Monthly Archives: April 2008
…please answer the following question, while considering the team’s ownership, current management, talent, minor-league system, and new stadium and network, etc…
[Poll=82]
Tagged Poll |Last night, the Pirates tied the game in the ninth against Billy Wagner, with help from a throwing error by 
Jose Reyes.
Wagner, talking to reporters after the game, said:
“It’s gonna happen sometimes…At least I was able to keep the game in line for us to win, and that’s all that matters.”
…correct…that is all that matters…no worries, billy…
…by the way, the one run he allowed was unearned, so, technically, he still has a 12–inning scoreless streak going, during which he has also struck out 12 batters…
By the way, for those that care, Carlos Delgado was cheered before his first at-bat last night.
…if you recall, there was ‘talk’ on local radio yesterday that fans would boo delgado because he refused a curtain call the night before – as if by doing so, he committed some sort of crime against humanity or something…
That said, he was booed after subsequent at bats – following an 0–for-5 night.
…look, i’m not in favor of booing…but, i mean, if any guy is going to actually be booed, it’s a guy hitting .194 who starts every day…what’s worse, he is hitting just .152 with runners on base…i’m not saying it’s right, but i understand…
Last night, David Wright hit a walk-off single to win the 
game for the Mets in the 11th inning against the Pirates at Shea Stadium.
Wright, talking to reporters after the game, as quoted by the New York Times:
“I was begging the wind to keep it fair, and it barely stayed in…It was the ball vs. the wind, and the wind was slowly taking it, but it got down just in time.”
…those are the breaks, man…and they’re the breaks that a team often needs over the course of a long season…it cuts both ways…so, you take it when you can get it…
For more on Wright, who has never hit a walk-off home run, ever, in his entire life, read Mets Walk-offs.
Moises Alou told reporters that he will be ready for action against the D’Backs this weekend, after learning that he does not have a fracture in his ankle.
…in case you’ve forgotten, alou is the tall, skinny guy with quick wrists, who hit well for the Mets at the end of last season…don’t worry, you’ll know him when you see him…
Meanwhile, Brian Schneider remained in the hospital yesterday with a staph infection in his thumb.
…the common theory seems to be that schneider will be activated when alou is activated, when the team can demote Gustavo Molina back to Triple-A…Ramon Castro is still not an option…he has been playing games in extended spring training, but, according to Omar Minaya, who talked with reporters yesterday, castro is still limping when he runs…
Meanwhile, Matt Wise is also expected to join the Mets in Arizona on Thursday, after having been on the disabled list since April 8 due to a bruise on his right forearm.
…so, who will go when wise enters…logically, it would have to be either Jorge Sosa or Joe Smith…sosa will need to pass through waivers to remain in the organization, while smith can simply be sent to Triple-A with no consequence…obviously, smith should stay (from a talent point of view), but sosa may need to stick around for a while from a roster management point of view…
Lastly, Jose Valentin was in town to have his neck examined by team doctors and told reporters that he has been cleared for baseball activities.
Valentin will soon report to extended spring training in St. Lucie, where he’ll be able to do light throwing and hit from a tee.
Tagged Moises Alou |
The Mets (14–11) defeated the Pirates (10–16) by the score of 5 to 4 in 11 innings tonight.
For a recap and boxscore, go to SNY.
…well, that may have been the most anti-climatic walk off hit i have ever witnessed…either way David Wright drove in the winning run with a deep fly ball to right in the bottom of the 11th…
…frankly, the Mets shouldn’t haven’t been in that position, but just as the Mets were on the verge of winning in the ninth another error in a big spot by Jose Reyes allowed Billy Wagner to blow his first save opportunity of the season…
…the Mets missed a big inning opportunity in the bottom of fifth inning…reyes broke a 2-2 tie with a triple to deep right-center field and later scored on a botched inning-ending tailor-made double play off the bat of wright…however, the Mets again were unable to bust the game open with two runs inning and the bases loaded and one out…Ryan Church struck out on a 3-2 pitch, which SNY’s overhead camera clearly showed was 6-8 inches off the plate…church had every right to argue that one…come on, blue…the inning eventually concluded with a strikeout from Carlos Delgado…
…the offense not being able to make their opponents pay for mistakes in the field has been the achilles heal of this team…the just haven’t had the ability to step on the other team’s throat when the opportunity presents itself…
…speaking of the fifth, did Willie Randolph really put the squeeze play on…even though it was a failed attempt, i love the call…i honestly can’t remember the last time willie called for a squeeze…frankly, i think willie has made a mistake in the past not using the squeeze, especially with as many triples as reyes accumulates…
…i don’t know where the Mets would be this season without Ryan Church…give the guy a game ball for tying up the game in the fourth with two-run big fly to right…
…Johan Santana managed his way through 5.2 IP tonight…even though he only gave up two hits – both homeruns – the pirates made santana work though each inning, fouling off pitches and working the count…santana just didn’t seem comfortable tonight, be it the weather or still getting used to the shea mound…willie attempted to allow santana get through the sixth, but santana just ran out of gas, loading the bases on two walks and hitting a batter…
…willie did the right thing letting santana try and work himself out of the inning, but once he hit Xavier Nady, it was clear santana was done for the night…
…Pedro Feliciano saved the inning with an inning-ending infield pop fly…
…oh, Aaron Heilman, what are we going to do with you…i doubt we see him in a in big spot any time soon…perhaps we’ll see him get the ole Jorge Julio treatment…heilman was saved by a terrific play by Raul Casanova to recover a Scott Schoenewies wild pitch an throw the runner out home, who didn’t seem to tag the plate on a head first slide..
…Duaner Sanchez struggled for the first time this season, allowing a one run on two hit and two walks in the eighth…i’m not too overly concerned by this as sanchez is still working his way back and few struggles here and their are to be expected….
