business in music. Some are tame, like Bernie Williams. Others, not so much.
In my opinion, there are two main reasons why this is a big deal. First, some of the local papers flat out do not like Milledge. They wil use their power to sway opinion against him. Am I supposed to believe that the Councilman found that song all on his lonesome, and then called the Daily News? I'm thinking the News found it, and called him, knowing they would get a reaction. Some are calling for Milledge to be traded. That is the height of stupidity. First of all, with all this news, what will they get back? Second, it's a stupid fucking rap song. Trading the guy over this is asinine. We've had a lot worse guys on this team and they have stayed. Ever team has its share of idiots, or guys who made mistakes. Don't cut off your nose to spite your face. Sit the guy down, talk to him, and explain this stops. Omar spoke to him already, so I don't think we will see anymore rapping from Lastings.
The second reason is the climate right now, thanks to Imus. Had this song come out a couple of months ago, I firmly believe there would be no issue. But since the media hammered Imus, and took heat for not hammering rappers, this was a prime opportunity to bash a rapper. The icing on the cake was that he was a Met who had some issues in the past, both prior to joining the organization, and after. But Imus changed everything. Now, anyone who says a stupid thing is going to be called out. I personally find the words in question awful, but I'm not going to sit here and kill the guy over it.
It is my feverent hope that this issue goes away soon. Thankfully, we have the Subway Series coming up, so the writers will be distracted by that.
**********************************************
The other news was Lino Urdaneta being suspended for 50 games for Performance Enhancers. Of course, all the papers are blasting the Mets for this, and are citing the re-signing of Mota as a bad precedent. Look, what Mota did was wrong. I was pretty pissed that he did it, and frankly, wish the Mets had not given him a contract that helps him earn the money he lost through the suspension by back-loading the deal. Yes, this is the 4th player in the organization in the last year or so to be caught. Yes, that is bad. But you know what else is bad? Barry Bonds being treated like a king, when there is a lot of proof that he used PED's. Yet, ESPN is following him all over until he brakes Hank's record. He was re-signed to a deal as well. Now, I know he has never tested positive for anything, but let's be serious here. Take a look at him from his first couple of years, and look at him now. I grant, it is easy to gain weight as you get older (I'm living proof), but to increase your shoe size and head size? My feet stopped growing when I was 17.
The guys that have tested positive, with the exception of Mota, were minor leaguers. Did they do it on purpose? Who knows. Did they buy something that had something that wasn't on the label? Who knows. I'm not going to sit here and say "My team is OK." I am pissed about this. To me, the Mets need to tell every player, from the big league club down to short season, to their Academy in the Dominican, that the use of PED's is not tolerated. Following the suspension, they will be cut. No ifs ands or buts. This shit stops NOW. I don't care who it is, Beltran, Reyes, Wright, Wagner. You fail, you go.
***************************************
Overshadowed by all of this shit was another STRONG outing by Jorge Sosa last night. Sosa went 7, allowing 1 run and 1 hit, to move to 3-0. Sosa is looking like another gem that Omar found. Otherwise, Damion Easley hit another home run. David Wright drove in two runs. Carlos Gomez had two hits and his first two ML RBI's. The highlight to me though was the double steal by Beltran and Delgado. I don't know when Delgado last stole a base, but he got a decent jump. Fun stuff. Every starting position player had a hit. The only worry was Jose Reyes leaving the game in the 7th with a tight hamstring. He said after the game that he would play today, but if I'm Willie, I sit him out. We cannot risk him being out for an extended time, and with the quick turnaround and wet field, this is not a good time to risk further injury.
In other news, Moises Alou was put on the DL, and Jason Vargas will take the mound today at 1 PM, facing Angel Guzman.
Tomorrow, the Yankees come to Shea for 3. We'll talk more about it Friday AM.
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
The Show Get's Lit Up
I've got a new column over at F.U. titled Saving Grace, a look at the concerns we had about the bullpen coming into this year, and how it has been a surprise in that it is good despite the new parts. I finished it up at about 8 PM last night. Of course, The Show, who I kinda praise, then craps the bed, the floor, the walls and the ceiling. Dammit.
John Maine started, and continued his recent string of some wildness, walking two in the first, and both runners would score on a ground rule double by Ward. In the second inning, a couple of more singles, and a run driven in on a single by Uncle Cliffy (who went 3-4). Maine struggled through 5, with the fifth being the only inning he went 1-2-3. In the bottom of the fifth, Shawn Green hit a long home run to right center, and it was 3-1. After a PLD groundout, Easley singled, Newhan pinch hitting for Maine walked, putting runners on 1st and 2nd with 1 out. Alas, Reyes grounded out, as did Endy. Then, enter the Show, and exit a chance to win.
After getting the first out, Show allowed a single to Zambrano, then walked Theriot. Uncle Cliffy hit another single to load em up. After getting Soriano to fly out, The Show then delivered a meatball to Aramis Ramirez, who sent it to the second deck in left, for a 7-1 lead. The Show then walked Ward, and was replaced by Aaron Sele, who gave up doubles to Barrett and Jones, for a 9-1 Cubs lead. On a night the Mets needed the bullpen to keep them in the game, they were unable to do so. Burgos, newly recalled from AAA, pitched the 8th and ninth (his new role will apparently be to go 2 innings), and gave up a run after allowing a double to Fontenot (in his first MLB at-bat), throwing a wild pitch, and allowing a sac fly to Barrett for the final run in the 10-1 beating.
I'm a little worried about Maine. I'm not sure if he is getting squeezed, or if he is simply missing his spots. After a stellar April, May has been not so kind. This is two starts in a row with 3 runs given up, and he followed up a 6 walk outing last time with 3 more walks. His WHIP is still only 1.25, and his ERA is a very good 2.15, but I am concerned that he has not had his whole arsenal for a couple of starts now. Last night, his fastball was hittable, the game before, he threw nothing but fastballs for the most part. It is not a long term concern, but a short one on my part.
I had said yesterday that I thought Zambrano was due for a good start, and he made my fear come true. Eight innings, 6 hits, 3 walks, 3 K's. Was it an audition? Possibly, but the Mets are going to make the decision to go after him (assuming he goes FA) based on his whole body of work. Right now, his numbers are still awful.
Tonight, Sosa makes his third start, facing Rich Hill, who is 4-2 with a 2.51 ERA and .96 WHIP. A lefty, meaning we will probably see Gomez in the lineup in place of Green.
Miscellaneous Notes
1. Lastings Milledge is in trouble again. This time, he is heard on a rap song (he is not the main vioce, just a guest star) titled "Bend Ya Knees". Apparently, the title of the song is a trick, since it is not about going to Church and praying. The Mets are not happy, saying
"We disapprove of the content, language and message of this recording, which does not represent the views of the New York Mets"
Now, I like Milledge, and thought he got something of a raw deal last year. He seemed to mature in the offseason. But this is only going to add fuel to the embers that were always going to be there. This song, which is coming out thanks to the record label he is CEO of, is going to be fodder for the haters. Coming on the heels of Imus, it is bad timing. He uses several derogatory terms in the lyrics. Now, there is obviously no way he could have known the climate would be as it is now. But given his past, you would think he would be a little smarter. This is not going to end well. I fear a trade on the horizon.
2. ESPN the Magazine, as Matt Cerrone on Metsblog pointed out, has a cover story on how clubhouse workers are the new steroid connection. The cover is a photo of a guy wearing a Mets polo shirt, holding out two Mets jerseys with a needle on top. I got it last week in the mail, and was immediately sickened. I had wanted to write about it, but had not found the time. I'm glad Matt brought it to light on his site, as he has a large following. For my part, I have cancelled my "ESPN Insider" account, and the magazine. As for the issue, I did not read the story, the cover tells me all I need to know.
As we all know, the guy in question has not worked for the Mets in 10 years, and all his crimes happened in the time since he left. Why ESPN feels the need to continue to link the Mets to this is beyond me. I have a question for them, where is the story on Personal Trainers, like Anderson, and all the other guys who's names have been linked? I would think they have an easy time getting HGH and other performance enhancers. You follow around Bonds and subject us to abject ball washing of each accomplishment, no matter that they are tainted. In this case, a clubhouse flunky leaves an organization, and, the horror, becomes a workout fiend and deals steroids. AFTER HE WAS A METS EMPLOYEE. Stop the linking of the team to this piece of shit.
What about a story on the NFL, who has had more people suspended for steroids than any other sport. For fucks sake, Shawne Merriman, a top player was caught and suspended 4 games, but the story went away as quickly as it broke. ESPn loves the NFL, so no chance of a story with say a Cowboys jersey on the cover.
I implore all Mets fans to make their voices heard. Complain to ESPN. Email them, write them, cancel any memberships. This attack on our team is nothing more than an attempt to increase circulation by smearing a NY team. Show them we will not stand for it. Tell them the unfair treatment of our team will not be tolerated. Until we stop buying and reading their shit, they will continue to make something out of nothing.
John Maine started, and continued his recent string of some wildness, walking two in the first, and both runners would score on a ground rule double by Ward. In the second inning, a couple of more singles, and a run driven in on a single by Uncle Cliffy (who went 3-4). Maine struggled through 5, with the fifth being the only inning he went 1-2-3. In the bottom of the fifth, Shawn Green hit a long home run to right center, and it was 3-1. After a PLD groundout, Easley singled, Newhan pinch hitting for Maine walked, putting runners on 1st and 2nd with 1 out. Alas, Reyes grounded out, as did Endy. Then, enter the Show, and exit a chance to win.
After getting the first out, Show allowed a single to Zambrano, then walked Theriot. Uncle Cliffy hit another single to load em up. After getting Soriano to fly out, The Show then delivered a meatball to Aramis Ramirez, who sent it to the second deck in left, for a 7-1 lead. The Show then walked Ward, and was replaced by Aaron Sele, who gave up doubles to Barrett and Jones, for a 9-1 Cubs lead. On a night the Mets needed the bullpen to keep them in the game, they were unable to do so. Burgos, newly recalled from AAA, pitched the 8th and ninth (his new role will apparently be to go 2 innings), and gave up a run after allowing a double to Fontenot (in his first MLB at-bat), throwing a wild pitch, and allowing a sac fly to Barrett for the final run in the 10-1 beating.
I'm a little worried about Maine. I'm not sure if he is getting squeezed, or if he is simply missing his spots. After a stellar April, May has been not so kind. This is two starts in a row with 3 runs given up, and he followed up a 6 walk outing last time with 3 more walks. His WHIP is still only 1.25, and his ERA is a very good 2.15, but I am concerned that he has not had his whole arsenal for a couple of starts now. Last night, his fastball was hittable, the game before, he threw nothing but fastballs for the most part. It is not a long term concern, but a short one on my part.
I had said yesterday that I thought Zambrano was due for a good start, and he made my fear come true. Eight innings, 6 hits, 3 walks, 3 K's. Was it an audition? Possibly, but the Mets are going to make the decision to go after him (assuming he goes FA) based on his whole body of work. Right now, his numbers are still awful.
Tonight, Sosa makes his third start, facing Rich Hill, who is 4-2 with a 2.51 ERA and .96 WHIP. A lefty, meaning we will probably see Gomez in the lineup in place of Green.
Miscellaneous Notes
1. Lastings Milledge is in trouble again. This time, he is heard on a rap song (he is not the main vioce, just a guest star) titled "Bend Ya Knees". Apparently, the title of the song is a trick, since it is not about going to Church and praying. The Mets are not happy, saying
"We disapprove of the content, language and message of this recording, which does not represent the views of the New York Mets"
Now, I like Milledge, and thought he got something of a raw deal last year. He seemed to mature in the offseason. But this is only going to add fuel to the embers that were always going to be there. This song, which is coming out thanks to the record label he is CEO of, is going to be fodder for the haters. Coming on the heels of Imus, it is bad timing. He uses several derogatory terms in the lyrics. Now, there is obviously no way he could have known the climate would be as it is now. But given his past, you would think he would be a little smarter. This is not going to end well. I fear a trade on the horizon.
2. ESPN the Magazine, as Matt Cerrone on Metsblog pointed out, has a cover story on how clubhouse workers are the new steroid connection. The cover is a photo of a guy wearing a Mets polo shirt, holding out two Mets jerseys with a needle on top. I got it last week in the mail, and was immediately sickened. I had wanted to write about it, but had not found the time. I'm glad Matt brought it to light on his site, as he has a large following. For my part, I have cancelled my "ESPN Insider" account, and the magazine. As for the issue, I did not read the story, the cover tells me all I need to know.
