Daily Archives: August 21, 2007
The Phillies have announced that LHP Cole Hamels will miss his next start due to a mild left 
elbow strain.
According to MLB.com, “worst-case scenario has the young hurler missing up to three weeks.”
Earlier this week, however, MLB.com noted that 2B Chase Utley will soon begin swinging a bat in his rehab from hand surgery.
The Mets (71–53) defeated the Padres (66–58), in walk-off fashion, by the score of 7 to 6 in Shea Stadium tonight.
For a recap and boxscore, check out Yahoo! Sports.
…hat’s off to Mike DiFelice or dropping down a strong sac-bunt to advance Lastings Milledge to second in the bottom of the ninth, with the Mets down one…milledge then scored the tying run on a pinch-hit single by Marlon Anderson…out…standing, marlon…Luis Castillo then hit a line-drive up the middle, driving in marlon, who ran hard from second to win the game…
…fantastic win…is it me, or does it feel like castillo has always been on this team…
…John Maine allowed a hit to the opposing pitcher to lead off the third inning, followed by a walk, a fielder’s choice, a single and another walk, but gave up only one run…he cruised from there, until allowing a solo home run to Mike Cameron in the sixth, at which point he was soon removed from the game…
…maine was relieved by Scott Schoeneweis, and i got nervous, as a runner stood on third with two outs…however, scott struck out Brian Giles looking with three pitches…he left to a loud cheer, which was great to see…however, his next time out, after retiring the first two batters of the inning, he allowed a single to Adrian Gonzalez, which became a double on a bobble by Lastings Milledge…Jorge Sosa came in to the game and allowed a rocket double to Mike Cameron, which scored gonzalez and tied the game…the thing, gonzalez probably doesn’t score had milledge not bobbled the ball in the first place…then Khalil Green gets a bloop single and cameron scored to give the Padres a lead…sosa was booed…in fact, as the Mets walked off the field, more boos were heard…boos…you’ve got to be kidding me…i mean, sosa has been nearly perfect since going to the bullpen, and schoeneweis was actually cheered a few moments earlier…i just don’t get it…
…Carlos Beltran tied the game up in the eighth off of Heath Bell…however, with runners on first and third and one out, and bell on the ropes, the Mets could not bring home an extra run…
…the Padres took the lead in the ninth because Billy Wagner could not find the plate, and had no control of his off-speed pitches…he, too, was booed…wagner…booed…again, i just don’t get it…
…at any rate, nice pick by Carlos Delgado, on a hard-hit, short-hopped ground ball, to end a potential rally in the eighth with Aaron Heilman looking good, but shaky, on the mound…
…in the first inning, Jose Reyes popped out to lead the game…no worries, Luis Castillo drew a walk…David Wright struck out…no worries, Carlos Beltran hit a home run…and that has been the story over the last week or so…someone has always been there to get the job done…even against Chris Young, with his league-best ERA…it’s getting to the point, in that, with the way castillo handles the bat, any time reyes gets on with no outs i am starting to assume he will eventually score…i suspect opposing pitchers are feeling this way, as well, which is a good thing…
…speaking of beltran…wow…he’s totally locked in…i mean, October-2004 locked in…he drove in five of the team’s seven runs tonight…he also made two difficult catches…one, running in to no man’s land, the other while drifting back to the alley, amidst the wind and rain…when he’s on, man, he’s on…also, i forgot how much i enjoy his at-bat song, El Esta Aqui, which has inspired me to purchase a bit more latin music…
…by the way, i love his bat, and he’s a better defensive player than i actually thought, but, when Moises Alou dives for a ball and misses, yikes…that is some serious ugly…actually, tonight he flopped and a run scored…
…hey, shea, awesome choice, playing Jump Around by House of Paine, while the Mets piled up on Marlon Anderson after scoring the game’s winning run…nice touch…
The Game:
The
first-place Mets (70-53) return home to take on the Padres (66-57) tonight, starting at 7:10 pm EDT.
The Lineup:
SS
Jose Reyes leads off, followed in order by 2B Luis Castillo, 3B David
Wright, CF Carlos Beltran, 1B Carlos Delgado, LF Moises Alou, RF Lastings Milledge, C Mike DiFelice and starting pitcher John Maine.
The Pitchers:
RHP John Maine (13-7, 3.59 ERA) starts for the Mets. He was uneven in his last start vs. the Pirates, allowing three runs on five hits (including two home runs) over five innings while striking out eight and walking three for the win. In 12 starts at home this season, Maine is 5-5 with a 3.77 ERA. Maine is 3-3 with a 6.31 ERA in seven starts since the All-Star break. He allowed 10 HR in his first 109.2 IP this season, but has allowed eight homers over his last 35.2 IP. Maine was handed a no-decision in his last start vs. the Padres on July 18th, allowing four runs on seven hits over 6 IP.
