Daily Archives: August 11, 2008
The Mets (62-56) lost to the Pirates (54-64) by the score of 7-5 at Shea this afternoon.
For a recap, boxscore, stats, etc., go to SNY.tv.
I really don’t even know what to say at this point but here it goes:
- Since coming off the disabled list, Pedro Martinez has been solid with nothing to show for it. Today he threw six innings while only surrendering one run on three hits.
- David Wright hit his 23rd HR of the season in the 1st inning. He is 3rd in the NL with 93 RBI.
- Robinson Cancel had a good day at the plate, driving in a run in the third inning and then smacking a solo HR in the sixth inning.
- However, four runs was not enough for the fearsome five-some of Joe Smith, Pedro Feliciano, Duaner Sanchez, Aaron Heilman and Scott Schoeneweis. The Pirates scored three runs in the 7th and 9th inning, capped by a Steve Pearce two-out, two-run single.
The Mets start a seven-game road trip tomorrow night in Washington, D.C. with Johan Santana (9-7) facing off against Odalis Perez (5-8).
According to KTAR Radio in Phoenix, the Diamondbacks have acquired OF Adam Dunn from the Reds for minor league pitcher Dallas Buck and two players to be named later.
Dunn is batting .233 with 32 HR and 74 RBI while striking out 120 times this season.
…added to by Matt Cerrone…
…by the way, the D’Backs were able to claim dunn before the Mets, since the option starts at the bottom of the NL Standings…to which i say, ugh…
Tagged Mike Nichols |The Game:
The Mets (62-55) play a makeup game against the Pirates (53-64) today at Shea Stadium, starting at 1:10 pm.
The Lineup:
- SS Jose Reyes
- LF Nick Evans
- 3B David Wright
- CF Carlos Beltran
- 1B Carlos Delgado
- RF Fernando Tatis
- 2B Damion Easley
- C Robinson Cancel
- P Pedro Martinez
The Pitchers:
RHP Pedro Martinez (3-3, 5.79 ERA) starts for the Mets. In 19 career games, 15 starts, versus the Pirates, Martinez is 9-4 with a 2.97 ERA. He is 1-2 with a 3.68 ERA in four home starts this season.
LHP Zach Duke (4-10, 5.31 ERA) starts for the Pirates. Duke is 2-0 with a 1.17 ERA in three career starts versus the Mets. In road starts this season, He is 0-4 with a 5.82 ERA.
The Notes:
Carlos Beltran is 12-for-24 (.353) with 3 2B, 1 HR and 4 RBI in his last nine games. He has one hit in nine career at-bats versus Duke.
The Mets are third in the National League with 85 first inning runs.
Nick Evans is batting .344 (11-for-32) with 4 2B against left-handed pitchers this season.
Doug Mientkiewicz is batting .355 (11-for-31) during his current seven game hitting streak. He is 5-for18 (.278) in his career versus Martinez.
The Pirates defense leads the National League with 132 double-plays this season.
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 |
The Marlins face playing on a rough infield the rest of the season as football starts up at Dolphins Stadium. Quirky stadiums result in a home field advantage because the defense learns how to take advantage of the unique aspects of the stadium. Random divots make fielding equally difficult for both teams. The Marlins could use more strikeouts by their pitchers to take some pressure off the defense.
The Washington Nationals agreed to pay their fifth round draft pick above slot. That seems to be the way to build a decent farm system today.
Brad Lidge missed two save opportunities over the weekend due to tendinitis.
“I’m going to give it one more day, then try to be ready to go about every single day in September,” Lidge said. “I’m not real worried about it. At the same time, I don’t want to keep on plowing through something and make it worse. I just need to give it a couple days to get some inflammation out of there.”
Lidge is a perfect 28 for 28 in save situations this season.
Brian McCann is the hottest Braves hitter over the last month, although it looks like Mark Teixeira would get the honors if he stayed with the team. Teixeira’s replacement, Casey Kotchman hasn’t picked up the slack.
