Daily Archives: September 22, 2007
The Mets (86-68) defeated the Marlins (66-89) by the score of 7 to 2 this afternoon at Dolphin Stadium.
For a recap and boxscore, go to Yahoo! Sports.
…first off, a well-deserved game ball to Oliver Perez, who allowed two runs over eight innings while striking out eight…to put things in perspective, he is the first Mets starter to go eight innings since John Maine did so on June 29th at Philadelphia…wow, it’s been a while, huh…this bullpen needed a rest in the worst way, especially with an iffy Billy Wagner at the moment..and man, did they get it…the most encouraging thing about his start this afternoon was that he didn’t walk a batter…it looked like Perez was getting back into old habits of late, walking 23 batters in his last five starts, but he stepped up huge for this team today…well done, Ollie…
…and welcome back Ramon Castro…he crushed a three-run blast in the top of the fourth to give the Mets some breathing room…believe it or not, he has ten homers and 35 RBIs in just 135 at-bats this season…incredible…
…congratulations to Moises Alou, who extended his hitting streak to 26 games with a ninth inning single…he is now tied for the club record set by David Wright earlier this season…remember, Wright‘s 26-game hit streak extended over from last season…Alou owns the single-season record…
…i enjoyed Tim McCarver‘s interesting description of Miguel Cabrera, calling him “thick around the middle”…oh, and another thing, i forgot that Jorge Posada was Byung-Hyun Kim‘s battery-mate during the 2001 World Series…uh, good to know, Tim…thanks for showing up…
…well, the Mets have now scored seven runs or more in five straight games…see what happens when you get a well-pitched game…Willie looks like a genius…
…solid win, fellas…flip that magic number down to seven…it’s your move, phils…
The Game
The first-place Mets (85–68) continue their series vs. the Marlins (66-88) this afternoon at Dolphin Stadium, starting at 3:55 pm EDT.
The Lineup
- SS Jose Reyes
- 2B Luis Castillo
- 3B David Wright
- CF Carlos Beltran
- LF Moises Alou
- 1B Carlos Delgado
- RF Shawn Green
- C Ramon Castro
- SP Oliver Perez
The Pitchers
Oliver Perez (14-9, 3.43 ERA) takes the hill for the Mets. Perez was shaky in his last start vs. the Phillies, allowing five runs, two earned, on six hits over 4.2 IP, walking six. He has walked 23 batters in his last five starts. He has won four out of his last five decisions. Perez is 1-0 with a 4.22 ERA (5 ER in 10.2 IP) in two starts vs. the Marlins this season.
Byung-Hyun Kim (9-7, 6.06 ERA) starts for the Marlins. He was hit hard in his last start vs. the Braves, allowing a career-high nine runs on nine hits over four innings. He is 2-1 with an 8.71 ERA in four starts with the Marlins. Kim is 1-4 with a 5.34 ERA against the Mets lifetime (three starts and 11 relief appearances).
The Notes
The Mets have scored seven or more runs in four straight games. They are 2-2 over the last four games.
Moises Alou carries a 25-game hitting streak into this afternoon’s game.
Shawn Green is three hits away from 2000 for his career.
The Marlins committed a team-record six errors last night/this morning.
Miguel Cabrera is batting .364 with two homers, five doubles and 13 RBI vs. the Mets this season.
The Bleachers
For a live chat, head over to The Hot Foot Bleachers.
…enjoy…and remember, “ya gotta believe”…
…comedian Steven Wright, who is a die-hard Red Sox-fan, appeared on Late Night with Conan O’ Brien last night…during the segment, in regards to the Sox recent struggles, he mentioned that he wants a labotomy in order to get baseball removed from his head…i’m sure most of us can sympathize with that notion…especially considering what we have seen over the past seven days…yet despite all the ugly parts, here we are still rooting for the orange ‘n’ blue…still pacing around the room…still cursing the television screen…which leads to a simple question, are we masochists, or just baseball fans…
Tagged steven wright |At his blog for the Journal News, John Delcos reports that Lastings Milledge dropped his appeal and will begin serving a three-game suspension today.
