Daily Archives: June 10, 2008
Following tonight’s game, Willie Randolph told reporters that Moises Alou was pulled from the game after the rain delay because his calf was ‘a bit tight.’
Randolph said Alou will be fine, they were just being extra caution in his first game back from the disabled list.
Tagged Moises Alou |The Mets (30–33) lost to the D’Backs (35–30) by the score of 9 to 5 in Shea Stadium tonight.
For a recap, boxscore, stats, etc., go to SNY.tv.
John Maine looked good, for a while, though he let Arizona chop away at a four-run lead. He was removed after the fifth, after which Claudio Vargas let the game become tied at five.- Then, what looked like a tornado struck Shea Stadium – literally. The team returned, and a tornado hit Shea Stadium – figuratively – as the D’Backs treated Joe Smith and Duaner Sanchez like they were throwing batting practice.
- Earlier today, Elias released some stats that showed how the Mets play best when Moises Alou is in the lineup. Tonight, on the first pitch thrown to him since returning from the disabled list, he ripped a two-out, two-RBI single. He left the game after the rain delay, and all hell broke loose. Bizarre.
- In what is great symbolism, in the ninth, with a slight moment of hope in the air, David Wright hit a ball that died just short of the warning track, after which Carlos Beltran ripped a ground ball, hard, to the first baseman to end the game.
- With the Mets down four runs, several members of the small 3,000–person crowd were chanting, “Bobby V., Bobby V.,” which is funny and sad at the same time.
The Mets continue their three-game series with the D’Backs tomorrow at 7 pm when Mike Pelfrey faces Brandon Webb.
The Game:
The Mets (30-32) begin their three-games series versus the Diamondbacks (34-30) tonight at Shea Stadium, starting at 7:10 pm EST.
The Lineup:
- SS Jose Reyes
- 2B Luis Castillo
- 3B David Wright
- CF Carlos Beltran
- 1B Carlos Delgado
- LF Moises Alou
- C Brian Schneider
- RF Endy Chavez
- P John Maine
The Pitchers:
RHP John Maine (6-4, 3.47 ERA) toes the rubber for the Mets. Maine earned a win in his last start on June 4 versus the Giants surrendering two runs on seven hits and a walk while striking out four over 6.0 IP. Opponents are hitting .187 versus Maine in his five starts at Shea Stadium this season, in which he is 3-0. Maine is 2-1 with a 2.50 ERA in three career starts versus the Diamondbacks.
RHP Micah Owings (6-4, 4.50 ERA) takes the hill for the Diamondbacks. Owings pitched in his shortest outing of the season in his last start on June 4 versus the Brewers lasting only three innings allowing five runs on eight hits while striking out three. Since May 2, Owings is 2-4 with a 5.27 ERA. He is 0-1 with a 6.94 ERA in two career starts versus the Mets.
The Notes:
The Mets won 2-of-3 three from the D-Backs earlier this season.
David Wright is batting .227 with 8 HR and 31 RBI versus right-handed pitchers this season. He is 3-for-7 with a homerun in his career versus Owings.
Brian Schneider has thrown out 12-of-26 (46.2%) base stealers this season, which ranks him second in the National League.
The D-Backs are 12-9 in series openers this season.
Mark Reynolds is batting .410 with 3 2B, 6 HR and 11 RBI in last 39 at-bats. He is hitless in six career at-bats versus Maine.Brandon Lyon has converted his last 13 save opportunities and has not been scored upon in his last 22.0 IP.
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 |
The Mets have activated both Moises Alou and Marlon Anderson, while demoting Raul Casanova to Triple-A and putting Ryan Church on the disabled list.
To hear from Church, as well as watch Kevin Burkhardt talk one on one with Willie Randolph, tune in to the Pre Game Show at 6:30 pm tonight on .
The Mets have not been playing with their best 25-man roster this season. Yes, Omar Minaya and his staff deserve some criticism for how this team was put together. However, it’s still not too late for them to put together a team that can turn their season around.
If I had the final say, I would replace Marlon Anderson and Fernando Tatis 
with Kenny Loften and either Val Pascucci or Chris Aguila, as well as swap out Aaron Heilman and Mike Pelfrey with Carlos Muniz and Willie Collazo.
The reason for adding Lofton is simple: He has produced and won wherever he has played. There is no reason to expect at the age of 41 that things will be any different if he joined the Mets.
