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The Mets (20-17) defeated the Nationals (16-24) by a score of 6 to 3 tonight at Shea Stadium.
For a complete recap and box score, check out SNY.tv.
John Maine was outstanding tonight. It’s a shame a couple Damion Easley errors and a high pitch count knocked him out after six innings. Maine may have been the third starter going into the season, but clearly he has established himself as the team’s number two.
Can Ryan Church do no wrong? He plays great defense and continues to come through in big spot after big spot this season. And, tonight was no exception with four RBIs, including the go-ahead RBI double in the sixth, which was terribly misplayed by Austin Kearns. It’s official, I have a man-crush on Ryan Church and I’m not ashamed to admit. Keep it going, Ryno.
Without Church I don’t know how this team would score runs. The team continues to come up short and squander opportunities when they have men in scoring position. In four consecutive innings (2nd – 5th) the Mets had opportunities to break this game open, but let the pitcher off the hook going 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position during those innings. The offense does a wonderful job getting men on, but they just haven’t had the ability to consistently put crooked numbers up on the board. And, this team will continue their seesaw season if the offense continues to sputter.
Duaner Sanchez raised my blood pressure a bit, getting himself in a eighth inning jam by walking two, but recovered nicely striking out Lastings Milledge and getting Kearns to ground out. Sanchez is still struggling with his control, but you can see his velocity is coming back, which is a great sign.
Anytime you see Billy Wagner on the mound this season you know it’s a win. Wagner continues his early season dominance and locked up his eighth save of the season. Exit light, enter night…
Good bounce back win tonight, guys.
The Mets continue their four-game series against the Nationals tomorrow night with Claudio Vargas making his Mets debut.
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Toasty, wherever you are, I think we owe Delgado an apology about not diving. haha
I must have missed it – did he dive for one?
sorry mike, I admitted my man crush on church first. but it’s ok, I’m not the jealous type.
how can u all give up your man crush on wright already
I certainly haven’t! :-) He will get out of his slump…just you wait!
Can everybody apologize to Omar now for calling him a moron and an idiot and calling for his head after he traded for Church and Schneider (who coincidentally have probably been our best position players so far)?
If there’s one thing Omar has consistently done well, its pick up on overlooked talent. Church is just the latest in a long line of “second pieces” of trade acquisitions that has become one of the stars of this team.
how can tatis wear kieth hernandezs number.
Alou is a beast.
I love the lineup the way it is.
our 1-5 is up there with any other team in the majors.
Billy Wagner can say anything he wants because hes backing it up.
I totally agree. Why does the equipment manager give every stiff that walks into the clubhouse number 17?? It pisses me off.
My God, how can anyone ever doubt Omar Minaya after a) bringing in Santana, and b)
Trading this guy:
.246/.319/.338 – 1HR – 13RBI
for these two
.324/.385/.561 – 8HR – 30RBI
.321/.391/.370 – 1HR – 10RBI
Exhibit A continues to play crap defense, while The former Expos are playing Gold Glove defense, hitting better then anyone on the team and handling our pitching staff better then anyone has in years.
Yep. And that “play of the game” catch Milledge made could have been easier if he took a more direct route to the ball instead of running straightnback to the wall and then running along it. Beltran would have made it look routine.
Oh, come on. At least give him credit for that play. He was shaded to left-center and had to go a long way to get that one.
It was a great play. It’s okay to accept that.
It was a good play, but I do agree that Beltran would have made it look much, much easier.
it was a nice recovery, horrible route, nice job to make the play though.
It wasn’t that bad of a route when you consider he was running at full speed and the wind kept the ball in. That’s why he leveled off, the wind kept bringing it back.
That ball was covered. Before Citifield, that ball would have been in the parking lot. With Citifield, the way it dropped if it fell in it may have landed towards the end of the warning track and just bounced straight back up and died in place without even hitting the wall. It was in the air so long and it was such a rocket, but by the time it got out there it was just traveling straight down.
