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The Mets (2–3) lost to the Braves (3–3) by the score of 3 to 1 in Atlanta this afternoon.
For a recap and boxscore, go here.
…Johan Santana did have his best stuff today, yet he muscled through and allowed just one run while pitching seven innings…he’s just so economical…also, entering this season, i knew he was a great pitcher…but he’s also a tremendous athlete…he put good wood on the ball twice, once legging out a double on a broken bat blooper (while carrying the bat handle with him)…also, he made two nice plays in the field, once diving to stop a ball and holding a runner at third, then kick-saving a ball while keeping another run from scoring…again, not his best stuff, yet a strong day…
…however, John Smoltz, who tossed 25 pitches in the first inning, was just slightly better than santana…or, i should say the Mets bats were just slightly worse than atlanta’s…i mean, it’s hard to score more than one run when Jose Reyes, Luis Castillo, David Wright and Carlos Beltran go 0–13 on the day…only half of which was against the great smoltz…
…the Mets also made some suspect plays in the field and on the bases, such as Angel Pagan playing so shallow against Yunel Escobar, who ripped a double over his head to drive in a run, and Carlos Delgado getting doubled up on a hard line drive out by Ryan Church…it happens…hard to ridicule…but in a tight game, these things always seem to matter…
…like Aaron Heilman grooving a meaty change-up to Mark Teixeira, who clobbered it for a two-run home run, which essentially made the day’s difference…worst part, church may have been able to rob it had he been over a foot, as the ball bounced off the wall just to the side of his glove…
…on the other, santana’s fancy defense, and David Wright’s diving stop in the seventh, all stopped runs from scoring, none of which should be overlooked just because they lost…
…wright led off the ninth with a four-pitch walk, who was driven in by a single from church…pagan walked as well, bring up Brian Schneider, who ripped a ball over the first base bag, which would’ve tied the game, had teixeira not been wisely playing the line, who dove, made a nice grab and tossed out brian to end of the game…so, so close…
Mets are like an automatic transmission… clutchless
today i would say they were either in neutral all day or set the cruise control and sat back for a few hours. just one of those games you just hate to see them lose. one play here or there and who knows?
from beginning to end, frustrating. nothing for most of the game, then they come alive a bit at the end, only to again have it end even worse than you thought it may with the diving stop on a ball that perhaps could have tied the game.
hate to lose them like that and to waste such a good effort from johan, or anyone for that matter.
Poor Santana. Guy would probably get over 20 wins on an NL team that knew how to hit this year.
Favorite to win NL pennant? Not so much…… I know we are only five games into the season, but does anyone get the feeling that the magic they had in 06 is gone, and they are picking up where they left off from 07?
LMAO
Willie Watch!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Aaron Freakin Heimlich.
Willie is SOOO on the hook this season.
This just in: the Mets are still a very lousy baseball team.
We lost to a team today who many think could win the World Series this year. Imagine if we would have lost three of our first four to the Pirates and Nationals…
Oh, and Johan definitely didn’t have his best stuff today.
Nady has been playing well for the Pirates and he could have probably beat the Mets on his own today
Keppinger as well as we were reminded every other inning with SNY updates
Every loss this year has been pretty heartbreaking. The extra innings, loss of Pedro loss. The pinch-hit grand slam loss. The if-Texeira-were-one-more-step-to-his-right loss. Ugh. We need a winning streak.
…and if Reyes swings at another first pitch, I’m gonna go nuts. Jeez, work the count!!!
When its a fastball right down the heart, he takes it, he only swings when its a splitter in the dirt. This in enfuriating. After watching opening day, I was thinking about this team possibly winning 100. Now I feel like they would have to get lucky to make the playoffs. And finally, finally I may be starting to give in on the fact that Jose Reyes simply is not that good. This feels like 07. I know its early, but all the bad signs of 07 are presenting themselves again
THIS GAME WAS UNNACEPTABLE.
OUTSTANDING PITCHING WITH NO RUN SUPPORT.
4TH HIGHEST PAYED BASEBALL TEAM TO SCORE 1 RUN.
UNACCEPTABLE.
At least we’re not Detroit: second highest payroll, and everyone knows how their hitting department has been…
looking ahead;
what mlb managers are available?
I’ll take ANYONE at this point. I know, I know, all the Willie supporters will be saying that this is not his fault, that the bats didn’t hit, etc. I understand this, but at what point does this team WAKE UP? They have been asleep since clinching the division in 2006. Its like they shot their load in that celebration we all enjoyed so much. Not even last year’s collapse has changed the approach.
Maz will come out of the studio to manage the Mets next year, in my opinion.
He’s worse than Willie.
Noooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!
WALLY BACKMAN!
guiseppe franco was more exciting then the mets offense today
Yes, I admire they way he will not put his name on the line for something that doesn’t work.
If it’s any consolation, the Phillies look terrible thus far. Brett Myers got beat up about as much as…well, as much he deserves, put it that way.
keeping it classy. i like!
no consolation. the Phils traditionally start slow and finish strong. Mets are just the opposite. What is alarming is that they are already taking days off. I thought this was a pedal to the metal year?
hahahahahaha… I laugh every time I see that spot.. ever notice that he starts off by saying that he
“I won’t put my name on the line for a product that doesn’t work”
then later says
He doesn’t know anything about the company or the product
In many ways he really not supporting this product..
HAHAHA……I just said that today during the game…..what a joke (the game and commercial)
i don’t think that guy is real. has to be an actor.
I hate those damn commercials
Once again: carbon copy of last season.
Today it was Delgado’s turn to get a few hits, but as usual, nobody else contributes.
Meat of the order can’t get anything done against solid competition, and all season long we will see teams kick the crud out of Atlanta’s pen. But what do the Mets do? Why they allow mediocre dribble to cut them down!
This is all we need to know: Santana made the best contact of anyone on the Mets.
2007… revisited.
yep exactly i dont care that its early same crap as last year the only time we have good at bats is when were up by 5 or more runs …disgusting
Lifeless baseball.
When is Beltran going to stop taking a called strike 3?!?
the entire met team was clueless on 2 strike counts today
Castillo drove me NUTS staring at the third strike on a close pitch. If it’s close, you SWING. Anything close to the strikezone, and you can’t risk looking at it. Embarrassing.
he should have been rung up on the previous pitch that was somehow called a ball. it appeared to be in almost the identical spot. did he swing once during the at bat ?
“…on the other, santana’s fancy defense, and David Wright’s diving stop in the seventh, all stopped runs from scoring, none of which should be overlooked just because they lost…”
Uh, considering the fact that Wright did absolutely nothing the past two days, who cared if he made great plays. It should be overlooked when the team went onto the field as if this were late September 2007.
This team does not, will not and cannot beat the Braves, hopefully they can go around them this year because they are neve able to go through them.
so I guess 2006 and 2007 don’t count?
ugh bad loss today still to early to call it quits though. hopefully they will come back and crush the phillies
I know its 5 games in ..but this looks similar to late Sept. last year.
I know its Smoltz but show a little life for God’s sake. Let the Willie watch begin
willie watch will not happen until at least May if they continue to play like this. It is unfair to start calling for his head after game #5. Come on…
Look we WILL LOOSE 1 to the phillies, with Big Pelf on the mound and if Maine pitches as well as he did in his first game we can count on dropping 2 games. At what point do we worry? If we dont get it done in 2008 Im done with the team. I took a ten year break from the Mets in 1990 and came back when they signed Piazza and looked good. They have teased us with a games 6 loss walk-in loss to the braves in 1999 and a game 5 loss to the Yankees in the 2000 WS and then a game 7 loss to the Cards in 2006 and lets forget about the 2007 season and now it looks like more of the same old same again. Waht pisses me off is that we have the talent and potential but NOT the drive or desire to take that final step. I watched the Yankees win 3 in a row and the Red Sox win 2 in 4 years and the Cardinals win as well, When is it gonna be our time? When do these bums make it all worth while for the fans?
Hey, Occasional Mets Fan, here’s some advice: F-off and find yourself another team to root for!
No team needs a fan like you, so do us all a favor and blog somewhere far, far away.
Let’s Go Mets!
Geez here we go again with the doom and gloom – AFTER 5 GAMES – you people disgust me with your pessimism. Calling for Willie’s head, saying its like last year, same old Mets, like a bunch of sore loser cry babies – does this kind of talk make you guys feel better or something? Fpr God’s sake its the first freaking week of the season. It’s really unbecoming people. Grow some huevos and start rooting for your team like real fans. And to jimyager – don’t let the door hit you in the ass…
Let’s Go Mets!
i agree guys, and hey jimyager, dont say “we” bcuz u are definitely not a part of this team or franchise. get the fair-weather fans outta here!
EXTREMELY FAMILIAR!
Not to nitpick, but down by one run run in the 8th I leave Santana in the game in that spot. He was swinging the bat as well as anyone on the team. That’s not to say he wouldn’t have given up a run in the 8th, but any time you have a chance to get your money man the win keep him in the game. Of course if the Mets could have taken a detour back to FL and picked up their bats, this wouldn’t have mattered. At least we didn’t lose 2 out of 3 to the Pirates!
Personally, I would not be so frustrated about the loss if they did not play sloppy, stupid baseball on the field, the plate and in crucial pitching situations. If this were a “clean” loss, I think most of us would be chalk it up as a well fought loss and move on to the next game. But let’s face facts, their bats were not at the game today, their heads were not in the game and they were pretty much somewhere else, or at least it seemed like it.
I think good pitching always makes a team look out of it. The “mistakes” they made are exactly what tips the balance in a game like this. It will happen again, and it will happen to our benefit, too.
Remember, the Phillies were something like 1-10 last year, and they took the division. 2-3 is no big thing. in fact, I believe the ‘86 Mets started this way. Can everybody just calm the f down, please?
NO WE CANNOT CALM THE F DOWN. THE METS NEED TO WIN EVERY GAME FROM NOW UNTIL 2028 OR WILLIE RANDOLPH AND ALL HIS PROGENY SHOULD BE WIPED OFF THE FACE OF THE EARTH
…by the way, the ‘98 Yankees started 0-3. The ‘86 Mets were 2-3. But ignore that, you’re not allowed to bring any perspective to the table unless you chug some serious kool-aid first.
if willie were to be fired, i think you have to get wally backman as manager.
The new chant at Shea should not be
LETS GO METS
The chant should be
WILLIE MUST GO
He has less positive energy then a fetus in the womb. He needs to get excited and do something to make his team feel motivated and want to win. . Willie Must Go.
Once he is gone , then Omar must go
Where are his brains giving a little leaguer a 4 yr deal. Kids in little league hit better then Castillo.
Willie is the new Isiah.
You guys disgust me. Go root for the Yankees.
Let’s not compare Wilie to Isiah, that’s a joke. If the mets start out 2-22 then we’ll talk.
Delgado looked at three strikes in the first with a runner on?
With two runners on.
OMG, that’s never happened in the history of Bball. WTF’s the matter w/ you!
It took all of five games for the Santana effect to dissipate. Talent wise, while this team is not head and shoulders above the rest of the division/NL, they have enough talent to win. If they play for Willie. Personally, I like Willie. I feel bad knowing it’s going to end badly for him. He’s just not the the guy for this team at this time. If the Mets are more than 6 games under .500/8 games behind by the end of May, the Mets will be wishing they moved on Girardi. Acta would have been a great fit for this team, but like most blue chip prospective managers, he’s too smart to make to move now.