As we all know, the guy in question has not worked for the Mets in 10 years, and all his crimes happened in the time since he left. Why ESPN feels the need to continue to link the Mets to this is beyond me. I have a question for them, where is the story on Personal Trainers, like Anderson, and all the other guys who's names have been linked? I would think they have an easy time getting HGH and other performance enhancers. You follow around Bonds and subject us to abject ball washing of each accomplishment, no matter that they are tainted. In this case, a clubhouse flunky leaves an organization, and, the horror, becomes a workout fiend and deals steroids. AFTER HE WAS A METS EMPLOYEE. Stop the linking of the team to this piece of shit.
What about a story on the NFL, who has had more people suspended for steroids than any other sport. For fucks sake, Shawne Merriman, a top player was caught and suspended 4 games, but the story went away as quickly as it broke. ESPn loves the NFL, so no chance of a story with say a Cowboys jersey on the cover.
I implore all Mets fans to make their voices heard. Complain to ESPN. Email them, write them, cancel any memberships. This attack on our team is nothing more than an attempt to increase circulation by smearing a NY team. Show them we will not stand for it. Tell them the unfair treatment of our team will not be tolerated. Until we stop buying and reading their shit, they will continue to make something out of nothing.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Walks in the Park (I blame Chan Ho)
So, a walk off walk. For once, walks helped the Mets last night, as the Cubbies couldn't get the ball over the plate in the ninth inning. Lou must be ready to explode after that debacle.
Tommy wasn't at his best last night, though the defense did let him down a tad. He is still stuck on 294 wins, and this time, he can only blame himself. In the first, it seemed Mike Pelfrey was on the mound, as Tommy gave up a double to Soriano, followed by a single to Aramis Ramirez. He was able to get out of the inning down only 1-0. Then, in the second, a walk to DeRosa (who has a 350ish average lifetime against the Mets), a double by Angel Pagan and a single by Jason Marquis led to two more runs. Marquis would later score on a single by Izturis, and it was 4-0 Cubbies.
Glavine settled down until the 5th, retiring the next nine in a row. In the 5th though, after getting two quick outs, a walk to Soriano (who then stole second), was followed by walks to Ramirez and Murton. Bases loaded, and Tommy showed the veteran guile and was able to stop the Cubbies. One more inning for him, final line, 6 innings, 4 runs, 2 K's and 4 walks. Tommy may be in his little dip that he seems to go into every year. They usually do not last long. I for one hope that is the case now, as they can ill afford to have him slumping. Glavine was followed by Joe Smith, who gave up a single in 1.1 innings, and then by Pedro Dos who had a similar line. Heilman got the last out in the ninth, and walked away with the win.
On offense, little was done by the Mets until the 4th when Delgado walked. Up stepped The Prince, and he hit a drive to right that just cleared the fence, and it was 4-2 Cubs. Wright ended the night going 3-4. I'm thinking he's back now. Delgado, you're next. Two walks are OK, but some extra base hits to drive in runs would be better.
The Mets tied it in the 6th. Delgado and Wright singled to start the inning. Following a Green strikeout, PLD doubled to drive in Delgado. Easley then hit a sac fly to plate Wright, and we were tied. It would stay that way until the 9th, when with 2 out, Jose Jose Jose singled. Endy walked following a Reyes steal of second on a pitch-out. Beltran followed with another walk, loading the bases for Delgado. A ten-pitch at bat ensued, with Carlos fighting off some good pitches. Finally, Wuertz threw ball four, and the Mets would go home winners, and in possession of first place by 1/2 game, as the Braves fell to the Nationals (during the game, the Braves were no hit for 7 innings, and Smoltz dislocated his pinkie tagging out a runner. No word on how long he will be out, if at all. That's four in a row for Manny Acta's Nats. Thanks Manny!)
So, on a night where walks were prevalent, the Mets for once were able to come out on top. A couple of things I noticed. First, Lou Pinella is terrible. I know he has a good record, but the guy shoots daggers at his pitchers. He just has god-awful body language in the dugout. He conveys a sense of loss, not of winning. I'm not saying to sit back and do nothing ala Joe Torre, but for pete's sake, if you don't show confidence in your pitchers, they are not going to react well. I for one am glad he was not hired as Mets manager a few years back.
Marquis, I don't know how he does it. The guy is not that good, yet he is 5-1. I was not that impressed with him last night. Several balls were hit hard, but went right to Cub fielders. I don't think it is long before the bloom comes off that rose.
Tonight, the game that worries me in this series, as John Maine faces Carlos Zambrano. Zambrano has had a tough year, going 3-3 with a 5.83 ERA and 1.60 WHIP. Is it the contract discussions that are bothering him? Is he hurt? Or is it simply that guys have figured him out? He has thrown a lot of innings and pitches in his career, thanks to Dusty Baker (who lets a guy throw 120 pitches in the last game of a dead season? Dusty Baker.) That being said, CZ has the ability to be lights out. I'm a little worried that he is going to try to do that tonight, in the hopes of either getting his new contract done, or impressing the Mets so they go after him in the offseason if he goes the free agent route. I hope I am wrong.
Tommy wasn't at his best last night, though the defense did let him down a tad. He is still stuck on 294 wins, and this time, he can only blame himself. In the first, it seemed Mike Pelfrey was on the mound, as Tommy gave up a double to Soriano, followed by a single to Aramis Ramirez. He was able to get out of the inning down only 1-0. Then, in the second, a walk to DeRosa (who has a 350ish average lifetime against the Mets), a double by Angel Pagan and a single by Jason Marquis led to two more runs. Marquis would later score on a single by Izturis, and it was 4-0 Cubbies.
Glavine settled down until the 5th, retiring the next nine in a row. In the 5th though, after getting two quick outs, a walk to Soriano (who then stole second), was followed by walks to Ramirez and Murton. Bases loaded, and Tommy showed the veteran guile and was able to stop the Cubbies. One more inning for him, final line, 6 innings, 4 runs, 2 K's and 4 walks. Tommy may be in his little dip that he seems to go into every year. They usually do not last long. I for one hope that is the case now, as they can ill afford to have him slumping. Glavine was followed by Joe Smith, who gave up a single in 1.1 innings, and then by Pedro Dos who had a similar line. Heilman got the last out in the ninth, and walked away with the win.
On offense, little was done by the Mets until the 4th when Delgado walked. Up stepped The Prince, and he hit a drive to right that just cleared the fence, and it was 4-2 Cubs. Wright ended the night going 3-4. I'm thinking he's back now. Delgado, you're next. Two walks are OK, but some extra base hits to drive in runs would be better.
The Mets tied it in the 6th. Delgado and Wright singled to start the inning. Following a Green strikeout, PLD doubled to drive in Delgado. Easley then hit a sac fly to plate Wright, and we were tied. It would stay that way until the 9th, when with 2 out, Jose Jose Jose singled. Endy walked following a Reyes steal of second on a pitch-out. Beltran followed with another walk, loading the bases for Delgado. A ten-pitch at bat ensued, with Carlos fighting off some good pitches. Finally, Wuertz threw ball four, and the Mets would go home winners, and in possession of first place by 1/2 game, as the Braves fell to the Nationals (during the game, the Braves were no hit for 7 innings, and Smoltz dislocated his pinkie tagging out a runner. No word on how long he will be out, if at all. That's four in a row for Manny Acta's Nats. Thanks Manny!)
So, on a night where walks were prevalent, the Mets for once were able to come out on top. A couple of things I noticed. First, Lou Pinella is terrible. I know he has a good record, but the guy shoots daggers at his pitchers. He just has god-awful body language in the dugout. He conveys a sense of loss, not of winning. I'm not saying to sit back and do nothing ala Joe Torre, but for pete's sake, if you don't show confidence in your pitchers, they are not going to react well. I for one am glad he was not hired as Mets manager a few years back.
Marquis, I don't know how he does it. The guy is not that good, yet he is 5-1. I was not that impressed with him last night. Several balls were hit hard, but went right to Cub fielders. I don't think it is long before the bloom comes off that rose.
Tonight, the game that worries me in this series, as John Maine faces Carlos Zambrano. Zambrano has had a tough year, going 3-3 with a 5.83 ERA and 1.60 WHIP. Is it the contract discussions that are bothering him? Is he hurt? Or is it simply that guys have figured him out? He has thrown a lot of innings and pitches in his career, thanks to Dusty Baker (who lets a guy throw 120 pitches in the last game of a dead season? Dusty Baker.) That being said, CZ has the ability to be lights out. I'm a little worried that he is going to try to do that tonight, in the hopes of either getting his new contract done, or impressing the Mets so they go after him in the offseason if he goes the free agent route. I hope I am wrong.
Monday, May 14, 2007
Ollie Ollie Ollie!
Well, coming into the weekend, a lot of people, myself included, were a tad worried about the pitching match-ups. The Brewers were hot, and we had Sosa, Pelfrey and Perez going against Suppan, Sheets and Capuano. Of course, the Mets took 2 of 3, and smacked around Capuano a tad.
Friday, Sosa made it easy for Willomar to keep him here. Another good start, 6.2 innings, 4 hits, 2 runs. Pedro Dos got him out of a jam, Herr Midol gave up a 2 run HR, but the Mets had a 3 run lead, so no problem. Billy pitched another 1-2-3 inning for his 9th save in 9 tries. DW and Delgado took Suppan deep, Easley hit a homer in the seventh. Only 7 hits, but 5 runs showed they made the hits count.
Saturday unfortunately went about as well as expected for Mike (who now gets to enjoy lovely NOLA as he attempts to work on his control). The weekends have been a tad busy for Ed, whatwith the two little ones, so I dont get to see many afternoon games. It was 4-3 the last I had heard, the next update it was 12-3, and the bullpen had imploded. Pelfrey did not do too much apparently to keep himself in NY, so he was sent down and Carlos Gomez was called up to help replace Moises Alou, who has a bad quad to go along with his aching knee. Pelfrey has had problems with his slider in past starts, this time it was OK, but the fastball was staying up in the zone, so it is back to NOLA to work on that. Pedro Dos, Joe Smith and The Show all got racked, in the case of Pedro and Joe, the first runs given up all year. Smith gave up 3 on a grand slam. Welcome to the bigs kid. Don't worry about it. As for the Show, he had done well as of late, so hopefully this is a blip.
Yesterday, Capuano vs. Perez. Ollie walked the leadoff hitter after a 9 pitch battle, but cruised form there. He gave up a hit in the 4th, and nothing else until the 9th. By that time, he was staked to a 9-0 lead. The Mets jumped on Capuano early, putting up 3 in the first on a 2 run HR by Easley (his second in 3 days), and a run scoring single by Castro, which drove in DW (who is now hitting 262, methinks the slump may be done). In the second inning, Carlos Gomez, making his first start, laced a double down the left field line, and scored on a single by Easley (who had 4 RBI on the day). Perez kept dealing, showing no ill effects from his implosion on Monday in San Fran. In the bottom of the 8th, Gomez singled, stole 2nd, and scored on a Perez single. Jose Jose Jose followed with a triple, scoring O Pea, Easley drove in Reyes with an infield single, and Beltran hit a two run shot, making it 9-0. In the ninth, Perez retired Fielder, but gave up a solo shot to Hall, and that was it for him, as the crowd gave him a standing O. Aaron Heilman gave up a single, but then retired the last two batters.
So, we are now 36 games into the season, the Mets stand at 23-13. They took 2-3 from the team with the best record in baseball. Delgado and Wright are heating up. Smith broke his cherry, and will hopefully learn from it. The record by the way is the same as it was at this point last year. Not too shabby. The problem is the Braves are right with us, whereas last year, no one was.
Big week this week. Four against the Cubs, as Uncle Cliffy returns to Shea. I hope Cliffy isn't hurt if he doesn't get a round of applause. I think fans may be confused over how to treat a guy who bashed his former manager who gave him every shot to play. Then, the Yankees this weekend. I've said this a lot lately, but this is a statement week. The home record is poor, and we have 7 left on this homestand. Going 5-2 would be nice. But I would love to get more than that. The Cubs are struggling a bit, as Zambrano is not pitching all that well. The question for the Mets is who gets the start in Thursday? Is it Sele? Or do they call up Vargas? If they call up Vargas, I gotta think Lino Urdaneta goes down to NOLA, unless they DL Alou, who thinks that may have to happen. They need to keep Gomez here, as they need the depth. And he showed some nice flashes yesterday. Poor Lastings, what a bad time for an injury.
Then there is the weekend series against the struggling Yankees. You know they are going to come to play, They are 8 games back, and cannot afford to fall further behind, much less lose to the Mets. The Boss wouldn't like that very much. More on that later in the week.