Yes, I think you are right, and I was never really a Lastings fan but, in all fairness, you really can’t judge these trades in just 40 games in April and part of May.
He can still be doubted. He’s done a great job, but he has also made questionable moves along the way.
1) Bannister for Bourxious (sp). Bannister would solve any #4 or #5 issues we have.
2) Ring and Bell for Adkins and Johnson. . .
3) Depending on who you talk to (not me) hiring Willie
4) Giving Castillo a 4 year contract
5) Giving Mota a 2 year contract after he tested positive
6) Signing El Duque to a 2 year contract
7) Building a relatively old team without realizing that these players will soon regress and/or get hurt more often
8) Giving Scho a three year contract
9) Not drafting well
That is the 9 I bring to the field. I’m sure there are others.
Though he has done good too:
1) Santana
2) Church/Schneider
3) Maine
4) Perez
5) Making the Mets matter again
6) Getting Beltran signed
7) Getting Pedro signed (see #5)
8) Getting Wagner signed
9) Keeping Wright and Reyes by extending their contracts
I would like to clarify this “not drafting well” aspect of Omar’s criticisms. Usually after only a couple of years, the only prospects that you draft that will make an impact are guys that you draft in high rounds. It just so happens, the past couple years, we haven’t had a 1st round pick because of FA signings, and we did just ship out some of our best prospects for Santana. That being said, the 2nd rounders we’ve drafted are all legitimate prospects, guys like Joe Smith, who has become a major leaguer, and Kunz, who could easily be a major leaguer next year.
Mouthpiece (if we can still call him that) was Mets first pick in 2005. Was that under Omar or Duquette?
Pelfrey was an Omar pick, but it’s hard to fault him there, Pelfrey was projected to be a top 5 pick, but fell to us at 9 because teams were scared of Boras’ contract demands. Every team wanted Pelfrey. He hasn’t had the immediate impact, but i’m withholding judgement.
ds, thanks for the knowledge
also, found out at teh game about all the dfa’ing. really, really glad they did the right thing w/ sosa. that’s a big-market team acting like one, cutting detriment despite money owed. good job, mets.
and solid win tonight!
ok, i think i’m ready to call the milledge trade a win for omar
its not even debatable. Church alone is twice the player milledge is at this point.
While I was definitely upset that we gave up our best chip to get him, I had a feeling Church was gonna be good. After all, he killed me about a hundred times in MLB 2k7.
best chip? seems like you disagree with every GM in MLB. no one even wanted Milledge anymore. he was just overhyped.
just a fyi. fernando martinez is and has been the Mets best chip for over a year now.
I think Milledge will be a “good” player. there is nothign wrong with being a good player but the Mets hyped him up so much that the fan base and media would ahve never settled for such a “chip” only being a good player.
in reality, it is no fault of Milledge. it is the organization that made him out to be more than he was and he never stood a shot in NY.
I thinks Schneider alone is worth more than Milledge Just look at the numbers above, figure Schneider would probably have a few more rbis if not for his thumb infection and that he clearly benefits from a deeper line up, figure in defense and the overall impact of their position. Don’t forget we get 2 years from both Schneider and Church vs. what, 6 of Milledge? I liked Milledge and still do, but I was excited about this trade from day 1, and I believe its going to look even more lopsided by the end of the year, after Church and Schneider really settle in. Schneider will end up being Jason Varitek lite, and Church will threaten the opposing pitcher the way Carlos Delgado could 10 years ago, or at least in ‘06. If Burgos comes back at some point and contributes even a little, I think we should just collectively forgive the Bannister and Heath Bell trades. Omar does an awful lot more right than he does wrong.
I also continue to maintain that Schneider is the only guy on the Mets staff (and I’m including players, coaches and managers alike) who has demonstrated an ability to keep Oliie’s head in the game when things start to unravel. Somehow, he gets Perez to stay focused and keeps him from losing his composure when things get a little tight, and that skill alone is something to behold.
