Daily Archives: September 12, 2007
The Mets (83–62) defeated the Braves (74–72) by the score of 4 to 3 in Shea Stadium tonight.
For a recap and boxscore, go to Yahoo! Sports.
…i feel very good about this win, because the Mets were cruising, winning, looking good, the bullpen slipped, stumbled, and they fell behind, but instead of sulking the team bucked up, fought back, took the lead and locked down the win, and the rubber game, which is exactly what a good team should do…
…John Maine looked very good tonight…in fact, on many occasions he got the Braves to swing and miss and look foolish in the process…also, according to the eyeballs of ron and keith, maine was using two different sliders tonight, which is impressive if accurate…he lost the handle during the fourth, when he walked Andruw Jones with the bases loaded to score a run…damn you, Kenny Rogers…that was it, though…otherwise, he looked great…
…maine left in the sixth, having thrown 102 pitches…it looked like the training staff, and Rick Peterson, were huddled around maine on the bench before his exit…again, according to ron and keith, it was likely a blister, which i am hoping will not be a big deal…
…any time Guillermo Mota is brought in relief of Aaron Heilman and Pedro Feliciano, all in the same inning, it’s not going to end well…you know it, and i know it, and i hope Willie Randolph knows it at this point…sure enough, with the bases loaded, he failed to get the one batter he was challenged to get…and, of course, he was booed…actually, he did the old fake-to-third, turn, fake-to-first pick-off attempt, and his home crowd booed again…i have never seen that reaction from a home crowd…it was so sad, it was funny…
…seriously, if mota is on the post-season roster, my wife better learn CPR…because i may need it…
…no matter, though, because moments later, in the bottom of the eighth, without skipping a beat, Shawn Green returned the rally with a go-ahead single to score Carlos Beltran, who stole second base to get in scoring position…i blinked, and it was as if the previous half inning never happened…
…i like knowing that Keith Hernandez and Ron Darling are equally upset and disappointed as i am that their t eam team didn’t win in 1988 and 1987…
…by the way, green and Paul Lo Duca are doing a great job moving the bottom of the order along…they’ve made a nice little home down there…stay hot, guys…
…speaking of green, he made a nice forward-diving catch while playing John Smoltz shallow, and his hat never fell off…impressive…
…also, Marlon Anderson hit a bomb, deep, deep over the home team’s bullpen early in the game…powerful home run…
…Jose Reyes tagged on third, eyeing home plate, preparing to score, as Jeff Francoeur and his rocket arm camped underneath a pop-up to right, and the tension built and i love baseball…oh, and reyes eventually scored…
…Billy Wagner closed out the game, as he is slowly returning to his mid-season, dominant form…
…enjoy the off-season, Atlanta Braves…thanks for showing up this year…hope you had fun…see you next spring…and we’ll be sure to send you a post-card from October…again…
…night, night…
At his blog for the Journal News, John Delcos reports 
…i wish i could be surprised, but i am not…
Delcos also gives updates on Ramon Castro, and Luis Castillo, who will not play tonight because of a sore knee.
Tagged Orlando Hernandez |
The Game:
The first-place Mets (82-62) look for the victory in the rubber game with the Braves (74-71) this evening at Shea Stadium, starting at 7:10 pm EDT.
The Lineup:
- SS Jose Reyes
- 1B Marlon Anderson
- 3B David Wright
- CF Carlos Beltran
- LF Moises Alou
- RF Shawn Green
- C Paul Lo Duca
- 2B Ruben Gotay
- SP John Maine
The Pitchers:
RHP John Maine (14-9, 3.80) starts for the Mets. He was hit hard in his last start vs. the Reds, allowing six runs on nine hits (including two homers) over 4.1 IP. This followed his biggest start of the season down in Atlanta, when he hurled seven innings of one-run ball. It was the only time he made it out of the sixth inning out of his last eight outings. Maine was knocked around in his only other career appearance vs. the Braves on August 9th, yielding six runs on seven hits over 5.1 IP.
RHP John Smoltz (13-7, 3.02 ERA) takes the hill for the Braves. He took a no-hitter into the 8th inning vs. the Nationals in his last start, spoiled on a Ronnie Belliard single. He ended up allowing one run on one hit over 7IP+ while striking out 10. Smoltz has allowed three runs or less in seven consecutive starts. This will be Smoltz’s sixth start against the Mets this season. He is 2-1 with a 3.66 ERA in 32 innings against the Mets this season.
The Notes:
As most of you know by now, 1B Shawn Green loves hitting against Smoltz, to the tune of 17-for-32 (.531).
15 of David Wright’s 28 home runs have either tied a game or given the Mets a lead.
SS Jose Reyes is batting .362 (25-for-69) with four triples, two home runs and 10 RBI vs. the Braves this season. He set a career-high with three doubles last night.
The Braves lead the season series 9-8 — this is the last meeting of the two teams this season.
For more insight on the Braves, check out Blogger Beat featuring William Schaffer from Chop-n-Change.