Friday, Sosa made it easy for Willomar to keep him here. Another good start, 6.2 innings, 4 hits, 2 runs. Pedro Dos got him out of a jam, Herr Midol gave up a 2 run HR, but the Mets had a 3 run lead, so no problem. Billy pitched another 1-2-3 inning for his 9th save in 9 tries. DW and Delgado took Suppan deep, Easley hit a homer in the seventh. Only 7 hits, but 5 runs showed they made the hits count.
Saturday unfortunately went about as well as expected for Mike (who now gets to enjoy lovely NOLA as he attempts to work on his control). The weekends have been a tad busy for Ed, whatwith the two little ones, so I dont get to see many afternoon games. It was 4-3 the last I had heard, the next update it was 12-3, and the bullpen had imploded. Pelfrey did not do too much apparently to keep himself in NY, so he was sent down and Carlos Gomez was called up to help replace Moises Alou, who has a bad quad to go along with his aching knee. Pelfrey has had problems with his slider in past starts, this time it was OK, but the fastball was staying up in the zone, so it is back to NOLA to work on that. Pedro Dos, Joe Smith and The Show all got racked, in the case of Pedro and Joe, the first runs given up all year. Smith gave up 3 on a grand slam. Welcome to the bigs kid. Don't worry about it. As for the Show, he had done well as of late, so hopefully this is a blip.
Yesterday, Capuano vs. Perez. Ollie walked the leadoff hitter after a 9 pitch battle, but cruised form there. He gave up a hit in the 4th, and nothing else until the 9th. By that time, he was staked to a 9-0 lead. The Mets jumped on Capuano early, putting up 3 in the first on a 2 run HR by Easley (his second in 3 days), and a run scoring single by Castro, which drove in DW (who is now hitting 262, methinks the slump may be done). In the second inning, Carlos Gomez, making his first start, laced a double down the left field line, and scored on a single by Easley (who had 4 RBI on the day). Perez kept dealing, showing no ill effects from his implosion on Monday in San Fran. In the bottom of the 8th, Gomez singled, stole 2nd, and scored on a Perez single. Jose Jose Jose followed with a triple, scoring O Pea, Easley drove in Reyes with an infield single, and Beltran hit a two run shot, making it 9-0. In the ninth, Perez retired Fielder, but gave up a solo shot to Hall, and that was it for him, as the crowd gave him a standing O. Aaron Heilman gave up a single, but then retired the last two batters.
So, we are now 36 games into the season, the Mets stand at 23-13. They took 2-3 from the team with the best record in baseball. Delgado and Wright are heating up. Smith broke his cherry, and will hopefully learn from it. The record by the way is the same as it was at this point last year. Not too shabby. The problem is the Braves are right with us, whereas last year, no one was.
Big week this week. Four against the Cubs, as Uncle Cliffy returns to Shea. I hope Cliffy isn't hurt if he doesn't get a round of applause. I think fans may be confused over how to treat a guy who bashed his former manager who gave him every shot to play. Then, the Yankees this weekend. I've said this a lot lately, but this is a statement week. The home record is poor, and we have 7 left on this homestand. Going 5-2 would be nice. But I would love to get more than that. The Cubs are struggling a bit, as Zambrano is not pitching all that well. The question for the Mets is who gets the start in Thursday? Is it Sele? Or do they call up Vargas? If they call up Vargas, I gotta think Lino Urdaneta goes down to NOLA, unless they DL Alou, who thinks that may have to happen. They need to keep Gomez here, as they need the depth. And he showed some nice flashes yesterday. Poor Lastings, what a bad time for an injury.
Then there is the weekend series against the struggling Yankees. You know they are going to come to play, They are 8 games back, and cannot afford to fall further behind, much less lose to the Mets. The Boss wouldn't like that very much. More on that later in the week.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Memories
Ah, a stroll down memory lane yesterday. Carlos Delgado went yard and drove in the tying run with a double. David Wright drove in the game winning run with a 9th inning double, scoring 2. And Armando Benitez, well, he reminded us of Armando from his Mets days.
John Maine had a tough outing, in a way, a reminder of last year (and a little like Oliver Perez). With a major difference. The difference was that despite 6 walks in 6 innings, he limited the damage to 3 runs. When he started to lose focus, Delgado, doing his best Keith Hernandez impression, paid him a visit on the mound and told him not to worry, that if he held the Giants in check, the Mets would win. Alas, John did not move to 6-0, but the Mets moved to 5-2 on the trip out west, and stayed tied for first with the Braves (thanks to the Padres bullpen once again blowing a 1 run lead late in the game).
Delgado's home run was impressive, a blast into McCovey Cove. The double may have been even more impressive, as he took a pitch from nearly his shoes and drove it to left center. The shift hurt the Giants, as the ball went into no mans land, and Beltran, who was running on the 3-2 pitch, was able to score standing up, sore quad and all. I hope that we are seeing the emergence of Delgado here. He has been lacing the ball a lot of late.
As for Mr. Wright, the leader of the he-man hair haters club, he went 1-4, but the hit was the winning one. He went 2-4 Tuesday after the haircut, and is now hitting 254, still a far cry from the 320 or so we expect, but he is coming around. Again, he is stroking the ball well.
Mr. Benitez was the victim. He had been 14-15 in save situations, his prior blown save coming last year on a home run to Lastings Milledge, which resulted in the Hi-5's and the controversy over that. Yesterday, he came into a tie game gave up a single to PLD, who was erased on a failed bunt by Gotay (who had homered earlier). Endy then walked, and Benitez induced a pop up to right from Reyes. Looked like out #2, except for fielding folly on the part of the Giants, who could not make the grab. Now, Benitez was set to face Wright with the bases juiced. He promptly went to 3-0 (the umpire had a really tight strike zone yesterday). After a strike, Wright took the next pitch to left, a one hopper to the wall. Two runs scored, and Billy Wagner came in to set the Giants down 1-2-3, with 2 strike outs.
So we got to remember what it was like when Carlos could be called "Del Got It", and David could drive in a winning run. We remembered what it was like to come back to win. And we were thankful that another team had to deal with the meltdowns of Armando. I like those memories. I want more.
An off day today, followed by a 3 game set at Shea against the Central Leading and best record in baseball holding Brewers. This is a good test for the Mets, as they have not fared well against teams with winning records, nor have they done well at Shea. The pitching match-ups are not entirely favorable
Suppan vs. Sosa
Sheets vs. Pelfrey
Capuano vs. Perez
Then again, many thought the Webb vs. Sosa matchup last Saturday wasn't a good one, and it worked out OK. I just hope we get to be reminded of last year, when we were able to dominate teams. The next 40 games are very tough. The Braves may not be going away anytime soon, so the Mets need start firing on all cylinders.
John Maine had a tough outing, in a way, a reminder of last year (and a little like Oliver Perez). With a major difference. The difference was that despite 6 walks in 6 innings, he limited the damage to 3 runs. When he started to lose focus, Delgado, doing his best Keith Hernandez impression, paid him a visit on the mound and told him not to worry, that if he held the Giants in check, the Mets would win. Alas, John did not move to 6-0, but the Mets moved to 5-2 on the trip out west, and stayed tied for first with the Braves (thanks to the Padres bullpen once again blowing a 1 run lead late in the game).
Delgado's home run was impressive, a blast into McCovey Cove. The double may have been even more impressive, as he took a pitch from nearly his shoes and drove it to left center. The shift hurt the Giants, as the ball went into no mans land, and Beltran, who was running on the 3-2 pitch, was able to score standing up, sore quad and all. I hope that we are seeing the emergence of Delgado here. He has been lacing the ball a lot of late.
As for Mr. Wright, the leader of the he-man hair haters club, he went 1-4, but the hit was the winning one. He went 2-4 Tuesday after the haircut, and is now hitting 254, still a far cry from the 320 or so we expect, but he is coming around. Again, he is stroking the ball well.
Mr. Benitez was the victim. He had been 14-15 in save situations, his prior blown save coming last year on a home run to Lastings Milledge, which resulted in the Hi-5's and the controversy over that. Yesterday, he came into a tie game gave up a single to PLD, who was erased on a failed bunt by Gotay (who had homered earlier). Endy then walked, and Benitez induced a pop up to right from Reyes. Looked like out #2, except for fielding folly on the part of the Giants, who could not make the grab. Now, Benitez was set to face Wright with the bases juiced. He promptly went to 3-0 (the umpire had a really tight strike zone yesterday). After a strike, Wright took the next pitch to left, a one hopper to the wall. Two runs scored, and Billy Wagner came in to set the Giants down 1-2-3, with 2 strike outs.
So we got to remember what it was like when Carlos could be called "Del Got It", and David could drive in a winning run. We remembered what it was like to come back to win. And we were thankful that another team had to deal with the meltdowns of Armando. I like those memories. I want more.
An off day today, followed by a 3 game set at Shea against the Central Leading and best record in baseball holding Brewers. This is a good test for the Mets, as they have not fared well against teams with winning records, nor have they done well at Shea. The pitching match-ups are not entirely favorable
Suppan vs. Sosa
Sheets vs. Pelfrey
Capuano vs. Perez
Then again, many thought the Webb vs. Sosa matchup last Saturday wasn't a good one, and it worked out OK. I just hope we get to be reminded of last year, when we were able to dominate teams. The next 40 games are very tough. The Braves may not be going away anytime soon, so the Mets need start firing on all cylinders.
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Clean Shaven Mets and the Return of the Observations
So, after Monday night's game, young David decided to have his head shaved. After giving him the business, most of the rest of the team followed, showing that David is the Captain (j/k). All except for Jose Reyes, Aaron Sele and Aaron Heilman and Glavine (though Tom said he would probably do it today). The result, a 4-1 win over Matt Cain, and agita for Mad Dog Russo today.
The game started with three straight doubles, leading to two runs. After a Delgado ground out, Alou drives in Beltran with a Sac Fly. In the second, Jose Jose Jose hits a triple, driving in PLD (who's bat has started to warm up.) That was all Glavine would need, as he allowed only a Barroid home run in the 4th inning. Tom went 7, giving up 7 hits, one walk, with 5 k's. Pedro Dos and Wagner finished it up. Wright went 2-4 with 2 doubles, Reyes was 2-5 with a double and triple. Beltran had a double. Delgado went 0-4 as did Green (who looked absolutely awful with his shaved head.)
So, the rubber game at 3:35 today, Maine vs. Morris. Let's see how Johnny does with his hair cut.
*****************************
The Return of the Observations.
1. Aaron Heilman refused to get his hair cut because he wasn't allowed to start the trend.
2. Roger Clemens threw batting practice to some college pitchers yesterday. YES will show it on a continuous loop from noon - 7 today.
3. Attention all Mets fans who bemoaned the trading of Heath Bell. Guess who blew a Padres lead over the Braves last night? You can all shut up now. Heath Bell, still sucking, now on the West Coast.
4. Roger Clemens just farted. ESPN will have wall to wall coverage this morning.
5. MLB is taking a close look at the Orioles in the performance enhancing drug inquiry. Of course, the only enhancers they are taking are for ED, so they can keep up with Anna B. Thanks to Rafael Palmerio, they have a large supply.
6. Clemens took a crap yesterday. Thankfully, Suzan Waldman was there to give the play by play "Oh, my goodness gracious!" Of all the dramatic things, of all the dramatic things I've ever seen, Roger Clemens sitting right in George Steinbrenner's bathroom announcing he moved his bowels! The consistency is perfect, he hasn't lost a thing."
7. Is it just me, or does Sterling's home run call for A-Rod (an A-Bomb, for A-Rod), sound an awful lot like Steve Somers?
8. Jose Reyes refused to cut his hair saying to make him any more aerodynamic would not be fair to the other teams.
9. In case you are wondering, I fucking hate Roger Clemens.
10. During last night's Mets game, the poll was what opposing player do you most enjoy booing, Clemens, Bonds, Larry Jones or Jimmy Rollins. I gotta go with Larry, that fucker named his daughter Shea. Douche.
11. So Paris Hilton is going to jail. Her fans are upset and asking Governor Arnie to pardon her. Arnie's response "Hasta La Vista, Bimbo".
12. Insert Clemens bash here.
13. Some pictures of Brady Quinn "frisking" a guy after a golf outing surfaced on Kissing Suzy Kolber. Apparently, Brady needs to work on his grip.
14. A bus driver was arrested in the Shea Stadium parking lot. He was found half naked, with a mechanical penis enlarging device nearby, along with a book titled "Swedish-made Penis Enlargers and me, This Sort of Thing is my bag baby."