You’re right that it’s not debatable. Trading Milledge for Church and Schneider was clearly a huge mistake.
Before even 40 games have been played? And you do realize that both Schneider and Church are outperforming their career norms by a ridiculous amount. In BA they are each over 40 points higher than their career averages. Do you honestly believe that will be kept up? I am not trying to be pessimistic but come on man, you can’t judge a trade like that this early. Maybe, and I mean maybe after the all-star break you can start to pass judgment but until then it’s kind of pointless.
i can say with certainty that church is hitting way over his head.
but i think by the end of the year, we’ll see something like this:
.280 20-25HR 85-90RBI
and play outstanding defense
Milledge is years and years away from figuring out how to his a slider.
and how to not bobble a ball hit to him in center.
The line-up they hit in has some effect on their numbers.
yes, but the lineup has no effect on his need for a GPS unit to play the outfield.
Oh, I was mostly referring to les paul’s comment — their numbers should continue to be better here than they were with the Nats, even if they level off. It goes both ways, of course.
i’m just less and less smitten with milledge as time goes by
i don’t think he’ll ever really put it together
i think the most immediate aspect that we truly can measure, is not the level of play of church or schneider, its the lack of readiness displayed by Milledge. He just wouldn’t be able to help a team that wants to win right now, and that’s what Met fans are demanding right now. Milledge may become good, but right now, he makes way too many mental errors to be a part of a winning team, not to mention not having any clue on offspeed stuff off the plate.
Great points, and had he been putting up the same line for the Mets as a RF instead of a CF it looks that much worse.
What about the assertion that Church has benefitted from working extensively with HoJo, and that together they figured out some things about his stance and swing that have made him a better hitter? Both Church and Johnson seem to believe that, and they’ve both been practically gushing with the whole mutual admiration thing.
I know some of you guys think HoJo is responsible for ruining Jose’s hitting (which I kind of doubt personally, but whatever), but is it possible that the work he and Ryan have done together could have resulted in transforming a decent hitter into a superstar? It’s possible, isn’t it?
Well I think most people expected the trade to be a win for the Mets in year one, based on the experience level of the players involved. Heck, the Tigers won the Doyle Alexander for John Smoltz trade in year one (Tigers won the pennant), but now, its pretty safe to say that Atlanta ended up benefitting much more.
Time will tell, but it certainly goes without saying that Church and to a lesser extent, Schneider have both exceeded expectations.
And I’m pretty sure Church is exceeding even the most optimistic projections by the Mets hierarchy right now. it’s great.
Church is benefiting from playing in a better lineup, from playing in a somewhat less difficult hitter’s park, and from being given the opportunity to play every day. If Omar made the trade thinking that Church might be better than his numbers as an Expo/National would indicate, then he deserves credit for seeing that.
I’m sure this trade won’t be fairly judged for years to come, but since we’re getting some immediate benefits from it, it’s hard not to be happy with it.
you forgot to mention Maine hitting the first National batter. Johnny got big Kahunas!!
I thought that was terific. Didn’t see if teh ump warned anyone, but I thought that was a great answer to the nonsense, and nice to see some sack from this team.
of course, *if* it was on purpose ;-)
Are you serious? Finally someone with some cahones. That really should be in the post game. A little dissapointed Nichols. ;)
You can have Church, my man crush is on Maine!
You can’t judge the Milledge trade until a few seasons have past.
Right-e-o! (Anybody out there old enough to remember Felix The Cat?)
his eskimo friend Va-Vooooom was my favorite cast member
exactly. church and schneider are in the prime years in a good line-up. milledge is a 23 year old kid in a terrible line-up.
we won’t know for at least 2 or 3 years who got the best of this trade unless the mets win the world series with church and schneider starting then it’s obviously a great trade.