RHP Chris Young (9-4, 1.93 ERA) takes the hill for the Padres. Young leads the NL in ERA. He hurled six shutout innings in his last start vs. the Rockies, but was given a no-decision. Young has allowed two runs or less in 17 of 22 starts this season. He has only allowed five runs in five starts since the All-Star break (1.67 ERA). Young is 0-1 with a 7.00 ERA in two career starts vs. the Mets (both in 2006).
The Notes:
The Padres took two of three from the Mets last month (July 16-18).
The Mets are 26-14 in the first game of a series — the best mark in the majors.
The Mets have homered in 11 straight games.
3B David Wright was 11-for-26 (.423) with four doubles, five RBI and six runs on the road trip.
RF Brian Giles is 16-for-38 (.421) with 5 HR and 11 RBI over his last nine games.
For more insight on the Padres, check out today’s Blogger Beat.
The Bleachers:
To chat during the game, head over to The Hot Foot Bleachers. If you are IRC savvy, log on to irc.echo34.com and enter channel #metsblog.
…enjoy…and as always, let’s go mets…
IF Anderson Hernandez was sent down to Triple-A New Orleans in order to make room for 1B Jeff Conine, who was acquired from the Reds yesterday.
Conine is available for tonight’s game and will wear #28.
According to the Mets’ rainout hotline, tonight’s game
vs. the Padres is still scheduled to be played.
For
any updates, make sure to listen to 660 WFAN or call
the hotline at
(718) 507-7246.
Tagged
Regis Courtemanche |
MetsBlog commenters VCarver and Nightlife point out the following statistics regarding Carlos Beltran versus the Braves, Phillies, as well as Mark Teixiera and Chipper Jones.
Carlos Beltran against the Braves and Phillies in 2007
AVG/OBP/SLG
Braves: .333/.429/.528
Phillies: .261/.300/.630 (5 HR, 10 RBI)
Carlos Beltran vs. Mark Teixiera
Mark Texeira – 20 HR, 68 RBI
Carlos Beltran – 24 HR, 75 RBI
Carlos Beltran vs Braves and Chipper Jones vs Mets
AVG vs Braves and Mets
Beltran .333 / Chipper .318
HR Rate vs Braves and Mets
Beltran 1/14.7 AB
Chipper 1/19 AB
RBI Rate vs Braves and Mets
Beltran 1/4.9 AB
Chipper 1/5.7 AB
…to quote vcarver, beltran ‘outchippers’ chipper…nice work guys…
This season, Paul Lo Duca, Jose Valentin, Moises Alou, Carlos Beltran, Shawn Green, Ramon Castro, Damion 
Easley, Endy Chavez, Lastings Milledge, Carlos Gomez, Fernando Martinez, Jason Vargas, Ben Johnson, Ambiorix Burgos, Juan Padilla, Orlando Hernandez, Oliver Perez, Jorge Sosa, Pedro Martinez, and Duaner Sanchez have all been on the disabled list at one time or another.
…that’s both catchers, half the rotation, their best bench player, a few infielders and every one of the team’s outfielders, including some from the minor-league depth chart…i mean, even Willie Randolph had shoulder surgery…
…i’ve written a lot about how this team played most of the summer like it was in search of an identity, unable to really get in a groove…well, looking at this list, all together in one place like this, it dawns on me that i may have underestimated just how bad the injury bug has struck them this season…seriously, their identity has been that Red Cross logo i keep tossing up…it should be on their caps at this point…
…they should honor the team’s medical staff and trainers one night by wearing Scrubs…
…hopefully the worst is behind them…
The ‘Los Mets’ jersey will look like the following image…
…actually, they’re kind of cool…i don’t know what i was expecting, but this is basically the same beautiful white jersey, with a tiny Los…
…also, regarding my previous post, i have clearly forgotten everything ever taught to me in Spanish class, because i should know better than to read Los Mets as The Mets…it’s actually not the same thing, in translation…it’s just distinguishing the proper form…sorry, Senor Sweet…keep on whistling…
…i assume they’ll eventually be for sale, which is may be why the team is wearing them in the first place…seriously, though, how many different jerseys can i buy now…i’ve totally lost count…
…the funny thing is, i only own one jersey, and it’s the same old 1986 home jersey i have had since i was a kid…
…again, wear whatever you want guys, just win…
This season, at the beginning of each series, MetsBlog
will attempt to get the perspective of the opposition and their fans. From this,
we hope to be better educated on the opposition going into a series. It also
gives us a fine 
opportunity to highlight some of our favorite team
blogs.
