Daily Archives: June 8, 2009
In a post for NY Sports Dog, Dave Singer looks in to David Wright’s struggles at Citi Field so far this season.
As Singer points out, Wright is hitting .271 with a .785 OPS at home and .413 with a 1.090 OPS on the road.
So Wright decidedly has been better on the road than at Citi Field in 2009.
Still, I think one of Singer’s suggested explanations – a small sample size - might be best. I wrote about the same issue last week.
Wright’s torrid stretch in San Francisco and Los Angeles came on the road and so has a sizable effect on those road stats, but it’s impossible to say whether that run was brought on by the road trip or random chance.
Hard as it is to believe, Citi has not yet proved to be an appreciably harder park to hit in than Shea.
Since these splits are often fickle and tend to balance out with time, it’s probably way too soon to assume the new park has somehow gotten to Wright’s head or he’s not seeing the ball there.
To cite some random examples: Evan Longoria has a home/road split nearly as stark as Wright’s (.862 OPS home, 1.105 away) after posting an .871 OPS at home and an .877 OPS on the road in 2008. And check out Justin Upton’s home and road numbers from last season and this one.
Tagged News |
Former Mets second baseman and current manager of the independent Northen League’s Joliet Jackhammers, Wally Backman speaks with the blog, Jorge Says No about his passion for managing and his playing days with the Mets.
Phillies closer Brad Lidge made a deal with Satan. So says Paul Francis Sullivan at his blog Sully Baseball.
Have an interesting Manny Ramirez-esque Mets anecdote? Then head on over to Metsopolis, who is giving away tickets to the July 8 Mets-Dodgers game for the best personal Mets related story.
Over at the Bleacher Report, Randy Medina thinks we should cherish watching the injury riddled Mets.
Andrew Vazzano of The ‘Ropolitans warns us to be prepared for a David Wright cold streak.
Tagged Mike Nichols |
Last week, Randy Johnson won the 300th game of his career.
In a report for Baseball Prospectus, Joe Sheehan lists Oliver Perez among six players who, if everything goes according to plan, could eventually win 300 games.
…i hope for the best for perez, and wish him the best of luck, and would love nothing more than to see him win 300 games, especially for the Mets… but, i feel pretty confident saying it will never happen… i mean, i’d say he has a slightly better chance of winning 300 games than i do, and i have no chance…
According to Sheehan, the 27-year-old Perez is not much different from the 27-year-old Randy Johnson, in that both pitchers struggled with control, while having an ‘electric arm.’
…this may be true, and i too see the similarities, but johnson may be the greatest left-handed pitcher of his generation… and perez’s biggest problem isn’t his talent, it’s his inability to focus and think through adjustments from batter to batter…
Through his first 180 games, Perez has 56 wins, 1,047 strike outs and a 4.50 ERA, while Johnson had won 81 games, had 1,330 strike outs and a 3.70 ERA.
Perez is still sidelined in St. Lucie, as he works to rehab from tendinitis in his knee.
Tagged Oliver Perez |
Here is the latest New York Baseball Today, during which Ted Berg talks with Alex Belth of BronxBanterBlog.com on comments from both MetsBlog.com and BronxBanterBlog.com
Tagged News |
To watch today’s edition of The Nooner, go to TheNoonerBlog.com.
At TheJetsBlog.com, Brian Bassett reports on trade rumors and Jets RB Thomas Jones.
To listen to a podcast of Knicks forward Wilson Chandler, check out The Knicks Blog.
And for a recap of this weekend’s games for all the Mets minor league ball clubs, be sure to check out Toby Hyde’s Mets Minor League Blog.
Tagged News |
Yesterday, the Braves looked to turn things around by sending rookie phenom Tommy Hanson to the hill, after being shut out the first two games of the series.
Hanson retired the first nine batters he faced, but it was all downhill from there. He ended his day allowing seven runs on six hits, including three home runs, in just six innings.
Luckily for him, the Braves offense bailed him out.
Chipper Jones went 4-for-4 with a triple, two home runs, and five RBI, while Yunel Escobar had three hits and drove in the game winning run to lead Atlanta to an 8-7 win over the Brewers.
The Braves begin a three game series with the Pirates tonight.
The Marlins took on the Giants yesterday in the third game of a four game series. Ricky Nolasco returned from the minor leagues to get the start for Florida.
He allowed 10 hits and three walks over seven innings, but yielded just three runs. Juan Uribe reached base three times, and Benjie Molina collected two hits and two RBI to lead the Giants to a 3-2 win.
The Phillies brought out the big bats on Sunday and homered their 
way to a 7-2 win over the Dodgers, following two blown saves by Brad Lidge. Carlos Ruiz, Shane Victorino, and Ryan Howard all went deep, and rookie Antonio Bastardo gave the Phillies his second solid start to run his record to 2-0.
The Phillies and Dodgers split the four game series.
The Philadelphia and Nationals both have an off day today.
In other news…
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Braves placed 1B Casey Kotchman on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right calf and bruised shin.
Lastly, SI.com is reporting that free-agent Tom Glavine may file a grievance against the Braves.
Glavine feels that his release on Wednesday was financially motivated, something prohibited by the CBA.
