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Nelson Figueroa allowed five hits and six runs, four earned, while blowing three seperate one-run leads.
Figueroa told reporters that the cold, damp weather did not impact his ability to grip and throw the ball adding…
“At times it seemed like every pitch wouldn’t work. I literally tried to throw balls down the middle just to let them hit it. When they did, they fouled off six or seven pitches in a row…My pitch counts have been climbing…You’ve got to make that one pitch to get that one out.”
Figueroa, on the Nationals, who were singing, chanting and cheering against the Mets from their dugout, during last night’ game:
“They were cheerleading in the dugout like a bunch of softball girls. I’m a professional, just like anybody else. I take huge offense to that. If that’s what a last-place team needs to do to fire themselves up, so be it. I think you need to show a little bit more class, a little bit more professionalism. They won tonight, but again, in the long run, they are who they are…Even for the manager and the coaching staff to let that stuff carry on, it’s truly unprofessional. That’s why they are who they are.”
Milledge, regarding Figueroa’s comments…
“Well, what were we supposed to do? We’re not supposed to cater to anybody on the opposing team. We’re not going to cater to him or anybody else. We’ve been down the last couple of days and we wanted to get something going, and if he doesn’t like it, then he’s got to deal with it. Anybody don’t like it, they just have to deal with it.”
Reporters did not ask Randolph about the cheerleading.
…i was at the game but was informed of the elijah-dukes-led ‘cheerleading’ via phone call…i can’t speak to the classiness of the taunts, but it doesn’t seem very professional from afar…i do know that the people in the picnic area where i was were yelling some horrible things to Lastings Milledge for the whole entire game, several fans even got thrown out because of it…
…i have no problem with taunting other teams’ players, but it’s not like milledge traded himself…the trade seems to have worked out in the mets’ favor so i’m obviously happy about that…but, and i may be in the minority here, i didn’t dislike lastings, so personally, i just don’t get the hostility…
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Personally, I found the cheerleading amusing, but that’s because I was constantly running around and only got to glimpse the game every few minutes and was disgusted to see that every single time the Mets scored Figueroa let them take it right back. As a professional though, i can see that cheerleading as being ridiculous, and thats on Manny Acta for not reining his team in. How can a major league manager sit there and watch his team act like some little league team? They may not be able to compete like major leaguers, but at least pretend to be a part of a professional league.
Ummm, yeah. Where was Acta? Why didn’t he stop it?
Dugout celebrations and fancy handshakes are fine as all teams do them. And if you’re an opposing player, just don’t look over to the other side. But the cheers go beyond that and an opposing player can hear them regardless. It’s a distraction that you can’t really block out.
I like Milledge. I don’t mind him being booed but there is no reason to get personal. I don’t mind the cheerleading either. You don’t like it then use it as motivation. Figueroa shoulda started drilling guys instead of walking them.
“Figueroa shoulda started drilling guys instead of walking them.”
Sorry, but that’s not the Mets style, unfortunately. For the past two years it has been “Pee on the Mets, they will just stand there.”
Just ask Brad Penny.
well the mets have gotten back at brad penny quite a few times. Id rather they score 10 runs off him everytime he pitches than bean him or one his teammates.
Whatever. It’s a game, not some somber endeavor. Let them cheer.
Jose, anyone?
It’s one thing for the fans to cheer Jose (although I wish they would wait until he actually gets on base before starting the chant), it’s quite another for the players to do it from the dugout.
It sounded like one of my sisters Little league softball games.
Lets see if any “offended” Mets do something about it. Of course based on the last two years, they will probably do nothing.
I seem to recall a certain sentiment from some other NL East teams in particular, that some of the dugout antics of the Mets when in celebration mode were unsportsmanlike and unprofessional, and that Milledge was specifically named. I guess when he’s on your team it’s all right.
It’s not his fault he was traded, huh?
exactly .. milledge basically did trade himself and gets what he gets.. His talent out paces his brain
As fans, we wanted Milledge to succeed. His actions forced Minaya to trade him.
He turned out to be much more of a distraction (tardiness, nonchalant play on fly balls, excessive celebrations, bad attitude with veteran players, mental mistakes) than it was worth.
Everyone in the Mets organization wanted this kid to be the next star in NY. Milledge wrote his own ticket out of town with his mental mistakes.
Consider how the approach of David Wright and Jose Reyes and contrast that with Milledge’s first season. Wright and Reyes were hard-working, humble, and never took a play off. That’s the way you win over the team and fans.
Or, conversely, when he’s not on your team, it’s not all right.
Let’s just play the [frickin'] games. I’m sure if Figgy was shutting them out, they wouldn’t have been cheering, and if they were, it wouldn’t have been nearly as upsetting.
For the love of [heck], how’s about winning. Win first, whine later, everybody. Yeesh.