Muniz and Collazo are both pitching effectively in the hitting-rich Pacfic Coast League. Collazo is holding lefties to a .179 average and has a 2-to-1 strike-out-to-walk ratio. Both Collazo and Muniz deserve a chance at the major league level and should not be on the Heath Bell Express.
Meanwhile, Pelfrey needs to learn to trust his stuff and should be doing so at the minor league level. As for Heilman, he either needs a change of scenery, i.e. a trade, or he needs to be sent to the minors to figure out his issues.
And, yes, the roster does include the Pascucci or Aguila, both of whom are mashing lefties at Triple-A New Orleans. There has been a ton of hyperbole surrounding Pascucci since his arrival to the Mets organization this season, especially coming from SNY’s Ted Berg – but his addition to the 25-man roster does make a ton of sense. As stated before, he hits lefties well and does have the ability to play both the outfield and first base, which would allow the team to platoon him with Delgado.
Obviously, the above suggestions can be debated, but one thing the Mets cannot deny is the fact this team is not winning the way they are currently constructed.
If the Mets want to save their season, they need to shake things up before it’s too late.
Tagged Mike Nichols |
According to John Doyle at the New York Post, a belligerent fan was “harassing Mr. Met and pushing little children out of the way” during the May 31st game at Shea Stadium.
Doyle also notes that Jay Horwitz, the Mets’ VP of Media Relations declined to comment.
…i’m sure that this is a very low priority for jay right now…
…i wouldn’t get in the ring with mr. met, his hands are the size of basketballs, but he certainly is one big target…shame on you christian hansen…
Tagged Mr. Met, Regis Courtemanche |
According to MLB.com, David Wright continues to trail Braves 3B Chipper Jones by roughly 350,000 votes for this year’s starting third baseman on the National League All Star Team.
Additionally, Jose Reyes is fourth in voting at shortstop behind Astros SS Miguel Tejada, Marlins SS Hanley Ramirez and Cubs SS Ryan Theriot, while Phillies SS Jimmy Rollins is fifth.
…if you thought the riot would lead reyes and rollins in this year’s all star voting, you are a genius…
Lastly, Carlos Beltran, who was a leading vote getter a few seasons ago, is fifth among all outfielders, trailing a starting spot by roughly 150,000 votes.
[Poll=113]
Mets 1B prospect Mike Carp is profiled in an interesting feature for MiLB.com, which discusses his resurgence this year in Double-A.
On Sunday, Carp hit two home runs with six RBI, putting him at .351 with 15 doubles, nine homers and 38 RBI in 55 games this season.
On his resurgence, he tells MiLB.com:
“It was really frustrating and disappointing the way everything worked out last year…This was a big year for me coming in. I was pressing a bit last year and was a little injury-plagued, so I wanted to take a more healthy approach to this season.”
Carp has also played leftfield this season to help keep his bat in the lineup every day, as well as to increase his versatility, adding that it’s a position he can ‘handle.’
…at the end of last year, scouts were split on carp… while some still had him listed as a top prospect, others felt he had too many holes in his swing and couldn’t hit lefties enough to play full time… well, still just 21-years old, it looks like he has answered those questions, thus far… being in a lineup with Fernando Martinez, Nick Evans and Danny Murphy certainly helps, too…
…he’s a big, imposing kid who can absolutely wallop the ball, and it seems that he has tightened up his swing… he’s also one of the most modest, soft-spoken kids you’ll meet, which makes it all the more fun to see him succeeding…
Tagged Mike Carp, Minors |
Today at 2pm, SNY Studio Analyst Darryl Strawberry will be chatting on ESPN.com.
Strawberry is helping promote the release of two new DVDs that celebrate the final season at Shea Stadium: The New York Mets Essential Games Of Shea Stadium and Shea Goodbye.
In the 97 games Moises Alou has started over the last two seasons, the Mets are 53–44, during which they’re averaging 5.5 runs per games.
In the 127 games he has missed, the Mets are 65–62 while averaging 4.4 runs per game.
What’s more, David Wright is batting .339 with Alou in the lineup, while batting .291 in his absence.
Similarly, Carlos Beltran is batting .313 with Alou in the lineup, but .238 with him out of the lineup.
…thanks to the Elias Sports Bureau for the outstanding research…
Following Sunday’s game, Alou told reporters that he will return from the disabled list today.
However, according to the team, Alou will work out at Shea Stadium this afternoon, at which point they will decide whether to activate him or not.
Tagged Moises Alou | ← Older posts
