Daily Archives: August 8, 2008
Following tonight’s game, Ryan Church told reporters that he has been cleared by doctors to begin a minor-league rehab assignment.
He will workout with the team tomorrow in NewYork, after which he will travel to St. Lucie where he will prepare to hopefully play in this coming week, though he added that there is still no specific timetable for his return.
Tagged Ryan Church |
The second-place Mets (61–54) defeated the third-place Marlins (61–55) by the score of 3 to 0 in Shea Stadium.
For a recap, boxscore, stats, etc., from tonight’s game, go to SNY.tv.
Oliver Perez took on 26 batters and did not allow a run, while striking out eight through seven innings pitched. Perez is 3–3 with a 2.70 ERA in the 10 starts since Dan Warthen replaced Rick Peterson as the team’s pitching coach.
David Wright hit a two-run home run in the first inning, while Carlos Delgado hit a solo shot in the fourth, both of which landed in the bleachers.
Dan Murphy is my favorite player on the team.
You were holding your breath, as was I, but Aaron Heilman set down all six batters he faced in relief of Perez, which is great to see. Frankly, that’s an understatement. This team needs Heilman, and tonight was a very, very good sign.
The Mets continue their three-game series with the Marlins tomorrow at Shea Stadium, starting at 7:10 pm, with Scott Olsen (6-6, 3.87 ERA) taking on Brian Stokes, who will be making his first start of the season and first-ever start for the Mets.
This is a test post on the iTouch, to see how the new WordPress app works, which will help determine whether I get an iPhone, which I clearly can’t afford, but which I clearly should get.
The Game:
The Mets (60-54) begin a three-game series against the Marlins (61-54) tonight at Shea Stadium, starting at 7:10 pm.
The Lineup:
- SS Jose Reyes
- LF Daniel Murphy
- 3B David Wright
- 1B Carlos Delgado
- CF Carlos Beltran
- RF Fernando Tatis
- 2B Damion Easley
- C Brian Schneider
- P Oliver Perez
The Pitchers:
LHP Oliver Perez (7-7, 4.12 ERA) starts for the Mets.
RHP Ricky Nolasco (11-6, 3.91 ERA) starts for the Marlins.
How To Catch It:
Today’s game can be seen locally on SNY and heard 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 |Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports the Marlins have signed C Paul Lo Duca to a minor league contract.
According to Frisaro, Lo Duca will report to the Marlins Triple-A Albuquerque affiliate on Saturday.
In 46 games for the Nationals this season, Lo Duca hit .230 with 0 HR and 12 RBI.
Tagged Mike Nichols, Paul Lo Duca |
According to a report on PA SportsTicker, two Mets Minor Leaguers have been suspended 50 days for testing positive for banned substances.
Leandro Geremy and Jose Valentin — not the same Jose Valentin — were both playing for the Mets’ Dominican Summer League team. The suspensions will begin immediately.
… i got some misinformation and posted originally, albeit briefly, that it was the mustachioed and beloved valentin that was suspended… my apologies, and consider me relieved that the ‘stache is not in any way chemically enhanced…
Tagged Jose Valentin, Ted Berg |Earlier today, MetsBlog detailed that Johan Santana‘s win total is not a reflection of how he has pitched this season.
So, who’s to blame for the lack of Santana wins? Let’s find out as we play, The Santana Blame Game! Let’s meet our contestants:
Contestant #1:
Residing beyond the right field fence, where the tomato vines once grew, is the underachieving, Hello Kitty backpack wearing cast of characters know as the Mets bullpen!
They have a combined 4-4 record with a 4.41 ERA in Santana’s starts this season. They have also blown leads in six, including four of the last five, of Santana’s 24 starts this season, which is one more than the Twins bullpen accumulated in his last 100 starts with them.
Contestant #2:
A 54-year old American gangsta, born in Hahira, Georgia, who currently resides in the underground, bulletproof manager’s office of Shea Stadium. Say hello to Mets manager Jerry Manuel!
After inexplicably removing Santana after throwing 105 pitches through eight innings in a July 22 loss to the Phillies, you would have thought Manuel would have been less conservative in Santana’s future starts, but that has not been the case. Since that start the Manuel allowed Santana to complete a 118-pitch effort in a 9 to 1 blow out versus the Cardinals, but removed him after 103 and 104 pitches, respectively, in his last two starts, each resulting in a blown save.
Contestant #3:
He is a native of Venezuela and two-time Cy Young Award winner, who is doing his job and has the best goatee in the tri-state area, give a warm welcome to Johan Santana!
