Daily Archives: September 18, 2007
The Mets (83–67) lost to the Nationals (68–83) by the score of 9 to 8 in Washington DC tonight.
For a recap and boxscore, go to Yahoo! Sports.
…this team just isn’t going to make it easy on us, are they…
…okay, so, they had their team meeting, and Willie Randolph addressed his players in private…now what sould they do…
…look, although they stranded eight men on base tonight, the offense also put up seven runs…seven…i mean, what else can they do…and so, here’s the thing, all the team meetings, all the managerial tirades, all the hyperbole and talk about emotion and passion and ‘wanting it,’ etc, is only as good as the meatball being thrown over the plate from John Maine, or Scott Schoeneweis…
…sure, the previous two days the Mets made several mental mistakes…but, in addition to that, the pitching has just been awful…and it continued tonight…
…it’s a shame, too, because the rest of the team looked good…they actually played a good game, offensively and defensively…the pitching was just awful…
…it was exhilarating how pressure-packed this game was, for a team in first place, playing a last place team, in September, with 12 games left in the year…i mean, it felt like a playoff game, because that’s how bad we all wanted to win it…you…me…the team…Gary Cohen…every one…i mean, David Newhan was spotted in the dugout on his knees praying…
…yet, they lost…
…i will not lament, though…they played well, looked alive, made a strong push in the ninth, but fell short…the pitching, though, the pitching is the problem…and no number of team meetings or flipped buffet tables will help that right now…they just need to execute and find their groove…
…from what i can gather, Paul Lo Duca, and one other player, asked Willie Randolph for permission to conduct a team meeting, which occurred before batting practice today…willie and his coaches talked with the team in private for roughly five minutes, then left the room…at which point the players met alone, behind closed doors, for roughly a half hour…
The Game
The first-place Mets (83–66) make an attempt to act like it when they take on the Nationals (67-83) at RFK Stadium this evening, starting at 7:05 pm EDT.
The Lineup
- SS Jose Reyes
- 2B Luis Castillo
- 3B David Wright
- CF Carlos Beltran
- LF Moises Alou
- 1B Shawn Green
- C Paul Lo Duca
- RF Endy Chavez
- SP John Maine
The Pitchers
John Maine (14-9, 3.72 ERA) tries to the be the stopper for the Mets. Maine was strong in his last start vs. the Braves, allowing one run on three hits over six innings while striking out five and walking three. In two starts against the Nationals this season, Maine is 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA. He hasn’t allowed a single run in 12 innings against the Nats this season.
Joel Hanrahan (4-3, 5.83 ERA) pitches for the Nats. He was hit hard in his last start vs. Marlins, allowing three runs on six hits over 3.1 IP, walking six and striking out five. He has allowed 18 runs over his last four starts. Hanrahan has walked 31 batters in 41.2 IP this season. In his major league debut vs. the Mets on July 28th, Hanrahan allowed three runs on four hits over six innings while striking out seven.
The Notes
The Mets have made 10 errors in the last two games.
Jose Reyes has only three RBI in his last 29 games.
Moises Alou, who went 2-for-4 last night, carries a 21-game hitting streak into tonight’s game.
The Nationals bullpen has pitched 11.1 consecutive scoreless innings.
The Bleachers
For a live chat, head over to The Hot Foot Bleachers.
…enjoy…and remember, ‘ya gotta believe’…
In 2006 the Cardinals were in first place in the National League Central by seven games over the Reds with 12 games remaining. Over the those final 12 games, the Cardinals were 3-9 and ended up winning the division by 1.5 games.
The Tigers also struggled down the stretch last season, going 5-7 over there final 12 games to relinquish their lead in the American League Central to the Twins.
Even though they struggled down the stretch, both teams made the World Series last season.
…this is an important note, as even if the Mets do continue to struggle down the stretch, which i do not expect, there is a precedent to suggest that they can still be successful in the post-season, even the 2000 Yankees lost 15 of 18, including seven straight, to end the regular season…
Tagged Mike Nichols |In 10 starts this season following a Mets loss, John Maine is 5-2, with a 2.67 ERA, while the team is 7-3 in those games.
…before learning of el duque’s injury news, my thought was maine’s start tonight would be a significant determining factor in the team’s decision in allowing him to start a post-season game, but obviously the el duque news changes everything…
Tagged Mike Nichols, Stats |Marlon Anderson has been suspended for two games, in response to his tirade when arguing balls and strikes with the home-plate umpire over the weekend.
Unless appealed, the suspension will start tonight.
Prior to taking batting practice, Willie Randolph talked to the team in private, which was followed by a player-only, closed-door meeting, as well.
The Mets have designated Brian Lawrence for assignment.
…nice knowing ya…
As a result, the Mets have purchased the contract of Dave Williams from Triple-A New Orleans. He will wear No. 32.
During his interview with WFAN, Tom Glavine repeatedly suggested that he and his teammates will likely have a closed-door, player-only meeting before today’s game to address their poor play of late.
According to Glavine, while Willie Randolph often gathers the players away from the media to ‘take the team’s temperature,’ and keep guys in line, this will be his first player-only meeting in five years with the Mets.
Tagged Tom Glavine |At his blog for the Daily News, David Lennon, who spends every day in the team’s clubhouse, spouts off on the team’s recent struggles, adding…
“Here’s the bottom line on team meetings, which I know you’ve heard before: Manager talks to players before game, team wins, manager = genius. Manager talks to players before game, team loses, manager = desperate schlub with the motivational skills of a resin bag. So it’s a 50-50 bet, depending of course on the starting pitcher.”
…and this is why willie keeps it all steady-eddie…it’s a safer bet…however, when the ship is taking on water, as so many people have said, with so few days left in the season, is steady-eddie the right approach, whether his players should know better or not…
Meanwhile, at his blog for the Journal News, John Delcos writes that this, today, this current slump, is the biggest test of Randolph’s short managerial career, adding, “This is the time for him to prove his mettle.”
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