This is it. COLLAPSE 2008!!!! We were 1-0, in first place, and we BLEW IT!!!!! Fire Willie! Fire Omar! Fire the bat boy! Fire Mr. Met!!!
Look — with the exception of Reyes losing mojo at an alarming rate, I don’t see any disturbing trends yet. Heck, it’s too early for “trends.” I’ll agree that the team seems to wilt in close games, but how many close games have we had? How many GAMES have we had? And how many of you have watched John Smoltz, at Turner, against the Mets . . . say . . . ever? This is nothing new. The last thing the Mets or their fans’ blood pressures need is treating an April series at Turner like it’s ‘07 all over again. Don’t know if you’ve ever seen cult classic/ genuinely good movie “Aliens”, but we need more Hicks and less Hudson.
We are 0-2 in close games this year, and have yet to win a game against a team with a payroll over $20 Million.
You people are spineless. Is this some sort of elaborate joke? We are 5 games into the season. We’ve yet to beat any team that doesn’t have a fish mascot. We’ve played TWO. TEAMS.
At least we’re not the Tigers…
Or the Red Sox, who got swept by the Jays. Man, if they can’t beat their division rivals, STICK A FORK IN ‘EM!
We are 0-3 in close games. The first lost to Atlanta we were only down by 2 heading into the bottom of the seventh.
Oh, well, that settles it. Now that the season is over, we’ll see what Omar can buy us to put us back on the winning track. Fire up the hot stove!
One positive from this game was Castillo’s continued inability to hit the ball out of the infield from the left side as well as his continued overall futility. (He has 1 RBI in 5 games. It’s not a fluke form a small sample size; expect it to continue) I figure that if Castillo continues sabotaging the top of the Mets’ lineup, even Willie the Jackass might be moved to drop him in the order and Omar the Unspeakable might be willing to seek out a new 2nd baseman, like Keppinger, who today as far as I know hit his 2nd home-run and got 3 RBIs. If only the Mets could have been so lucky as to have had that talent in their system at some point…wait…
One neutral aspect of this game was .Wright’s bad series, which was just a case of a .330 hitter failing 2/3ds of the time. I’m not worried; it happens. Also, he got on base 2/4 times and made two gold glove plays.
The bad news is Reyes picking up right where he has left off in terms of OBP. Let us hope that this is just the product of a small bad stretch, because if Reyes does not pan out, than the Mets, Santana or no, are in for a very long season as well as considerable uncertainty for the future.
If there is one Met who makes me cringe every time he comes up it’s Luis Castillo. For the sake of consistency, I was someone who was not particularly crazy about his acquisition in the first place (I thought Gotay deserved a shot to play everyday, or at least against all righties), and even less crazy about signing him (for the same reason). This year he’s been completely impotent at the plate, but that’s not the point –even at his best, Luis Castillo should not be hitting second in our lineup. He has zero power and is, if we’re lucky, a singles hitter. Today he showed bunt ON A 3-1 COUNT — as in, the count where the hitter is supposed to dial in on a fastball because the pitcher has to throw a strike. Yet he will continue to draw accolades for stuff like bunting and moving the runner over, when what we need are hits — only when multiple runners are on base will Wright and Beltran get pitched to instead of pitched around. I can’t believe we have to deal with him for 4 years (or until his knees blow out).
I agree on all counts. Also his defense is over rated. People are referring to the Castillo of 3 or 4 years ago, not the present version.
He’s very similar to lo Duca at the plate.
K looking, ground out to the 2nd baseman, ground out the 1st baseman, ground out to the 2nd baseman, infield hit.
That, above, is about all you can hope for from Castillo on any given day.
he’s much worse than lo duca at the plate. lo duca could hit the ball past the mound, castillo cannot. wow has he been horrible or what. almost as horrible as reyes, and i love jose, but he is just playing terrible. you guys are right, this reminds me of all of 2007. the game ends and i just have this dejected, sad, empty, pissed off feeling. i’m so sick of feeling that way. and can beltran take the bat off his shoulder when he has 2 strikes on him, ala game 7 nlcs 2006.
I did not like it when we traded for him. I hated it when we signed him for 4 years. He can’t hit a fly ball deep enough to score a runner from 3rd. I know it’s Johan on 3rd, but he’s a gamer, he would take the chance to score if it was hit 30 ft into the outfield as a can of corn.
It’s not even the fact so much of Castillo being on the team is that we had BOTH Keppinger and Gotay and have neither and nothing to show for them. There is certain moves that you get something out of, but other moves, just no. You trade Keppinger, a guy with some promise, and should have just given a chance to him instead of messing around with options. Then Gotay goes on waivers, now that’s 2 players gone without anything to show for it. Then Bannister for Burgos, don’t even get me started. Clearly its a good idea to trade a starting pitching prospect for an unproven overthrowing reliever…I mean, we all know how reliable relievers are year to year…
I know he made moves like getting Maine and Ollie, but there have also been a lot of stupid moves. I’m sorry, if people on here are going to be ripping Willie they better be ripping Omar too. I don’t give him that much credit for Santana, the Twins overplayed their hand and went back to the Mets b/c Boston and the Yanks wouldn’t overpay and we ended up stealing him.
It’s just frustrating, seeing young guys go and doing well and we get stuck with people who spend half a season on the DL, don’t even play in the bigs cause they are on the DL, and can’t hit the ball out of the infield.
But, it’s only game 5 of 162…plenty of time to prove to us and to the baseball world the mets are here and will play with fire and get the job done.
I did like that they didn’t just rollover and die, they showed some fight in the 9th. Just need that intensity innings 1-8 as well….
LET’S GO METS
Willie and Omar are equally to blame for this mess (though I guess it was Omar who hired Willie).
I agree with almost everything you said but I didn’t mind the Castillo trade last year. They needed him and didn’t give up much to get him.
But the 4 year deal is a joke. Castillo is look very average and Keppinger would be looking pretty good at 2B now. Kepp will probably come back to earth but he will probably produce at least as much as Castillo will there season at a much lower price tag.
Kepp was traded for Gotay, who was already known to be a good bat/so-so glove player. So why would the Mets cut Gotay for being a so-so glove? Kepp was basically wasted for nothing.
You are wrong about Maine & Perez. They were both throw ins and Perez wouldn’t even be here if SD didn’t back out of the Linebrink trade.
This team is looking way too much like it did last season and Willie clearly is not the right guy for the job. No matter how flawed Omar’s roster is, the team is better than it has shown since June 1, 2007.
Willie STILL doesn’t know typical baseball strategy and doesn’t show any signs of being a good leader. He has to go.
Haha you know what’s funny, I said that earlier in the spring, that Omar doesn’t deserve credit for Ollie and Maine, that they were throw-ins, but I got chewed out for saying that, but I agree. There was not deceptive strategy in getting them. The only reason we even saw Maine in ‘06 is because of the injuries.
I just think if we are going to give Willie crap about managing, some deserved, some undeserved, then we have to put Minaya on the chopping block as well.
Look I love that Alou is so productive when healthy, but that;s the thing he’s not. I love that El Duque can be great when healthy, but again, he’s not. Stuff like this happens when you have older players.
I just don’t understand some of Omar’s moves getting rid of the young guys so quickly. It’s like he wants them all to be all-stars right away, or else he trades you away.
He’s got some decent prospects down in AA. in the field, Martinez, Murphy and Evans. If he plans on going after Tex, it would be smart to move Evans to an Outfield spot, or Murphy to an Outfield/2B spot. Hector Pellot is another guy to watch down in high A at 2B.
I hope they get their chances, and frankly would rather take my chances and live and die by the young guys then deal with aging veterans on the DL.
And I am so sick of people saying Jose toned everything down because it pissed people off, etc.
SO WHAT? EVERYONE HATED THE ‘86 METS BUT THEY WON THE WORLD SERIES.
And that is what made the ‘06 team so exciting to watch.
LET’S GET SOME DAMN FIGHT AND PASSION. I am all for being focused, but even sometimes when these guys win they aren’t having fun, and that is a BIG problem.
Can’t you guys figure out by now that Willie is overly critical of second basemen and was never going to want to play Gotay or Keppinger. Castillo is the 1st guy in the Willie era since Valentin that Willie feels comfortable with over at 2b. Keppinger can pound the ball all he wants for the Reds but he was never going to get a chance with the Mets as long as Willie was manager and neither was Gotay.
Castillo is the 2b. Deal with it people.
Castillo never has been an RBI guy. His value is he takes a lot of pitches and gets on base. The one thing that the Mets have done so far this year is be patient at the plate and make the starters throw a lot of pitches. Last year by June they were swinging early and often. That’s part of what started the offensive swoon. If they continue this patients throughout the season the offense should be in good shape.
Look at me I am altru, I am the ultimatr arm chair GM and I am criticizing Omar Minaya without any real knowledge of what I am discussing, I talk out of my rear-end and make un-informed blanket statements. Good job. When are people going to realize that Brian Bannister isnt good? He just isnt. Omar has done so much more good then bad since he has been here. And none of you idiots who say he should be gone even have a canidate to replace him, because you are all nothing but morons who sit on their couch and act like they know what they are talking about. If you fire Willie it doesnt matter you can literally hire and grown man in the world who knows baseball and it shouldnt have any sort of affect on them either way.
I will say it again, because the pathetic, moronic, sickening posters here dont get it. Omar Minata inherited the knicks. The Mets were a joke and nobody, not even Henry Blanco would play here. He has brought in 2 all star calibur pitchers in their mid 20’s (both the Oliver and Maine trade are MUCH, MUCH better deals then getting Santana, those trade make a good GM, not the Santana one.) he gave up nothing for them, he brought in the best pitcher in baseball in his prime, he brought in all stars like Carlos Beltran and Pedro Martinez, and he basically just made this into a place where guys want to come to play baseball. You are a bunch of stupid, ignorant, spoiled morons who should all be put out of their misery. I wish morons like the ones who make up most of the Met blog situation just were not permitted to be happy when the Mets are successful, because they are nothing but bandwagon, ignorant, love-em at their best hate-em at their worst fans.
nrmax86, you make a lot of valid points, and I agree with you. Of course it is much eaiser to play armchair GM than actually be one. My basic points that I wanted to say were that if people want to, not neccessarily me, blame Willie for bad things happening, than they need to have Omar on the chopping block as well. I’m not saying that they both should be. Or either for that matter. I think the manager role is a bit overrated because when it comes down to it it is all execution on the players part. the other point I was trying to say is that Minaya seems to, trade away some of our younger players before they really get a full chance to show us what we are capable of. It’s unfair to say Bannister is or isn’t good yet, for either side. But based on his numbers last year and this year so far, you can’t help but feel as though he would have been nice to have in the 5th spot and let Pelfrey develop. He probably won’t be an all-star, but given a full chance, he proved himself. I think Minaya has had some great acquisitions like you mentioned, but most of them came before the ‘05 and ‘06 seasons. I give him some credit for Maine, and Perez, but you can’t seriously thing those were “centerpiece moves” for the future. He knew there was some potential, but they were not the main focal point in the trade. But he has brought in guys like Santana, Beltran, Wagner, Pedro, Alou, El Duque, great job with the bench players. I just happen to be partial to promotion from within, and would like to see the young prospects come up and get a chance to play and earn a spot. That’s all. I’m not jumping off the bridge, I’m not calling for Omar’s and Willie’s head by any means. I am simply saying my opinion on certain things on this board because it’s a place where you can and I love it.
