This season Mets fans have come to realize that win or lose, life is excruciating.  For this team there is no such thing as a laugher--in either direction.  It seems that every Mets loss includes a blown lead, and every Mets win includes an attempt at the same.

    Monday night in Philadelphia was no different.  Timely hitting by Damion Easley, Endy Chavez and David Wright gave New York a commanding 8-0 third inning lead, and Pedro Martinez looked to be back on track, allowing just two solo home runs through 5 1/3 innings.  At first it seemed the two runs the Mets scored off R.J. Swindle (whose out pitch apparently is a 55-mph hanging curveball) to make it 10-1 in the sixth, were just gravy.  However, as the Mets' bullpen proceeded to methodically give the lead back, allowing seven runs over the final three innings, Pedro's RBI single off Swindle proved to be valuable insurance, and ultimately the difference in the game.  When it was all said and done New York held on by the skin of their teeth for the 10-9 victory, and took three out of four from the first-place Phillies over the weekend to move within 2.5 games of the division lead--but they certainly could have looked better in doing so.  That Billy Wagner was awarded a save in return for allowing two runs in the ninth and almost blowing the game calls into question whether three-run leads should qualify as save situations at all.  Wagner was downright awful, but still "saved" the Mets from yet another brutal collapse.

Continue reading "Despite best efforts, Wagner and the Mets fail to blow 9-run lead"

    Well, my biggest gripe yesterday was that the Mets never win or lose a game that isn't in question until the final out.  I guess they realized I'm almost out of Pepto and gave me the break I was looking for.  Carlos Beltran belted a three-run home run off Giants ace Tim Lincecum in the first inning and Carlos Delagado and Fernando Tatis each homered later in the game to lead the Mets to their fourth straight win.

    But the real story was the dominant performance from Mike Pelfrey (7 innings, 3 hits, 0 walks, 5 strikeouts).  Pelfrey has won his last five starts and is unbeaten since May 26.  He has a 2.61 ERA in his last eight starts and the Mets are 7-1 in that span.  What might be most telling is the fact that he has not allowed a home run since May 21, a sign that his hard sinker has developed into a solid out pitch at the major league level.  Sure, it's possible that Pelfrey will go out and lose his next five starts, but this recent stretch is encouraging for Mets fans as he has looked like the pitcher in whom the Mets invested the ninth overall pick in the 2005 draft.  On that note, while it may be easy for impatient New York fans to forget, Pelfrey still has relatively little professional experience.  He only made 18 minor league starts in 2006 (including just two for AAA New Orleans) before his cup of coffee with the Mets, and made just 15 more starts in the minors last season along with 15 appearances in the majors.  He is still only 24 years old and it is usually a gradual process to develop a pitching prospect--not everyone can be Doc Gooden.  His recent success has been a pleasure to watch and is hopefully a sign of great things to come.

Continue reading "Pelfrey and the Mets Finally Make It Easy"

    Another day brought another win for the Mets this afternoon, as they ran their season-high winning streak to six straight.  Fernando Tatis snapped a 3-3 tie in the seventh inning with his fourth home run of the year, and his second go-ahead shot in the last five days.  The bullpen was lights out for the third straight day and hasn't allowed a run since almost giving back a 10-1 lead on Monday in Philadelphia.  The sweep of the Giants was the Mets' first such feat since they took three straight from Washington from April 15-17, unless you count the three-game series at Yankee Stadium that was started in May and finished in June.  The Phillies rebounded from a 2-0 loss in St. Louis on Tuesday to beat the Cardinals in two straight, so the Mets are currently 1.5 games out of first place heading into a three-game series against Colorado this weekend.

Continue reading "Dust Off Your Brooms, Tatis Comes Through Again"

    This time last week the Mets were 4.5 games behind Philadelphia entering their pivotal four-game series with the division leaders.  After Johan Santana gave up a 2-0 lead and Duaner Sanchez allowed the winning run in the ninth, the horizon looked bleak for the orange and blue.  However, since that devastating defeat, New York has racked up six straight wins and the Mets now find themselves just 1.5 games back of the Phillies in the NL East.  During the winning streak the Mets have scored an average of seven runs per game while yielding only three per contest, including back-to-back shutouts of the Giants on Tuesday and Wednesday.

    The Mets are now 14-9 with Jerry Manuel at the helm, after going 34-35 under Willie Randolph.  Over the last six games the Mets have shown a newfound confidence and swagger that they had been lacking since early last season.  But before we start comparing Manuel to Leo Durocher, let's remember that just six games ago the team was 8-9 under the new manager, Jose Reyes was slamming his glove down in frustration after a throwing error, hitters were not coming through in the clutch, the bullpen was blowing games left and right, and the starting pitching was inconsistent.  Sure, there is a lot to be happy about over the last six games, but it is best to remain cautiously optimistic because everything always looks a lot better during a six-game winning streak.