Delcos also reports that Carlos Beltran is in the lineup for this afternoon’s game.
Carlos Beltran left last night’s game in the fifth inning after banging in to the wall, and falling on the warning track, while brusing his patella and aggravating tendinitis in both knees.
Following the game, Beltran told reporters that he will take anti-inflammatory medication and that hopes to be in the lineup today, adding, “I’m going to do whatever I can to play.”
Billy Wagner was unable to pitch for a second straight game last night because of back spasms.
In Newsday, David Lennon quotes Wagner as 
saying that the spasm in his back is so bad that it is actually painful for him to breath.
Wagner, on his back, talking to reporters…
“I’ve got all winter to get better. I’m going to do everything I can to get on that field…Sometimes it hurts like crazy when you go out there, but you suck it up and do what you have to do and play the game…
“I know what I mean to this team…Whatever I can do to get on the field and help us win.”
The Mets (85–68) defeated the Marlins (66–88) by the score of 9 to 6 tonight in Miami.
For a recap and boxscore, go to Yahoo! Sports.
…well, well, hello Guillermo Mota, who, when the game resumed play following a two-and-a-half hour rain delay, came on to pitch for Pedro Martinez with a four-run lead…the thing is, by the time i was done cursing his name, he had pitched two scoreless innings…two…scoreless…i wonder if willie will get criticized for pitching mota two innings tonight, or, because it all worked out, will it now be okay…or, maybe it’s just because mota actually had command of his pitches, finally, something he hasn’t had in about 12 months…he hit 97 mph with his fastball, worked in his slider, and never really got in to trouble…
…Pedro Feliciano followed, and, unlike mota, continued to struggle allowing two runs…but, Scott Schoeneweis stepped in to clean up feliciano’s mess…he stayed on for a save in the ninth…
…i’m speechless, and so, so thrilled…
…at any rate, yesterday, Pedro Martinez pitched well…he had a great curve ball at times, okay at other times, he hit 92 mph on the radar gun with his fastball, as well as 67 mph with his change-up, and he was able to get through the game having thrown just 90 pitches…he allowed a run in the first, then two in the second, and my heart starting skipping beats again…
…hey, why does Miguel Cabrera ever see a pitch to hit…i don’t get it…no matter, because just as i started to really fear cabrera, his manager double-switched him out of the game…amazing…thanks, freddy…and thanks to the Marlins defense for making six errors…we appreciate it, guys…
…my biggest fear, after the recent bullpen collapses, was that eventually the bats would feel pressured to pick up the slack, and, naturally, they’d then shut down…
…no no, after falling behind 3–0, the Mets responded by scoring three in the third to quickly tie up the game, thanks to Lastings Milledge, Jose Reyes, Luis Castillo, David Wright, Carlos Beltran and Moises Alou, who used a collection of sac-bunts, walks, heads-up base running and base hits…like carlos says, ‘got ‘em on, get ‘em over, get ‘em in.’…in subsequent innings, the team continues to push runs across the board, never once hitting a home run, just base hit after walk after hit after sacrifice…excellent work, guys…
…so, the Mets tie up the game, 3–3 in the third…i blink, and pedro is staring down a bases loaded jam, with one out and a 3–1 count…ain’t no thing to pedro, though, as he struck out back-to-back batters to kill the rally…
…is it me, or are the Mets getting hit with a lot of pitches during the last week or so…i mean, mota had a ball thrown over his head…not saying they’re on purpose, but…look out…
…welcome back, Carlos Delgado, who hit a home run late in the game, and made a nice grab on defense, snagging a grounder up the line to help end the game…
…speaking of alou, wow…yes, he’s old, it’s a gamble that he’ll even get to the park in one piece, but, if he does, sign him up for a hit…he’s such a pro…it’s remarkable, actually…tonight, he got another hit and with it set the team’s all-time, single-season hit streak at 26…
…strong win…long win…but strong…get some rest guys…
…i know i will…