What exactly were they doing? I missed the “cheerleading”? What was it?
“Here we go Milli, Here we go” *clap clap*
sounded to me like there was also some “FIGGY” chanting which particularly drew his ire.
I remember a couple of years ago the Red Sox bullpen looked a lot like the Nats dugout last night. Actually in the Sox pen they used water bottles as drumsticks and acted like they were in a parade out there. I know the pen is a little bit further removed from the game than the dugout, but ESPN used to go ga-ga over the Sox antics. It’s like there’s a scale for what’s acceptable and what’s not acceptable, and when the media darlings do it it’s cute, but when a horrible team does it it’s wrong.
It’s all bush league. Then again, there’s some old man walking around today telling everyone who will listen that in his day players didn’t act like that. No, they just yelled “J” and “N” words to guys like Hank Greenberg and Jackie Robinson. Yeah, the Nats looked like fools, but they’re not the first fools this game has ever seen, and they’re not the worst ones either. It’s still bush.
that sox bullpen was last fall in the playoffs
It’s not bush league. There is no such thing. Compete any way you can, and this obviously worked. Obviously yelling racial crap at guys like Aaron and Jackie Robinson is over the line, but last night wasn’t. This was the way baseball players played 100 years ago when America first fell in love with the sport. Babe Ruth always used to start crap, his ‘called shot’ was supposedly him having a verbal argument with the Cubs bullpen.
Take Jurgens in Atlanta when he was getting rattled and walking everyone, the Mets should’ve riled him up even further. Maybe he wouldn’t have made ito ut of the inning.
Sorry, it is bush league. At least wait until you’re out of last place before pulling that sort of crap. Acta should have reined them in. It’s about sportsmanship. Challenges and trash talk under one’s breath are one thing. Little dugout displays are something else entirely.
The game can and should be self-policing, however. The problem is that fines and suspensions, and umps too quick to warn benches have limited the natural response to those sorts of antics, which would be Milledge waking up this morning with a baseball sized lump over his ribs. If he plays today and is not drilled, I have to question the Mets.
Figgy is absolutely right about Acta not reigning them in. They made complete fools of themselvs–especially Dukes in his sweatshirt, no less. When I first heard “LETS GO FIGGY LETS GO!” I thought it was coming from his family in Wagner’s box! Then you could see Dukes running around in the dugout like a child and they just would not stop for innings at a time. Just really juvenille and as Figgy said, plain unprofessional.
It did inspire amusing commentary from the booth. Keith: “I’ve never seen anything like this…not even in the minor leagues.” Gary: “Yeah, maybe in a college game, maybe.” Keith: “I didn’t go to college.”
Hi, Keith and Gary!
I remember the days of LL ball –.
“We want a pitcher, not a belly itcher…”
Would love to see Maine drill someone in the ribs. Won’t happen though.
I dunno. Maine gave someone a little chin music last time he pitched due to some perceived slight. He’s entirely capable of sending a message if needed.
yea definatly did not belong in a MAJOR league game.
I loved how figz jabed right back at them when he finished that inning..classic
It was stupid and i do wonder where acta was through all of this. Maybe they should get dukes some red and white pom poms and a whistle lol have him cheer milledge on deck lol welp when your a last place team………..
Doesn’t Reyes dance all over the dugout? If you have a problem with the Nats last night then you have a problem with the way Reyes acts too.
Like I said in another thread, it was just weird to watch grown men act like little leaguers. But if Manny Acta wants to run his club like that, that’s a reflection on him.
As for the what’s good for the goose rhetoric, at least the Mets save the celebrating for after somebody has done something worthy, the Nationals were doing it between pitches….come on…
If it really bothers the Mets, just drill a few Nationals. Make em learn the hard way. But the Mets lack a pitcher that is going to send that kind of message.
They have one, he’s just in PSL.
The other one is not pitching this series. I’m sure Johan can send a message when he has to. The thing about Pedro and Johan they have such good control that they can do it and not even hit you but you know what they meant.
Bingo. If it’s that much of a problem, do something about it. If it doesn’t warrant “action,” then shut your yaps, throw strikes, and put some crooked numbers up.
What bee flew in my bonnet this morning?
You’d think (or hope) that Mr. Throw A Water Cooler Guy would have done it when Dukes came into pinch hit in the 9th.
Elijah Dukes has a rap sheet bigger than Castro’s chin.. Are you really surprised someone like him would make a fool out of himself like that? The guys a bum.. Hes the Brett Meyers of the Nats (woman beater).. Nothing idiotic he does should surprise anyone..
i was field level right of the mets dugout, i didnt catch the nats singing. but what a great opportunity for johnny maine to stick a fastball in someone’s ear tonight, maybe rile up the mets…
oh, wait…this is the mets we’re talking about. oops