For more news, notes, analysis and statistics from around Major League Baseball, be sure to visit Baseball Daily Digest.
Tagged MetsBlog, News |Yesterday, Jerry Manuel explained to reporters 
that his team needs to find more power from its offense, with or without Carlos Delgado.
According to the Star-Ledger, “The Mets have hit only 34 homers through their first 55 games, ranking 28th out of 30 teams in the majors.”
…on one hand, i think, who cares… if the team is scoring, why does it matter how they score… on the other hand, let’s say there are two outs and a runner on second and the team is down two runs… it sure is easier to tie the score on one swing, than it is to get three doubles in a row before getting one out… also, a lack of power makes it difficult to score late and in bunches, especially when playing from behind… so, while i cant to think power is overrated, it is important, though it’s not the only way to score runs…
…that said, i actually like the way David Wright and Carlos Beltran are hitting, playing a more well-rounded, offensive game… so, that means the power should probably come from a trade, or two…
Saturday on WFAN, SI.com’s Jon Heyman said Omar Minaya is most focused on acquiring a corner outfielder.
…the popular name on talk radio seems to be OF Adam Dunn…
…however, from what i recall from the off season, the Mets have 
never been intrigued with dunn… also, did you watch dunn play defense this past weekend… wow, he makes Daniel Murphy look like a Gold Glove winner… and, the Mets are putting extra emphasis on defense and base running these days, considering Citi Field… i go back and forth on dunn, personally… i like that he can play first base, than shift to left field if delgado returns… but, i worry about his defense, base running and strike outs, especially in this specific lineup, even though i know Citi Field will not contain his home runs…
Lastly, Heyman pointed out that the Red Sox are also looking to acquire a bat, and would likely put together a better package than Minaya.
…sure, but they can’t acquire them all…
…actually, i sense this will be a buyer’s market, because a) out-of-contention teams will be looking to cut payroll, and save cash in this economy, by moving contracts, and b) not every contending team will want to add salary, again because of the economy, meaning there could be far more sellers than buyers…
This morning, at Mets Minor League Blog, Toby Hyde recaps all of yesterday’s Mets minor-league action, including a strong performance from LHP Jon Niese, who yielded just two runs over six innings with four strikeouts in a loss for Triple-A Buffalo.
Double-A Binghamton received quality pitching from starting pitcher Tobi Stoner, who went eight innings, allowing four runs and no walks, but lost 10-6 as the B-Mets let up six unearned runs in the ninth.
Stoner is 1-2 with a 3.15 ERA this season.
For more, check out Toby’s Mets Minor League Blog.
Tagged News |
In a poll to MetsBlog on May 25, 95 percent of 5,000 people said they expected the Mets to go at least 8–5 during the next 13 games, against the Nationals, Pirates and Marlins.
The Mets were 7–5, with one game rained out in Pittsburgh.
The thing is, the Mets started the stretch 5–1 in the first six games, all at home, then went 2–4 while on the road, including a three-game sweep from the Pirates.
“This road trip didn’t go like we had wanted it to, like we had planned,” David Wright said, according to Newsday. “Unfortunately, that’s baseball.”
This week, the Mets will play three games against the Phillies in Citi Field, starting tomorrow, then travel to the Bronx to face the Yankees on Friday.
In a post to Brooklyn Met Fan, Adam Salazar writes, “Normally I’m ready to rumble with our two biggest rivals but this time I feel naked going against them without Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado. Sure we can beat the Nats and Fish with one hand tied behind our back, but consecutive showdowns with possibly the two best teams in baseball, could easily turn into a bloodbath.”
…i hear ya, adam… but, even if the Mets drop two of three during each of these two series, remember the Phillies are playing the Red Sox this weekend… so, sure, next week, on Monday, the Mets could be four or five games out of first, though still three or four games over .500… frankly, it’s the 23 games after that, which have me worried, with some in American League parks, and 16 against the Cardinals, Brewers, Yankees, Phillies and Dodgers… and then it’s the All-Star break… in other words, this will be a difficult month…
[poll id="264"]
Tagged Phillies, Poll, Yankees |Yesterday, in a win against the Nationals, Livan Hernandez pitched seven scoreless innings, while striking out four batters.
“He’s been huge,” Manuel said of Hernandez, following yesterday’s game. “Obviously, we need good pitching, and that was outstanding pitching today.”
Hernandez is 5–1 with a 3.88 ERA in 11 starts this season, during which the Mets are 7–4.
He has thrown six ‘quality starts,’ i.e., at least six innings pitched while allowing three runs or less.
…three things, 1) it looks like he pitches without a game plan, and simply adjusts to each hitter as the hitter adjusts to him, sometimes in the middle of the at bat, 2) he has no issue working inside the strike zone, it’s like he’s fearless, or just really confident in what he’s doing, and 3) he is striking out batters at essentially double the rate he had been over the last few years, and i think this is a result of making half of his starts against the young, free-swinging Marlins, Pirates and Nationals…
Hernandez told reporters he was feeling sick before the game, and all through the previous night, when he got very little sleep, adding, “But, I don’t care… I like to pitch no matter what.”
…i wonder if he, too, ate a funky batch of fried food and buffalo wings…
