Daily Archives: April 10, 2008
Prior to today’s game, Willie Randolph talked with reporters from Shea Stadium and had the following to say about Luis Castillo, who will once again be out of tonight’s starting lineup…
“I talked to him yesterday and told him, ‘Listen, make sure that you’re right and when you start to feel better and you’re good, let me know.’ So, I trust my bench, I have a lot of confidence in them.”
To hear more from Randolph, who also talked about John Maine and newly signed Claudio Vargas, go to SNY.tv.
The Game:
The Mets (3-4) look to take the rubber game of their three-game series versus the Phillies (4-5) this evening at Shea Stadium, starting at 7:10 EST.
The Lineup:
- SS Jose Reyes
- LF Angel Pagan
- 3B David Wright
- CF Carlos Beltran
- 1B Carlos Delgado
- RF Ryan Church
- 2B Damion Easley
- C Brian Schneider
- P John Maine
…same lineup as last night…funny thing is, at this point i feel more confident with easley in the lineup than i do a healthy Luis Castillo…
The Pitchers:
RHP John Maine (0-1, 9.00 ERA) makes his second start of the season for the Mets. In his season debut for the Mets, Maine took the loss, allowing four runs on eight hits, while striking out five and walking three over four innings pitched against the Braves. In his six career starts against the Phillies, Maine is 4-0 with a 2.13 ERA.
RHP Adam Eaton (0-0, 3.52 ERA) takes the hill for the Phillies. In his last start for the Phillies, Eaton earned a no-decision pitching 7.2 IP allowing three earned runs on six hits, while striking out two and walking four. Eaton is 5-0 with a 2.68 ERA against the Mets in seven career starts.
…well, if anything this should be a well pitched ball game, as both starting pitchers have pitched well against the opposition in their careers…i’ll be looking to see if maine can regain his spring form and bounce back from his rocky first outing…
The Notes:
Chase Utley is batting .400 with 1 HR and 2 2B in 15 career at-bats versus Maine.
The Phillies lead the major league with 13 errors in nine games.
The Mets are last in the National League in hits (63) and homeruns (3).
Carlos Beltran is batting .364 with 2 HR and 4 RBI in 11 career at-bats versus Eaton.
How To Catch It:
Tonight’s game can be seen locally on
and heard locally on WFAN.
The Bleachers:
For a live chat, head over to The Hot Foot Bleachers.
…just as disastrous as the first game of this series was, we can all forget about it if the Mets win tonight and take two of three in the first regular season series versus the Phillies…
…my hope is the Mets get some length from maine tonight and the Willie Randolph can avoid using so many pitchers to finish off games…
…enjoy, and as always, Let’s Go Mets…
Tagged Mike Nichols |The Mets have signed Claudio Vargas to a minor-league deal.
Vargas will report to extended spring training in Port St. Lucie, before joining Triple-A New Orleans.
…i like this, since it is a minor-league deal…he can reach the upper 90s with his fastball, he has a decent curve ball and a ton of potential…if nothing else, he could provide a decent option in the bullpen as the season moves on, should things shake out well for others in the rotation…the point is, it gives the team options with little risk and no guarentee…and i’m all for that, no matter who it is…
Vargas, 29, went 11-6 with one save and a 5.09 ERA in 29 games, including 23 starts, last year for the Brewers.
In 134.1 innings, he allowed 153 hits, 80 runs, with 54 walks and 107 strikeouts.
Vargas is 43-38 in his career, with a 4.95 ERA.
Around The Division (ATD) has returned for another season. Each weekday MetsBlog will provide news and notes from the beat writers and blogs of each of the Mets division foes to keep you update-to-date on the latest happenings surrounding the Braves, Marlins, Nationals and Phillies.
Braves:
The team announced on Wednesday night they have placed RHP Rafael Soriano on the 15-day disabled list due to elbow tendinitis. According to David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, RHP Manny Acosta could be used as the primary closer.
At her blog for the AJC, Chop Chick thinks LHP Peter Moylan should be given the first chance to close out games, but none of the Braves options inspire confidence.
…as they shouldn’t…soriano was shaky to begin with and now they must go with relievers who have virtually no closer experience…good luck, i guess…
…speaking of closers, has anyone seen Billy Wagner…
Soriano is eligible to come off the disabled list on April 22.
Marlins:
Mike Phillips of the Miami Herald reports LHP Andrew Miller has been to start trusting his stuff instead of worrying too much about throwing strikes.
…sounds like the ‘stop thinking and just pitch’ advice Rick Peterson gave to Oliver Perez when he was first acquired by the Mets…
Over at FishStripes, Craig, while disclosing a couple items he didn’t know about the Marlins, wonders if 1B Mike Jacobs can continue his pace for 81 HRs while batting .212.
The Marlins activated OF Jeremy Hermida from the disabled list.
Nationals:
Dick Heller of the Washington Times says the Nationals continue to wait for OF Austin Kearns to live up to his superstar potential and his chance to produce may be waning.