****************CLEMENS RANT*****************
You want to know why I hate Clemens? A lot of reasons. First, he is a fucking headhunter. He threw at Piazza, and could have killed him. What, Roger got hit hard by a guy so he tries to end his life? Fuck you. And then the bat. "I thought it was a ball". Really asshole, then why the fuck did you throw the "ball" at Piazza? A normal guy would have thrown it to the first baseman. The umpire that night was a pussy. Clemens should have been tossed right then and there. No questions asked. But he was too fucking afraid of how the Yankees would react. And the fucking Yankees supported him, showing an utter lack of class. Fuck all of them too.
Now, because Roger has decided he wants to play more, we get to live through a month of ESPN following his every fucking step. Tape of all his bullpen sessions. His exhibition starts will be aired no doubt. YES will probably cover every time he farts. You know what, he went 7-6 last year in the National League, the so called "lesser league". He rarely went 6 innings, much less 7. So tell me, how does that help the Yankee bullpen? It doesn't.
I love the fact that the media for once is getting all over the Yankees for this. First the announcement during the game the other day. What a fucking joke. Way to deflect attention from the game there Roger. (And the response from Suzan Waldman is beyond parody. Christ, SNL in its hey-day couldn't have mocked it any more than she did herself.) Oooh, Roger decided to pitch for the Yankees, let's announce it during the game from the Boss' box. Oh, and let's have him tell everyone he has a super secret reason that he will only share at the end of the season. We all know the reason Roger, the Yankees paid you the most money. Don't pretend otherwise.
I so hope this blows up in his and the Yankees collective faces. I only wish he was ready for the series against the Mets this month. Of course, that is at Shea, and you know damn well the Yankees want him making his first start at home. God forbid Roger hear any boos. I don't wish injury on players, not even Larry Jones, but I might make an exception in this case. No man is above the game, I don't care how good he was or is. I understand wanting to see your family, but you have a job to do, and part of it is to be part of the team. All I hear is that he is going to be a big help to the younger pitchers. How exactly is he going to help if he is only there on days he pitches? Holograms?
So, in conclusion, Roger Clemens is a turd. I hate him for his headhunting and his better than everyone else attitude. I am dead serious when I say if he had become a Met, I would have ceased rooting for them so long as he was on the team.
The game started with three straight doubles, leading to two runs. After a Delgado ground out, Alou drives in Beltran with a Sac Fly. In the second, Jose Jose Jose hits a triple, driving in PLD (who's bat has started to warm up.) That was all Glavine would need, as he allowed only a Barroid home run in the 4th inning. Tom went 7, giving up 7 hits, one walk, with 5 k's. Pedro Dos and Wagner finished it up. Wright went 2-4 with 2 doubles, Reyes was 2-5 with a double and triple. Beltran had a double. Delgado went 0-4 as did Green (who looked absolutely awful with his shaved head.)
So, the rubber game at 3:35 today, Maine vs. Morris. Let's see how Johnny does with his hair cut.
*****************************
The Return of the Observations.
1. Aaron Heilman refused to get his hair cut because he wasn't allowed to start the trend.
2. Roger Clemens threw batting practice to some college pitchers yesterday. YES will show it on a continuous loop from noon - 7 today.
3. Attention all Mets fans who bemoaned the trading of Heath Bell. Guess who blew a Padres lead over the Braves last night? You can all shut up now. Heath Bell, still sucking, now on the West Coast.
4. Roger Clemens just farted. ESPN will have wall to wall coverage this morning.
5. MLB is taking a close look at the Orioles in the performance enhancing drug inquiry. Of course, the only enhancers they are taking are for ED, so they can keep up with Anna B. Thanks to Rafael Palmerio, they have a large supply.
6. Clemens took a crap yesterday. Thankfully, Suzan Waldman was there to give the play by play "Oh, my goodness gracious!" Of all the dramatic things, of all the dramatic things I've ever seen, Roger Clemens sitting right in George Steinbrenner's bathroom announcing he moved his bowels! The consistency is perfect, he hasn't lost a thing."
7. Is it just me, or does Sterling's home run call for A-Rod (an A-Bomb, for A-Rod), sound an awful lot like Steve Somers?
8. Jose Reyes refused to cut his hair saying to make him any more aerodynamic would not be fair to the other teams.
9. In case you are wondering, I fucking hate Roger Clemens.
10. During last night's Mets game, the poll was what opposing player do you most enjoy booing, Clemens, Bonds, Larry Jones or Jimmy Rollins. I gotta go with Larry, that fucker named his daughter Shea. Douche.
11. So Paris Hilton is going to jail. Her fans are upset and asking Governor Arnie to pardon her. Arnie's response "Hasta La Vista, Bimbo".
12. Insert Clemens bash here.
13. Some pictures of Brady Quinn "frisking" a guy after a golf outing surfaced on Kissing Suzy Kolber. Apparently, Brady needs to work on his grip.
14. A bus driver was arrested in the Shea Stadium parking lot. He was found half naked, with a mechanical penis enlarging device nearby, along with a book titled "Swedish-made Penis Enlargers and me, This Sort of Thing is my bag baby."
****************CLEMENS RANT*****************
You want to know why I hate Clemens? A lot of reasons. First, he is a fucking headhunter. He threw at Piazza, and could have killed him. What, Roger got hit hard by a guy so he tries to end his life? Fuck you. And then the bat. "I thought it was a ball". Really asshole, then why the fuck did you throw the "ball" at Piazza? A normal guy would have thrown it to the first baseman. The umpire that night was a pussy. Clemens should have been tossed right then and there. No questions asked. But he was too fucking afraid of how the Yankees would react. And the fucking Yankees supported him, showing an utter lack of class. Fuck all of them too.
Now, because Roger has decided he wants to play more, we get to live through a month of ESPN following his every fucking step. Tape of all his bullpen sessions. His exhibition starts will be aired no doubt. YES will probably cover every time he farts. You know what, he went 7-6 last year in the National League, the so called "lesser league". He rarely went 6 innings, much less 7. So tell me, how does that help the Yankee bullpen? It doesn't.
I love the fact that the media for once is getting all over the Yankees for this. First the announcement during the game the other day. What a fucking joke. Way to deflect attention from the game there Roger. (And the response from Suzan Waldman is beyond parody. Christ, SNL in its hey-day couldn't have mocked it any more than she did herself.) Oooh, Roger decided to pitch for the Yankees, let's announce it during the game from the Boss' box. Oh, and let's have him tell everyone he has a super secret reason that he will only share at the end of the season. We all know the reason Roger, the Yankees paid you the most money. Don't pretend otherwise.
I so hope this blows up in his and the Yankees collective faces. I only wish he was ready for the series against the Mets this month. Of course, that is at Shea, and you know damn well the Yankees want him making his first start at home. God forbid Roger hear any boos. I don't wish injury on players, not even Larry Jones, but I might make an exception in this case. No man is above the game, I don't care how good he was or is. I understand wanting to see your family, but you have a job to do, and part of it is to be part of the team. All I hear is that he is going to be a big help to the younger pitchers. How exactly is he going to help if he is only there on days he pitches? Holograms?
So, in conclusion, Roger Clemens is a turd. I hate him for his headhunting and his better than everyone else attitude. I am dead serious when I say if he had become a Met, I would have ceased rooting for them so long as he was on the team.
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Catch the Flipping Ball For Pete's Sake
Dammit. I, and surely many other Mets fans, wanted to burn the Zito last night. But, thanks to two major fielding miscues, we were denied. Add in a blown call by an ump on a non-Home Run (AGAIN!), and it was a recipe for a loss.
Ollie did well for 4 innings, allowing 1 hit and no walks. In the fifth, it came apart. First, Ollie walked Ray Durham. Then, a damn Molina beat the Mets, thanks to an assist from an out of position umpire. He hit a fly to left that bounded off the top of the fence. The umps called it a homer, and so it was 2-1 Giants. Ollie recovered well, getting two outs, but then allowed a single to Zito. What followed was folly.
First, Damion Easley boots a playable grounder. With Zito running not so hard on the play, Easley could have thrown him out easily. Now, the Giants had runners on first and second with two outs. Ollie then induced a line drive to rights, which Shawn Green absolutely butchered. This was not a hard play. Well, Ollie then proceeded to give up a 3 run shot to Aurilia, making it 6-1. Ollie then walked Bonds and allowed a single to Durham. Lino Urdaneta came in and allowed another HR to Molina.
Now, one issue I had beyond the fielding was that Rick did not go out to talk to Ollie until it was a little late. We all know Ollie is prone to losing focus. In my mind, Rick should have gone out a little earlier, perhaps after the Green miscue. I'm not saying that Ollie shouldn't have borne down a bit more, but his defense let him down, giving two extra outs.
The other issue I have is with the umps. This is twice in 3 days that a HR call was blown. I'm not a huge fan of instant replay for all situations, but I think for HR calls, it needs to be looked at. That call had nearly as much to do with the problems in the inning as the two miscues in the field.
Still, they stand at 19-12. Wright had a couple of hits. Willie shook things up a little, moving Delgado to the 4 spot and hitting Wright 2nd again. I'm assuming PLD was 6th to break up Delgado and Green against a lefty, but I still don't like it. Green is hitting too well, he could offer some protection to Carlos (though there is some debate about protection being a myth).
Tonight, Glavine vs. Cain. I'm hoping that this beating wakes the boys up a little. To many bats are slumping, and Cain is good. They need to get off to a hot start tonight.
Ollie did well for 4 innings, allowing 1 hit and no walks. In the fifth, it came apart. First, Ollie walked Ray Durham. Then, a damn Molina beat the Mets, thanks to an assist from an out of position umpire. He hit a fly to left that bounded off the top of the fence. The umps called it a homer, and so it was 2-1 Giants. Ollie recovered well, getting two outs, but then allowed a single to Zito. What followed was folly.
First, Damion Easley boots a playable grounder. With Zito running not so hard on the play, Easley could have thrown him out easily. Now, the Giants had runners on first and second with two outs. Ollie then induced a line drive to rights, which Shawn Green absolutely butchered. This was not a hard play. Well, Ollie then proceeded to give up a 3 run shot to Aurilia, making it 6-1. Ollie then walked Bonds and allowed a single to Durham. Lino Urdaneta came in and allowed another HR to Molina.
Now, one issue I had beyond the fielding was that Rick did not go out to talk to Ollie until it was a little late. We all know Ollie is prone to losing focus. In my mind, Rick should have gone out a little earlier, perhaps after the Green miscue. I'm not saying that Ollie shouldn't have borne down a bit more, but his defense let him down, giving two extra outs.
The other issue I have is with the umps. This is twice in 3 days that a HR call was blown. I'm not a huge fan of instant replay for all situations, but I think for HR calls, it needs to be looked at. That call had nearly as much to do with the problems in the inning as the two miscues in the field.
Still, they stand at 19-12. Wright had a couple of hits. Willie shook things up a little, moving Delgado to the 4 spot and hitting Wright 2nd again. I'm assuming PLD was 6th to break up Delgado and Green against a lefty, but I still don't like it. Green is hitting too well, he could offer some protection to Carlos (though there is some debate about protection being a myth).
Tonight, Glavine vs. Cain. I'm hoping that this beating wakes the boys up a little. To many bats are slumping, and Cain is good. They need to get off to a hot start tonight.
Monday, May 07, 2007
Pitching is the Key, but Hitting Helps as Well
So, the Mets took three of four from the Diamondbacks. Some good signs, and some bad signs. The bad, well, the continued slump of Carlos Delgado, who is hitting 212, with 1 HR and a 292 SLG%. Add to that the continued struggles/slump of David Wright, and the middle of the lineup is still a cause for concern. Add in the injury of Moises Alou, and there are some worries. We can only count on Damion Easley for so much.
Then, yesterday, Carlos Beltran sits out, and, if I read the paper correctly, he had an MRI on his leg last week, something that snuck under the radar at the time. The problem is that the depth in the outfield is not as pronounced as the depth for pitching. Lastings is out another 4 weeks with a ligament issue in his foot. Alou is fighting arthritis and a torn meniscus. Beltran has a calf issue (always with the calf this guy, not a dig, just a statement). Thankfully, we got good pitching, and some hitting, well, until yesterday.
Friday, John Maine moved to 5-0, allowing 1 run, and only letting 3 guys move to scoring position. For their part, the bats beat up on the Big Eunuch, as is the norm it seems. Old Man Franco made a splash (c'mon, it was there), taking him deep for a 2 run shot into the pool in right center. PLD took him deep as well. Franco extended his "oldest man to homer" record. Maine struck out 7 and allowed 1 walk. Burgos allowed 2 runs in his last Mets appearance for a little while, as he was sent to NOLA to get more consistent work.
