Daily Archives: August 19, 2008
The Mets (69–57) defeated the Braves (56–70) by the score of 7 to 3 tonight in Shea Stadium.
The Mets have won seven of their last eight games, and remain one loss better than the Phillies for first place in the NL East.
For a recap, boxscore, stats, etc., go to SNY.tv.
The Mets opened the game by scoring two runs in the first inning, thanks in part to a well executed hit and run with Jose Reyes on first and Nick Evans at the plate.
However, the Mets did not get another hit until the eighth inning.
Oliver Perez hit a bump in the road during the third inning, letting up a walk and three singles on which three runs scored. Otherwise, he looked strong, despite not having his best stuff.
By the way, the Mets are 8–2 in Perez’s last 10 starts.
In the seventh inning, down one with a runner on first, and down 2–0 in the count, following a meeting at the mound, Luis Ayala rebounded to retire two hitters to end the inning.
Later, in the eighth, with one on, the Mets still down one, and with two outs, Aaron Heilman ended up walking a batter, despite having been up 1–2 in the count, but he too rebounded to get the inning’s final batter to pop up in foul ground to end the inning.
In the bottom of the eighth inning, following two walks and infield dribbler from Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado ripped a two-run double off the wall in left, which kicked off a five-run rally that put the Mets up by four.
Why did Jerry Manuel has Joe Smith and Pedro Feliciano throwing in the bullpen, with Scott Schoeneweis on the mound and the Mets up by four in the ninth. I don’t understand why he would even bother having a pitcher get up, stretch and throw, let alone two pitchers, considering the current state of the bullpen.
Speaking of which, and people think the Mets have bullpen issues. Ask a Braves fan to sing you a few bars of that song, assuming you can find a Braves fan.
The Mets continue their three-game series against the Braves tomorrow night in Shea, starting at 7 pm, with Mike Pelfrey (11-8, 3.91 ERA) taking on Jarr Jurrjens (11-8, 3.15 ERA).
The Game:
The first place Mets (68-57) begin a three game against the Braves (56-69) tonight at Shea Stadium, starting at 7:10 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 Ramon Castro
- P Oliver Perez
The Pitchers:
LHP Oliver Perez (9-7, 3.91 ERA) starts for the Mets.
LHP Jo-Jo Reyes (3-9, 5.33 ERA) starts for the Braves.
How To Catch It:
Tonight’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 |
To watch SNY.tv’s new web show, New York Baseball Today, which features a rotating panel of analysts and previews the night’s local baseball action, click play below:
Tagged Matthew Cerrone, SNY |
In an article for the New York Times, Ray Glier interviews Chipper Jones on how he feels about the destruction of his “home away from home”, Shea Stadium.
Chipper, as quoted by Glier:
“I always thought it was a good hitter’s background there, a park that kind of plays to my strengths. Obviously, having to deal with the Mets year in and year out, all those games that were so important, the history of the love-hate relationship, the passion of their fans, it makes it special to go there.”
“I might be the only one that is sad to see the place go.”
It’s hard to tell whether or not Larry is “sad” because he likes the park, or just likes hitting there. Chances are it’s the latter.
As much as I respect Chipper, I can’t help but cringe anytime I see his name, anytime, anywhere.
…hat tip to dave for the link…
Tagged Regis Courtemanche, Shea Stadium |
Chipper Jones hit in all nine games since returning from the disabled list. Unlike earlier in the season, however, Jones only has one multi-hit game. His only extra base hit was a home run in his first game back. He’s hitting .303, but his OBA is higher than his slugging percentage.
Tonight’s starter for the Phillies, Joe Blanton, has seen his HR rate go from 18.9 per 200 innings with Oakland to 37.0 with Philadelphia. Amazingly, all five home runs he’s allowed since the trade came on the road.
Mike Jacobs numbers this season are reminiscent of Dave Kingman for the Mets in 1976. Kingman posted a .286 OBA and a .506 slugging percentage. Jacobs stands at .285/.511. It’s power or nothing for these sluggers.
Jason Bergmann is losing control for the Nationals. He walked 22 batters on the season through July, but he issued eleven free passes in his 16 innings during August. He faces the Phillies tonight, 5th in the NL in walks.
For more real-time information, news, links and stats from around MLB, check out Baseball Musings.
Because everyone hasn’t heard enough about the Mets’ bullpen already, I posted a column last night on SNY.tv about, among other things, the discussion of moving a starter into a relief role.
Anyway, I checked out the Mets starter’s stats in their first time through the lineup and thought they were pretty interesting. Not surprisingly, Johan Santana is the best in his first matchups with opposing hitters, holding them to a .216 BA with a .263 OBP and a .309 SLG. After Santana, the starters rank:
- John Maine: .190 / .278 / .285
- Oliver Perez: .202 / .297 / .365
- Mike Pelfrey: .256 / .314 / .340
- Pedro Martinez: .295 / .342 / .509
Billy Wagner has a .185 / .228 / .289 line in his first (and only) time facing opposing hitters in a game, but no other Mets reliever has a line better than Maine, Perez or Pelfrey in the situation.
Not to say, naturally, that converting any of the three to the bullpen would be an instant fix, especially since the Mets will then have to replace that pitcher in the rotation. I just thought the numbers were interesting. To read my take on them, check out the column.
Rob Neyer of ESPN.com takes a look at four National League MVP candidates, including
Mets 3B David Wright, and debates the case for each.
Neyer believes there is no clear-cut choice for this season’s MVP since each of the contenders have flaws, but he is picking Wright to win the award.
…with Jose Reyes being the more offensively dynamic player and on pace to put up numbers equal to his tremendous 2006 season, i would put him ahead of wright, but as neyer says, ‘that’s debatable’…
Tagged Mike Nichols |
According to Ted Berg of SNY.tv, Billy Wagner was examined earlier today, and continues to have swelling and pain in his elbow.
As such, he will need additional rest before he can return to throwing.
…hopeful or not, the Mets should probably operate like he is not returning…whether that means getting ready to move John Maine to the bullpen, or bringing back Eddie Kunz, or testing Luis Ayala, who knows, but a strategy is clearly in order…
Johan Santana has been named Co-NL Player of the Week, along with Astros 
3B Ty Wiggington.
This past week, Santana was 2-0 with a 1.69 ERA, including a complete-game shut out.
Santana is 3–0 with a 2.51 ERA in seven starts since the All-Star break, during which the Mets are 5–2.
His 2.75 ERA is fourth-best in the National League, while only seven pitchers have struck out more hitters.
The Mets are 15–11 when Santana is the starting pitcher.
Billy Wagner will be examined today at the Hospital for Special Surgery.
In his most recent Under the Knife column for Baseball Prospectus, injury expert Will Carroll writes:
“It was a big setback for Wagner, and one that could end his season. Instead of forearm stiffness, he has an elbow issue, and is headed for more tests on Tuesday.
“It’s a little odd that none of this occurred until his simulated game, but one front-office source I spoke with said that Wagner probably didn’t really let the ball go until the simulated game. Forearm problems are sometimes just referred pain from the elbow, and this certainly has some signs of having been that, though the Mets do have images that show a strain on the underside of his arm.
“I’m still not convinced that’s the only problem, especially since Wagner actually expressed relief that it wasn’t bone chips…If there’s any positive sign, it’s that Wagner didn’t have a sudden loss of control.
“We’ll have to wait and see what the verdict is on Tuesday, but Mets fans have to be concerned that any extension of Wagner’s time off will expose a weak bullpen.”
Carroll also reports on injuries involving Joba Chamberlain and Hideki Matsui, who could be back as soon as Tuesday.
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