But you just made the point. This trade was meant to help now, just like the Johan trade, just to a completely lesser degree. I am sure even with the Johan trade, in 5 years from now Gomez and company will be more valuable then he will, but Church and Schneider are much better equipped to help win now, which is why I was shocked how mad people were. Some people seriously tried to argue Milledge and Lo Duca would out produce Church and Schneider in 2008. That is absolutely laughable.
that’s not true, the milledge trade was not made for 2 to 3 years from now, it amazes me that fans like you, who are demanding we win now, say something like that. This trade was made to help this team this year, and next year, not 3 years down the road. The trade was about getting players that can help us win now, and trading a talented player that may well become a good player, but who right now, could not help us do that.
“it amazes me that fans like you, who are demanding we win now”
yeah, that’s my modus operandi.
every trade is long term. as i said correctly it’s a great trade if they win the world series with those guys. unless that happens the trade is open for debate for many years.
under your theory the scott kazmir trade was okay since they were trying to win in the short term.
i want to respond to your post with reason, but you’re defying all my logical instincts here with that ridiculous statement you just made. My theory says the Kazmir trade was good? Are you kidding? The reason the miledge trade is working is because we got good players back who are helping us right now. Winning a world series is one thing, but how does that make the trade good? By your logic then, Milledge will have to go on to win a world series elsewhere. It’s not about 1 player, or 2 for that matter. Either way, what are you talking about? Kazmir? Really? Wow, i’m just dumbfounded that that’s what you took away from my comment. Dumbfounded.
you’re judging a trade 6 weeks into the season. is that logical and rational? no more so than saying the mets will finish third as the standing say.
zambrano was a good player before the mets acquired him. he even went 2-0 before getting hurt in that pennant race. if he stayed healthy and finished that season 7-1 3.86era it would have been a good trade under your theory.
i love watching church play. scheider too.
my church homerun call is unmatched by the way :)
I’m not really judging this trade yet, that’s the thing. I’m simply pointing out how some posters are being kind of hypocritical and further more, might not be looking at the this trade in the right light. All i’m saying is, by the end of this year, well, possibly before then, we’ll know if it was a good trade.
Well, you can obviously trade any young player with potential for players that are better equiped to currently help the team, unfortunately, I don’t think Church and Schneider are good enough to warrant doing that (I don’t judge a month and a half of Church over the majority of his career). Hopefully, Church keeps it up and proves me wrong, but I’m not a pom-pom waving Mets fan, I like to keep a realistic perspective and part of that is the rationalization that Church is playing over his head right now based off of his career numbers.
why bring that into the discussion? why insinuate i’m some know-nothing pom pom waver? Do I not sound rational and realistic to you? Am I not presenting my case in a logical enough way for you? Either way, if you could guarantee yourself out of a trade, that would be great, but that’s why you have to take some risks in this game.
Seriously. By the way, you say that you wont judge Church’s 1 and a half months over the rest of his career? What exactly does that mean? The rest of his career where he mashed RHP and didnt ever get to face lefties? People said he couldnt hit lefties, not because he couldnt hit lefties, but because he never even played against them. The point is, if Church out performs Milledge for 2008 and 2009, then the trade went as planned. You may not agree with the plan, but Omar made this trade to get better this year, and next year. To win now. If Church outperforms Milledge for the next 2 years, then whether they win the world series or not, Omar got what he wanted out of it, more seasoned players to make a run in the playoffs. How many times can you name me where a single prospect is traded for 2 major league established players? It really doesnt happen often. I think more then anything, Met fans are really stupid when it comes to the value of Milledge. They seem to think he should have netted us some royal bounty. Met fans are just really stupid in general (I know not all of you) when it comes to entitlement for certain things. They seem to think we are more entitled to win a WS then every other team, seem to think we are some machine team that should dominate the rest of the MLB because of a good 2006. Yankee fans are that way also, but atleast they have a massive amount of success as their reasoning. They have always won and they are used to nothing but winning. If there was one bad thing about 2006, it was the fact that the fans seem to feel like the Mets should play every season that way, where everything was perfect, and a lot of them also came out of 2006 with this idea that we have to be perfect all the time which leads to a lot of the booing and idiotic behavior in these blogs.