As the Mets welcome the Padres we revisit Geoff Young,
who blogs at Ducksnorts.
Brian Giles is an offensive force
again. Where’d that come from?
He’s healthy, plain
and simple. When Giles went on the disabled list in the middle of May, he was
hitting .276/.347/.347. Since returning at the end of June he’s hit
.338/.436/.545. Playing three games in Cincinnati a couple weeks ago helped,
too. Five of his seven home runs this season came in that series.
With his 1.93 ERA, how does Chris
Young only have nine wins?
Young has made 22
starts this year, and the Padres have scored one run or less in 9 of them. He’s
actually 2-2 in those starts, but that’s a lot of no-decisions. With a little
more consistent run support and some luck, Young would have 13 or 14 wins right
now.
What’s your confidence level on
nights where Young or Jake Peavy aren’t pitching?
Pretty good. Now that David Wells is gone, it’s rarely
the pitching that concerns me. I generally feel good with Greg Maddux out there.
Justin Germano, a waiver pickup, has done a nice job at the back end, and I hold
out hope that Clay Hensley will rediscover the form that placed him 10th in the
NL in ERA last year. My confidence level has more to do with whether the bats
show up on a given night. Giles and Milton Bradley have been among the few
consistent performers on offense, and Bradley has been hurt lately. Having him
back in the lineup will help.
Did
you expect Geoff Blum to contribute this much?
No. Blum is a bit overmatched as an everyday player,
but he’s done a nice job this year. His defense at second base isn’t what Marcus
Giles’ is, but Giles can’t hit. It’s funny, we were told that Giles could hit
but not field, and the opposite has turned out to be true.
On our last chat, you addressed the
annual Scott Linebrink rumors. What are your thoughts on the deal with the
Brewers?
I was a little surprised to see the Padres move
Linebrink, but I think they got terrific return on him. Joe Thatcher has made a
few appearances with the big club and looks like he should contribute now as
well as into the future. The two minor leaguers look good so far, too. Will
Inman was Milwaukee’s #3 prospect headed into the season, and he’s pitching very
well at Double-A San Antonio; Steve Garrison doesn’t show up on prospect lists
but he’s been effective at High-A Lake Elsinore. Linebrink did some great work
for the Padres over the years, and there was some rumbling in the clubhouse when
he was dealt, but he hasn’t been a dominant setup guy since 2005 and he’s
eligible for free agency at the end of the season. I think the Padres did a nice
job of converting one of their few chips into some much-needed organizational
pitching depth.
What’s up with Michael Barrett and
how soon is he expected to return? Do you look for the Mets to take advantage of
Josh Bard behind the plate?
Barrett has
“concussion-like symptoms” and I’m not sure what the timetable is for his
return. During Sunday’s telecast, I heard September, but who knows. As for the
second question, I look for every team to take advantage of whoever is behind
the plate for us because our pitchers cannot hold runners. Basestealers are
29-for-29 against Young and 28-for-30 against Maddux. There isn’t a catcher
alive who can consistently throw guys out when they’re on the mound.
At this point in the season, are
you still focused on the division race first and foremost?
On August 21, 1969, the Mets were 7 games back of the
Cubs. You tell me. :-)
…how can we
forget…thanks again, geoff…
Following Sunday’s road game in DC, Willie Randolph told reporters…
“We’re looking forward to going home. We’ve played a little bit better there. We still need to push, and we’re looking forward to playing well in September, and beyond…
“We’ve got some tough guys coming up, Los Angeles and San Diego, we’ve got Philly and Atlanta coming up, too, so, this is what baseball is all about and we’re looking forward to the challenge.”
Tonight’s the Mets will face Padres RHP Chris Young, who has the best ERA in the National League.
On Thursday they’ll face Padres RHP Jake Peavy, who has the second-best ERA in the National League.
On Friday, they’ll face Dodgers RHP Brad Penny, who has the third-best ERA in the National League.
…in other words, and i mean no disrespect, but, this is not Matt Chico and the Nationals, you know what i mean…
…it’s one thing to score 43 runs in six games against the Nationals and Pirates, and proclaim all is well with the offense…it’s another thing to keep that vibe going against the best three pitchers in the National League…
…i’m very excited and interested to see the Mets play these next six days…stay hot, guys…
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