For more real-time information, news, links and stats from around MLB, check out Baseball Musings.
David Wright, talking to reporters yesterday, said:
“We know it’s going to be a dog-fight, a three-team
race down to the end…We learned last year the hard way that it doesn’t matter if it’s August or September – from here on out these are crucial games.”
Over the next eight days, the Mets will play the Pirates and Nationals, while the Phillies are on the West Coast facing the Dodgers and Padres, and the Marlins are at home playing the Cardinals and Cubs.
…i keep hearing and reading that this is a golden opportunity for the Mets, time to ‘make hay,’ etc., but that’s exactly what worries me…because, the Mets have played well against the league’s better teams this season, while often playing poorly against the lower-ranked teams, like the Nationals and Pirates…
…which is why, this is crucial…not just for the purpose of the standings, but because it will tell me if this team is serious or not…i love wright’s quote, but, as Mets fans, you and i have been forced to read a lot of quotes like his over the last 11 months…
…well, here we are, it’s getting very close to ‘Put Up or Shut Up’ time…the Mets get eight games against the Nationals and Pirates, after which they play the Braves and Astros, and then, ding ding, last call, buckle up, it’ll be September with just 30 games left in the season…
Please answer the following question, while considering the team’s ownership, current management, talent, minor-league system, new stadium, network, etc.:
[poll id="156"]
Luis Castillo has just one hit in 15 at bats during five minor-league rehab games for Single-A St. Lucie.
…the buzz from Shea Stadium suggests that castillo could rejoin the Mets on Tuesday in Washington, DC., though i suspect it will be a few days after that…
Over the weekend, Jerry Manuel suggested that when Castillo returns from the disabled list he will share time at second base with Damion Easley, adding, “We’re not pacifying any egos.”
Meanwhile, Billy Wagner has been working out with the team in Shea Stadium as he recovers from a strained forearm.
Manuel told reporters on Sunday that Wagner will pitch in a rehab game for Single-A Brooklyn before returning to the Mets on the day he is first eligible, Aug. 18.
Ryan Church is in St. Lucie, working out, where he hopes to play in a minor-league rehab game later this week.
Church told reporters over the weekend that he hopes to return to the Mets around the third week of August.
Tagged Ryan Church |
The Mets will play a makeup game against the Pirates today at 1 pm in Shea Stadium.
Pedro Martinez (3-3, 5.79) will start for the Mets against LHP Zach Duke (4-10, 4.43).
In yesterday’s loss to the Marlins, Mike Pelfrey let up six runs and seven hits, while walking three, in just four and two-thirds innings pitched, raising his ERA from 3.85 to 4.11.
Pelfrey is 0-3 with a 10.67 ERA against the Marlins this season, yet 10-5 with a 3.45 ERA against everyone else.
Pelfrey, speaking to reporters after yesterday’s game, said:
“Numbers don’t lie, the last few starts I’ve struggled against them. You can’t dispute that…I think that I executed some bad pitches, made some bad pitches, and I threw some stupid pitches. I made some stupid pitches that I shouldn’t have thrown.”
…ok, then…tell us how you really feel, mike…
…today’s narrative in print and on radio seems to be that pelfrey is burned out, since he’s on the verge of throwing the most pitches in a season for his career…
He has thrown 138 innings this year, second-most on the team.
Pelfrey threw 152.2 innings last season, and is on pace to throw 191 this season.
As Ken Davidoff points out in Newsday today, “The conventional wisdom calls for a young pitcher to exceed his previous season’s total by no more than 30 innings.”
Maunel, speaking to reporters about Pelfrey, following yesterday’s loss to the Marlins:
“This is actually his first full major-league year, so that could be an issue, but we’ll do everything we can to try and keep him fresh.”
Pelfrey is on pace to next start against the Pirates, then the Braves, then the Astros, after which he’ll face the Marlins in Miami late in August.
Tagged Mike Pelfrey |