great post …
one of my pet peeves this year is all of this talk about how “inconsistent” the team is and how they win some, then lose some, then win again, then lose again
uhhhh.. this is baseball, and that’s how it works…look at Arizona who’s now 3-7 in their last 10 after a huge start. Teams go on hot streaks, then cold streaks, and so on. The inability for Mets fans to realize this, because we had one season where we seemed to do no wrong, 2 years ago, is simply asinine. I”ll listen to mike and the maddog rant about how inconsistent the Mets have been, then turn right around and praise the Yankees and talk about how they’re about to take off, though they have a worse record…I think they do this to egg on the bitter Mets fans, and it seems to work.
sorry for the rant, it’s just something I’ve been thinking about…
Good, pennant winning teams go on 10-12 game hot streaks, and throw in a few 3 game losing streaks over the year. In 2006 the Mets took 10 of 11 which basically broke open a weak division. I just don’t see how this team can win 8 in a row with guys like Figueroa, Pelfrey, Perez, and Vargas starting 3 out of 5 days and the line-up being as Heckyl and Jeckyl as it has been. If Reyes, Wright, and Beltran all heat up at the same time, then maybe, but I honestly wonder if Jose will ever return to the player he was from the end of 2006 to June 2007 with Howard Johnson coaching him.
I understand all of these things too .. but teams like that are few and far between. By far the majority of teams go up and down and divisions have tight pennant races. Years like 2006 are the exception rather than the rule, yet everyone runs around like there is some huge crisis because the team hasn’t won 10 in a row.
milledge and church had very similar projections for this year…church has been hot, and i like him, he’s a ballplayer, something the mets don’t have a lot of. and milledge is a clown. but it’s still a bad trade.
Were you watching the same Duaner I was, Mike?
Sure he recovered nicely, but every fastball he threw was @ 83-84 mph. “Coming back”?
duaner is heading for trouble with that terrible velocity
clocked 87-88 at the park…way down from his 94, but not 83-84. wonder which was more accurate.
Wise was down at 83-84.
Might be seeing Kunz soon if WIse doesn’t work out. They could use at least 1 power arm (other than Wags) in the pen.
you cant judge the trade yet, but you can certainly be very happy about it so far
Hey, we’re Mets fans. We judge this stuff every single day. :)
it’s funny to me that people like metsfan19, and other commenters, who constantly judge this team from day to day, are saying that you can’t judge this trade right now, but only in 2 to 3 years. People will try whatever they can to withhold compliments of the Mets.
Hmmm..how about this…that trade doesn’t suck, yet.
Give credit where it is due though….Milledge’s value was going down, and Omar swung a good trade. The defensive upgrade alone was worth the trade.
Exactly Darkstar. But when it was the Johan trade the philsophy in here was…. screw the future! The are only prospects!! Give them anybody they want!!! WE WANT TO WIN NOW!!!!!!!!!!!
Lets judge the Johan trade in 3-4 years, okay guys? How about that. Carlos Gomez will be in his prime and a potential star, Humber and Mulvey can be contribvutors by then, and Guerra ( the best pitching prospect in the deal) could be a young phenom. But you guys dont care about that? Why is this trade any different?
so am I crazy to think that matt wise’s stuff is weak? fastball topped out at 83 mph?? that’s like high school varisty speed.
plus he’s only a 2 pitch guy, fastball, changeup.
you’re not crazy. Guy has been in 2 games, pitches exactly 2 innings and gives up 2 runs. No confidence in him just yet.
Wise is a fresh arm that this pen desperately needs, and its time to see if Duaner can shoulder the load. These other guy’s arms are going to fall off by August at this rate.