Saturday, in what we all thought was a mismatch, Brandon Webb faced Jorge Sosa. So of course, Sosa goes 6.1, allowing 4 hits, 2 runs and 2 walks with 3 K's. Smith, Pedro Dos and Herr Midol finished it up. Webb gave up 6 runs in 6 innings, 5 earned, with 4 walks and 3 K's. The Mets are 6-1 against Webb all time. I can't explain it, the guy is good, yet the Mets seem to find a way to win. Saturday was a no-doubter. With Shawn Green driving in 3 runs, PLD driving in 2 (1 scored on an error), Endy driving in 1 as well.
Yesterday, Pelfrey opposed Livan Hernandez, who the Mets have owned. So of course, Livan shuts the Mets down, as they fall 3-1. Pelfrey continued to struggle with his command, 4 walks and 2 hit batters. He did minimize the damage, especially in the 1st, when he had the bases loaded thanks to a double and 2 walks, allowing only 1 run. He went 5.1, and the third run scored on a Sac Fly allowed by Pedro Dos. The bats were asleep, though the Mets played without Beltran, Alou and PLD. I gotta think that with a full lineup, they may have pulled a win out. As it stands, we are tied with the Braves for first after the loss.
Pelfrey is a concern to me. He does not seem to have great control. Now, he is the #5 pitcher, so I am not expecting him to be lights out, but he needs to stop this first inning trouble. And to stop hitting guys. He has good stuff, but just can't seem to harness it. He had a great spring, but so far the regular season is not what we saw in Florida. Now, he has improved in terms of getting out of trouble, but how long can they allow this to go on? I am torn. Part of me thinks he would be better served going to NOLA to work on his command. But then I see the strides made thanks to The Jacket by Perez and Maine, and I think he should stay here. Maybe he needs to throw more in pre-game warmups to get the butterflies down. I don't know. But after each start he says he is too hyped for the first inning. He needs to overcome that, and get better control of his stuff. Part of me think that when he is wild in the first, he is not going to get the benefit of borderline calls for the rest of the game. If he can throw strikes right out of the box, it will only help him with getting a close call. I trust Willie and the Jacket to do what is best. Of course, nothing is going to happen until El Duque gets back, since no one in NOLA is doing that well (Humber and Vargas have struggled of late).
So, onto San Fran, for three against the Barry's. Zito goes tonight against Perez. I want a beating of Zito so bad I can taste it. Disrespectful comments piss me off. Tomorrow, Glavine vs. Cain, and Wednesday Maine vs. Morris.
*******************
So Roger Clemens is going to be a Yankee. He will be paid a pro-rated $28 million. Of course, the Yankee use the middle of the 7th inning to have him announce to the crowd from the Owners Box that he is coming back. I have to laugh when his agent says "well, the other teams didn't want him now, and Roger wanted to come back now". Really? Am I supposed to buy that line of shit? If he had gone to hte Sox and Astros and said "Roger is ready now, and the Yankees are ready to take him now, what do you want", do you really think they would have said "No thanks"? The reason he picked the Yankees was $$$$$$$$$$$$$. To think otherwise is stupid. Not that the Sox need him, and the Astros, well, they can't hit, so odds are Roger wasn't going there anyway.
So the Yankees will pay a shitload of money for 5 or 6 innings each time out. Yep, that oughtta help their bullpen. Yes, they can score runs in bunches, but their pen can give up runs in bunches as well (see Friday night for reference).
Last night started the abject call washing of the Yankees and Clemens. I am sure we will continue to be treated to ongoing fellatio, and we will get to see highlights of Roger's minor league starts on ESPN, just like last year, though maybe this time YES will get into the act. I had put on ESPNNEWS to get some scores and noticed the "breaking news", so I put on YES for a minute, and heard Kay talk about the positive impact Clemens had on Pettitte, who was "a nice pitcher, who stepped it up when he started to work out with Clemens" and how Roger will be a positive influence on "the bottle Rocket" Phil Hughes. I'm sorry, did he call Hughes "the bottle rocket"? What the Fuck? The guy has 2 ML starts, and Kay is giving him a fucking nickname? Now, I know Hughes has good stuff, but for the love of all that is good and holy, can we stop with the fucking reach around? As for Pettitte, explain to me how Clemens made a guy who was 21-8, 18-7and 16-11 the 3 years BEFORE Clemens became a Yankee a better pitcher? Good fucking Christ, Kay is such a douche.
In other news, the Rangers lost to the Sabres. Part of me is sad, because Sabre fans were assholes on a couple of boards. On the other hand, the Rangers lost, and that is always a good thing. The Devils lost as well, and Lou Lamarillo needs to get Brodeur a good backup. Marty cannot play 76 games anymore. Gomez and Rafalski are FA, I hope Garth Snow is going to make a push for one or both of them.
Then, yesterday, Carlos Beltran sits out, and, if I read the paper correctly, he had an MRI on his leg last week, something that snuck under the radar at the time. The problem is that the depth in the outfield is not as pronounced as the depth for pitching. Lastings is out another 4 weeks with a ligament issue in his foot. Alou is fighting arthritis and a torn meniscus. Beltran has a calf issue (always with the calf this guy, not a dig, just a statement). Thankfully, we got good pitching, and some hitting, well, until yesterday.
Friday, John Maine moved to 5-0, allowing 1 run, and only letting 3 guys move to scoring position. For their part, the bats beat up on the Big Eunuch, as is the norm it seems. Old Man Franco made a splash (c'mon, it was there), taking him deep for a 2 run shot into the pool in right center. PLD took him deep as well. Franco extended his "oldest man to homer" record. Maine struck out 7 and allowed 1 walk. Burgos allowed 2 runs in his last Mets appearance for a little while, as he was sent to NOLA to get more consistent work.
Saturday, in what we all thought was a mismatch, Brandon Webb faced Jorge Sosa. So of course, Sosa goes 6.1, allowing 4 hits, 2 runs and 2 walks with 3 K's. Smith, Pedro Dos and Herr Midol finished it up. Webb gave up 6 runs in 6 innings, 5 earned, with 4 walks and 3 K's. The Mets are 6-1 against Webb all time. I can't explain it, the guy is good, yet the Mets seem to find a way to win. Saturday was a no-doubter. With Shawn Green driving in 3 runs, PLD driving in 2 (1 scored on an error), Endy driving in 1 as well.
Yesterday, Pelfrey opposed Livan Hernandez, who the Mets have owned. So of course, Livan shuts the Mets down, as they fall 3-1. Pelfrey continued to struggle with his command, 4 walks and 2 hit batters. He did minimize the damage, especially in the 1st, when he had the bases loaded thanks to a double and 2 walks, allowing only 1 run. He went 5.1, and the third run scored on a Sac Fly allowed by Pedro Dos. The bats were asleep, though the Mets played without Beltran, Alou and PLD. I gotta think that with a full lineup, they may have pulled a win out. As it stands, we are tied with the Braves for first after the loss.
Pelfrey is a concern to me. He does not seem to have great control. Now, he is the #5 pitcher, so I am not expecting him to be lights out, but he needs to stop this first inning trouble. And to stop hitting guys. He has good stuff, but just can't seem to harness it. He had a great spring, but so far the regular season is not what we saw in Florida. Now, he has improved in terms of getting out of trouble, but how long can they allow this to go on? I am torn. Part of me thinks he would be better served going to NOLA to work on his command. But then I see the strides made thanks to The Jacket by Perez and Maine, and I think he should stay here. Maybe he needs to throw more in pre-game warmups to get the butterflies down. I don't know. But after each start he says he is too hyped for the first inning. He needs to overcome that, and get better control of his stuff. Part of me think that when he is wild in the first, he is not going to get the benefit of borderline calls for the rest of the game. If he can throw strikes right out of the box, it will only help him with getting a close call. I trust Willie and the Jacket to do what is best. Of course, nothing is going to happen until El Duque gets back, since no one in NOLA is doing that well (Humber and Vargas have struggled of late).
So, onto San Fran, for three against the Barry's. Zito goes tonight against Perez. I want a beating of Zito so bad I can taste it. Disrespectful comments piss me off. Tomorrow, Glavine vs. Cain, and Wednesday Maine vs. Morris.
*******************
So Roger Clemens is going to be a Yankee. He will be paid a pro-rated $28 million. Of course, the Yankee use the middle of the 7th inning to have him announce to the crowd from the Owners Box that he is coming back. I have to laugh when his agent says "well, the other teams didn't want him now, and Roger wanted to come back now". Really? Am I supposed to buy that line of shit? If he had gone to hte Sox and Astros and said "Roger is ready now, and the Yankees are ready to take him now, what do you want", do you really think they would have said "No thanks"? The reason he picked the Yankees was $$$$$$$$$$$$$. To think otherwise is stupid. Not that the Sox need him, and the Astros, well, they can't hit, so odds are Roger wasn't going there anyway.
So the Yankees will pay a shitload of money for 5 or 6 innings each time out. Yep, that oughtta help their bullpen. Yes, they can score runs in bunches, but their pen can give up runs in bunches as well (see Friday night for reference).
Last night started the abject call washing of the Yankees and Clemens. I am sure we will continue to be treated to ongoing fellatio, and we will get to see highlights of Roger's minor league starts on ESPN, just like last year, though maybe this time YES will get into the act. I had put on ESPNNEWS to get some scores and noticed the "breaking news", so I put on YES for a minute, and heard Kay talk about the positive impact Clemens had on Pettitte, who was "a nice pitcher, who stepped it up when he started to work out with Clemens" and how Roger will be a positive influence on "the bottle Rocket" Phil Hughes. I'm sorry, did he call Hughes "the bottle rocket"? What the Fuck? The guy has 2 ML starts, and Kay is giving him a fucking nickname? Now, I know Hughes has good stuff, but for the love of all that is good and holy, can we stop with the fucking reach around? As for Pettitte, explain to me how Clemens made a guy who was 21-8, 18-7and 16-11 the 3 years BEFORE Clemens became a Yankee a better pitcher? Good fucking Christ, Kay is such a douche.
In other news, the Rangers lost to the Sabres. Part of me is sad, because Sabre fans were assholes on a couple of boards. On the other hand, the Rangers lost, and that is always a good thing. The Devils lost as well, and Lou Lamarillo needs to get Brodeur a good backup. Marty cannot play 76 games anymore. Gomez and Rafalski are FA, I hope Garth Snow is going to make a push for one or both of them.
Friday, May 04, 2007
Call It a Comeback!
Chase Field, The BOB, change the name, the result stays the same, the Mets hit the ball and win games in Arizona. No doubt about it.
The Mets opened a 7 game west coast swing last night in Arizona, where they had gone 10-0 as of late. It was in Arizona where they kicked off the 9-1 road trip that solidified their first place hold last year. This year, they stood a half-game behind the Braves as the trip began. Arizona is a young team, and stood at 16-13 after losing two straight. Tom Glavine versus recently activated from the DL Micah Owings. Tom was looking for win 294 on his march to 300.
Arizona took a 1-0 lead in the second, on the strength of and Eric Byrnes triple (on a poor play by Alou, he got a bad angle on the ball, and made a poor throw to the cut off man). After retiring Carlos Quentin, Glavine gave up a single to Stephen Drew.
After being no-hit through 3, the Mets went to work in the 4th. Beltran drew his second walk of the night. Following a Delgado pop-out, Moises Alou doubled to drive in Beltran. Green followed with a walk, and PLD singled to drive in Alou, with Green getting tagged out at third. 2-1 Mets.
In the fifth, Glavine allowed a single to Drew, and following a wild pitch, Chris Snyder belted a homer to left, making it 3-2 D-Backs. But Beltran answered in the top of the 6th with a LONG home run, estimated at 442 ft to center. Tie ballgame.
Glavine alas could not hold it, and gave up a home run to Orlando Hudson in the bottom of the sixth to make it 4-3 D-Backs. The Mets did nothing in the 7th or 8th on offense. The bullpen did its part, as Pedro Dos pitched a 1-2-3 seventh, and Heilman pitched a 1-2-3 eighth.
Top of the ninth, and the D-Backs bring in closer Valverde. After striking out Endy (he had not struck out this season entering the game), Green reached on an error. PLD walked, and up strode Damien Easley. Easley, for the second time in 10 days, blasted a home run to give the Mets the lead, 6-4. But the Mets were not done abusing the D-Back closer. Old Man Franco pinch hit for Aaron, and walked. Jose Jose Jose then singled. Nippert relieved Valverde, and promptly gave up a 3-run home run to David Wright, a nice shot to right field, making it 9-4. After a Beltran fly out, Delgado singled, but Endy struck out again to end the beating. The Show came on for the 9th, and despite walking Byrnes and allowing Drew to single (that kid is good), escaped the inning unscathed.