LET’S GO METS
“You are wrong about Maine & Perez. They were both throw ins and Perez wouldn’t even be here if SD didn’t back out of the Linebrink trade.”
This is classic also. The thought that Omar was lucky and accidentally picked up 2 of the best young starter in the NL. There was a name filled with hats, Omar stuck his hand in and pulled out John Maine and Oliver Perez. Give me a break Metsie you delusional moron. I mean, how pathetic and stupid and ignorant and moronic and retarded can you be? Yeah, the Braves were lucky when they traded for John sMoltz. The A’s were lucky when they fleeced the cards in the Mulder deal. You cant call his two best trades luck, and then call his worst moves (which pale in comparison to his best moves) out as bad managing. Only a real ignorant moron would do that and think it a reasonable arguement. How do you know the Mets had any interest in Linebrink? I mean, its not like ESPN has ever reported something inaccurate before.
take it easy one game
I’m not getting Willie about this yet. But I would have liked to have seen Santana hit for himself in the 7th then come out of the game.
I think Johan is a better hitter than Marlon Anderson, at least more pop. Why not let him take a rip there. He hit the best balls on the day for the Mets.
He could get use as a pinch hitter this year the way Dontrelle used to, especially in those middle inning pinch hit situations with nobody on.
lets focus on opening day
reyes is the fourth best short stop in the nl east
castillo – hey, at least his defense is good
pedro better be good when he comes back
i remember when he was the most exciteting player in the game…….
mets biggest concern isnt delgado or anything else….
it’s what the hell has happened to the most exciting player in the game….
I agree – when he’s having fun – he’s awesome…but he trips over his own talent. Reyes doesn’t will himself to be better, he just makes changes. By the time he figures it out, he might be at the end of his career – trying to stay in the game.
He stopped having fun.
Anybody notice that after he got called out by Willie for not running out that grounder in Houston last season, he’s looked very down, and his performance has gone downhill too? I wish I knew what happened there, but he was at his finest when he was allowed to enjoy himself.
Is it possible that somebody may have put a bug in Jose’s ear and mentioned that Willie never chews out his veterans that way even after they execute a similar gaffe?
I couldn’t stop thinking this today:
Jose Reyes might be the most overrated player in recent history.
If you’re newish to Metsblog, you will not believe this, but people were saying similar things about Wright last year. Heck, suckered into lowered expectations by a crappy May, even I predicted a .280, 15 HR type of season.
The thing about Reyes is that he can look completely, utterly lost at the plate at times, and then go on a two month tear. In the past, people chalked it up to inexperience, but I think he truly, honestly has “total game” streaks. Fielders go through slumps just like hitters, and so do baserunners. Reyes’ hitting, fielding, and running rise and fall together . . . at least, it sure seems that way.
People wanted Wright traded. They said he ruined his career at the Home Run Derby. Then he had a 30/30 season.
I think that right there is proof enough that everybody needs to shut up.
“reyes is the fourth best short stop in the nl east”
This is both the funniest, and stupidest post I have read on any sportsblog in my entire life. Congratulations, everybody is now dumber for having heard this. I award you no points and may god have mercy on your soul.
People who think Rollins is actually as good as he was in 07 are delusional. He just isnt that good, and he is not a good leadoff hitter because he doesnt get on base enough. Hanley is a great hitter, probably one of the worst 5 SS’s in the league, everybody knows this guy is a 3B or CF waiting to happen. People who buy into the Yunel Escobar hype are silly also. He has no speed, no pop, no plate discipline. All he is is a 25 year old rookie that has shown the ability to hit for a high average with a very high babip in a small sample size that doesnt look sustainable.
Reyes does indeed need to step it up bigtime though.
Hey toomanyuniforms, yes it is early in the season, but you need to set the tone early and expect to win early. This way you start building confidence (I donot see any ) + gain momentum coming home for your opener. Instead of a horse shoe they should give Willie some black roses, the Mets seem dead at the plate and in the field.
Set the tone and win early.
Like the Phils last year, right?
Duh, winning is better than losing, but I’m just going to keep my fingers crossed that no one within a 100-yard radius of any Met has this sort of whiny defeatist attitude. WAAAAAAAAAH! We got beat by John Smoltz! WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! Man up. That’s the “tone” to set.
phils were not trying get rid of the tag ” best team in the nl . that cant come together and win the big one…. or the biggest chokers in history..
Someone should have told the Mets that they had precisely five games to shake the tag.
ummm, actually the Phillies were trying to shed the choker label. 5 straight years they were in the postseason race at the end of the year and they choked. That’s why Rollins made his statement.
I think I agree, I’m still worried about the offense but not because of 5 games, I’ve been worried since last year.
But we started off insanely the first two months last year, and got nothing for it.
The phils started off terribly last year and made the post-season.
There’s really no reason for people to be panicking now
It may very well be a carry over effect from the end of last year. Despite what the Sunshiners here may believe it doesn’t totally dissipate over the winter and the fans and hold over players remember it. Even if the players want to forget it the media won’t let them. I checked the records of teams in the past that had melt-downs similar to the 2007 Mets and none of them bounced back the following season and won the pennant.
Look the Phillies did not win anything in 2007 we gave it away. IF we had won a game or 2 in April then things would have been different. They have to play every game to win and not just be happy with 1-4 or 2-4 hits. They dont have the attitude to win and more than that they are not consistant.
Willie is not a good fit to manage this team. It’s amazing he comes from the Yankees with no track record except that he played on and coached teams with high payrolls and constant free agent signings. Granted the Yankees had some home grown talent, but every team does. He then begins his managerial career with the Mets and is basically handed a talented team with Wright and Reyes then additions of Beltran and Martinez. Followed by Wagner and Delgado. Now he gets handed Santana. Must be nice. Anyone could manage this kind of talent to a respactable winning percentage, but he has underachieved and just lacks the knack of motivating players. The looks on their faces has carried over from last year and will continue.
“Lacks the talent to motivate players”
Possibly, but I prefer to focus on the easily observable reasons why Willie sucks, rather than speculate on what nobody really sees. There’s such a multitude of obvious flaws of Randolph that I don’t feel that speculation is required.
Feliciano is not your mop up man. He’s your best reliever after Wagner. Wise is your mop-up man.
You don’t sac. Reyes with Castillo hitting behind him in almost any situation.
Unless the 1st baseman and 3rd baseman are each 75 feet away from the plate, if Castillo is batting from the left side with a man on 3rd and less than 2 outs, you squeeze. He has been in two such situations this year, swung away, and grounded meekly to the infield and popped up respectively.
Smith, Sosa, and Show are situational ROOGYs and LOOGYs not to be used in extended relief unless you are in extenuating circumstances and then only Smith.
You don’t let your veterans dictate their playing time. LoDuca has no business playing over Castro if Castro is healthy, and Schneider is atrocious against lefties. You don’t let them overrule your decisions if you want your club to respect you.
You don’t manage a veteran-only Good Old Boys network when your supposed to be managing a baseball team. We lost Keppinger, Gotay, and Milledge partly because of Willie’s refusal to play young players and deference to veterans.
You take these screw-ups game-in and game-out, and you have a good case against Randolph. Remember, we are 5 games into the season and Willie has made each of these mistakes multiple times this year.
i dont get the “its still early” garbage. the people saying that were the same people saying “we’re still in first” in july and august when this team was not putting down the hammer and playing lifeless baseball. I understand its a long season if this were a loss to a team other than philly or atlanta id prob brush it off and move on but when you want to win your division you HAVE to beat your competition for that title no matter what month it is.
Because the “We’re still in first” people had ignored months of crappy baseball. The “it’s still early” people realize that .. . it’s still early. We are five games in. Essentially the first half of the first NFL game of the year (and oh yeah, the Giants started off 0-2). After the 13-0 win, we were set, we had another ace in Ollie, we had a clicking offense, blah, blah, blah, and now it’s 2007 all over again. Really, the lack of perspective is laughable, and yes, it really is the same people reacting both ways. We lost today. Get over it.
Uniforms,
How many times must I tell you. You are being way too logically and sensible for this site. Is it totally uncalled for!!
yea your right i have no perspective, Im being so unreasonable. we just lost an ugly game followed by a lifeless game to a team that we are competing with for the division. And we never played games in 07 like this, no signs of life until a “too little too late” push at the end. god my lack of logic and sense is so appalling. I never said the season was over or that willie should be fired tomorrow, just said these games are as important as those in september vs the braves/phils. and when it all comes down to it if you want to win the division you have to beat your competition.
Right, and i especially don’t like how we’re still booting the ball around and . . .oh wait!
We didn’t look “lifeless” today, we just didn’t hit. Is it important to buckle down against your division rivals? Yes. That’s why the Phils stormed back after losing a pair at Shea.
Take heart, if we’re still saying the same things at the end of May, Willie WILL be gone, and that will be that. But that’s 55 games or so down the road. Am I concerned that we might just be the same mediocre bunch from June, 2007 on? Of course. But this game doesn’t really tell me anything one way or the other.
If we loose the division to the Braves by 1 game then we can look back and say this is the game that cost us another trip to the playoffs.
Right, and if we instead tighten the division, we won’t give a crap.
I guess I should quit coming to MetsBlog, or just visit for comic relief after tough losses. I’m just as disappointed as everyone else, over a game like today. I felt, right up until Heilman’s HR-ball, that the Mets were gonna come back and take this game.
But really people, we haven’t even had a home opener yet! Is it really time to fire Willie, shake up the line-up, and concede defeat in ‘08…?
It’s amazing the level of angst exhibited on this board after every single loss. There are going to be at least 60 of them, so keep your crying towels handy.
Personally, after the pain of the loss subsides, I will look at this game, and note the following:
1) Delgado is definitely looking more confident at the plate. I’m not sure if his HR stroke will be as prevalent as it use to be, but he’s showing much better plate discipline than last season.
2) I’m encouraged by the hitting of Ryan Church. He looks like a good acquisition.
3) Schneider is a better catcher than Paulie was, and I’m not too sure that there’s much drop-off (if any) on the offensive side.
4) Santana is a wonderful pitcher (duh!)
Lighten up folks. It was a pitcher’s duel and the home team wound up on top. If you’re ready to hand the division to the Braves, maybe you should visit their message board, and see the cries of pain from a few days ago, when they lost a couple of games to Washington and Pittsburgh.
We have a good team, and they will win lots of games, just not today’s game…
Hey Darryl thanks your words are perfect, As far as I am concerned behavior, emotion, positive energy all starts with the manager. Willie has none , he is a Yankee and they are as bland as store bought vanilla ice cream.
Yeah i wish we still had Art Howe….
I think it is reasonable to suspect that Art Howe and Willie would do exactly the same job with this team and that Willie would not have done any better with the 2002-2004 Mets than Howe did.
In fact I think one day after Willie’s 2nd or 3rd managerial job pans out people will say the same thing about him that they say about Howe, “he was a great second baseman”.
Sparky Anderson or Joe McCarthy could not have done any better job than already done for the 2002-2004 mets
Lay off Willie. He’s not swinging the bat.