Amen to that…also bothers me that Smith, Show, and Heilman were all warming up at some point, and none of them got in the game. That’s gotta wear them down, as well.
He only gave up one hit…
You can’t blame him for anything else, as it was two ground balls that scored the run.
Really not a bad outing, just unfortunately luck.
Well, the hit was a leadoff double to a guy who was 0-13 this year. Not what you’re looking for up by only two runs. Wise did come back well, but the run counts, nevertheless.
Frankly, I think Willie needs to give Wise mop up work until he can build up his arm and confidence.
Unrelated, but Keppinger left his game against the Marlins aftger fracturing his left knee cap. During the 2005 season, he suffered the same injury to his right knee. I’ve got to believe that had he not suffered that injury, he would have stayed a Met, because he would have been the fill in when Kaz went down (instead of Cairo), and been able to prove his worth.
Maybe, but he could also have been Reuben Gotay…good hit, poor glove, eventually DFA’d b/c of his limited value to this team.
Bastard killed us over the weekend, then gets hurt against the Marlins.
only to the mets…
Had Keppinger been able to establish himself, there is no need to get Castillo…The acquisition of Luis led to the DFA-inf of Gotay
Unrelated but I love the differences between SNY and YES. Play of the Mets game, Milledges catch in CF. Giving someone from the other team props for a good catch. On YES from the Yankees game… Matsui’s game tying homerun, not the Rays game winning hit in extra innings against Rivera. It’s always about the Yanks there, lol.
Good to see this team score late-inning runs, but the 7th/8th inning pen is just a joke anymore. They rarely keep this team close when they fall behind, and even when the Mets are ahead and they actually do hold the lead, it’s a tightrope act everytime.
I predicted it before the season, and just like last season went, the LOBs are adding up every game. I like the way they are hitting now and they are putting a ton of runners on base, but there is no way in hell the Nats should have even been in this game. If Church doesn’t hit that rope with 2 outs in the 6th inning, Maine gets a ND after pitching an absolute gem.
All in all, I think the offense is on the right track (best lineup we’ve had in 2 yrs) and the clutch hitting will come around, but I literally get sick to my stomach once our starter leaves and the pen has to hold it.
Well, if Easley doesn’t commit 2 errors, it’s a 2-0 games with Maine starting the 7th.
Not so sure about that. The Zimmerman HR at least was an earned run.
“Maine may have been the third starter going into the season, but clearly he has established himself as the team’s number two.”
That’s generally what happens when the original number two gets hurt…
no sh*t
Correction, Maine is technically the Mets number 4 pitcher.
Fundamentally he’s the #1 pitcher.
explain please
He’s 5-2 with a 2.81 ERA…best numbers on our staff, so fundamentally he’s the ace.
santana is by far the #1 pitcher. it’s not even close.
Yeah yeah, not by the numbers. If Santana is by far the ace, why can’t he go more than 7 inning at least once?
santana is the best pitcher in baseball, by the numbers, over the last five years. he pitches against the best pitchers on the opposing teams. the bullpen has blown a couple of his games.
if you think maine is better than santana your baseball knowledge is comical.
Why does it matter who #1 and #2 etc are. They will all get their starts and have ups and downs.
btw, I’m going to start casting for the Bobby V of Zen. Who is in?
Maine on hitting Felipe Lopez with the game’s first pitch:
“It slipped,” he said with a smile.
-John Delcos from LoHud blogs
it must’ve slipped…i can’t imagine him throwing at a bunch of softball girls
I also noted how Manny Acta didn’t argue about any warnings.
I know they won the game tonight, BUT the way Willie uses this bullpen is driving me NUTS!!!
