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Last night, Joe Smith entered during the seventh inning, in relief of John Maine with two on and two out.
Smith got the final out of the inning, then pitched a scoreless eighth inning as well.
He has allowed one run in seven appearances this season.
Willie Randolph, on Smith:
“Joe did a great job…He’s really whipping the ball in and going after people. I’m really happy with the way he threw. It was very similar (to last season)…When you’re sidearmer, the feel and rhythm of your delivery is so different. It’s unorthodox…He looks similar to last year, but different. He’s whipping the ball better, and that’s key for him. He’s able to pop the ball in there, use his slider. He’s throwing well.”
Smith told reporters after the game that he has made subtle changes to his delivery, trying to keep his release point as low to the ground as possible.
…look, we all know joe can pitch…he is talented, effective, etc., that’s not the issue…
…the issue is, did he learn from last year, will he be able to pitch a full season, can he maintain through the summer, and so on…he told reporters, “Last year was a good year for me, I learned a lot from it.”…hopefully, that is what he means…
For more on Smith, read the New York Post and Newsday.
Smith looked great last night. He made Zimmerman and Nick Johnson look ridiculous up there. Here’s hoping that can continue.
If Joe can continue to find that perfect release point, he’ll be terrific.
smith may be the type of pitcher that cannot be super effective for an entire season. lots of guys in the major leagues like that. ride him while he’s hot. he was huge for team in first two months of ‘07…
you know you look at the team and how it only played .500 ball from end of may on….alou getting hurt and joe smith losing his mojo were two biggest reasons IMO. smith made that bullpen special in april and may.
Lets hope Willie doesn’t blow his arm out in this early season like he did last year. I think he has shown that he can be dominant and only after he was worn out last year did he falter. Pay attention Willie. It seems like Smith is warming up almost every night.
+1 Willie… Please do not overwork him like you did last year… On the plus side, despite early troubles, I think we have a better bullpen this year so this might not happen… With Sanchez hopefully back and stays healthy and Figueroa and Muniz as backups, the bullpen will be okay…
you guys don’t have to worry about Willie overusing him. The second Wise is able to get back on the team Smith will go down due to the fact that the Mets want a long-man (Sosa) to have the final spot. However, Smith will probably get a slot next year and be a nice addition with Feliciano/Schoenweis.