A good win. A comeback one at that. Easley proved his value to the team again. It is amazing how Omar finds these guys. Wright mashes his second homer in 3 games. Heilman pitches well, which is nice to see. The Show worked his way out of trouble. The downer of the night is Alou being replaced with an aching knee. This is not good news. Let's give him a couple of days to rest Willie. The MRI this week showed nothing structural, but a 41 year old needs to get his rest in.
Earlier in the day, the Mets DFA'd Chan Ho Park, and called up Lino (Mr. Infinity) Urdaneta. Still no word on the starter for Saturday. Could be Sele, but odds are it will be Jorge Sosa. Willie all but killed Park after his start the other night, and said yesterday that he was not the first option, but they had not stopped Sosa from starting Sunday, removing him from the equation.
Tonight, NL Pitcher of the Month for April John Maine goes up against Randy (Big Eunuch) Johnson, making his third start of the season. The Mets have had success against Johnson at times. Let's see if Johnny can keep up the pace.
******************
Islanders news - Rick DiPietro underwent a scope on his hip this week. It is expected that he will be ready for training camp. He will be on crutches for 2 weeks, and rest for 4-6 weeks. Take it slow Rick, and heal up. They need you at 100%.
The Mets opened a 7 game west coast swing last night in Arizona, where they had gone 10-0 as of late. It was in Arizona where they kicked off the 9-1 road trip that solidified their first place hold last year. This year, they stood a half-game behind the Braves as the trip began. Arizona is a young team, and stood at 16-13 after losing two straight. Tom Glavine versus recently activated from the DL Micah Owings. Tom was looking for win 294 on his march to 300.
Arizona took a 1-0 lead in the second, on the strength of and Eric Byrnes triple (on a poor play by Alou, he got a bad angle on the ball, and made a poor throw to the cut off man). After retiring Carlos Quentin, Glavine gave up a single to Stephen Drew.
After being no-hit through 3, the Mets went to work in the 4th. Beltran drew his second walk of the night. Following a Delgado pop-out, Moises Alou doubled to drive in Beltran. Green followed with a walk, and PLD singled to drive in Alou, with Green getting tagged out at third. 2-1 Mets.
In the fifth, Glavine allowed a single to Drew, and following a wild pitch, Chris Snyder belted a homer to left, making it 3-2 D-Backs. But Beltran answered in the top of the 6th with a LONG home run, estimated at 442 ft to center. Tie ballgame.
Glavine alas could not hold it, and gave up a home run to Orlando Hudson in the bottom of the sixth to make it 4-3 D-Backs. The Mets did nothing in the 7th or 8th on offense. The bullpen did its part, as Pedro Dos pitched a 1-2-3 seventh, and Heilman pitched a 1-2-3 eighth.
Top of the ninth, and the D-Backs bring in closer Valverde. After striking out Endy (he had not struck out this season entering the game), Green reached on an error. PLD walked, and up strode Damien Easley. Easley, for the second time in 10 days, blasted a home run to give the Mets the lead, 6-4. But the Mets were not done abusing the D-Back closer. Old Man Franco pinch hit for Aaron, and walked. Jose Jose Jose then singled. Nippert relieved Valverde, and promptly gave up a 3-run home run to David Wright, a nice shot to right field, making it 9-4. After a Beltran fly out, Delgado singled, but Endy struck out again to end the beating. The Show came on for the 9th, and despite walking Byrnes and allowing Drew to single (that kid is good), escaped the inning unscathed.
A good win. A comeback one at that. Easley proved his value to the team again. It is amazing how Omar finds these guys. Wright mashes his second homer in 3 games. Heilman pitches well, which is nice to see. The Show worked his way out of trouble. The downer of the night is Alou being replaced with an aching knee. This is not good news. Let's give him a couple of days to rest Willie. The MRI this week showed nothing structural, but a 41 year old needs to get his rest in.
Earlier in the day, the Mets DFA'd Chan Ho Park, and called up Lino (Mr. Infinity) Urdaneta. Still no word on the starter for Saturday. Could be Sele, but odds are it will be Jorge Sosa. Willie all but killed Park after his start the other night, and said yesterday that he was not the first option, but they had not stopped Sosa from starting Sunday, removing him from the equation.
Tonight, NL Pitcher of the Month for April John Maine goes up against Randy (Big Eunuch) Johnson, making his third start of the season. The Mets have had success against Johnson at times. Let's see if Johnny can keep up the pace.
******************
Islanders news - Rick DiPietro underwent a scope on his hip this week. It is expected that he will be ready for training camp. He will be on crutches for 2 weeks, and rest for 4-6 weeks. Take it slow Rick, and heal up. They need you at 100%.
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Mish Mash
I've got a new column up at Flushing University here
Another contributor talks about Herr Midol, Aaron Heilman, here
I highly recommend checking out F.U., not just because I contribute, but because there are a lot of good articles there. Myself, Coop, Metstradamus, and others all bring their thoughts to the site, from a different tilt than you will see on our regular blogs.
Well, it seems, if the last two days are any indication, that young David Wright has finally snapped out of it. This is good, for a number of reasons. Of course, the pain of seeing him struggle is one, as is the fact that he was starting to hear some boos (tell me again, why is it that we get on Yankee fans for booing A-Rod, but we do the same damn thing?). But the main reason is that Delgado is still slumping, and Alou has struggled a bit the last few days. They say his shoulder is fine, but he also got an MRI on his knee. I don't know about you, but I did a little double take when I read that. It appears that MRI was clean as well, but you have to be a little concerned. Beyond that, the worry is that Beltran and Green are not going to be able to maintain their torrid start, and now that 'Stache is out, the lineup is shorter. So Young David is heating up at just the right time.
Arizona tonight, for the opener of a four game stretch. As always, check our Alex Nelson's Pitching Preview over at Metsgeek. Very informative feature over there. Know thy enemy.
I have to admit to being a little worried about Aaron. I'm not sure if it is a matter of his elbow hurting, his desire to be a starter bothering him, his poor parking spot location, or just that he has lost something. Willie said yesterday with Mike and the Mad Dog that Aaron is being beat when he gets the ball up in the zone. He was pleased that in the second inning of work Tuesday he got the ball down, and had some success. Now, obviously, we can't have Aaron give up runs his first inning out every time, but, it is usually the case that guys who keep the ball low need to be a little tired to do so. Maybe he needs more work, perhaps on the side? Or maybe he needs to throw a longer warm up session? I don't know. I hope that now that O Pea seems to be OK, and Pelfrey may have turned a corner (it is early to say for sure, lets give him a couple of more starts), that The Jacket can spend some time tinkering with Aaron. Look, he has not done great thus far in a few appearances now. He has had a couple of good spots, but his bad ones have cost two games against the Braves. Of course, his mistakes are compounded because he comes into high pressure situations (much like a closer). That being said, we need the Aaron from the second half last year. Not the Aaron of the first half. And we need him soon. There are no guarantees that Mota is going to come back and be effective. We need another bridge to Billy.
Let's face facts here guys and gals, Chan Ho Park is probably going to get one more start. He is already here. He did get a little hosed by a couple of bad plays. Willie may not like him much (that seems to be apparent based on his comments about not being sure if he will go), but Omar is going to have some say in this. I would not be surprised if Omar wants to showcase him. The other options are Jorge Sosa and Jason Vargas. Phil Humber is not coming up at this point (sorry Mike). First, he has had a couple of bad outings in a row. Plus, at this point, they are probably keeping him on a strict pitch count. With the rotation the way it is now, the Mets cannot afford to tax their bullpen by bringing up a guy on a pitch count. Now, in a couple of months, things may change. I understand he had good number early on, and there are some scouts who rate him higher than Pelfrey, but I'm gonna have to trust Omar and his guys here on this one.
So, 7 games in 7 days starts tonight. All on the West Coast, which means a lot of bleary eyes among the faithful, and early morning blog posts here. I'll do the best I can for my 5 or so readers to give you my perspective.
Another contributor talks about Herr Midol, Aaron Heilman, here
I highly recommend checking out F.U., not just because I contribute, but because there are a lot of good articles there. Myself, Coop, Metstradamus, and others all bring their thoughts to the site, from a different tilt than you will see on our regular blogs.
Well, it seems, if the last two days are any indication, that young David Wright has finally snapped out of it. This is good, for a number of reasons. Of course, the pain of seeing him struggle is one, as is the fact that he was starting to hear some boos (tell me again, why is it that we get on Yankee fans for booing A-Rod, but we do the same damn thing?). But the main reason is that Delgado is still slumping, and Alou has struggled a bit the last few days. They say his shoulder is fine, but he also got an MRI on his knee. I don't know about you, but I did a little double take when I read that. It appears that MRI was clean as well, but you have to be a little concerned. Beyond that, the worry is that Beltran and Green are not going to be able to maintain their torrid start, and now that 'Stache is out, the lineup is shorter. So Young David is heating up at just the right time.
Arizona tonight, for the opener of a four game stretch. As always, check our Alex Nelson's Pitching Preview over at Metsgeek. Very informative feature over there. Know thy enemy.
I have to admit to being a little worried about Aaron. I'm not sure if it is a matter of his elbow hurting, his desire to be a starter bothering him, his poor parking spot location, or just that he has lost something. Willie said yesterday with Mike and the Mad Dog that Aaron is being beat when he gets the ball up in the zone. He was pleased that in the second inning of work Tuesday he got the ball down, and had some success. Now, obviously, we can't have Aaron give up runs his first inning out every time, but, it is usually the case that guys who keep the ball low need to be a little tired to do so. Maybe he needs more work, perhaps on the side? Or maybe he needs to throw a longer warm up session? I don't know. I hope that now that O Pea seems to be OK, and Pelfrey may have turned a corner (it is early to say for sure, lets give him a couple of more starts), that The Jacket can spend some time tinkering with Aaron. Look, he has not done great thus far in a few appearances now. He has had a couple of good spots, but his bad ones have cost two games against the Braves. Of course, his mistakes are compounded because he comes into high pressure situations (much like a closer). That being said, we need the Aaron from the second half last year. Not the Aaron of the first half. And we need him soon. There are no guarantees that Mota is going to come back and be effective. We need another bridge to Billy.
Let's face facts here guys and gals, Chan Ho Park is probably going to get one more start. He is already here. He did get a little hosed by a couple of bad plays. Willie may not like him much (that seems to be apparent based on his comments about not being sure if he will go), but Omar is going to have some say in this. I would not be surprised if Omar wants to showcase him. The other options are Jorge Sosa and Jason Vargas. Phil Humber is not coming up at this point (sorry Mike). First, he has had a couple of bad outings in a row. Plus, at this point, they are probably keeping him on a strict pitch count. With the rotation the way it is now, the Mets cannot afford to tax their bullpen by bringing up a guy on a pitch count. Now, in a couple of months, things may change. I understand he had good number early on, and there are some scouts who rate him higher than Pelfrey, but I'm gonna have to trust Omar and his guys here on this one.
So, 7 games in 7 days starts tonight. All on the West Coast, which means a lot of bleary eyes among the faithful, and early morning blog posts here. I'll do the best I can for my 5 or so readers to give you my perspective.
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
A Win! A Win!
It's final at Shea, Mets 6, Marlins 3.
Ollie gets the W (Coop must be real happy). 5.2 innings, 10 k's, 3 walks, 3 runs, only 1 earned (Wright made an error on a line drive in the 6th, allowing 2 runs to score). Ollie pitched well, but threw 98 pitches, 58 for strikes. Two of the walks came in the sixth, and one of the runners scored. All and all, a good outing by Ollie. Gave up a run in the first, but, like Pelfrey last night, settled down. Wright should have had the liner based on comments I read on Metsgeek.
Joe Smith with 1.2 innings of relief, coming in with two on to replace Ollie, and get out of it. He pitched a scoreless 7th, in the 8th, he hit Boone, walked Uggla, and was relieved by The Show, who got a great diving grab by Reyes on a liner, and Jose was able to double up Boone on 2nd.
Wags gave up a one out single, but got the save.
The bats are warming up a little, but still leaving guys on base, 13 in this game. Delgado was the only starter to not have a hit (Ollie had 2, and scored both times), but did walk 3 times. Wright went 2-5, with 1 RBI. Endy, hitting 2nd, drove in 2. Jose Jose Jose went 1-4 with a walk, scored twice and drove in a run.
So, after a couple of downer days against SUCK ME (thanks Toasty) pitchers, the Mets hit Anibel Sanchez well, 7 hits against him with 3 runs, 11 hits in all. The other 3 runs came against former Met farmhand Matt Lindstrom.