He needs to define roles in this pen. Why is Sanchez pitching the 7th in a 10-4 game yesterday?? Isn’t he the 8th inning guy?? Why is Wagner pitching the 9th in a 10-4 game yesterday??? He’s the damn closer, why was he throwing 25 pitches on Saturday in a 7-1 loss?? Now Wagner has been used in back to back games (only one a save situation) and if there is a save situation tomorrow, Wagner won’t be available on Thursday. Then in tonight’s game Willie correctly brings in Sanchez for the 8th inning, but after 2 walks, Willie gets Joe Smith up to warm…where the hell is Heilman in that spot???
Willie’s use of this bullpen is going to burn this team bad!
well, you definitely have some points, but about tonight, why do you want Heilman in that spot? I thought you all hated him and wouldn’t want him sniffing a spot like that? I mean, a 3 run game and you want him coming in with 2 men on? Call me crazy, but i’m not down for that quite yet. As for Wagner, before that 7-1 game, he had pitched in 1 game in the past like 11 days. He needs at least some work.
Yeah I get the work on Saturday, but yesterday was plain stupid.
On Heilman, has he really been past over by Joe Smith in the bullpen pecking order?? Look at Heilman’s second half in 2006 & 2007, he’s not the type of guy that should be buried…at least not yet.
I mean sure, he gives up the gofer ball too often, but let’s also remember what he did versus the Phillies in Philly just a few weeks ago.
IMF, you’re sounding very sane today. I agree with you 100% on this. Willie also had Show, Smith and Heilman all warming up in addition to using Wise/Sanchez/Wagner in this game. I didn’t like Wise coming off the DL in that spot, either.
The only thing I will disagree about is that it is Smith’s job to come in the middle of an inning and face certain batters, Heilman is a guy who starts an inning and you dont necesarrily want him in the middle of an inning with guys on base because his one weakness is the HR ball. Smith is a sinkerball double play pitcher meant to get righties out. I am with Willie there.
I love John Maine. The guy just looks so comfortable out there, and was willing to plunk a Nat right off. I’ll buy a Maine shirt as soon as I can get one off MLB.com.
I also love Moises Alou. When the guy isn’t in a full body cast he can still flat-out hit. Hopefully with him at 5, ‘Gado at 6 and Church at 2, this team can get the offense going enough to put together a little win streak.
Hate to see Figgy go though. It was just weeks ago we were all talking about how much of a feel-good story he was.
F**K “Figgy” and his “feel good story” He’s an insurance policy, a #7 starter, we saw the best of him.
This notion that Figueroa was a flash in the pan and that his only value to the team was that of an inspirational story is quite an overstatement, I think. This was no Lifetime movie; Figgy worked his ass off to get his shot; he earned his place on the squad and I think sending him down was unfortunate (even if it was necessary).
Was he the best pitcher in baseball? No. We he the best on the team? No. But he pitched well on the whole, exceeded expectations and certainly performed better than some of his teammates.
I don’t think the final chapter of this story has been told yet. and I hope Nelson gets to come back and show us more of it before someone else grabs him.
I’d just like to add that it was particularly fun watching Belliard almost screw himself into the ground striking out in the ninth.
let’s do it again tomorrow.
yeah, he’s not too bright. Trying to blast a three run homer with the bases empty, I guess. Very entertaining.
and the next day too, cause I’ll be there!!!
I think John Maine has a bit of mean.
That’s very welcome on this staff.
Totally agree….he’s mean and competitive, but under control. Unlike Ollie, who is still learning how to control his pitches and emotions.
Where is Jose Valentin? If Luis miss any significant time, I wouldnt mint have Valentin up here batting 7th? Is he even playing right now? I miss the stache, he was just really solid for us, and was great in the field, and a great big brother type figure for Reyes to keep him focused. Also would provide some pop to the bottom of the lineup.
still recovering from a nerve problem he was having in his neck
Did anyone catch the results of the SNY poll about whether people approved of the Nationals’ cheerleading in the dugout? I somehow missed the results and am very curious how people voted.
Thanks in advance.
I think it was something like 65% disapproved, 35% approved. or 55/45 . It was closer than I thought it would be.
Anyone like Easley better than Castillo? Not me.