I blame Omar for ignoring the offense. He gave Castillo a 4 year deal (a once clutch ballplayer but now a physical shell of himself), has a great offensive player (Alou) who can’t play more than 75 games a year. And traded a prospect like Lastings for a couple of left-handed Expo retreads.
From 1999 thru 2002 Art Howe’s Oakland teams won 383 games.
the bell has rung…………. and the team thats so good it bores itself……..
is boring itself again………
It may just be five games into 2008, but Willie continues to prove he’s in over his head as a manager. Yesterday, bunting when the team should’ve played for the big inning, then leaving in Sosa when Feliciano was the clear move. Today in the 8th, he doesn’t pinch-run for Schneider, doesn’t put the bunt on when the situation screams for it, and again ends up with Castillo being unable to bring in a run.
Omar needs to fire Randolph and make a move for a righthanded bat (at 1B if possible) or this team we all love is destined for a long, painful year. It’s not too early because it’s the same mistakes and problems we saw all last year that came back to bite the team down the stretch.
And I agree they missed the boat on Girardi and Acta, but Wally is out there. I was an announcer in Bend, OR when he managed there, and while not the world’s greatest tactician, he certainly understands when to make the obvious moves and will light a fire under a team that desperately needs it.
I am on record as having called for Willie to lose his job after the collapse, and I’m guessing a running tally of stupid managerial moves will be a long one.
But, having cast their lot with him this year, the Mets need to give him more than a single two game losing streak before they can him. After all, Charlie Manuel could be the worst in game manager in human history, but he did guide the Phils to a few wins down the stretch. . .
BUT, I guess he should be fired, too, because the Phils are continuing the losing ways that began against the Rockies in the playoffs. They needed to come out and make a statement to start the year to get that monkey off their backs, and they haven’t. Stick a fork in ‘em. Mets and Phils will be battling for the cellar!
Thank you. I didn’t realize losing in the playoffs was identical to not making the playoffs at all with one of the all-time great collapses in baseball history. I’m glad I come here. I learn something all the time. :)
Well now you realize, because making the playoffs by one game and getting absolutely throttled by a bad, bad rockies team is not much of an achievement. I would say it is essentially the same thing as not making it. For what its worth the Mets had a better winning percentage then the PHillies last year. You condescending, ignorant moron.
Coming from an ignorant pig such as yourself those are kind words indeed and an extension of your vocabulary. Did you really take time from being breast fed from your mother (or was it your father) to actually write this response? An intelligent reply it certainly was. Contact me when your IQ raises above single digits.
right on blondie……… hit the nail on the head….. it’s the same slumps and problems and mistakes as last year …. thats what raises the eyebrow…….
It seems ridiculous to blame this game on Willie at all. Blame it on the superstars who couldn’t get on base (especially Reyes). This team plays a different game when Reyes gets on base 2-3 times a game. Without that, as we saw down the stretch last year, this team is flat and has no character.
On the bright side, at least we get to face the one man slump buster in Jamie Moyer.
Ya know seeing how upset everyone here is getting about the Mets 5 games into the season shows that the Mets collapse of last season will be an issue all season UNTIL they show they can win – and specifically win against the Braves and Phillies.
The Phills clearly got into the Mets heads last season, and let’s see now how these first 3 games go against Philly. Phillies aren’t off to a good start either but will they come alive against the Mets, the team they just owned last year? I’d like to see the Mets make a statement in their first series playing them this year. But again, after last season’s collapse and the Phills sweeping the Mets in the last 3 series of last year, I can’t believe in this team until they show otherwise.
Except that people overreact to everything early in the season EVERY year. Last April, David Wright was the next Hank Blalock, with no power, Jimmy Rollins was eating his words, etc., etc.
But isn’t that what makes baseball fun. I don’t understand why their criticism of a team and its players is taken so personally be some. Yes, you have a group of obsessive fans that over-react. But if we weren’t obsessive we wouldn’t waste our time posting on a blog. I may not agree with these people but I will defend their right to post these comments without the fear of being personally attacked.
If posting over and over and over again about how your “favorite” team is “lifeless,” full of “has beens,” and has a “no brain” manager, and anyone who thinks otherwise is an idiot, blah, blah, blah, is “fun,” then you, sir, have a very skewed idea of “fun.” If the calamity howlers want to make ridiculous statements, they have to live with being called on them. Moreover, I’m sure they’ll sleep soundly some do-gooder “defend[ing] their right” to post illogical, inflammatory, infantile drivel. No one’s cowering in fear of “personal attacks,” and, on the flip side, no one is yanking away anyone’s comment privileges. Chill.
why is it that some of you only post about other peoples’ posts you don’t like? telling everyone to relax over and over again for years and years must be draining. and its ironic that you overreact to other fans overreaction.
if fans want to live and die over each game isn’t that their perrogative? that used to be what a “fan” was, a fanatic.
Post of the day goes to… itsmetsforme!!
Looks like the same team as last year because it is the same team as last year. They talked a big talk about how they’ve turned the page, and are ready to move on, but I haven’t seen them walk the walk yet. It’s a long season, and calling it over now is as ridiculous as people who called a mets-tigers world series on opening day. But so far we look uneven, inconsistent, and like our weaknesses(age, ‘lack of mental toughness’) have already been exposed and exploited.
I think the hype and the talk actually hurts this team. If they just relaxed and played without the weight of the collapse on their shoulders, and without fans whining and booing after every loss they might play to their potential. Alas, I will join the chorus of whines because I just don’t see that happening. Santana is great, Shame we can’t clone him, because he singlehandedly kept the mets in that game today.
What is it going to take for this organization to see that Willie Randolph is not right for this team. We have the team right now to get us to a WS but lack the LEADER to get us there. In two years who knows what this league will look like. Who knows who will get injured. We already know what Willie can give us.. There are no surprises coming people!!! We are a national league team that thrives on speed and small ball and we DON’T SQUEESE,, or use the WHEEL!!!!
Willie has taught Jose and David all he can.. Those lessons will stay with them forever. Now its time to bring in a new face with new lessons and a new attitude. Jose is going backwards. He has given us all he can and now its time to thank him and turn the page. These are precious seasons that should not be wasted just for the sake of politics.
Let’s have a brawl with the philthies on Tuesday…….isn’t that what everyone wanted for “motivation” last year????
first pitch hitting rollins in the head, that would b interesting to see
biggest knock on willie is the handling of jose………. jose is going backwards…….
Is anyone besides myself noticing that since Yankee Willie took the helm the club is managed the same way. BORING… They failed to make the WS in 06, they failed at the end of the season last yr. Now we are starting the season the way it ended last year, not sense of urgency to win, no positive energy, lack of hustle and just dumb moves by Pea Brain Willie
I was at both games this weekend…pitiful. We looked terrible all the way around. Maine couldn’t fine the broad side of a barn on Friday and Santana pitched a heck of a game today but got NO run support.
Santana gets to 3rd w/ 1 out and we can’t move him 90 feet? Seriously? It was embarassing to watch, it really was.
It’s early and we’ll bounce back but our offense showed NO emotion, NO life…nothing this weekend.
Haha some dope said “willie is the new isiah”….
I dont even know how to handle that statement…
is it just me or jose is looking worse as the games go on?
it’s not you…………
Jose is looking worse and worse. You are right. He’s back fishing at balls in the dirt. He isn’t walking and he has one stolen base attempt in the five games. They just seemed like they wanted to be somewhere else today. They should be pumped up behind Santana. He was playing with heart today, diving etc. We need a hot headed manager like Guillen or Pinella.
maybe he is too relaxed and needs those handshakes and dancing in the dugout back in him
Ok its official…you have convinced me
Reyes slumping is Willies fault
Heilman giving up a homerun is Willies Fault
D-wright not getting a hit is Willies Fault
hurricane Katrina was willies fault
the Holocaust was willies fault
the spanish inquisition was willies fault
9/11 was willies fault
i agree with all of the above
i agree with all of the above except for the spanish inquisition, come on man, that’s just silly, everyone knows the spanish inquisition was omar’s fault!
You left out the fall of Rome. Oh, wait that was GWB’s fault. :)
Willie killed Jesus!
Well maybe 9/11 and the Holocaust weren’t Willies fault
But seriously, I can’t stand this Fire Willie stuff. God its 5 games into the season… I have some very minor in-game stuff with Willie. But I don’t blame him.
But disturbing clouds reign
Reyes looks like he is still sulking.
Beltran is an passionless and old looking player now.
Will Delgado get to double digits in HR’s? – fugghedaboutit.
Orlando Hernandez is a malingerer
Duaner is a another malingerer who arrived in camp out of shape
Pedro has totally broken down
Every day (when he returns) Alou is a potential new member to the 60 day DL
he has this whole dejected manner about him now………. i understand the toneing down of the reggaethon dances but something deeper is up here………
that kid like spark is missing for a long time now…..
Willie dictates the personality of this team. He was down on Milledge for his high-fives, down on Reyes for his dances, and so on. Poor baseball decisions aside, he’s an unenergetic bore, and that rubs off on his players.
Smoltz was tough today (as he almost always is at home v. the Mets) … too bad our bats were lifeless.
This game was disappointing b/c these were the types of games Santana was brought in to win. Sure, Smoltz is tough, but Santana was supposed to put us over the top — but the bats were silent and Castillo doesn’t look like he should be anywhere near the 2-hole.
Let’s hope that coming back to Shea will pump some life into this team.
Isn’t that the problem though.. Why is it that 5 games into the season the team looks dead. That is the managers fault. I don’t want to hear any more of this they are pro ballplayers and they don’t need any more incentive to win. Last season Willie kept telling us that he doesn’t need to motivate his team cause they know when to turn it on..
Thats horsesh!t… Maybe back when Willie was playing that was the case but the world has changed.. And the soul of our team happens to be 25 year old kids. They’ve never had a leader to teach them. Willie has been the only leader they have ever had and he does and says nothing to inspire his ballclub. They only know what Willie has taught them..
I wouldn’t say the team has looked lifeless all 5 games — the team looked fine in the Marlines series.
Part of it is that good pitching will make batters look lifeless — Hudson and Smoltz both brough their A-games.
dont want the blame ……. dont be the leader ………
it’s very unfair but ,ya ‘d think george washington had won the war himself……….
everybody calm down. The Mets will start winning again. I wouldnt be surprised if Reyes stays on the slump, fans are gonna be wishing we traded reyes for santana and kept our prospects. Playing the Phillies and Brewers @ shea will help us
if reyes slumps ….mets wont win..
Amen. He’s the heart of the team.
some aspects were not willie’s fault. the mets simply did not hit. all said and done Johan should be 2-0 right now because he pitched a hell of a game and deserved to win after shutting down the braves.
Judging by the first week, I guess we should expect the 4-1 Orioles to romp to the AL East title with the Yanks and Sox bringing up the rear.
FIVE GAMES DOES NOT MAKE A BASEBALL SEASON!!!!!!
I definitely agree that 5 games does not make the baseball season.
My concern is, the team doesn’t look they are enjoying themselves, even when they won opening day, they just don’t look like they are having fun and enjoying the game.
I miss the spunk, I miss the handshakes, I miss all the players jumping around and dancing and SMILING.
baseball should be fun. The heart and sole of this team is 2 25 year old kids, let them be kids, let them enjoy the game and bring some youthfulness to this team.
