Daily Archives: August 25, 2008
The following is today’s MetsBlog Minute, during which I talk about the roller coaster that is sure to be September:
Lee Mazzilli, and not Doc Gooden, will be revealing No. 16 on the wall of Shea Stadium tonight, during the Lincoln Mercury Countdown.
…i do not know if gooden was contacted to take part in tonight’s Countdown, though the team has reached out to him to take part in the final day of Shea…
…no disrespect to lee, but when i see No. 16 in blue and orange, i’m thinking Doctor K…
…so, while i am am happy for lee, i am disappointed knowing doc will not make his return to shea tonight…
Speaking of stadiums, to watch a cool slideshow, tracking the start of construction at Citi Field to where it stands today, courtesy of Michael Baron from NYMets.info, click here.
Please answer the following question, while considering the team’s ownership, current management, talent, minor-league system, new stadium, network, etc.:
[poll id="165"]
Prior to Sunday’s game, Jerry Manuel told reporters that, while John Maine is tentatively schedule to make his next start, Maine could be shut down for the remainder of the season if the team does not like what it sees in his throwing session later this week.
According to Manuel, either way, Maine will need off-season surgery to repair a bone spur in his shoulder.
In an exclusive report for Newsday, David Lennon quotes Maine as saying he had a cortisone shot on Thursday, but it did little to relieve the pain.
…and that’s the thing, from what i understand, the pain is not going any place…and so, since the bone spur will not get worse from pitching, it’s a matter of pain and effectiveness…
…if maine is in pain, but is effective, my bet is he will take the ball until he can’t…however, if he’s totally ineffective, whether in pain or not, the Mets will have little choice but to shut him down – at which point he can get a jump on recovering from what is an inevitable surgery…
…also, from what i can gather, if maine is skipped in the rotation, his start will likely go to Brian Stokes, not Jon Niese, which is the smart move considering that niese will require the team to make a roster move…
In yesterday’s loss to the Astros, Carlos Beltran hit two home runs.
However, the Mets did not reach base during the final five innings of the game, blowing a one-run lead in the seventh, and ultimately losing by two in the 10th.
Jerry Manuel, on the team’s offense, while speaking to reporters following yesterday’s game:
“We weren’t able to do anything against (their bullpen), in the sense that we didn’t have many hits in the last six or seven innings…We have to be a team that continues to put pressure. Today, we put up four, but, obviously, that wasn’t enough.”
By the way, the Astros set down 20 consecutive Mets during the game on Friday, and 14 in a row on Saturday.
In the five games prior to yesterday, the bullpen had not allowed a run in its last 11 innings pitched.
However, yesterday, Aaron Heilman let up two singles in relief of Oliver Perez, with a runner on base, to bring the game even in the seventh, then Pedro Feliciano let up two home runs in the 10th to give the Astros a victory.
Jerry Manuel, regarding the bullpen, talking 
to reporters after the game, said:
“Well, you know, we’ve just got to find the guy that’s hot…Some of the other guys threw the ball well in the pen.”
It should be noted that Scott Schoeneweis, Joe Smith and Luis Ayala did not allow a run to score in seventh, eighth and ninth innings.
Feliciano, regarding the home run, while speaking to reporters following the loss:
“I surprise myself, because to give up a slider home run to a lefty is big for me…It’s baseball, we’re gonna struggle at times, not other times. Tonight, it was a rough time for our bullpen…It’s just one day, one game, tomorrow we’re gonna be back and do better.”
…i feel like they are running in to the same problem they ran in to last season, in that their relievers look totally spent…
In fact, of the 10 pitchers who have made the most relief appearances in the National League, the Mets have four…
…this, coupled to the team’s lack of production late in games, and i worry, again, about September…
Tagged Pedro Feliciano | Newer posts →
