Monthly Archives: May 2007
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the Giants are set to trade RHP Armando Benitez to the Marlins for RHP Randy Messenger.
Carlos Beltran left tonight’s game in the first inning with a bruised right knee from a collision with Giants 1B Rich Aurilia.
The Mets (34–18) defeated the Giants (25–27) by the score of 4 to 2 in Shea Stadium tonight.
For a recap, and boxscore, read the Associated Press.
…something was not right with Orlando Hernandez in the first inning…he just seemed off, allowing two runs and showing some strange body language…he got a long rest in the bottom of that first inning, though, and whatever was bugging him vanished, as he looked outstanding from that point on…
…outfielders from both teams had a real hard time judging pop-ups in this series…the wind was swirling, i guess…
…Jose Reyes is looking better at the plate…he was caught stealing tonight, which i forgot could even happen…
…hats off to Endy Chavez for being crafty, and dropping down an RBI bunt single, which looked to confuse the entire Giants infield…
…Joe Smith looks unhittable at times…
…give half a game ball to el duque, and give the other half to Billy Wagner, who got a big final out, so not to allow Barry Bonds to step in the box as a potential tying run…
…lastly, did you see SNY show what appeared to be Willie Randolph and Rick Peterson arguing in the dugout after the game…not sure if that is what it actually was, but it looked like it…strange to see…
…good series, solid game, and this train keeps rolling…
The
Game…
The first-place Mets (33-18) look to
take the rubber game of their three-game series against the Giants
(25-26) this evening at Shea Stadium, starting at 7:10 pm EDT.
The
Lineup…
Reyes SS
Chavez RF
Beltran CF
Delgado 1B
Wright 3B
Lo Duca C
Easley 2B
Johnson LF
Hernandez SP
The Pitchers…
RHP
Orlando Hernandez
(2-1, 2.13 ERA) starts for the Mets. In his first start since returning
from 15-day disabled list with right shoulder bursitis, Hernandez
allowed two hits in six shutout innings, but did not factor in the
decision, in the Mets 6-2 win over the Marlins on May 25. Hernandez has
allowed only one earned run in his past 20.0 innings, while striking
out 19. In one career start against the Giants, Hernandez is 0-1 with a
7.50 ERA with 5 strikeouts.
RHP Matt Cain
(2-4, 3.23 ERA) starts for the Giants. Cain is coming off a no decision
vs. the Rockies, in which he allowed two runs on four hits in 6.2
innings pitched. Opponents are batting .200 vs. Cain this season. In
three career starts against the Mets, Cain is 2-1 with a 4.26 ERA.
Cain’s last start against the Mets came on May 8, a loss, in which he
allowed four runs on 10 hits over 7.0 innings pitched.
The Notes…
1B
Carlos Delgado is 0-for-10 with 3 strikeouts lifetime vs. Cain.
SS Jose Reyes is 4-for-9 with 2 triples and 2 RBI lifetime vs. Cain.
3B David Wright is 5-for-10 with 4 doubles and 2 RBI vs. Cain lifetime.
The Mets have scored two runs or less in four of Hernandez’s six starts this season.
C Paul Lo Duca is batting .413, with 5 doubles and 6 RBI in the month of May.
1B Ryan Klesko is 5-for-5 with 2 home runs lifetime against Hernandez.
The Mets have won six of their last seven series, and eight of their last 10.
The Giants are second in the NL with a .278 batting average with runners in scoring position.
For more insight on the Giants, check out Blogger Beat.
How To Catch It…
Tonights game can be seen locally on SNY and heard on WFAN. It is also available on
MLB.tv and
MLB Gameday Audio
for subscribers and those out-of-market.
The
Bleachers…
…enjoy…and as always, let’s go
mets…
Tagged
Mike Nichols |
At NY Sports Day, Joe McDonald catches up with Mets OF Carlos Gomez, who speaks about his speed, learning from the team’s veterans, and the difference between Triple-A and Shea.
By the way, McDonalds is an editor for New York Sportscene Magazine, and he now helps write a Mets blog for the magazine’s website, NYSportscene.com.
Since Moises Alou hit the disabled list with a sore quad, Mets OF Endy Chavez is batting .288 with three extra base hits.
However, if you eliminate his 4–for-5 day against the Yankees, he’s hitting only .234 and has just six hits in his last 33 at-bats.
…he’s looked especially off during his last three games…we’ve been over this before…i have always been on the side that says chavez is best suited as an everyday bench player, a super utility guy, and that he will struggle as a starter…why…because he is a smart kid, and i think when put in a specific situation, that calls for him to be a certain way, he delivers, yet when given the freedom to be a starter he fails…so, he and the Mets know to play to his strength…
Interestingly, Chavez is 7–for-14 when leading off an inning, but has yet to score after reaching base.