But either way, I know we will win and be there at the end, I just want them to be themselves. Hell, the Yankees look like they are having more fun then the Mets.
thats bc they are probably bc their manager is a stone faced emotionless person.
Willie should have brought in Wagner in the 8th to keep the game 1-0. Too often manager leave their best reliever on the bench because it isn’t a save situation. This is managing to a statistic, one that is meaningless in the case of saves. It is more egregious when the game is tied and you are the visiting team and you wait until it is a save situation, but nevertheless, I think Willie should have brought in Wagner. You need to do everything possible to give your team a chance to win and putting Wagner in in the 8th was the best choice.
ehh……then if we take the lead in the ninth then what? I see your point but Billy implodes if he’s in for more than 3 outs and I would imagine Heilman would give up the walkoff in the 9th anyway…..which would’ve probably sent me to the hospital, and which is even more of a gutwrenching loss than fighting back but coming up just short……that’s how I see it anyway.
Oh, and I should mention that we have the two worst 4 and 5 starters in the league right now in Pelfrey and Figueroa, which should result in automatic losses and tire our bullpen so they can blow leads for Santana, Maine and Perez in other games. Boy, Livan Hernandez and Kyle Loshe would have been cheap additions to eat up innings in times like this. Also the chances of Pedro coming back by the All Star Break are slim and who knows what El Duque will do. Even if he pitches well it’s just a matter of time before he’s back on the DL.
yes, i do remember all those people back during the winter clamoring for Livan, they were all pretty adamant that we get him. Yup, i remember that fondly…
These are the type of April losses that you look back to in September when were are in a tight race and say, “If we only pulled that game out in April against Atlanta”. I dont care if its “only April”. These games count in the standings as much as September games do. Wake up Mets! The season started!
I agree. I used to think “win as many games possible before the break, then every game after is important”. After last year, EVERY game is important.
agreed, a team should never lose games by 2 runs or less, unacceptable, i mean, losing? this early in the year? wow, this is going to be a long season huh? kind of unacceptable in my eyes.
i am a huge mets fan but i felt like that we shouldve gotten sweet lou before the cubs got him… i know for sure he wouldnt accept this, he would give this team some passion and motivation. also am i the only one who absolutely hates this lineup? the only people i can count on in this lineup is david wright and jose reyes… maybe beltran if he decides to swing the bat wit two strikes and not stare at a perfectly good pitch
Why do many of you not understand the main point of the Willie haters? I dont think anyone on this post fels the season is over bc they are 2-3. That being said, there is no way this team is winning a WS with Willie as their manager. He should have been fired last year without a question. He isnt good…case closed. There really is no argument. Nobody with any baseball knowledge can honestly say that Willie has done a good job as Mets manager.
The Mets are just not that good a team…period. The first baseman is done (sorry im not convinced bc of a few meaningless singles off breaking pitches), the 2nd baseman is laughable, the catcher cant hit, the left fielder cant stay healthy, and the SS is very overrated. Wright is really good (but not a top 10 player yet) and Beltran is very good but not great. Church is ok. Add on top that their manager is clueless. I dont care that they are 2-3…they just arent that good, period.
there is no way the mets will ever win a WS while mets fans are their fans. they should have been fired last year without question. they arent good, case . . . . ok ok, i am only kidding. sucks to lose the game, but i cant get excited over the second series of the year, no matter how much i hate the braves.
It has nothing to do with these last two games….it has to do with the last 174.
Sorry but when it comes to the standings this series is as important as any September series.
OK, so don’t freak out when the Mets lose a September series, either. We are 2-3, with a two game losing streak. BFD.
Dont think you get my point. This series technically means as much in the standings as any September series. Every game is as important as any other in the win and lose columns. Meaning I am just as mad when we lose in April as when we do in September because they all count.
I get your point. I just think it’s kind of . . . pointless. You’re supposed to throw a tantrum after every loss, because every loss could be the loss that keeps you out of the playoffs?
On the bright side, I guess if we win Tuesday, you’ll be on the planning committee for the victory parade.
Put your sarcasm up your ass guy! You can twist it anyway you want. I choose to believe every game counts and I would rather start putting some distance between us and the rest of the division early rather than sweat out another September. Do I think our season is doomed because we lost today? No. Will I run a parade committee if we win Tuesday? No. But I would rather get off to a good start now and not play catch up all season. Just forget it bro. You seem like the type that has to start an argument and win it so I’m done explaining my “pointless” point.
I don’t understand this “lifeless” thing that people are harping on. They hardly looked “lifeless’ in the last game of the Marlins series. And they did score 5 runs yesterday. Today they just faced a tough pitcher.
This is going to be a long year on this blog. When they win a game everyone will be ecstatic and when they lose one people will be jumping off bridges. <> When did it get like this around here?
happened at the beginning of ‘07 when everyone expected this team to role ‘06 style but better, and never lose a game. Unfortunately, a lot of those people were bandwagon fans who joined us in ‘06 and all they had ever known of the Mets was that wonderful season, that ended so abruptly. In addition, there only other introduction to baseball was the Yankees, so they’re some sort of amalgamation of bandwagon/Yankee fans. They’re an interesting bunch, but mostly annoying because they seem to believe the Mets can never be afforded a bad game if they have any chance of winning anything.
It’s very frustrating. It’s like there is no conversation or analysis going on, just a bunch of illogical complaining. It’s disappointing really.
very true man, i miss the good ol’ days when there were actual baseball arguments going on, debating the finer points of the game. Now, its all complaining and clamoring for this or that, or ripping on Omar for some move made 2 years ago. Yeah, that’s going to get us some where…
so true, I avoid reading this web site during and after a loss its really annoying…..but thats what you get from bandwagon fans
Maybe it got really bad in 07 after the huge jump in readership, but the constant policing of everyones comments is what drives me away. There used to be great discussions and an appropriate (for the Mets) level of gallows humor but then some elected themselves the thought police and now 50% of the posts are complaining that too many people are complaining. Any criticism of anything needs to be responded to in an endless cycle of meaningless posts. Look in the mirror internet thought police, you’re killing this blog as much as the 13 year olds looking for attention, IMO. If you really think “bandwagon” fans are the only ones upset by a poor showing by the mets I really don’t know what to tell you. Other than that makes no sense.
as usual itsmetsforme, you know exactly what you’re talking about. My posts are nothing more then “policing,” and in no way are just my opinion, like your own post here, which is exactly what again? In seriousness, it amazes me that you took my original post as being 100% serious, c’mon now itsmetsforme, i thought you were a little more intuitive then that…
that’s your first mistake.
The problem is that the coaching mentality has not changed since last season. There an obvious lack of leadership on this team. Most of us can deal with loses when our team plays with intensity and heart, but thats seems to be the problem. There hasn’t been a real sense of intensity since early Aug last season.
Its not loosing that bothers us,, its the fact that these players have been underachieving since mid 07 and its obvious that the manager doesn’t know how to get these guys to play at their best. Add to this the fact that he is clearly a below average manager and you get A FIRE STORM….
The silent leader can only lead when his people believe in him. If you expect people to follow your lead but don’t lead by example or voice then you have what we have here. A confused ball club. and when you take away their enthusiasm and excitement for the game, well then you’ve lost everything that had made them great in the first place. what you have now is a team with no IDENTITY..
Without good leadership, this team only survived on its lust and enthusiasm for the game. With all that gone you are left with a raw and confused ball club. Yes they will win and probably compete for a division but they will never win a WS with this leadership in place. The time is now,, lets not wait until next season. We’ve seen what Willie can give us.. They’ve learned all they can from him. Now its time to get new leadership and a new attitude.
you know what, i’m coming around on something, you fans do know best, you all are potential GM’s in my eyes, i mean, if you can type it out on a blog, you can run a team right? and any of you could run it better then what we’ve got now. I mean, 2-3 this early in the season? 2 straight losses to the Braves? unacceptable. I mean, look at Detroit, the Red Sox, they’re all done. In fact, i’ll bet you Kansas City wins it all this year, it’ll be KC vs. the Nationals in the series. In fact, there really is no reason to play out the rest of the year, everything we need to know about this team and how the season will play out has already been decided in these 5 games. So why play ‘em? and as fans, why watch? Seems kind of wasteful to me, you guys agree? I think its about time we wrap it up, say its over, and get some of you posters interviewed for GM and managerial positions for the Mets. Sad to say, but I think that’s where we’re at, at this point in the season. Disgrace really, i’m embarrassed to be a Mets fan…
Well put though I’m under the impression most mets fans aren’t happy unless there is something to complain about. I hate to think about how they apply themselves in real life. If something doesn’t go right do they give up immediately?
Met Fans are sounding just as bad as Philly fans – I think worse.
Dude get a clue,,, do you remember last season at all? Its like you forget that we went from a potential WS team to the biggest choke job in MLB history.
You sound like one of the people that say if you criticize the war then your criticizing the Troops. Thats bull man and you know it. Yes its 5 games and yes they will be a decent team. But they have the potential to be so much more than that. And blindly supporting a TERRIBLE leader and manager does not make you any more of a fan than us..
Your attitude is positive but lacks clarity.
look, i know this team isn’t perfect, I know that quite well, but i’m not gong to sit here and listen to all this crap from fans and not do anything about it. I may be pushing it all the way to the opposite side of many around here occasionally, and people see me as a blind apologist for that, so be it, but that’s not the point. I”m here to be optimistic, i’m here to be realistic, and i’m here to give voice to fans who don’t freak out over baseball as much as some of you do, but are still through and through die-hard fans, and just want to enjoy the Mets. I don’t mind criticism either, it’s just the way people do it around here. They’re not criticizing and offering up solutions, or thinking realistically about how the real world of major league baseball operates, they just complain, whine, scream, whatever, its useless. Saying FIRE WILLIE over and over ain’t going to do much for us.
That all being said, its 5 games, and I simply REFUSE to make any judgements, assumptions, and/or conclusions about this team yet. I don’t think i’m an apologist for doing that, nor do I think I lack clarity because I occasionally rip on those who are willing to give up after 5 games. Thank you.
I hate to say, but this is a really boring post, darksie. why don’t you turn your prodidgious talents to enlightening us on “the finer points” of the game that you say you miss so much?I would enjoy reading what you think about that.
People will disagree, for example, on whether Delgado’s baserunning, Heilmans meatballing, or Pagan’s positioning today are examples of more alarming trends, or just isolated incidences. But they certainly didn’t help the Mets win.
c’mon itsmetsforme, you know you’re smarter then everyone here, why don’t you enlighten us on those finer points…
you first. i just think you’re wasting your talents.Bitching about the old days doesn’t bring them back, and people complained back then too. I am certainly not smart enough to fix this mess.
Darkstar–
You were saying this same crap all last year while the team sleep walked through the last 4 months of the season.
Anyone with half a brain can see that the same problems in 06 are front & center in 07. That goes for Willie, the team, and Omar.
You can’t see it yet. You think you can, and you’re afraid you can, but after five games (one of which was a 13-0 win, actually) you can’t. Think about it this way. If you were ON the Mets, how would you behave after a loss like this. Pack it in and wallow in self-doubt, or grab a notebook on the Phillies and start figuring out how Moyer is going to pitch you?
Actually I would go out and have a nice dinner and then take in a movie or a strip club.
