Daily Archives: April 24, 2008
The Mets (11–10) lost to the Nationals (7–16) by the score of 10 to 5 in Washington, DC this evening.
For a recap and boxscore, go to SNY.tv.
…Oliver Perez looked strong through the first four innings, but just as the Mets grew a three run lead, ollie gave it all back and then some…it’s odd because every so often this seems to be the case with perez…he cruises through the first few innings then starts losing command and lets innings get away from him as he becomes more frustrated…he still needs to learn how to calm himself once things start spinning out of control…although the bullpen put this game out reach, perez’s loss of poise and command is what began the Mets demise tonight…
…speaking of the bulllpen, Aaron Heilman…jeez, what can you say…the guy is just a nightmare…can you say no confidence…same goes for Jorge Sosa…and if tonight is any sign, Duaner Sanchez is the Mets new goto guy in the eighth…
…by the way heilman is on pace to pitch in 93 games this season…just saying…
…one of the bright spots tonight was Luis Castillo, who is coming out of his early season funk, going 3-for-5 with a run and another stolen base…i understand the frustration with castillo, but this is why you can’t give up on guys earlier on…
…speaking of bright spots, Ryan Church, who went 2-for-4 with an rbi, continues to be locked in at the plate and continues to hit no matter where he is slotted in the lineup…
…on a side note, if the Mets want to bring a sausage/president type race to citi field next season, don’t…it’s gimmicky and although entertaining the first few times, it gets odd quickly…however i do miss the old airplane races they used to play on diamond vision…
…planners of citi field take note…the camera view behind home plate is awful…it’s difficult to judge where fly balls and plays down the line are headed…too many times did a ball go foul that i was sure would be fair…
…it was nice to see the Mets not go quietly in the ninth after the game got away from them as they have being doing earlier on in the season…despite that, this was a terrible loss as the Mets again failed to put a team way when they had control of the game…
The Mets will play the Braves tomorrow night at Shea Stadium.
Tagged Mike Nichols |The Mets have announced OF Brady Clark was designated for assignment and C Gustavo Molina has been activated to take Clark’s place on 25-man roster.
Molina was batting .288 with 1 HR and 9 RBI in 52 at-bats for Triple-A New Orleans this season.
Tagged Mike Nichols |The Game:
The Mets (11-9) look to sweep their quick two-game series against the Nationals (6-16) tonight at Nationals Park in Washington D.C., starting at 7:10 pm EST.
The Lineup:
- SS Jose Reyes
- 2B Luis Castillo
- 3B David Wright
- CF Carlos Beltran
- RF Ryan Church
- 1B Carlos Delgado
- LF Angel Pagan
- C Raul Casanova
- P Oliver Perez
The Pitchers:
LHP Oliver Perez (2-0, 2.49 ERA) starts for the Mets. Perez pitched 5.2 scoreless innings in his last start versus the Phillies on April 19, surrendering four hits and five walks while striking out seven. Perez is 10-4 with a 2.77 ERA in his last 14 road starts dating back to April 6, 2007. In five career starts versus the Nationals, Perez is 2-2 with a 5.26 ERA.
RHP Shawn Hill (0-0, 7.20 ERA) takes the hill for the Nationals. In his season debut on April 19 versus the Marlins, Hill earned a no decision allowing four runs on eight hits whiles striking out six. In each of of his two career starts versus the Mets, Hill allowed two runs over seven innings pitched and is 1-0 with a 2.57 ERA.
The Notes:
Ryan Church is 15-for-35 (.417) with 1 HR, 2 2B and 5 RBI during his current nine-game hit streak.
The Mets are 10-4 this season when they score four or more runs.
Austin Kearns is 7-for-21 (.333) with 3 HR and 7 RBI in his career versus Perez.
Willy Mo Pena is batting .360 with 2 HR and 4 RBI in 25 career at-bats versus Perez.
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.
…enjoy, and as always, Let’s Go Mets…
Tagged Mike Nichols |
According to Adam Rubin of the NY Daily News, Brian Schneider has been sent back to New York with an infected left thumb which could require a stint on the DL.
Gustavo Molina could be activated to take his place.
In his latest column for Newsday, Wallace Matthews writes an open letter to Jose Reyes, asking, “Reyes, do you want to be a Derek Jeter or a Rey Ordonez?”
Matthews continues on to write:
“Jeter’s name is synonymous with winner; Ordoñez’s name is synonymous with bust. So which is it going to be for you? Clearly, you can go either way. And depending upon which way you go, so, too, will go the Mets.”
…i wanted to write an open letter to matthews in response on SNY.tv, but i couldn’t wrap my head around the ordonez comparison… i don’t remember anyone ever suggesting ordonez would be able to hit – he wasn’t – and he went on to win three gold gloves and play a part in what some called The Greatest Infield Ever... of course, i’m not here to defend rey-rey, especially since by the end of the year, reyes will have far surpassed his career totals in just about every offensive category, plus reyes came into the league much younger than ordonez did…
…i don’t understand why reyes has to choose between being ordonez and jeter, since he has his own unique set of skills… matthews is right when he says reyes needs to get on base more, but maybe he should stop drawing silly comparisons and wait until a few more games have been played before he suggests that reyes’ name will be “synonymous with bust.”…
…added to by Matthew Cerrone…
…this is called a false choice…sort of like in politics of late, when they pit “Experience vs. Change.”…what’s more, it’s lazy-thinking from the writer…reyes has only one choice: to either be the best reyes he can be, or not…that’s it…either way, the name on the back of jersey will never change…
Joe M sent in the following e-mail, which read:
“I have a suggestion that I believe will resolve the issues Carlos Delgado is having at the plate this year. He needs to stop dyeing his goatee. When a man
starts to do silly things to appear younger, it gets in his head and the negative effects may surface in many ways. Either let the facial hair come in gray, or better yet, shave it off completely. Santana has the best-looking goatee on the team anyway, so its not doing him any good.”