…it wasn’t pretty, but a win is a win…keep taking care of business and go out and complete the sweep tomorrow afternoon…
The Mets finish off their abbreviated two-games series against the Pirates at home tomorrow at 1:10 pm.
Tagged Mike Nichols |The Game:
The Mets (13-11) begin a rain-shorten two-game series versus the Pirates (10-15) this evening at Shea Stadium, game 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
- C Raul Casanova
- LF Endy Chavez
- P Johan Santana
The Pitchers:
LHP Johan Santana (3-2, 3.12 ERA) starts for the Mets. Santana earned a win in in his last on April 23 versus the Nationals, pitching seven strong innings, allowing two runs on seven hits, while striking out four and walking one. Opposing batters are 27-for-129 (.209) versus Santana this season. In two career games, one starts versus the Pirates, Santana is 1-0 with a 1.13 ERA.
RHP Ian Snell (2-1, 4.45 ERA) takes the hill for the Pirates. In his last start on April 23 versus the Cardinals, Snell earned a no-decision, allowing four runs on eight hits while walking four and striking out one over six innings pitched. The Pirates are 4-1 when Snell starts this season. Snell is 0-1 with a 6.11 ERA in four appearances, three starts in his career versus the Mets.
The Notes:
Jason Bay is batting .343 (23-for-67) with 6 HR, 5 2B and 23 RBI in his last 17 games versus the Mets. He has 1-for-3 in his career versus Santana.
Carlos Delgado is batting .286 with 2 HR and 3 RBI during the Mets current homestand.
David Wright is 19-for-59 (.322) with 3 HR, 6 2B, 1 3B and 14 RBI in his last 16 games.
The Mets are 5-9 versus right-handed starting pitchers this season.
For more insight on the Pirates, check out this series’ Blogger Beat.
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 |Moises Alou told reporters before today’s game that he does not have a fracture in his ankle.
He will work out with the team today, and hopes to be activated this weekend in Arizona.
…as the Mets kick off an abbreviated two-game series with the Pirates tonight, i did a quick Q & A with Charlie Wilmoth, who blogs about the Pirates for Bucs Dugout…
D.J. Short:
I’ll start off with something positive: Nate McLouth, who homered twice Sunday. Did you see this potential in him during the second half of last season?
Charlie Wilmoth:
Well, I obviously didn’t think he’d be THIS good. But I, and a number of other fans and bloggers, have been ranting on-and-off for years about McLouth’s playing time. He’s always had a skill set that’s unusual for a Pirate prospect (plate discipline, some power, genuine baserunning ability that goes beyond simply being fast), and he’s had to compete against players like Chris Duffy and Nyjer Morgan, who can’t hit. Morgan’s only virtue as a baseball player is that he’s exciting, mostly because he goes a little too crazy on
the bases and dives around a lot in the outfield after balls that would’ve been much easier to catch if he would’ve run in a straight line to get to them. One would think that serious talent evaluators would’ve been able to see right through that kind of excitement, but Dave Littlefield and his crack front office couldn’t. And so it’s taken years for McLouth to win a starting job.
D.J. Short:
With Moises Alou‘s rehab predictably delayed, many Mets fans have been asking about Xavier Nady again. Do you think he will be traded at some point this season?
Charlie Wilmoth:
Yes. He’s useful but not good enough to build around, and the Pirates have a crowded outfield.
D.J. Short:
Were you surprised to see the Pirates cut their losses on Matt Morris? In a weird way, does his release signify progress for the organization?
Charlie Wilmoth:
I wasn’t surprised, no. He was so bad on so many levels, it simply had to happen. In my view, it doesn’t necessarily mean the Pirates are making progress. For example, early in the tenure of the Pirates’ previous GM, Dave Littlefield, the Bucs dumped Derek “Operation Shutdown” Bell. It was easy for Littlefield to identify and admit his predecessor’s mistakes, but that didn’t prevent him from making plenty of his own. Time will tell whether history is repeating itself here with new GM Neal Huntington.
D.J. Short:
What happened to Tom Gorzelanny? Just a bad month, or cause for greater concern?
Charlie Wilmoth:
Cause for greater concern. Former manager Jim Tracy rode him hard down the stretch last year in a desperate attempt to save his job, and Gorzelanny got scratched from his first Spring Training start because of shoulder stiffness. So far this year, Gorzelanny’s
velocity has been off, and his numbers have been horrific. If a good starting pitcher racks up 22 walks in 22.1 innings, as Gorzelanny has so far this year, it’s probably not a fluke. Something’s wrong.
D.J. Short:
You’ve been running an excellent “Worst General Manager” poll on your site recently. Which results have surprised you the most?
Charlie Wilmoth:
Thanks. The most surprising development was that Reds GM Wayne Krivsky got fired just before he was supposed to square off against top seed Brian Sabean. I’m sure Sabean would have annihilated him, so I guess the Reds’ ownership spared him that indignity. I’m also shocked that Omar Minaya didn’t make it past the first round. Oh well, Mets fans – wait ’til next year!
…thanks, Charlie…by the way, if you are a fan of independent music or college radio, check out his work for Dusted Magazine, as well…
In a report for SI.com, Jon Heyman lists Mets GM Omar Minaya among seven general managers who could potentially 
lose their job this season.
According to Heyman, “There’s pressure on every Mets decision-maker after their epic implosion last year…In general, however, the Mets have improved during Minaya’s tenure, thanks to some big-ticket signings…Minaya also has an excellent relationship with the team-owning Wilpons, which can’t hurt.”
…from what i understand, as i have said a few times since the end of the last season, as have others, Willie Randolph is on far shakier ground than minaya…that said, it would be in every one’s best interest to win..
Tagged Omar Minaya | ← Older postsNewer posts →
