Daily Archives: September 24, 2007
The Nationals defeated the Mets by the score of 13 to 4 in Shea Stadium tonight.
For a recap and boxscore, go to Yahoo! Sports.
…the Mets played some nice defense tonight, including an outstanding catch by Moises Alou, a nice throw from Carlos Beltran to peg a runner at home, several slick scoops from David Wright and Jose Reyes, two heads up grabs by Paul Lo Duca, among others…but, it was also some sloppy defense, such as a bobbled ball by alou and a bad throw by wright, among other slip ups, that led to two runs for the Nationals in the fourth…
…up through two outs in the fifth, Mike Pelfrey was looking strong…he started to come unglued, though, putting two runners on base, and drawing a shoulder shrug from Willie Randolph and a visit to the mound by lo duca and Rick Peterson…he couldn’t get it together, though, allowing home run to Austin Kearns, which essentially ended the game…
…in the sixth, with the Mets down five runs and the bases loaded with one out, Jose Reyes grounded out, and though it scored a run, i just can’t stop wondering where in the world he is…reyes was picked off stealing second earlier in the game…actually, reyes and Luis Castillo were a combined 2 for 9, while the rest of the lineup actually did some hitting…the good news is that the mid-to-bottom of the order just keeps chugging along…but, reyes, come back, buddy…
…lastly, Guillermo Mota, who allowed three runs in just one inning pitched, got clobbered with boos, during and after the inning…it sounded like the stadium’s speakers tried to blast some music as he walked off the field, to try and cover the boos, but there was no way to hide it…the game was still within reach when he entered the game…as usual, it was a blow out when he left…
…tough night, especially for the first game back at home on what is supposed to be final push of the season…you can’t win them all, i know, but i’d sure like to with just six more left and the Phillies only two losses back…
The Game
The first-place Mets (87–68) kick off a three-game set vs. the Nationals (69-87) this evening at Shea Stadium, starting at 7:10pm EDT.
The Lineup
- SS Jose Reyes
- 2B Luis Castillo
- 3B David Wright
- CF Carlos Beltran
- LF Moises Alou
- 1B Carlos Delgado
- C Paul Lo Duca
- RF Carlos Gomez
- SP Mike Pelfrey
The Pitchers
Mike Pelfrey (3-7, 5.24 ERA) takes the hill for the Mets. Pelfrey has won his last three decisions, with a 3.31 ERA and 14 strikeouts over his last 16.1 IP. His last start came against the Nats last week, yielding three runs on nine hits over five innings.
Matt Chico (5-9, 4.74 ERA) starts for the Nationals. He was knocked around for five runs on seven hits over five innings last week vs. the Mets. Chico hasn’t won a start since July 31st. Righties are hitting .282 with 20 homers off Chico this season.
The Notes
The Mets have split six games with the Nationals at Shea Stadium this season.
Moises Alou carries his club-record 27-game hitting streak into tonight’s game. David Wright has a 10-game hitting streak.
Jose Reyes was just 6-for-31 (.194) on the roadtrip.
The Mets used a club-record nine pitchers in yesterday 7-6 victory over the Marlins. The Mets used eight pitchers in last season’s 16 inning game vs. the Phillies.
The Mets finished off their road schedule with a 47-34 record — the best in the majors.
The Bleachers
For a live chat, head over to The Hot Foot Bleachers.
…enjoy…and remember, “ya gotta believe”…
Jack Curry of the New York Times details the close relationship between Mets OF Moises Alou and his father, former Major League manager, Felipe Alou.
Curry notes even though Felipe was only a short drive from Dolphin Stadium this weekend he decided not to go see his son play out of respect for the Giants, the team in which he is currently employed by as a special assistant.
Moises responded to his father decision by saying, as quoted by Curry…
“I think he’s too old school,” Moises said. “He works for them, but I’m his son. To me, family always comes first.”
Then Moises paused, stabbed at a cheese and mushroom omelet and playfully said, “Knowing my father, he’s probably fishing.”
Throughout the article Curry explains Felipe’s affection for the toughness his son displays by relaying a story Felipe tells about Moises nearly drowning as a little boy.
Among the many tidbits of information Curry provides in his piece is Moises’ desire to play another season with Mets and the outfielder’s hope that Mets General Manager Omar Minaya will pick up his $7.5 million option.
..this is a terrific read..i highly recommend you check it out…
Tagged Mike Nichols, Moises Alou |Eric Simon of Amazin’ Avenue recaps a healthy week at the plate for the Mets.
…perhaps the most surprising and overlooked stat-line of the week goes to Paul Lo Duca, who had a .455 clip…well done, duke…
Update: Eric also recapped the week’s pitching line, which is ugly to say the least.