…i remember back in 2002 when kearns was supposed to be apart of that vaunted Reds outfield with Adam Dunn and Ken Griffey Jr., but injuries, low batting average and strikeouts hampered all three…it’s a shame they became a ‘what if’…
Harper Gordek of Oleanders and Morning Glories is confused, after watching him give up seven runs in the fifth inning last night, why RHP Jason Bergmann in the starting rotation when he spent most of his minor league career and his first few major league seasons as a reliever.
The Nationals have lost six straight after opening the season 3-0.
Phillies
Paul Hagen of the Philadelphia Daily News is concerned about the Phillies poor execution on defense, which has led them to a major league leading 13 errors in nine games.
…speaking of defense, Jose Reyes was robbed of a gold glove last season…i’m not one to get too excited about individual awards, but it seems to me the media got too consumed with Jimmy Rollins to acknowledge reyes last season…
Tagged Mike Nichols |As noted earlier on MetsBlog, Rollins is a game-time decision for tonights game.
During his weekly appearance on WFAN, SI.com’s Jon Heyman said he not impressed so far this season with the Mets, adding, “They don’t have a 
swagger…They’re missing a spark.”
Lastly, Heyman says other teams still wonder why Aaron Heilman is not a starting pitcher.
…and so do thousands of Mets fans, jon, including me at times, especially when the rotation so thin…
…thanks to Peter Wade for the quotes…
To listen to Heyman’s entire interview, during which he also discusses Jose Reyes and Mike Pelfrey, go to WFAN.com.
Phillies SS Jimmy Rollins is a game-time decision for tonight, according to Todd Zolecki’s blog for the Philadelphia Daily News.
Rollins missed last night’s game with a sprained left ankle.
…i say you take the night, jimmy…get some rest…enjoy the show…
Mets Walk-offs looks back at the last time the Mets scored at least eight runs and had as few as five hits…way back in the championship season of 1969.
In a post to the new-and-improved SNY.tv, Ted Berg writes:
“I’ll resist the urge to say Mike Pelfrey proved
his merit or cemented his spot on the roster…It’s one start in April. But with one start in April, Pelfrey reminded Mets fans that his miserable Spring Training was only Spring Training, and that a top prospect still dwells somewhere within the former top prospect.”
In a video for the Queens Currier, Noah Rosenberg takes a look at the good, the bad and the ugly from Opening Day at Shea.
Speaking of stadiums, go to StadiumPage.com for some new photos from the construction of Citi Field.
…by the way, that third photo from the upper deck is amazing…and actually made me a bit dizzy…
The ESPN Insider’s “Three Things To Watch” series examines John Maine‘s ability to hold down the Phillies’ big hitters.
Last season against Philadelphia, Maine posted a 2.29 ERA and one win in three starts.
And as far as the bats of Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard and Pat Burrell are concerned, they collectively hit .192 in 26 at-bats.
…the scouting report is very interesting for you stat junkies as it goes into great detail about how maine approaches each hitter…let’s just hope his success continues tonight as the Mets go for the series win…
Tagged Phillies |
…from what i can gather, the following is a tentative look at the team’s starting rotation over the next week or so:
Friday: Nelson Figueroa vs. Brewers
Saturday: Johan Santana vs. Brewers
Sunday: Oliver Perez vs. Brewers
Tuesday: Mike Pelfrey vs. Nationals
Wednesday: John Maine vs. Nationals
Thursday: t.b.a. vs. Nationals
Friday: Johan Santana at Phillies
Saturday: Oliver Perez at Phillies
…i assume it will be figueroa on thursday against the Nationals, but that is yet to be determined…but, by keeping that slot open, it allows santana and perez to pitch in Philadelphia…
New Orleans (AAA): 2-0 loss to Memphis
RHP Tony Armas took the tough-luck loss, having allowed just one run on five hits and a walk in five innings. He struck out five.
2B Argenis Reyes, batting lead off and playing shortstop, went 2-for-3 with a walk at the plate, 1B Michel Abreu was 2-for-4 with a double.
Binghamton (AA): 6-3 win over Akron
RHP Jose Sanchez tossed five innings of two-run ball, allowing three hits and two walks, with two punch outs. Eddie Kunz retired the last four to earn his third save of the season.
OF Fernando Martinez had his breakout game, going 2-for-4 with a double and a solo homer. 1B Mike Carp also went deep in a 3-for-4 night, continuing his scorching start. He is now hitting .409 on the season. Playing left field, Nick Evans was 2-for-3
with a walk, triple and two runs scored.
St. Lucie (A+): 10-1 win over Brevard County
RHP Dylan Owen was fantastic, tossing six shutout innings. He allowed five hits, walked none, and struck out six.
SS Ruben Tejada was 2-for-5 with a double, triple, run scored and two RBI. 1B Lucas Duda was 1-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. OF Ezequiel Carrera was 2-for-4 with a double and a walk, as was 2B
Hector Pellot.
Savannah (A-): 8-6 loss to Charleston
Tagged Minors | ← Older postsRHP Scott Moviel, coming off a fantastic season debut, was rocked, allowing five earned runs on seven hits in just 1 1/3 innings.
SS Matthew Bouchard had a 2-for-4 night with a triple, a walk and a run scored; CF Raul Reyes was 3-for-4, blasting a solo homer.