…i want to believe this guy is joking, and i suspect that he is…i mean, i hope that he is…either way, this is one of the more funny e-mails i have been sent, amidst a deep sea of anger and negativity…thank you, joe, for the laugh…
…what’s not at all funny is the following:
Yesterday, during his Mike and the Maddog show on WFAN, host Chris Russo talked about how the Mets have no possible way of dealing with Delgado’s slump, adding:
“There’s not a solution in sight first half of the season … Maybe there is in July, maybe in July they can get a first baseman, they could kill him, they could bench him, they can do a million things then.”
…thanks to Peter Wade at Hot Foot for the quote…
…ummm, kill him, chris…is that necessary…good thing there is a Mets voice on that show to help balance him, oh, wait, that’s right, there isn’t…oh well…
For more on Delgado switching spots in the batting order, read Newsday, the New York Times, and Journal News.
Tagged WFAN |Willie Randolph, on the team’s hitting and scoring late in games, while talking to reporters after last night’s win over the Nationals:
“I think collectively we need to start swinging the bats a little bit better. Ryan Church had a big hit in the end, even though we were up by three. We need to continue to add on those extra runs at the end. So, that was a big double by Ryan to give us a little more breathing room.”
…yes, yes, yes…but, it’s not just about runs…this idea speaks to a much larger mindset that this team must get back to…
…if you think of last season as one nine-inning game, the Mets let up at the end…they were ahead early, then put it on cruise control, and then fell asleep at the wheel…that can never happen, 
not just over a 162 game season, but in a nine-inning game as well…
…i think we all agree that the Mets tend to coast…they don’t always play with a killer instinct…so many times during the last year or so, they have had a team on the ropes – or are in a position to sweep – and they fell short, by their own admission…
…this idea of keeping the pedal to the metal, pressing, pushing hard to score more runs, is not just about winning one one game…it’s about winning a pennant, as well…
Tagged Willie Randolph |Marlins (13-8, First):
At his blog for the Sun-Sentinel, Juan C. Rodriguez states the bullpen is once again the team’s strongest area, but does not think they can continue to be successful unless the Marlins starting rotation starts ‘inhaling more innings.’
…funny, i was saying the same thing about the Mets starters yesterday…
Phillies (11-11, 3 LB):
SS Jimmy Rollins, who is on the 15-day disabled list due to a sprained left ankle, will begin rehabbing at the team’s spring training complex in Clearwater today, writes Todd Zolecki of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
…yesterday a philly lifestyle blog reported rollins was suffering from a broken ankle, however team officials have not released any new information on rollins’ injury…
Over at The Good Phight, dajafi praises Manager Charlie Manuel‘s early season use of the team’s bullpen and bench.
Braves (10-11, 3 LB):
David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports, LHP Mike Gonzalez may join the devastated Braves bullpen by mid-May.
Gonzalez, who has not pitched since May 15 due to Tommy John surgery, was 2-0 with a 1.59 ERA in 18 games for the Braves last season.
…gonzalez may have the same influence that Duaner Sanchez has had since returning to the Mets bullpen this season…
Nationals (6-16, 8 LB):
After visiting Dr. James Andrews, RHP Chad Cordero was advised he does not need season-ending shoulder surgery on his right shoulder, according to Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post.
At his blog, Capital Punishment, Chris Needham hilariously asks you not to look at the field of play while visiting Nationals Park.
…speaking of nationals park, is anyone else experiencing vertigo watching the telecast when they switch to the secondary camera behind homeplate to follow a ball put in play…
Tagged Mike Nichols |
Billy Wagner has not allowed a hit in eight straight innings.
…look, in the final season of Shea Stadium, i think he should get credit for a no-hitter if he makes it one more frame…
…yes, i’m kidding…
…but, it’s just so damn frustrating…
According to Mets Walk-offs, “The Mets have never had a pitcher throw a no-hitter in a regular season game. However, they’ve had “mini” no-hitters. Many of them.”
…because so many of you keep asking, while making up your own conspiracy theories: i removed the Willie Randolph Job Approval Rating because it was not shaping up as a direct reflection of the overall fan base’s opinion…
…instead, it was a direct reflection of the standings, which is probably because of the way i phrased the question…
…i am considering a more effective way of doing a similar poll…
…by the way, SNY has ZERO editorial control of this site, as i repeatedly point out…it’s all mine…
…as i have said before, i never would have agreed to partner with SNY had this not been the case…also, they have ZERO say over how the site looks, functions or what goes on in the comments section…those decisions are all on me…
…that said, people at the network seem to love these polls, whether positive or not…i, however, prefer the polling to be as close to relevant and accurate as possible…and when they are not, as with any other aspect of this site, i stop and adjust…on my own accord, because i feel i owe that to my readers…
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