…you’ll be shocked to learn who is the only pitcher to not allow a run last week…go find out…
Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe sat down for a quick Q&A with Mets first base coach Rickey Henderson.
Among the various questions Cafardo asked Henderson, was if the 49-year old future Hall of Famer could still play. Henderson responded…
“I can outrun 80-85 percent of all the players in the major leagues right now. If I had the chance to go out and perform, I could outrun the guys on my team. They’re fast but they ain’t that fast. I was more explosive than all of them. I would lead the league in stolen bases if I was playing. I would guarantee that.”
…remember rickey said rickey is the “greatest of all-time”…
… i love it when the camera shows rickey over at first base in his classic crouch position…you just know he wants to take off and steal second…
Tagged Mike Nichols |For a special, yet bittersweet treat, check out the first inning of Dwight Gooden‘s major league debut vs. the Astros.
[youtube K2f3LfgL6Kw nolink]
…man, how i miss seeing that “Lord Charles”-curveball…
Tagged dwight gooden |ESPN.com reports that Padres OF Milton Bradley is out for the year after tearing his ACL while being restrained from first base umpire Mike Winters by manager Bud Black yesterday.
…this is a huge blow to the Padres, not to mention one of the most bizarre injuries in recent memory…the Padres have lost three consecutive games and are just one up in the loss column over the Phillies and two over the Rockies…
Tagged milton bradley, padres |
David Wright, after yesterday’s game, as quoted by David Lennon in Newsday…
“This late in the season, with what’s on the line, no one in here is giving up. No one in here is quitting. We just have to dig down deep.”
With yesterday’s win, the Mets concluded a 4–3 road trip through DC and Miami, and return home tonight for the season’s final seven games.
…do you want the Mets to win the division…do you…
…i know people have criticisms, and complaints, etc, but this is it, folks…there are seven games left, and who knows what the future holds…there will be plenty of time throughout the winter to analyze omar’s trades and willie’s in-game strategy and motivational tactics…right now, though, the question is: do you want them to win…i don’t care if you think they could have won more, or why, or when, etc…all that matters right now, with seven games left, is whether want them to win now…if you answer yes, then, when you go to a game this week, show it…seriously…stop with the booing, stop with worrying, stop the second guessing…just go, have fun, and cheer this team on, letting them know you believe…i mean, if they believe, the least you can do is show them you do, too…
The Mets have scored seven or more runs in a franchise-record six straight games. They have scored 50 runs over the past seven days — more than any other team in the majors.
…they’ve needed it, because the Mets have a 6.14 team ERA over the past seven days, as well…
Recently MetsBlog reader, Rob, sent in the following:
“I did some number crunching because I wanted to see how David Wright and Jimmy Rollins stack up [during the month of] September, to see who is stepping up. Here are the numbers:
Wright is batting .333 with 6 home runs, 18 RBI, 15 runs and a 1.078 OPS in 78 at-bats.
Rollins is batting .280 with 5 home runs, 14 RBI, 15 runs and a .833 OPS in 107 at-bats.
Rollins is having a great year and a good September [with the number of runs and hits he has], but Wright is having a better September and when it comes to batting average and OPS, there is no contest.”
In addition to Rob’s email, here are how other NL MVP candidates are faring down the stretch.
Rockies OF Matt Holliday is batting .351 with 12 home runs, 26 RBI, 23 runs and a 1.292 OPS in 77 September at-bats.
Brewers 1B Prince Fielder is batting .329 with 8 home runs, 15 RBI, 17 runs and a 1.114 OPS in 73 at-bats in September.
Phillies 2B Chase Utley is batting .308 with 3 home runs, 12 RBI, 19 runs and a .896 OPS in 91 September at-bats.
…i know it makes me sound like such a homer, which i hate, as i try to be as objective as possible, but with the way david has performed these last two months, while his team has struggled to maintain the division lead, if the season ended today, which it doesn’t, i believe he should be awarded the mvp…
…rollins has nice numbers, especially for a shortstop, and pretty much sets the tone for the Phillies and has gotten some big hits in clutch situations, but just like the Mets last year, he is competing with several players on his own team for the award…
…as for the others, i just think it comes down to making the playoffs…if the Brewers or Rockies make the playoffs, i could see either holliday or fielder winning the award…
…but in my mind the true essence of the award is not to be awarded to the league’s best hitter, that’s for the Hank Aaron Award is for, but who is the most valuable to his team…and to me without david wright, i doubt the Mets are where they are at this point…
Tagged Mike Nichols, Stats | ← Older posts