BTW I saw a stat on ESPN the other day that said that no team in the history of baseball has lost its first five games and won a pennant. So perhaps five games at the beginning of a season can destroy a season.
Mo?
Fire Omar.
Fire Willie.
Should have happened right after last year.
The Mets are a heartless, gutless sack of crap.
ok, thats a little cold
AGREED!
your personal life is going pretty bad if you very upset after game 5.
all of you are such retards. wowowowwowoww. no wonder so many people hate the mets…you all embarrass me.
asskissers blinded by blue and orange colored glasses embarress me…..
and please spare the handicapped your insults……
since when is being behind your team, cheering them on being optimisitc being an “asskisser?” what planet are you from? You insult many a long time Met fan here who can love their team and still stomach the losses without throwing a depression-filled, sore-loser temper tantrum. Get a life.
its the beginning of the season, relax.. Look at the AL-favored Tigers who are 0-5 to start!
At least Santana pitched/played well (offensively and fielding).. Reyes and Castillo need to step it up though, it seems like all our hits and such are coming from unexpected bats (ie: Church, Pagan, Schnedier.. which make up the bottom of the order, just ahead of the pitcher’s spot) .. Reyes im sure will come around but Castillo better play better.. There is always Jose Valentin whenever he gets off the DL or wherever he is, or AAA-option Anderson Hernandez.
I’ll repeat what I posted previously. I saw a stat on ESPN the other day that said that no team in the history of baseball has lost its first five games and won a pennant. So the Tigers could be in trouble. But the Mets are not.
I was always told that you need 5 innings to qualify for a win, which they both had. But you need to leave with the lead and keep it in order to get the win. When smoltz left in the 5th and Santana left in the 7th the score was 1-0. So then when the Mets scored the run in the ninth should that take Santana off the hook and also give Smoltz a no decision. And the win should go to the last Braves pitcher and the loss to the Met pitcher that gave up the 2 extra runs?
was there a rule change or am I way off?
I am so confused.
when the mets finally scored atlanta already had 3 runs (i believe it was a 2 run blast off of heilman in the previous inning). plus you don’t need 5 innings to get a win as far as i know. look at any reliever with a W
you made my point exactly. Braves scored 1 run while Santana was in the game and 2 off heilman. I thought in that case if the Mets score one it takes Santana off the hook for the lose since the Mets matched the 1 but it would put Heilman on the hook for the loss. and vice versa for Smoltz..
the losing pitcher is the first one to give up the last deficit in runs. santana would only be off the hook if a later run deficit occurred; that is, if the mets scored a run to tie the score BEFORE heilman gave up two more runs.
gottcha.
We shouldn’t lose these 1 run games with Santana pitching! I am not surprised Heilman gave up the long ball. He seems to crack under pressure. Sosa is another shacky guy when the pressure is on. Atlants is not the Marlins. They need to get the big outs against the good teams. 3 games now, the bullpen gave up the long ball to lose the game!! The bullpen better their act together if we expect to win this division! Hopefully games like this one won’t come back to haunt us later in the season.
For those of you who want willie to go, please sit back, have a sandwich and take a breath….we’re FIVE GAMES IN.
I’m not worried. We already have a much better team this year than last year. We’re not going to win every game….and i’m convinced this board is getting those people that really root for the yankees but say “oh i’m a mets fan too”….its reflected in the stupidity of some of the comments.
I agree, it’s early, and the Mets are a very good team, but while they may have the parts, they’re not going to get to the next level until they get a legitimate manager.
like Art Howe?
Everyone attacks poor old Art Howe but from 1999 thru 2002 Art Howe’s Oakland teams won 383 games.
I wonder how Willie would do with some of the Mets teams Art Howe managed. That’s right he would lead them to a ring.
There are knowledgeable Mets fans that are not gloom and doom, that do not over-react, that don’t behave irrationally, that don’t think Willie is a good manager.
People are shellshocked from last year. That, and there are a lot of kids posting here, and they have the attention span of goldfish. We win today’s game, and it’s “look out, NL! Collapse? What collapse? We have Johan now, etc., etc., etc.” But, instead, we lose, and you get . . . this. Is it frustrating to waste a terrific pitching performance? Yes. Have the Mets proven that they’ve put the collapse behind them? No. But it was going to take a lot longer than five frigging games, either way. The whining about Willie’s decisions and Reyes’ continuing inability to get his head in the game has some merit, but it’s way too early to start this degree of calamity-howling.
It’s really sad that after five games of a 162-game season that so many people are deserting ship. But that’s fine. Who needs you as fans anyway? Being a fan means supporting your team through good times and bad, not just when they win.
I get as annoyed and frustrated as the next fan over losing ballgames and squandering opportunities – sometimes to the point where I let it ruin my day or cost me sleep as I replay the game and what could have been in my head – but in the end I’m a Mets fan and I live and die with my team. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
If you say the season is over after five games then you’ve obviously don’t understand baseball or sports for that matter. By the time the season ends, what went on in the first week is a distant memory and the team is usually different in many aspects. The baseball season is a long grind, and as we know from last season, it’s not over in April, May, June, or even September for that matter. How may of you ever thought the Mets would blow a seven-game lead with 17 to play last year? I’m sure although many feared it by the way the team was playing, that just many didn’t ever think it would happen. But guess what, it did? So there’s an example of where thinking the season was over (in your favor) but it wasn’t.
It seems that because of the collapse every game, every pitch, every at-bat is over-analyzed now and it shouldn’t be that way. 2007 is done. It has no bearing on ‘08. But the media and people around the game like to harp on the negative and that’s how the negative survives. How about we just get back to being fans and watching games instead making utterly ridiculous decrees like the season is over after five games. A lot can happen in the next 157.
spoken like a true Mets fan. Thank you for being a voice of sanity in this insane asylum.
Thanks brotha.
So much for the fast start.
I agree with toomanyuniforms. The game was really frustrating and unacceptable, but can we just keep in mind that it’s only the fifth game of the season? I think saying Willie must go is a bit brash, considering he has no control over Jose Reyes’s inability to watch the first pitch or Aaron Heilman’s incessant need to give up runs.
A couple of things:
1) I am not too worried about Reyes yet, guys like Ryan Howard, Vlad, Hafner, Ortiz, Ramirez are all off to slow starts, you can’t start the year off hot every year. Plus I would rather have him in a slump in the beginning of the year over the end of the year.
2) I agree with Castillo, he just looks lost at the plate right now. You know Castillo can’t hit when he shows bunt on 3-1. Also shows me he doesn’t believe in himself that he can hit the ball out of the infield.
3) I noticed today that the Braves are great at scouting their opponents. They know that Wright’s weakness is the pitch right on the outside corner and even a little outside and thats where every Braves pitcher put the ball everytime he was up. They also know Reyes is going to swing at balls at his feet, so what do they do? Throw balls at Reyes feet when they get ahead of the count. Seems like the Mets don’t know how to scout their opponent. For example: Jeff Francoeur swings at everything, so why should you ever throw him a strike?
Still I am not in a panic mode yet, today was frustrating but you always get games like this in a 162 game season.
i think this is a great point about br*Ves vs Mets scouting. I think that scouting/coaching plays a more important role than we realize. Little things lose ballgames. why was angel pagan playing shallow?
OK OK OK, I have gotten it out of my system and now I can think about it. I am very disappointed, like most fans in a sweep by the Braves. I had very high expectations for this team after 2007 and very high hopes and this is not what I had in mind. I wanted a strong start and to come and make a statement and make other teams fear us and know that they have better chance of loosing than winning when they play us. I dont see that yet, and, dont think that I will see that. If we dont sweep or win the series with the Phillies at home next week I will be concerned. Yes it will be a dog fight between 3 teams, I, just wanted the Mets to dominate and make a statement. Not the statement that they have made so far. We are OK and can win if we want to, but, we might also be lazy and ho hum, so take what you can get.
We can all agree that it would have been very, very, VERY nice and cathartic had we pummeled the Braves and headed to the home opener 4-1. Well, it didn’t work out that way. Hopefully everyone’s Metsblog primal scream therapy worked and those fortunate enough to open the final year at Shea can channel the emotion toward something positive — i.e., negative for the Phils.
Whats the deal with Delgado? He finally had 2 hits today, but he looked like an idiot getting picked off at first. Is he just taking a while to get warmed up?
I mean, i know its only the first week of the season, and I’m not really worried about the team, but Delgado did not look good at all at the end of last year, he did not look good in spring training, and he has not looked good thus far. Is he going to come around, or is he DONE?
Either way, the Mets need to make a big play after this year for Teixeira…If we can keep Perez (I don’t think at this rate we’ll be keeping Pedro, so that will free up $$) that would give us Teixeira, Wright, Reyes, Beltran, Santana, Perez and Maine, all young (maybe not Beltran), and all locked up long term. Not a bad core…
“and he has not looked good thus far”
Delgado is batting .350 so far this year..
I say that OP sets the tone against the Phills by going to the mound with an oversized boxing glove instead of a baseball glove and then drills Jimmy Rollins.
i said it before the season starts that this team has a mediocre offense and they showed it again today. Beltran and Wright are the only true heavy hitters in this lineup. Church is a good complimentary player and the rest are singles hitters at best. I feel bad for this pitching staff because they will lose a lot of low scoring games this year. The Braves, if their starters stay healthy, can definitely take the NL East. The Braves lineup is deep and powerful from 1-8. And they are all young except for Chipper. If the Mets dont add another potent bat, (not Alou either) third place is a lock.
I have an honest to god question to a lot of the people on here…why do you even bother to follow the Mets if you’re gonna be so negative and miserable every time they lose? This isn’t football, where a great team will only lose 2 or 3 times, this is baseball, where even the greatest teams of all time lose more than 45 games a year.
I hate it when the Mets lose, and I get angry at the team, but I still have faith that they’ll win in the long run. That’s what being a fan is all about. If you’re gonna be miserable about the team all the time, why even bother? Isn’t there enough crap in the rest of the world, why follow sports if you don’t get any joy out of it? There’s a lot of people on here who I only see posting when the Mets lose, and they’re all doom and gloom….I almost get the sense that you’re happier when they lose because it gives you something to bitch about. And it’s not just that you choose to be negative, but you harass the people who are optimistic or try to bring some perspective to the situation.
Sorry for the rant, but it’s just getting ridiculous. I used to love coming to this site, because it was a great place to talk Mets baseball, in victory or defeat. Now, I know whenever they lose I’m just gonna get myself more angry by reading all the comments in here.
Sometimes you just have to face facts. Its not about negative or positive but rather the Mets are an old, light hitting team outside of Wright and Beltran. Its reality and we will just have to draft more young positional players instead of signing overpriced free agents. We need a better scouting staff who can at least grab a couple solid players every year in the draft. I will watch every game because i always have from 84-present but i am truly not optimistic about this teams chances as presently constructed.
There seems to be a mind set here – especially of the younger generation fans – of expecting and preparing for the worst. It manifests itself by what I read here – of wanting the manager fired, of saying the team players are no good – that how the team is constructed is flawed and can’t win. Its like these fans can’t put themselves out on a limb and cheer their team on because they’re afraid of being wrong about them. I’ve been a fan of this team for over 30 years and I know plenty about unfulfilled expectations and losing seasons. And I still keep coming back every year because baseball is like spring – every year holds the promise of a new beginning. And like spring, it often doesn;t start out all hot and sunny. It often rains and stays cold a long time before the real nice weather kicks in.