In Santana’s start on July 22 versus the Phillies, Jerry Manuel removed Santana after eight innings while throwing only 105 pitches. Later, in an interview, Manuel has said if Santana had come to him and was adamant about going out to start the ninth he would have left Santana in the game. Shouldn’t the Mets expect their $137 million pitcher to to want the ball in those spots? Perhaps, but since he became a full time starter in 2004, Santana has only pitched seven complete games, while average 6.2 innings per start.
Contestant #4:
This inconsistent group of 14, who is currently one of the worst in the National League at driving runners in from scoring position with two outs, forgets how to score after the seventh inning and carries three catchers. Give it up for the Mets Offense!
The Mets offense provided 5.14 runs of support during Santana’s starts this season, but has scored less than three runs or less in 33% of his starts this season. In his four consecutive starts from June 17 to July 4, the Mets offense scored a total of eight runs, with three of the four resulting in Santana losses.
[poll id="155"]
Tagged Mike Nichols |
The Marlins played just finished a three-game series in Philadelphia without hitting a home run. It’s the first time this season they failed to homer in a three-game series and also the first time since June of 2007. Florida dropped to third in the majors in team home runs.
The Phillies acquired Scott Eyre to add another lefty to the bullpen. Eyre owns a 7.15 ERA despite excellent strikeout, walk and home run numbers. He’s allowed 15 hits, seven for extra bases.
Chipper Jones comes off the disabled list today. He wants to play Friday night, but Bobby Cox may use him as a pinch hitter at first.
Emilio Bonifacio played seven games since joining the Nationals on August 1st. He knocked out multiple hits in five of those games for a total of 12, seven for extra bases. With Emilio in the lineup, the Nationals are 6-1 in August.
For more real-time information, news, links and stats from around MLB, check out Baseball Musings.
In March, when the Mets finalized their 25-man roster, one of the last cuts was Rule-5 pick Steven Register, a right-
handed pitcher plucked from the Colorado Rockies farm system.
Register appeared to be a good find, outpitching most of the other relief candidates in the spring and sporting a low-90s sinker and slider. The 25-year-old, however, was sent back to the Rockies, as the Mets couldn’t find room for him – opting instead for Matt Wise and Joe Smith – who posted an 8.59 ERA in the spring – and Jorge Sosa.
As it turned out, Wise went on the DL a week into the season, Sosa was released in May, and Smith pitched well once the “real games” began. The strange thing about keeping Smith, at the time, was that in addition to the high ERA, he had options left, and could have been sent to the minors temporarily to keep Register around a little longer. But the decision to keep Smith turned out to be the correct one. As for Sosa and Wise, well, you be the judge.
Of course, ‘hindsight is 20-20,’ so it’s easy to criticize the moves now. And perhaps Register would not have pitched well and eventually returned to the Rockies anyway.
What bothered me at the time was that the Mets weren’t able to negotiate a trade with the Rockies to keep Register in the Mets organization. After all, he seemed to impress the team’s coaching staff – who spent significant time working with him to improve his mechanics and repertoire.
Register was recently called up by the Rockies, appeared in one game, struck out the only batter he faced and returned to Triple-A Colorado Springs.
In 48 games as a closer for Colorado Springs this year, Register has a 5-2 record with 16 saves and a 3.28 ERA. He’s struck out 45 batters in 49 innings, allowing 45 hits and only 15 walks. In the homer-happy Pacific Coast League (PCL), Register has given up three home runs.
No use crying over spilt milk, but it would have been nice to have Steven Register in the organization right now.
On Tuesday night with a four run lead in the ninth, Aaron Heilman, while facing a rookie catcher batting .230, started him with a slider in the dirt instead of a steady diet of fastballs.
Heilman went on to walk him and later gave up a three-run home run while only recording one out.
According to Sam Borden at The Journal News, this is the latest example of why the Mets should consider adding Heilman to the starting rotation.
Even though he has been a reliever since 2005, Borden believes Heilman doesn’t think like a reliever nor does his former coach at Notre Dame, Paul Mainieri.
Mainieri says he will “go to my grave” believing that Aaron should be a starter and that he doesn’t take his frustration to the mound when working from the bullpen.
However, Mainieri, as quoted by Borden, explains:
“He wants to be a starter. He wants to do whatever he can to help the team because that’s the kind of person he is, but he believes that he can be successful as a starter.”
In his 25 career starts, Heilman is 5-13 with a 5.93 ERA, although 25 starts over three seasons is hardly a fair test of a starter’s viability according to Borden.
…i think borden hit the nail right on the head that heilman just doesn’t think like a reliever and that his where he gets into trouble…with the uncertainty of Pedro Martinez and Oliver Perez returning next season, maybe there is an opportunity for heilman to be a starter again…
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