On to Arizona, which has been good for the Mets the last couple of years. Let's extend that streak, shall we?
Ollie gets the W (Coop must be real happy). 5.2 innings, 10 k's, 3 walks, 3 runs, only 1 earned (Wright made an error on a line drive in the 6th, allowing 2 runs to score). Ollie pitched well, but threw 98 pitches, 58 for strikes. Two of the walks came in the sixth, and one of the runners scored. All and all, a good outing by Ollie. Gave up a run in the first, but, like Pelfrey last night, settled down. Wright should have had the liner based on comments I read on Metsgeek.
Joe Smith with 1.2 innings of relief, coming in with two on to replace Ollie, and get out of it. He pitched a scoreless 7th, in the 8th, he hit Boone, walked Uggla, and was relieved by The Show, who got a great diving grab by Reyes on a liner, and Jose was able to double up Boone on 2nd.
Wags gave up a one out single, but got the save.
The bats are warming up a little, but still leaving guys on base, 13 in this game. Delgado was the only starter to not have a hit (Ollie had 2, and scored both times), but did walk 3 times. Wright went 2-5, with 1 RBI. Endy, hitting 2nd, drove in 2. Jose Jose Jose went 1-4 with a walk, scored twice and drove in a run.
So, after a couple of downer days against SUCK ME (thanks Toasty) pitchers, the Mets hit Anibel Sanchez well, 7 hits against him with 3 runs, 11 hits in all. The other 3 runs came against former Met farmhand Matt Lindstrom.
On to Arizona, which has been good for the Mets the last couple of years. Let's extend that streak, shall we?
Bad News/Good News
A loss last night, some bad news, and some good. Let's break it down:
Bad News - they lost.
Good News - So did the Braves.
Bad News - Pelfrey had a bad first inning
Good News - he pitched much better innings 2-5, and into the 6th. Might he have turned a corner?
Bad News - Aaron Heilman gave up another home run
Good News - Joe Smith. 'nuff said.
Bad News - Only scored 2 runs
Good News - The PRINCE! goes 3-4 with his first home run, a single and a double, 2 runs scored.
Bad News - Alou went hitless
Good News - Delgado got two hits, both to left to defeat the shift.
Bad News - Sandy Alomar sending Delgado on a single to shallow center
Good News - tough one. Carlos didn't get hurt maybe?
Bad News - Reyes thrown out trying to steal home on a double steal.
Good News - um, not really anything.
Some positives to take out of last night, as noted above. Pelfrey pitched well after the first. Wright, moved up to the two spot, took advantage of the fastballs he saw. Joe Smith is just real good. Delgado going the other way may help if teams stop the shift out of concern he is going to exploit it. PLD had a couple of hits in the 7 spot.
Look, it is never fun when they lose. But, its not like the bad old days where looking for positives was a sign that they sucked and we were looking for something to make us think of better years ahead. The positives we pull now are for the present tense. Heilman worries me, but he started slow last year as well. Smith continues to impress. Mota is coming back in 22 games, so that might help. The lineup is too good to continue to slump. They went through stretches like this last year as well. It turned out OK, except of course for the NLCS. Keep the faith ladies and gentleman. They are still only .5 games back.
Let's continue today's theme for some other news
Bad News - The Rangers beat the Sabres
Good News - The Sabres know what it is liked to be fucked by Toronto on a goal review.
Bad News - Yankee Phillip Hughes, cruising with a no-no in his second start, pulls his hamstring.
Good News - Well, I'm not gonna go there. Karma you know.
Bad News - Keyshawn Johnson but by the Panthers
Good News - Keyshawn got a $3 million roster bonus last month. Proving, the Panthers are stupid.
Bad News - Randy Moss traded to the Patriots
Good News - Randy Moss is a me-me-me guy, who will chafe at being the third option in the receiving game. He could make T.O. look like a choir boy.
Bad News - Britney Spears returned to the stage last night.
Good News - I wasn't there.
Ollie Perez faces Anibel Sanchez at 1 pm today. Let's Go Mets!
Bad News - they lost.
Good News - So did the Braves.
Bad News - Pelfrey had a bad first inning
Good News - he pitched much better innings 2-5, and into the 6th. Might he have turned a corner?
Bad News - Aaron Heilman gave up another home run
Good News - Joe Smith. 'nuff said.
Bad News - Only scored 2 runs
Good News - The PRINCE! goes 3-4 with his first home run, a single and a double, 2 runs scored.
Bad News - Alou went hitless
Good News - Delgado got two hits, both to left to defeat the shift.
Bad News - Sandy Alomar sending Delgado on a single to shallow center
Good News - tough one. Carlos didn't get hurt maybe?
Bad News - Reyes thrown out trying to steal home on a double steal.
Good News - um, not really anything.
Some positives to take out of last night, as noted above. Pelfrey pitched well after the first. Wright, moved up to the two spot, took advantage of the fastballs he saw. Joe Smith is just real good. Delgado going the other way may help if teams stop the shift out of concern he is going to exploit it. PLD had a couple of hits in the 7 spot.
Look, it is never fun when they lose. But, its not like the bad old days where looking for positives was a sign that they sucked and we were looking for something to make us think of better years ahead. The positives we pull now are for the present tense. Heilman worries me, but he started slow last year as well. Smith continues to impress. Mota is coming back in 22 games, so that might help. The lineup is too good to continue to slump. They went through stretches like this last year as well. It turned out OK, except of course for the NLCS. Keep the faith ladies and gentleman. They are still only .5 games back.
Let's continue today's theme for some other news
Bad News - The Rangers beat the Sabres
Good News - The Sabres know what it is liked to be fucked by Toronto on a goal review.
Bad News - Yankee Phillip Hughes, cruising with a no-no in his second start, pulls his hamstring.
Good News - Well, I'm not gonna go there. Karma you know.
Bad News - Keyshawn Johnson but by the Panthers
Good News - Keyshawn got a $3 million roster bonus last month. Proving, the Panthers are stupid.
Bad News - Randy Moss traded to the Patriots
Good News - Randy Moss is a me-me-me guy, who will chafe at being the third option in the receiving game. He could make T.O. look like a choir boy.
Bad News - Britney Spears returned to the stage last night.
Good News - I wasn't there.
Ollie Perez faces Anibel Sanchez at 1 pm today. Let's Go Mets!
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
It is NOT Time to Panic
The injury bug has arrived in Queens. First, Jose Valentin, then El Duque. Now, possibly Moises Alou. Not good news of course. It sucks when you lose 1 player to an injury, much less your 2nd baseman, your #3 starter and your left fielder. But it is far from time to panic.
"But, but, but Ed, what do you mean. We lost two bats and a starter. The sky is falling. The Braves are in first place and are playing well. We lost a game to the Rockies and one to the Nationals, now one to the Marlins. Park is awful, who is going to pitch? What are we going to do?"
Well, true, we lost at least one bat and a starter (we don't know whats up with Moises yet). But please, remember last year. We missed Beltran for a couple of weeks. We missed Pedro, El Duque and Glavine for a bit each. We used 14 starting pitchers last year. And we won the division by a mile. Now, granted, the Braves are playing well, but they just lost Wickman, which shortens their pen since now they need to use Gonzalez as their closer. Do you really think Tyler Yates is going to keep it up?
Park spit the bit last night. You cannot allow yourself, as a veteran, to lose focus when you give up a hit to the opposing pitcher. Park admitted that is what happened. Man up, and throw strikes. You are a vet, not a rookie. Instead, he walks the next two batter, and Easley botches a line drive, and Reyes misses a pop up. Game basically over.
The problem for the Mets right now is not the pitching. Sosa could come up to replace Park. Or Vargas could. Pelfrey needs to listen to the Jacket. He loses it from the bullpen to the mound. Perez had the same problem, and it has been fixed. Pelfrey can hopefully do the same. Maine is going great, as is Glavine, and Perez has turned the corner.
The problem now is the bats. Does anyone really think the Wright and Delgado are going to be this bad all year? No way. Both are too good to have gone completely to shit already. It is painful to watch right now, but I think we are going to see a coming out party for both of them. David has shown some signs of life. He just needs to put it all together. Carlos is just too much of a veteran to have this continue. Once they start hitting, things will get better.
Now, if Alou is out, Endy will play. The will hurt the lineup of course, but it may help. PLD is looking bad right now. Endy will bat second, which will help the top of the lineup. Of course, Willie could move Wright there, hoping to get him some more fastballs, in the hope that will help him break out. But I'm thinking it will be Endy. Milledge is out, so he is not an option. Gomez is not ready yet people. He is not coming up. Way too young, and has not been hitting as of late. Let's not anoint him as a savior yet.
Good teams overcome injuries, especially when they have a deep team. The Mets have a deep team. Now, they have to overcome the injuries. No better time to start than tonight.
"But, but, but Ed, what do you mean. We lost two bats and a starter. The sky is falling. The Braves are in first place and are playing well. We lost a game to the Rockies and one to the Nationals, now one to the Marlins. Park is awful, who is going to pitch? What are we going to do?"
Well, true, we lost at least one bat and a starter (we don't know whats up with Moises yet). But please, remember last year. We missed Beltran for a couple of weeks. We missed Pedro, El Duque and Glavine for a bit each. We used 14 starting pitchers last year. And we won the division by a mile. Now, granted, the Braves are playing well, but they just lost Wickman, which shortens their pen since now they need to use Gonzalez as their closer. Do you really think Tyler Yates is going to keep it up?
Park spit the bit last night. You cannot allow yourself, as a veteran, to lose focus when you give up a hit to the opposing pitcher. Park admitted that is what happened. Man up, and throw strikes. You are a vet, not a rookie. Instead, he walks the next two batter, and Easley botches a line drive, and Reyes misses a pop up. Game basically over.
The problem for the Mets right now is not the pitching. Sosa could come up to replace Park. Or Vargas could. Pelfrey needs to listen to the Jacket. He loses it from the bullpen to the mound. Perez had the same problem, and it has been fixed. Pelfrey can hopefully do the same. Maine is going great, as is Glavine, and Perez has turned the corner.
The problem now is the bats. Does anyone really think the Wright and Delgado are going to be this bad all year? No way. Both are too good to have gone completely to shit already. It is painful to watch right now, but I think we are going to see a coming out party for both of them. David has shown some signs of life. He just needs to put it all together. Carlos is just too much of a veteran to have this continue. Once they start hitting, things will get better.
Now, if Alou is out, Endy will play. The will hurt the lineup of course, but it may help. PLD is looking bad right now. Endy will bat second, which will help the top of the lineup. Of course, Willie could move Wright there, hoping to get him some more fastballs, in the hope that will help him break out. But I'm thinking it will be Endy. Milledge is out, so he is not an option. Gomez is not ready yet people. He is not coming up. Way too young, and has not been hitting as of late. Let's not anoint him as a savior yet.
Good teams overcome injuries, especially when they have a deep team. The Mets have a deep team. Now, they have to overcome the injuries. No better time to start than tonight.
Monday, April 30, 2007
Ed Has Seen the Future! - May Prognostications
Once again, I was able to get the Time Machine up and running. To recap, for April, my travels foretold a record of 17-9, they stand at 15-8 before tonight's game. I saw Reyes with 13 walks, he has 16. I foresaw Alou hitting 295, he is at 349. I saw Green at 280 with 6 doubles and 3 HRs. He is 360, 8 and 3. I predicted 4 HR's for Beltran, he has 5. Let's just forget about Delgado and Wright, shall we?
So, without further ado, here is May:
May begins with the Mets taking the final 2 games of a 3 game set from the Marlins. The bats come alive, as the Mets score 10 and 13 runs in the first two games of the month. Mike Pelfrey gets his first win, going 6 innings, with 4 hits, 3 walks, 5 k's and allowing 2 runs. Oliver Perez follows with 8 innings of 5 hit ball, to go with 10 k's. David Wright doubles in each game.
The Mets travel to Arizona, for a 4 game set. They take 3 of four, as Carlos Delgado remembers how to hit, and goes wild, hitting 3 home runs, 3 doubles and driving in 8 runs in the series. David Wright walks 4 times, and has a single in each game.
Next, they travel to SF to meet Barry and Barry. The Mets paste the Giants, sweeping the series. Barry Zito does not pitch, claiming he does not like to play against egoists.
The Mets come home to face Prince Fielder and the Brewers. The Mets take two of three, as David Wright hits 2 doubles, has 3 walks, and 12 magazine shoots.
Next up are the Cubs. Carlos Zambrano throws 7 innings, tossing 256 pitches. Lou says if Carlos wants a big contract, he has to earn it. The Mets split the series. David Wright finally hits a home run.