If being a fan of team that is not going to win the way you want them to is too much for you to take – then why be a Mets fan? Why be a baseball fan? I think a lot of these young fans have been overly influenced by the success of the Yankees in this town – as if we’re supposed to have that kind of success year in and year out.
Sorry but this kind of fandom doesn;t make any sense to me.
i disagree, the younger fans know mostly sucess.
The fans that actually know the teams history and have suffered with the team for decades know of what they speak but they get no respect around here. Pessimism is equated with unpatriotic slander against the mets by too many blowhards on here. Complaining about one game is tantamount to giving up hope on the team for all time. You cant love your team and criticize them too. That attitude just shows to me that the newbies are in charge of the asylum.
you miss the point imfm, its not the criticism, people like you have always thought the point was the criticism, but its not, its the irrational complaining and the “fire omar” “fire willie” “this team is done” “its ‘07 all over again” posts, which make up a lot on this blog after losses, that get people to respond.
exactly. I’ll criticize the team: I think Omar over-relied on aging, injury prone players; I think Willie sucks at handling a bullpen, I think Delgado looks washed up; I think Reyes has to mature, and fast. But none of those things preclude me from being optimistic about the team. I’m not even old enough to remember the ‘86 Mets, yet I feel like I’ve endured enough losing (1990-1998; 2002-2005) to appreciate the product the Mets are putting on the field on a daily basis these days, even if they’re not quite dominant. But it’s the constant negativity of some posters that just bewilders me.
I responded with my most reasonable post of the year to the effect that I’ve never paid any attention to the “fire omar” “fire willie” “this team is done” “its ‘07 all over again” posts and why should I?
But the site ate my post and i can’t remember the other wonderful things i said.
when is Santana scheduled to start again? Normal rest is Friday night and that’s what makes sense and what Metsblog said but i’ve heard Saturday too. Which is it?
Brought this up earlier. Apparently when the Mets had runners on 1st and 2nd yesterday Willie gave Jose the sign to swing away. Jose bunted. Then, Sandy Alomar came down and talked to Jose and told him to swing away. Jose bunted again.
If this doesn’t talk to you about the lack of respect this team has for Willie Randolph, nothing does. It’s not the losing that hurts, it’s the bad baseball that keeps repeating itself.
Having anyone lose their job is awful, but let’s face it folks, Willie just can’t this team motivated and that’s a real problem.
If that’s true, Reyes is a much, much bigger moron than any of us thought after that idiotic AB with the confrontational ump last year against the Phils (continually taking off for first before waiting for a call from the ump with three balls, resulting in the ump calling him out on strikes to avoid being “shown up.”) If it’s true, they should look to unload him. Maybe give him one more chance. Yes, I’m serious. You can’t have idiots like that on your team. The solution in that sort of situation is to rid of Reyes, not Willie.
That said, nothing personal, but I’m doubting it really happened the way you’re describing it.
Noone said Reyes is a Harvard Grad. He frequently doesn’t play smart. He’s a player with speed who doesn’t walk and who hits the ball in the air way too much.
That said, the talent is there. He may be a guy who needs a stronger leader than Willie to perform. If I’m the manager and the player ignores me, his @ss is on the bench today.
This is true, Eddie C spoke to Willie before the game on the radio and admitted that Reyes decided to bunt on his own despite the sign.
Hold on — do they even have a “don’t bunt” sign? It’s either that the sacrifice is on, or it’s not, in which case the player could still have the freedom to bunt if he thinks he can bunt for a base hit. Reyes has to be given some leeway to bunt when he feels he can catch someone napping because of his speed — bunting should be a prominent weapon in his arsenal. Better than swinging from the heels.
i guess you must have been in the dugout and saw the signs that were relayed to jose
The sky is falling the sky is falling. You people are all in insane. in 06 the Mets lost 2 of 3 to the Braves the first time they played, how’d that division race go? I didn’t realize they had win every series vs the Braves and Phils and look good in every aspect of the game at the same time. I guess because Willie is a horrible manager and the collapse last year they can’t ever look bad at any point this season and expect to win, right? Is that how it works? I bet if we looked at every champion over the years they would never have had a losing streak of more than one, and they would have played well in every loss and no pitcher ever had a bad start etc…
I actually feel bad for most of the posters here because they need the Mets to never lose to feel good it seems like, and we all know that won’t happen. There is no satisfying any of you.
I guess this blog has become the dumping ground for the paranoid, negative Joe Benigno types who will never accept anything other than 162-0. And people will deny this fact, but tell me what loss will the Mets suffer this year that will be ok for some of you? Seriously, does it have to be a fluke hit or an umpires mistake for no one to complain?? It is to a point where you cannot read these posts anymore. Just read the articles posted and that’s it.
Relax cuz, no one is saying the season is over. There is a continued pattern of bad and uninspired baseball that started last year. We all know the Mets will lose games, we just prefer that the other team beats us instead of the Mets beating themselves with bad baseball, which is become more common than healthy for a winning team.
This aint the 06 Mets buddy. There are many more light hitters in the 08 Mets lineup and the Braves hitters are much more mature in 08. This offense is seriously a joke. i said it last year and i am saying it this year too. Open you eyes and admit that the Mets might not be the team to beat in the NL East.
Willie doesn’t keep his team motivated … blah, blah, blah. Face it people, if Willie has to keep his players motivated to play and baby-sit each one to make sure they’re motivated then that is just sad. These are grown men we’re talking about. What baseball players are motivated by is money, plain and simple. Winning comes next. We’re talking about multi-millionaries who have everything in the world, where’s the motivation to perform? It’s not Willie’s fault if a player isn’t motivated, it’s the player’s fault. Willie can’t swing the bat for them or field for them. You all put way way too much credence in what Willie has to do. Managers in general maybe win you 6-10 games a season based on the moves they make. They players are who determine who wins ballgames.
There’s a reason why the Phillies and Braves are right their with the Mets even though the Mets have a significantly higher payroll. It’s called playing the game right.
A-Freakin’-Men!
Did you all read what he just wrote!!!
Oh, hell, I was replying to OrangenBlue. NOT SHamsky!
Read the posts sham, most of them are so irrational its hard to believe. You prefer the other team to beat you? How does that work exactly? If they Mets hit in the clutch then they don’t lose, if they pitch well the same thing. But if they don’t hit in the clutch or pitch well isn’t that beating yourself?? I don’t get that philosphy. Its a combination of both my friend. Sloppy baserunning, mental mistakes, are you are telling me winning teams don’t ever do that? Watch some other top teams, it happens trust me. Its 5 games in and people have gone overboard, and if you don’t see that I don’t what to tell you.
I’m not comparing them to 06, I’m just saying they started the season the same way, so panicking after losing 2 isn’t anything to jump overboard about. And did I say they were going to win anything, My eyes are wide open, all I’m trying to express is that you can’t judge the quality of the ballclub based off of 5 games, and overanalzye every loss as if it represents the entire season makes no sense. And this is what everyone is doing. Also I’d rather have this pitching staff vs. 06 and that’s what wins championships.
“I’m not comparing them to 06, I’m just saying they started the season the same way,”
Are you kidding me? You cannot compare this season to 2006. That year they started out blistering hot, going 10-2 in the first two weeks.
So the comparison is not valid unless this year’s team goes on to win the next 9 of 11 or so.
: )
i agree that i’d rather have the ‘08 staff than the ‘06 staff but you still have to score runs to win greatly pitched ballgames. Delgado is a shell of his former self and Castillo and Reyes are singles hitters for the most part. There is tremendous pressure on Wright and Beltran to pretty much carry the offensive load this year. I will say it again that this team might not be good enough to win the NL East especially offensively.
I’m worried about the offense too, but tonight was the first bad offensive game. They’re averaging 6 runs a game, and prior to tonight were averaging 7.25. They’ve scored 7, 4, 13, 5, and then 1 run. In 2006 they averaged slightly more than 5 runs per game. With their pitching staff, they should be 4-1. They’ve been unlucky, and haven’t hit well in the clutch. That stuff tends to even out over the course of a season. But I guarantee that if the offense keeps averaging 6 runs a game, they’ll win 95 games this year.
Heilman giving up another late inning HR. Delgado doubled off first, Reyes bunting with no outs and two on…
Mental errors that lose games that the Mets repeat on a too often basis. Watch some games.
5 games in they repeat them all the time right? Wow a reliever giving up a homer in the ninth, that’s a mental error? you learn something new everyday. And its a rare thing for a reliever to do right? Did you watch the world champs this weekend? It happens to everyone, why don’t you watch some other games to get some perspective.
but he has a point–mental errors are piling up and its only been 5 games. someone needs to position the outfielders correctly (or better), someone (a little leaguer) needs to teach them how to call for the damn ball, someone needs to give the vets some Baserunning 101, and someone needs to help Reyes get back on track. Sure these are pros and should be able to do this, but where is the focus? If that’s not the coaches’ job, i am at a loss. The br*ves sure aren’t going to hand us the game. And no, I don’t know who can get Beltran to stop watching balls go by.
It’s like we picked up from where we were at the end of the season. You have all heard this already….one pitcher doesn’t change an entire staff or a team. So far from what I can tell we flip flopped two players with the Nationals, and I don’t anything different so far. Granted it is early in the season….but I can’t pick up one strong vibe on this team. I still to shake every time Heilman takes the mound. That middle relief group just stinks!…it makes Elizabeth, NJ smell like a perfume factory….Flushing….we got a problem….
Sorry about the typos…..I don’t see anything….I still shake every time Heilman
All this arm chair managing/Willie nit-picking is really
over the top AND sad!–IF,if anyone is to “blame” (at
just 5 gms in) it’s Don Omar!–Remember however,
‘86 Mets also started 2-3 so things can change fast.
With that said, it does appear A) Bel-tron isn’t ready
off the double knee scope B)Delgado, despite playing
for his last big contract IS not only lost alot but has been
exposed as the non-leader he always was tucked away
in Toronto C) I and about another 10% of posters to this
site were/are correct in stating this Alou thing is a fiasco
D)Same w/Castillo and E)The bull-pen has picked up
right were it left off in September. Ya know on second
thought Don Omar IS to blame! Near as I can see HE
is responsible for A-E !
the funny thing is that Delgado is batting .350 and is 7-for-17 (.412) since he went 0-3 in the opener. Unfortunately, all but one of those have been singles. I just don’t think he has much power anymore. But if teams didn’t play the shift on him and/or he learned to hit the ball the other way, I honestly think he could hit .330 this year.
Look at it this way, we could be Tigers fans.
good point
or Red Sox fans. They just got swept by a team from another country! The horror….
I know its kinda early in the season but i think we need another big bat!
i might be panicking but our offense does not look that good!
All winter and all spring fellas!–not to crush Pagan or
Church BUT these are not corner OFers on a Championship type team. Maybe Church you could get away with in a platoon situation but as soon as Omar
re-signed Alou this had disaster written all over it.
Delgado even in a walk year was a ? due to age and
injury and not to protect him much less the top of the order
was just dumb! As I posted in December(and was hammered for it)Alou given his age and history couldn’t
be expected to provide more than 300ABs. To be paid
for the season like a superstar is again crazy. Not to mention the overreaching-overpaying of Castillo.
