Daily Archives: April 20, 2008
The Mets lost to the Phillies by the score of 5 to 4 in Citizen’s Bank Park tonight.
For a recap and boxscore, go to SNY.tv.
…Mike Pelfrey just didn’t have it tonight, unable to keep the ball down…i don’t know, maybe it was the cold weather, lack of execution, who knows…that said, he fought through it and kept his team in the game as best he could…he allowed 12 base runners…however, if not for Chase Utley, pelfrey would have been find through the first five innings, before being removed in relief…so, while he was not at his best, he did his best with what he had…and that is nice to see…finally…
…Endy Chavez and his gold chain made an impressive throw to second base, on a ball hit off the left-field wall by Pat Burrell, which Jose Reyes relayed to second to peg burrell legging out an ill-advised double…it was a nice, fundamentally sound play…
…why is the Philly Pahantic green, when the team’s colors are red…and why is he so mean to people…
…Ryan Church has been playing some serious defense of late…he covers so much more ground than i ever thought he could…and he’s so casual about it, i take it a bit for granted…
…church was bumped from the second spot in the lineup, moved down to sixth behind Carlos Delgado, while Luis Castillo returned to the top of the order…church was 1 for 4…i know some fans will believe this is why the Mets lost tonight, but church drove in a run and the team lost…yesterday, he hit second, didn’t drive in a run and the Mets won…so, it’s going to take a lot more than this to prove to me that batting orders matter, because i will always feel they are way, way down on the reason why a team loses than people want to give them credit for…that said, it would have been nice to have him up in the ninth against Brad Lidge…
…nice job by the Mets to rally and tie the game in a long sixth inning, thanks to a single by castillo, a double by David Wright, another single by Carlos Beltran, who stole second, a single by church, who didn’t seem to be traumatized batting sixth at this specific moment in the game…
…the thing is, the bats all shut off after that…it was like, they were napping, woke up, scored some runs, then went back to bed…
…in the seventh, Pedro Feliciano let up a home run to pinch-hitter Pedro Feliz, which was the difference in the game…
…a sweep would have been nice, especially with Jimmy Rollins out of action, and i bet the Mets are disappointed to have wasted the opportunity…that said, i’m glad to see them take the series, as things still feel like they’re moving in the right direction…
The Mets will next face the Cubs on Monday in Wrigley Field in Chicago with John Maine squaring off against Carlos Zambrano.
The Game:
The first-place Mets (10-6) look to sweep their three-game series against the Phillies (8-10) tonight at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, starting at 8:05 pm EST.
The Lineup:
- SS Jose Reyes
- 2B Luis Castillo
- 3B David Wright
- CF Carlos Beltran
- 1B Carlos Delgado
- RF Ryan Church
- C Raul Casanova
- LF Endy Chavez
- P Mike Pelfrey
…as mentioned earlier on MetsBlog, Brian Schneider is out of tonight’s lineup with a bruised forearm…
The Pitchers:
RHP Mike Pelfrey (2-0, 1.50 ERA) starts for the Mets. In his last start, Pelfrey tossed seven scoreless innings in a win versus the Nationals. He has only allowed two earned runs through his first 12 innings pitched this season. Pelfrey is 1-1 with a 3.60 ERA in two career starts versus the Phillies.
RHP Adam Eaton (0-0, 4.12 ERA) takes the hill for the Phillies. Eaton earned a no-decision, allowing three runs on seven hits and two walks, while striking out three in his last start versus the Astros. In eight career starts versus the Mets, Eaton is 5-0 with a 2.90 ERA.
The Notes:
Jose Reyes is batting .435 (10-for-23) with 2 2B, 1 3B and 2 HR in his last five games.
The Mets are second in the National League with 57 runs allowed.
David Wright is 11-for-25 (.458) with 2 HR and 10 RBI in his last six games.
For more insight on the Phillies, check out Blogger Beat.
How To Catch It:
Tonight’s game can be seen nationally on ESPN and heard locally on WFAN.
The Bleachers:
For a live chat, head over to The Hot Foot Bleachers.
…enjoy, and as always, Let’s Go Mets…
Tagged Mike Nichols |
In his first rehab start for the St. Lucie Mets, OF Moises Alou played five innings in left field going 3-for-3 with a double.
Also, C Brian Schneider is out of tonight’s lineup with a bruised forearm.
Tagged Mike Nichols, Moises Alou |Phillies SS Jimmy Rollins has been placed on the 15-day disabled list due to a high ankle sprain he suffered against the Mets on April 8.
Rollins, who is on the disabled list for the first time in his career, is batting .308 with 2 HR and 6 RBI this season.