Next, the Yankees for a 3 game set. Though Randy Johnson no longer is a Yankee, the Mets pitchers go a combined 6-12 at the plate as the Mets take two of three from the Yankees. Joe Torre is fired in the 5th inning of the third game. George, trying to capture some more Mets magis from the 1980's, hires Davey Johnson as manager. David Wright breaks out, hitting .466 for the series with a home run in each game, as well as 2 doubles and 2 singles in 15 at-bats.
Turner Field is the scene of the next 3 games, as the Mets travel to Atlanta. After hearing all Monday that the Mets must sweep the Braves to be considered the favorites in the NL East form those wise talkers Mike and the Mad Dog, the Mets sweep the Braves. Mike and Dog are not impressed, saying they should have swept them in April, when it mattered.
Next is Florida, as the Mets face the Marlins. The Mets lose two of three, and Mike and the Dog claim the Mets are fakes if they can't beat the Marlins.
The month wraps up and the Giants visit Shea and the Mets take 2 of 3. Barry Bonds hits 2 home runs, and is within 2 of Hank Aaron. Barry Zito starts, and goes 4 innings, giving up 6 runs on 8 hits. Barry then is pich hit for, and demands a trade to a team where the manager does not have an ego. He is then traded to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, where no one has an ego.
Record for the month - 20- 8.
Season to date - 35-16
Wright finishes the month with 5 home runs and 9 doubles.
Delgado hits 320, with 10 doubles and 4 home runs.
Beltran hits 300, 5 doubles and 5 home runs.
Green and Alou both hit 280. Green makes 2 misplays, but 4 fantastic catches as well.
So, without further ado, here is May:
May begins with the Mets taking the final 2 games of a 3 game set from the Marlins. The bats come alive, as the Mets score 10 and 13 runs in the first two games of the month. Mike Pelfrey gets his first win, going 6 innings, with 4 hits, 3 walks, 5 k's and allowing 2 runs. Oliver Perez follows with 8 innings of 5 hit ball, to go with 10 k's. David Wright doubles in each game.
The Mets travel to Arizona, for a 4 game set. They take 3 of four, as Carlos Delgado remembers how to hit, and goes wild, hitting 3 home runs, 3 doubles and driving in 8 runs in the series. David Wright walks 4 times, and has a single in each game.
Next, they travel to SF to meet Barry and Barry. The Mets paste the Giants, sweeping the series. Barry Zito does not pitch, claiming he does not like to play against egoists.
The Mets come home to face Prince Fielder and the Brewers. The Mets take two of three, as David Wright hits 2 doubles, has 3 walks, and 12 magazine shoots.
Next up are the Cubs. Carlos Zambrano throws 7 innings, tossing 256 pitches. Lou says if Carlos wants a big contract, he has to earn it. The Mets split the series. David Wright finally hits a home run.
Next, the Yankees for a 3 game set. Though Randy Johnson no longer is a Yankee, the Mets pitchers go a combined 6-12 at the plate as the Mets take two of three from the Yankees. Joe Torre is fired in the 5th inning of the third game. George, trying to capture some more Mets magis from the 1980's, hires Davey Johnson as manager. David Wright breaks out, hitting .466 for the series with a home run in each game, as well as 2 doubles and 2 singles in 15 at-bats.
Turner Field is the scene of the next 3 games, as the Mets travel to Atlanta. After hearing all Monday that the Mets must sweep the Braves to be considered the favorites in the NL East form those wise talkers Mike and the Mad Dog, the Mets sweep the Braves. Mike and Dog are not impressed, saying they should have swept them in April, when it mattered.
Next is Florida, as the Mets face the Marlins. The Mets lose two of three, and Mike and the Dog claim the Mets are fakes if they can't beat the Marlins.
The month wraps up and the Giants visit Shea and the Mets take 2 of 3. Barry Bonds hits 2 home runs, and is within 2 of Hank Aaron. Barry Zito starts, and goes 4 innings, giving up 6 runs on 8 hits. Barry then is pich hit for, and demands a trade to a team where the manager does not have an ego. He is then traded to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, where no one has an ego.
Record for the month - 20- 8.
Season to date - 35-16
Wright finishes the month with 5 home runs and 9 doubles.
Delgado hits 320, with 10 doubles and 4 home runs.
Beltran hits 300, 5 doubles and 5 home runs.
Green and Alou both hit 280. Green makes 2 misplays, but 4 fantastic catches as well.
Rants
I've been remiss on posting the "Weekly Observations". Now seems as good a time as any to post some rants.
1. Fat Man got a little dig in on Mr. Maine, saying that "well, I could do that against the Nationals". Really Mike. Tell me, how did your vaunted Yankees pitch against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays?
2. Note to Mets lineup, it is OK to beat on any and all comers. You don't have to go to sleep to make other pitchers feel better.
3. Julio Franco made a Keith Hernandez like play yesterday on a bunt. In doing so, he became the oldest player to act like Keith Hernandez. So long as he doesn't start doing lines in the clubhouse, it's all good.
4. El Duque's shoulder is acting up. Chan Ho Park is the possible starter. Hey lineup, tonight might be a good night to get some hits and drive in like 15 runs.
5. I guess the old "team first" saying is going the way of the horse and buggy up in New England. First they draft a guy out of Miami who fired a gun and was involved in the big brawl against Florida International. Now they trade for Randy Moss. Good luck with that Bill Belichick. Actually, not really. I hope it blows up all over your face.
6. Um, David, it's OK to get some more hits. Walks are OK, but, driving in runs is what the chicks dig.
7. So lets see. Tell the media that no one will listen if he stands up for A-Rod. Otherwise, stand up for admitted steroid user, which causes fans to give him a break. Stand up for manager as team goes 9-14 to start the year, which will probably buy him some more time. Stand up for 3rd baseman, not so much. Ladies and Gentlemen, your Yankee Captain, two face Jeter.
8. Of course, now that the Yankee are in last place, and A-Rod is cooling off, you know the boos are coming.
9. Note to the media, just because a guy who worked for the Mets as a bat boy and clubhouse cleaner 10 years ago gets locked up for steroids does not mean every last story needs to mention the fact he worked for the Mets. It's not like he was, oh, I don't know, the PERSONAL TRAINER for a player and was given carte blanche to the clubhouse.
10. Barroid hit his 742 home run Saturday. The Giants still lost. Karma is a bitch, ain't it?
11. We are so close to Mt. George erupting. I can't wait. The question is, who will be the replacement for Torre? You know the boss is pissed that Swindal talked him out of hiring Lou.
12. Then again, you can't really blame Joe. I mean, the bats are hitting. The problem is, the Yankee pitching SUCKS. But, you never would have known that by listening to the lap dogs at ESPN.
13. Remind me to send a Thank You card to Anna Benson. John Maine, the "bag of balls" per Anna, is 4-0 with a 1.35 ERA and 1.05 WHIP.
14. I'm really liking this Joe Smith kid. Wonder if Mike and the Dog have decided to learn about him. In the preseason, they wrote him off, saying if they didn't know him, he must not be that good. Assholes.
15. Yankee fans are clamoring for Bernie Williams. Funny, I didn't know Bernie could pitch.
16. Last time I checked, a sock does not throw a pitch.
******************************
So, the Mets took two of three from the Nationals. The Braves took 2 of 3 from the Rockies, and the Mets are still in 1st by .5 game. The bad news for the Mets, Jose Valentin is hurting. We've learned so far this year that guys who go to NY for MRI's are usually hurt badly. I'm thinking Stache is gonna be gone for a month or so. Anderson Hernandez will possibly be called up, as Damion Easley will play 2nd every day. El Duque is also in NY after shoulder tightness. That hurts. Thankfully, there is better depth in AAA this year, so no Jose Lima sightings. If Park is not up to it, we can go with Jorge Sosa or Jason Vargas. Either is a good option.
Nice to see The Show put together a couple of strong outings in a row. He went 1.1 on the 24th, then .1 on Saturday and Sunday. It is vital that he settle in and become dependable. Now, if only Aaron Heilman can do the same. Darling made note both Saturday and Sunday that he thinks Heilman looks different compared to last year, that he seems to be overthrowing. I hope Rick is noticing something and is going to work with Aaron. We need him to settle in as well.
Meanwhile, the bats need to get it in gear. Three hits yesterday is not good to say the least. They should be beating up on the likes of the Nationals. Now, I can't get too mad, since they did win 2 of 3. But the Marlins are in town, and they boast the most runs scored in baseball. We are putting Duque/Park, then Pelfrey, then Perez against them. The bats better put up some crooked numbers, because the Marlins certainly can.
1. Fat Man got a little dig in on Mr. Maine, saying that "well, I could do that against the Nationals". Really Mike. Tell me, how did your vaunted Yankees pitch against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays?
2. Note to Mets lineup, it is OK to beat on any and all comers. You don't have to go to sleep to make other pitchers feel better.
3. Julio Franco made a Keith Hernandez like play yesterday on a bunt. In doing so, he became the oldest player to act like Keith Hernandez. So long as he doesn't start doing lines in the clubhouse, it's all good.
4. El Duque's shoulder is acting up. Chan Ho Park is the possible starter. Hey lineup, tonight might be a good night to get some hits and drive in like 15 runs.
5. I guess the old "team first" saying is going the way of the horse and buggy up in New England. First they draft a guy out of Miami who fired a gun and was involved in the big brawl against Florida International. Now they trade for Randy Moss. Good luck with that Bill Belichick. Actually, not really. I hope it blows up all over your face.
6. Um, David, it's OK to get some more hits. Walks are OK, but, driving in runs is what the chicks dig.
7. So lets see. Tell the media that no one will listen if he stands up for A-Rod. Otherwise, stand up for admitted steroid user, which causes fans to give him a break. Stand up for manager as team goes 9-14 to start the year, which will probably buy him some more time. Stand up for 3rd baseman, not so much. Ladies and Gentlemen, your Yankee Captain, two face Jeter.
8. Of course, now that the Yankee are in last place, and A-Rod is cooling off, you know the boos are coming.
9. Note to the media, just because a guy who worked for the Mets as a bat boy and clubhouse cleaner 10 years ago gets locked up for steroids does not mean every last story needs to mention the fact he worked for the Mets. It's not like he was, oh, I don't know, the PERSONAL TRAINER for a player and was given carte blanche to the clubhouse.
10. Barroid hit his 742 home run Saturday. The Giants still lost. Karma is a bitch, ain't it?
11. We are so close to Mt. George erupting. I can't wait. The question is, who will be the replacement for Torre? You know the boss is pissed that Swindal talked him out of hiring Lou.
12. Then again, you can't really blame Joe. I mean, the bats are hitting. The problem is, the Yankee pitching SUCKS. But, you never would have known that by listening to the lap dogs at ESPN.
13. Remind me to send a Thank You card to Anna Benson. John Maine, the "bag of balls" per Anna, is 4-0 with a 1.35 ERA and 1.05 WHIP.
14. I'm really liking this Joe Smith kid. Wonder if Mike and the Dog have decided to learn about him. In the preseason, they wrote him off, saying if they didn't know him, he must not be that good. Assholes.
15. Yankee fans are clamoring for Bernie Williams. Funny, I didn't know Bernie could pitch.
16. Last time I checked, a sock does not throw a pitch.
******************************
So, the Mets took two of three from the Nationals. The Braves took 2 of 3 from the Rockies, and the Mets are still in 1st by .5 game. The bad news for the Mets, Jose Valentin is hurting. We've learned so far this year that guys who go to NY for MRI's are usually hurt badly. I'm thinking Stache is gonna be gone for a month or so. Anderson Hernandez will possibly be called up, as Damion Easley will play 2nd every day. El Duque is also in NY after shoulder tightness. That hurts. Thankfully, there is better depth in AAA this year, so no Jose Lima sightings. If Park is not up to it, we can go with Jorge Sosa or Jason Vargas. Either is a good option.
Nice to see The Show put together a couple of strong outings in a row. He went 1.1 on the 24th, then .1 on Saturday and Sunday. It is vital that he settle in and become dependable. Now, if only Aaron Heilman can do the same. Darling made note both Saturday and Sunday that he thinks Heilman looks different compared to last year, that he seems to be overthrowing. I hope Rick is noticing something and is going to work with Aaron. We need him to settle in as well.
Meanwhile, the bats need to get it in gear. Three hits yesterday is not good to say the least. They should be beating up on the likes of the Nationals. Now, I can't get too mad, since they did win 2 of 3. But the Marlins are in town, and they boast the most runs scored in baseball. We are putting Duque/Park, then Pelfrey, then Perez against them. The bats better put up some crooked numbers, because the Marlins certainly can.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