Given we were goin’ w/a good glove-light hitting Catcher
Just too many holes in the line-up!
just got back from Atlanta for the game today. We went to see Johan and Johan we got! Obviously didn’t have his best stuff, but still gave us 7 innings of 1 run ball, gold glove plays, a bloop double (wish they had gotten him in!!) and generally frustrated braves hitters and fans.
Too bad the Mets are owned by Smoltz, and the owning continued through 3 relief pitchers before the team finally realized they were down to 3 outs.
Nice to see some life in the 9th though, and I really thought Schneider’s ball was going to go through. Pagan had a great AB that inning too that didn’t turn out right. WTF w/ Beltran –I love him, but can he just SWING THE BAT? 5 pitches, didn’t even twitch. Weird with how he dominated last week. Was the zone all over the place today? Cuz both pitchers seemed to have troubles, yet so did the hitters, kinda weird.
couple questions: What was Delgado thinking on that double play? Why wasn’t Reyes covering third on that bunt that Johan fielded? Either one probably didn’t make a difference, though…but you have to give to the game and all that. How Wilie bunting or not bunting here or there made any difference, if Heilman’s just going to walk chipper on 4 pitches to setup a tee for texeira, I don’t get at all. That’s 3 games at Turner Field I’ve seen Heilman blow now .. He’s just not a good pressure pitcher, in big games or against rivals. Show me the stat for that, but it’s friggin true. If that’s the best Willie can throw out there in the 8th, what’s he supposed to do??
good to see mookie and i saw exactly the same game. i saw it froma bar in LA.
I think the same old thing…we need better hitting! Smoltz isnt exactly 24 years old anymore!
I honestly think we need one more big hitter! but your right Where are reyes and delgados heads? Not in th game.
Man, this is going to be a long year in here!
I gues I can ramble on with some misc. thoughts too…
- I know it is 5 games, but the Willie bashers (the Fire Willie crowd) aren’t just reacting to a few moves in those 5 games. It is a carry over from ‘07 (same problems existed in ‘06 but were masked by the talent and big lead).
IMO, he is not a good manager, and will not add any value, so he deserved to be let go for that reason, not just the “collapse”. But, I also think the inpact of the manager is overrated, hence the need to pick nits.
- Real fans can get overworked and mad at the team. Or they can take the what, me worry? attitude (hey, only 5 games!). Neither group is more or less of a real fan.
As long as they are back rooting the next game, living and dying with the team, then yes they are real fans.
- Delgado gives the aroma of doneness, but on the bright side (and this may not be a good thing!) he seems healthy, so maybe there is hope!
- The roster has some issues of course, but Omar (or any GM) can only make big moves over time. You need prospects to develop (use or trade), and FAs to hit the market. Yes, there are some old dead wood guys, but he is making progress builiding up the foundation of the team (especially the SP).
- so, my final point. All of the geezers that we love to hate (or maybe more accurately, the examples that get dumped on Omar) are temporary place holders, until real solutions can be develoiped.
Duque, Alou and Delgado are all gone after this year (at least, they better be, or Omar will have heck to pay!) Pedro quite likely too, unless he comes back in May and stays healthy and productive the rest of the year.
That just leaves my personal least favorite Met, Castillo. It was fine last year as a rental, but he should no way be here this year, and 3 more? Obscenely bad move by Omar that is going to be an albatross on the Mets, unless he gets cut early, or gets hurt and goes away. He is done, and marginal at best as a ML player. ANd he needs to be out of the 2 hole.
Frankly, this team would be vastly better if they had a solid hitter with at least gap power in the 2 hole. If they have to keep Castillo, dump hi in the 8 hole. Not sure who hits 2 though, but Milledge if he was here would have been my choice. Right now, Pagan maybe?
At least in 2009 there will be a much younger, more athletic team (although I know that 1/2 th eold guys are on the DL now).
—Oh, last point: They are still plenty good enough to win the division, it is a long season, and lets go Mets!
overworked and mad at the team is fine. Giving up on them after 5 games is not. I have no qualms with fans like you who rationally point out the problems they see with the team, as I have done on multiple occasions in the past.
Stickguy gets it exactly right!
They are indeed still good enough to win the division no doubt
BUT this continued excusing of Omar and his incredible wasting of 10s of millions of $ must end at some point.
Granted,Willie is no Martin or Herzog as a field MGR. but
neither was Davey and folks couldn’t wait to make a move
with him and look what that got us for years! Omar is a control
freak and I fear we end up w/one of his past buddies i.e
Jaramillo or idols i.e. Felipe Alou coming in here at 20-22 in
May while doing nothing to address some of the problems
HEs created like again spending w/o much thought and his
piss-poor drafting. This is four years now, where are the youngsters ready to contribute. Our AAA team is the oldest in
B-Ball and our AA team the youngest so theres no help coming
from within. That ain’t Willie’s fault!
Felipe Alou as the next Mets manager — took the words out of my mouth!
Willie is a good guy and a classy person, but so far he has shown nothing as a manager, other than the guys played hard for him in 2006.
He chose not to get any experience as a manager in the minors — maybe he knew it would expose him and ruin his chances to get a big league job.
I hope he turns it around, but this does look a lot like last year, with Willie basically sitting there looking confused.
Felipe Alou was an excellent manager for the Expos and as I recall it was when Omar was there, so there’s a comfort level. While he’s old, he’d be a definite upgrade over Wille.
Also, when he played for the Yankees he used to keep autographed photos in this trunk and if you went up to him and asked he would give you one (this was when he was living in Fort Lee). So he’s good with the fans.
As for Wally, at least he has some managerial experience. But isn’t he out of baseball right now after his off-field problems? If he can’t get a minor league job will the Mets really offer him a major league job? Doubtful.
Omar is fighting for his job too, so if Willie falters, it will probably be Alou. We could do worse.
I should correct myself — looks like Alou left the Expos the year before Omar got there. But I still like him as Mets manager.
Wow…everyone’s freaking out 5 games into the season.
The Yankees are 3-3, Boston is 3-4, Detroit is 0-6, and the Rockies are 1-5. Those are probably going to be four of the best teams in MLB this year, and they’re all off to horrible-mediocre starts.
Milwalkee, St. Louis, and Baltimore all only have one loss…and they’ll end up near the bottom of their divisions after 162 games.
This isn’t the time to freak out yet…not even close to it. We’re even still ahead of the Phillies.
So relax.
The difference is that the Yankees, Tigers, Red Sox etc. didn’t suffer thru the epic collapse that the Mets did. That’s why Willie will soon be in deep trouble if the Mets don’t get on a hot streak.
But…from a general baseball statement, 5 games probably won’t dictate the next 157.
If at the end of May the Mets aren’t in first or second place in the NL East I’ll grab my pitchfork.
So, Willie is “dead man walking” after 5 games this year? Are you guys kidding me? Sheesh.
Can we get thirty games under our belt before we talk about breaking us this team, please.
Why do you all pretend last year doesn’t count in our analysis of Willie-Watch? The Wilpons had to be talked out of canning Willie last year.
I think the Mets shouldn’t play the Braves anymore. It will benefit them in alot of ways lol
One year ago:
Wright, after slumping for a month to start the season, was ready to be traded by Mets fans. I was here, I remember. People said he ruined his swing at the Home Run Derby, could never right himself, and should be shipped off while he still has some value. Said he’s never turn himself around and be the player he once was.
One 30/30 season later, and nobody seems to remember that.
Everybody, take a deep breath. You’re all being very irrational right now. Yes, I know you don’t think so, but I’m telling you, you are. There’s absolutely no reason anybody should be jumping off of bridges or saying Reyes is overrated garbage 5 games into the season. Relax
and you would be, Dr Phil?
Are we going to have to babysit the maniacs on this web site all year long? My god. A little adversity to start the season (i.e. a 2-3 record to start the season) and we’re looking at mass suicides and a public stoning of Willie Randolph.
You guys have got to chill out.
The solution is to ask Matt to ban approximately 95% of his posters so the rest of you can have this blog to yourself. :)
Although I’m not sure how many of you would be happy without other posters to personally attack.
pott!!
(post of the thread)
I don’t know if anyone touched on this issue already b/c I could not make it all the way through 277 comments but is it just me or did Willie blow this game when he pulled Santana for a pinch hitter. The guy only had 91 Pitches under his belt and he’s a great hitting pitcher. I mean up until that point he had the only extra base hit for the Mets all day.
Yah Yah I heard the argument about not overworking our new ace in his second game but c’mon enough with all the babying that goes on in Baseball. The Guy is a work horse, he pitches about 230 innings a year let him take his turn at bat and pitch the eighth we all know our pen stinks.
91 Pitches Willie – REALLY???
Straight up pinch hitter for Johan keeps Willie “Brains” Randolph from having to struggle with the complexities of a double-switch.
8th inning, down by one, you need to get another hitter there. I don’t think there’s any question about it. If you can’t trust your setup guy to get 3 outs, you’re F-ed no matter which way you look at it.
Other than Johan, a crumby group effort.
I laugh at people giving up after 5 games.
It’s been 5 games. you need to weather the storm through the early part of the season due to all the off days becaus eof home openers.
Let the players get in a groove once they start playing everyday.
Look around the league at the standings. The Red Sox are picked by many to repeat as champs and they are in last place. The Mets went 2-3 on a road trip. Not ideal, but not exactly the end of the world. .500 on the road and 2 of 3 at home gets you to 95 wins for the year.
anyone who is complaining now should just give up and stay away when this team is winning.
WOW! All of the Reyes bashers need to keep things in perspective. It’s early in the season … yeah, last year’s collapse puts a different angle on things, but just think about this.
.250, 5 HR, 27 RBI (April and May).
What are those numbers? Those were Reyes’ numbers in April-May 2006. That was his best year in terms of offensive production. He picked it up for the final 4 months and was targeted as a future MVP.
.300, 19 HR, 81 RBI (2006)
Am I saying that he’s going to breakout again? No. He could turn out to be garbage. But he could end up getting HOT and driving the team to a huge hot streak.
Let’s keep the faith here. We’re all Mets fans. We’re still in it.
ft
just curious but wheres duaner sanchez?
I wonder if theres anyone in the mets minors who could make a difference in the bullpen right now?
The worst thing willie did last year was bench reyes when he didn’t run out a grounder but not bench wright when he did the same. For some ridiculous reason, reyes now has a rep for being a lazy player, which, for those who actually have watched mets games know that is not true.
A couple of key observations over the first few games:
1. Opposing teams have excellent scouting on Mets batters while we don’t seem to have the same on opposing team hitters. Mets pitchers have been grooving balls right down the middle of the plate against some of the opposing team free swingers. Why not make hitters fish for pitches in the dirt or out of the strike zone if they are hackers?
2. Way too many fat change-ups right over the plate by our relief pitchers have given up key home runs – Wise and Heilman…Sosa’s grand slam pitch was also right over the plate. It looks like the jacket has some work to do with our pitching strategy….
If I played on the Mets I’d make it my career goal to lose as many games as possibly as miserably as possible to spite you spoiled, fair-weather and clueless fans.
I can’t wait until Santana gives up a home run in a clutch spot…
“Game over, man. Game over!”.
wack
You wanna replace him?
Wack = something that sucks horribly; stupid; fake; talentless