Tagged Mike Nichols, Phillies |
Binghamton’s talented roster is starting to garner some major attention. In addition to all the hype and hoopla surrounding Teenage Hitting Machine Fernando Martinez, the B-Mets’ mashing middle of the order trio and the team’s closer are making waves, and each were featured today in stories in the New York media.
First, in his blog at the Daily News, Adam Rubin talks about 1B Nick Evans, 3B Dan Murphy and 1B/DH Mike Carp, who are bashing their way through the Eastern League. Focusing especially on Evans, Rubin talked to Mets’ assistant GM Tony Bernazard about the young slugger:
“He’s a very good athlete, very good potential as a player,” Mets VP Tony Bernazard said about Evans, a fifth-round pick by the Mets in 2004 out of high school in Phoenix. “The ball jumps off his bat. He has a lot of power potential. He can hit the ball in the gaps. He’s very smart, a leader-type player. A quiet leader.”
On the season, Carp leads the team with a .435 average and five homers, and is second with five doubles and 16 RBI. Murphy sits at .426 with 13 RBI, and is tied for the team lead in doubles with six. Evans is hitting a mere .355, leading the team with six doubles, two triples and 18 RBI.
At the NY Post, Tim Bontemps profiles RHP Eddie Kunz, the 2007 supplemental first round pick whom the organization has projected as its potential closer of the future. Bernazard, being the go-to-guy for any and all minor league stories, tells Bontemps that the team would not be afraid to call Kunz up straight from Double A this year.
Bontemps also spoke to an AL scout, who gave his take on Kunz’s stuff:
“[Kunz] gets good leverage and velocity behind it, and it really explodes at the plate… A hard sinker in the low 90s like that is a pretty devastating pitch.”
The scout also liked Kunz’s slider, which hits 83-84 on the radar gun. “At times, when he would throw it right, it would just disappear. If we’re just talking stuff, Eddie’s going to be an All-Star. You only have to watch him throw a couple pitches to see there’s some pretty special pitches coming out of that arm.”
Kunz is 1-0 with three saves and a 4.26 ERA on the season, thanks to one spotty outing; he hasn’t been scored upon in four out of his five appearances. He has allowed three hits and four walks while striking out four in 6.1 innings.
Tagged Mike Carp, Minors |
New Orleans (AAA): 6-2 win over Omaha
RHP Tony Armas was terrific, tossing 5.2 innings and allowing just an unearned run on four hits and a walk. LHP Willie Collazo allowed a run on two hits and a walk in 2.1 innings.
1B Michel Abreu was 2-for-5 with a run, SS Anderson Hernandez went 1-for-5 with a double and two runs scored, and 3B Fernando Tatis hit his seventh and eighth homers of the year in a 2-for-4, three RBI night.
Binghamton (AA): 6-2 loss to Portland
LHP Jon Niese cruised through the first three innings, before a single, walk and an error opened the floodgates against him. He didn’t make it through the third, allowing five runs, one earned, on six hits and a walk in 3.2 innings.
The B-Mets struggled against top Red Sox prospect RHP Justin Masterson, who struck out ten over five scoreless innings. Overall, OF Fernando Martinez was 2-for-5 with a double, as was SS Jose Coronado, who is now hitting .350 on the year. 3B Danny Murphy was 1-for-5, and it was his fifth error of the year that helped unhinge Niese. DH Mike Carp and 1B Nick Evans were each 1-for-4.
St. Lucie (A+): 10-5 loss to Vero Beach
RHP Tim Stronach was rocked for seven runs on seven hits and five walks in just 3.2 innings. RHP Brandon Nall was the only one of five Met pitchers to not allow a run, tossing a scoreless inning.
Lucas Duda, getting his first start of the year in right field, was 3-for-5 with a run and an RBI, while SS Ruben Tejada was 2-for-4 with a double, a walk and two runs. OF Ezequiel Carrera finished 2-for-5 with a double and two RBI.
Savannah (A-): 5-4 win over Rome
Tagged Minors |RHP Michael Antonini did not have his best night, allowing three runs on six hits and three walks in just 4.1 innings. RHP Edgar Ramirez was terrific in relief, tossing four shutout innings, allowing three hits and a walk while fanning four.
DH Francisco Pena was 2-for-4 with three RBI, and 23-year old catcher Jordan Abruzzo, a UC San Diego product, continues to hit out of nowhere, putting up a 3-for-4, run and RBI night. He is now hitting .542 in 24 at bats. 1B Jose Jimenez was 1-for-3 with a walk, double, two runs scored, and one batted in.