Yesterday, Jonathan sent in the following e-mail asking…
“Last week on your radio show, you said you want Barry Bonds to break the record. That’s stupid. Also, you never talk about steroids…it’s such a big conversation in baseball, yet you totally avoid it. This is very irresponsible.”
…first of all, what is up with the word ‘irresponsible,’ lately…it is being overused and misused in all sorts of counter arguments, especially in political 
discourse, on both sides, and i cannot figure out why…
…at any rate, you asked, so i will answer this, since other readers have asked this of me in the past, as well…
…to me, this steroid conversation is a technological issue, it’s a medical issue, there’s the influence it has on aspiring little leaguers, it’s a moral issue, there’s a legal element, it’s a union issue, it’s a big-business issue, there’s the historical record issue, there’s the debate over testing and how human growth hormones cannot be detected, and there’s a contextual element using factors from each decade, like cocaine and greenies in the 80s, scuffing and spitballs in the 70s, and booze in the 50s and 60s, among other things that impacted the game, and this is all way too much for me to think about…
…i mean, maybe i am just passing the buck, as my friends will undoubtedly accuse me of doing here, but i tend to avoid giving an opinion if i can’t wrap 
my head around all factors of an issue because i just don’t think it’s fair to the listener or reader or those i am casting assumptions upon…to me, this would be irresponsible…
…do i suspect a guy like Barry Bonds is guilty of using steroids…sure…but, frankly, i dislike him more for his toxic persona and for pissing away a great opportunity to do good…in some ways, his attitude is as harmful to the future of the game as his home runs…but, i don’t know what he has or has not done, and i refuse to react simply for the sake of reacting like so many people do these days…
…maybe i am too yin-yang about all of this, and feel you would be bored hearing about it, but i just feel like what goes around comes around…i mean, you take steroids, you get fame, you die of some bizarre illness, or guilt, and never get to truly enjoy your success, while the fans mock you and discredit your accomplishments…that’s the price…so a guy like bonds will break a record…so what…big deal…baseball will continue, and the fans of the game will judge these guys and their records accordingly and in their proper context…
…in my gut, i know what Henry Aaron accomplished is far more impressive than what bonds will do, and we all assume to know why, and i don’t need a record 
book to confirm or deny it… whether right or wrong or accurate, it’s how i feel, but to speak as though this is all factual would be unfair…
…frankly, at this point, i am actually rooting for bonds to break the record, which is why i have ignored so many solicitations from other websites, and reporters, and fans, to boycott his inevitable accomplishment…i want him to break the record because i want baseball to be embarrassed, i want there to be a permanent record of their irresponsible behavior, i want future generations to hold these guys, and us, the fans and media, accountable for having turned our heads…baseball should not be allowed to kick this issue under the rug, and if bonds’s name appears above aaron it will be much harder for them to do so going forward…i truly believe that we all reap what we sew, whether one player’s drug test comes back positive or not…
In 18 at-bats as a pinch hitter this season, Julio Franco is batting .278 with six RBI.
On the year, he’s batting .235 with runners in scoring position, yet is batting .385 in 13 at-bats with men on base and two outs.
Yesterday, during his weekly radio appearance on WFAN, Willie Randolph had the following to say, when asked if Franco is only on the team for what he contributes in the clubhouse…
“Yes, he helps out in the clubhouse and does certain things, yes, [he’s good with the young players] for the most part. But, the bottom line is that he’s here to help us win ballgames. It’s nice to bring those intangibles, but we’re more concerned with him driving in runs.”
Last night, in the Mets 3-0 loss to the Giants, Tom Glavine allowed two first inning runs on three hits and a walk.
In 12 starts this season, Glavine has allowed a combined 17 runs, 12 walks, 29
hits and opponents are batting .302 in the first two innings.
Even though Glavine has struggled in the first two innings he manages
to keep the team in games only allowing 11 runs the rest of the time he
pitches and has given the Mets a quality start in 9 of his first 12
starts.
Tagged
Mike Nichols |
At his blog for the New York Post, Joel Sherman continues his Awards Wednesday series, by listing who he feels to be the current leaders, if the season ended today, in the race for Cy Young, MVP, and so on.
Two weeks ago, Sherman awarded Jose Reyes with the NL MVP. Last week, he slipped Reyes down to third. This week, he hops Reyes back up to first, ahead of Braves OF Chipper Jones and Rockies 1B Todd Helton.
In the NL Cy Young Vote, Sherman selects Jake Peavy, but writes, “Oliver Perez is knocking on the door suddenly.”
Lastly, after leaving him off the list the last few weeks, Sherman finally acknowledges Mets RHP Joe Smith in the race for NL Rookie of the Year, ranking his second to Astros OF Hunter Pence and aheas of Giants RHP Tim Lincecum.
…as i’ve said, i dig these posts by sherman, because i tend to get tunnel vision on this site, and only focus on the Mets, and joel quickly gives me an idea of who else is doing well and why…
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