The Bleachers:
For a live chat, head over to The Hot Foot Bleachers.
…enjoy…and as always, let’s go mets…
Willie Randolph, while joking around during his interview with WFAN this afternoon, said…
“Hey, guys, I just want you to know that if you see any of my coaches with cameras in the dugout, we’re just taking pictures of the new stadium, okay.”
…excellent…even willie is making jokes about hoodie-wearing Bill Belichick, the cheater…
Randolph told the show’s hosts that he hopes to get Pedro Martinez up around the 100–pitch mark in his next start.
When asked about Carlos Delgado, Randolph acknowledged being ‘a bit concerned,’ noting that Delgado will try to ride the stationary bike today.
The fourth starter in the post-season, assuming the team gets to October, will be determined mostly on who and where the team is playing, Randolph explained.
Randolph, on whether he feels David Wright should win the MVP, while talking to WFAN, said…
“He has stepped up huge for me this year…But, I try to shy away from these types of predictions, because I try to teach these kids that while personal goals are nice, if we take care of business (as a team) then all that stuff falls in to place.”
…great motto, as a manager…but, as a fan, i still think that if wright gets 30–30 and the Mets win the division, assuming the Brewers and Phillies do not, wright has to win…
Remember, Wright is the only player in the National League who is batting over .300, with at least 25 HR, 30 stolen bases, 90 runs scored and 90 RBI.
Also, he is on pace to be the first player in the history of baseball to hit at least .300, with a .385 OBP, along with 30 HR, 35 SB, 110 runs scored, 110 RBI, and 35 doubles.
Lastly, Randolph had the following to say regarding the up-coming series at home against the Phillies…
“No doubt (we want some payback). You don’t let a team in your division come in and slap you around…We need to let them know this our division.”
…see the hammer, drop the hammer…
Tagged Pedro Martinez, Willie Randolph |
Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald reports Major League Baseball has informed American League General managers that the team with the best record at the end of the season will chose between two different Division Series playoff schedules.
Silverman notes the difference between the two schedules is the amount of days off during the series, he writes…
“The team with the best record would choose between playing in the Division Series that lasts up to eight days featuring three off days or the one that lasts up to seven days and has two off days.”
According to Silverman, onces a team clinches the best record, they will have one hour to notify Major League Baseball of it’s choice.
Next season the National League team with the best record will get their choice.
Tagged Mike Nichols |Last Saturday on SNY, Mets Weekly followed Keith Hernandez around the stadium and in to the broadcast booth, giving a profile on how he prepares for each game…
…check it out below…
…the man is hilarious, and i love every second of it…
…last night, a person who works for SNY asked me for my opinion of keith, which, of course, i could talk for hours about, because i find the guy to be insightful, goofy yet charming, and a total character if ever there was one…his on-air persona fascinates me, and cracks me up all at the same time…
…i love Ron Darling and keith in the booth with Gary Cohen…they have a fun, casual, smart style that is a joy to listen to…sure, they can get a bit silly at times, but i actually enjoy those moments, though i understand that sentiment is not shared by some media critics in new york…oh well…the thing is, i doubt keith is losing sleep over those critical words…
…frankly, i think those newspaper articles just embolden his legend, and make most fans like keith that much more…
Speaking of Hernandez, for a bit of Keith Trivia, go to Mets Walkoffs and Other Minutiae.
Tagged SNY |
At his blog for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Tuesday, Braves beat writer David O’Brien looked at the ways the Mets are a championship-caliber team and the Braves aren’t, writing:
“David Wright is making a run at the MVP by putting his team on his back, not quite as ferociously as Chipper Jones did with the Braves in his 1999 MVP season – Hoss’ 45 homers that season included four extra-innings game-winners – but at least worthy of being in the same discussion.”
“Wright’s a beast, folks. What a hitter. Damn.
“Meanwhile, Chipper gets hurt again, in batting practice, with less than three weeks remaining in a season that’s spiraling down the drain.”
…o’brien’s a good writer, even when he is not complimenting the mets…based on the blog’s comments, the braves fans didn’t like what o’brien had to say, as i suppose should be expected, but all he really did was lay out the facts…
…as requested, i have added a Search bar to the right column, and a Login and RSS box to the left column…
…if you have any other comments, suggestions, requests, complaints, etc, about the new site design, let me know…
Tagged MetsBlog |…as some of you know, i am a Jets fan…so, obviously, knowing that the Patriots are a bunch of cheaters is of series interest to me…if you, too, are a Jets fan, check this out…and don’t be shy…good luck…
In his most-recent column for SI.com, Jon Heyman writes…
“Some people around the Mets say things are better in the clubhouse with Julio Franco gone. They say he was a divisive influence who was constantly second-guessing manager Willie Randolph. ‘It was obvious he wanted Willie’s job,’ one uniformed Met said.”
Heyman also comments on steroids, and the rise and fall of six teams in MLB’s pennant races.
Tagged Willie Randolph | ← Older posts