Continue reading "Mets Go For Seven Straight Tonight at Shea"

    Mike Pelfrey pitched another gem Sunday night, throwing eight shutout innings in the Mets' 7-0 victory over the Rockies, and won his sixth straight start.  New York cruised through their six-game homestand, outscoring the Giants and Rockies 31-4 with four shutouts to boot.  They now stand just a half game behind the Phillies for first place in the NL East.

    But like all good things, this nine-game winning streak will at some point come to an end, so Omar Minaya still must do something to improve this team before the July 31st trade deadline.  Although there have been some swirling reports of a possible trade for Matt Holliday, Minaya will have to get awfully creative to be able to make such a deal because the Mets' farm system lacks the talent to even come close to landing the Rockies' slugger.

Continue reading "Big Pelf and the Mets Take Nine Into All-Star Break"

    The Mets are riding their longest winning streak since 2000 heading into the second half tonight in Cincinnati, and they will have their ace on the hill to try to extend it.  Johan Santana is a disappointing 8-7 so far this season but still boasts a fantastic 2.84 ERA, good enough for fourth in the National League.  Despite a relatively lousy second half last year (5-7, 4.04 ERA), Santana has excellent career numbers after the All-Star break.  He is 50-17 in 108 starts, with a 2.79 ERA and 642 strikeouts in 606.1 innings.  The Mets hope that their improved play of late will only help Santana reach those lofty second half expectations, and lead the team through a pennant race.  Santana gets the start tonight against the Reds and rookie starter Johnny Cueto.

Continue reading "Johan Looks to Start Second Half Strong Tonight"

    Aside from Billy Wagner, who picked up his 23rd save with a perfect ninth, the Mets' pitching was bad all around last night in Cincinnati.  Johan Santana's velocity was alarmingly low, and he was battered around, pitching through bases loaded trouble in the second inning before giving up five runs in the fourth, his final inning of the night.  Aaron Heilman lost his command after getting two outs in the seventh, and Scott Schoenweis allowed the big blow, a bases clearing double by Javier Valentin.  But the offense continued to roll, as Carlos Delgado, Fernando Tatis and David Wright each hit two-run homers, and the Mets pounded out 10 runs, including four in the ninth off closer Francisco Cordero.  Wright's bomb tied the game with one out, and Delgado followed three batters later with the go-ahead RBI single.  The victory moves the Mets into a first place tie with the Phillies at 52-44.

Continue reading "David Wright Bails Out Poor Pitching, Mets Win Tenth Straight"

   After splitting the four-game series in Cincinnati, the Mets are back in a first-place tie with the Phillies for the lead in the NL East.  Lately it hasn't only been Jose Reyes, David Wright and Carlos Beltran leading the offense; Carlos Delgado has been on fire recently and came through with the clutch, game-tying hit in the seventh inning on Sunday, and the Mets' bench players have been carrying the torch as well.  The "irregulars," (as Mets television broadcaster Gary Cohen puts it) such as Fernando Tatis, Endy Chavez, Damion Easley and Ramon Castro, have been igniting the Mets' offense for the past three weeks.  But two new players with anything but household names were just as instrumental to the Mets' success in Cincy as anyone getting paid upwards of $12 million per year:  Argenis Reyes and Robinson Cancel.

Continue reading "Makeshift Mets Back In First, But What's the Matter With John Maine?"

    When the Mets traded for and signed Johan Santana in January, tonight's game was exactly what they had in mind.  The ace will take the mound tonight at Shea to face the Phillies, who are tied with the Mets atop the National League East.  Tonight would be a perfect situation for the type of start Mets fans are itching for out of Santana.  Overall, despite his 3.10 ERA, Santana's season has been a disappointment to this point.  His 8-7 record is mediocre, his strikeout rate is down, his batting average against is up, and his solid ERA is also misleading in that it does not reflect the grand slam he allowed to pitcher Felix Hernandez of the Mariners.  Santana has only pitched into the eighth inning once this season, and Duaner Sanchez ultimately blew that game in the ninth.  Tonight is an opportunity for Santana to turn his sub-par season around, and show Mets fans that he is worth his exhorbitant contract

Continue reading "Johan Santana Takes the Hill With First Place on the Line"

    A day after the Mets' bullpen acted out a microcosm of the final 17 games of 2007, Billy Wagner was back on the mound with a three-run lead in the ninth inning on Wednesday, and Mets fans could not be happier.  Wagner's save in the 6-3 victory not only sealed the win and moved the Mets back into a first place tie with the Phillies, but it also put the minds of many a Mets fan at ease, knowing that the true closer is once again available to pitch.  After the game Wagner said he looked better than he felt, but hopefully he continues to feel well enough to pitch 1-2-3 ninth innings.

    There is some controversy over whether the bullpen meltdown Tuesday night should have been avoided via Johan Santana pitching the ninth inning.  Jerry Manuel said that had Santana been adamant about wanting to stay in the game, he would have left him in.  I don't think it was a bad move to pull Santana after only 105 pitches because he did look like he was losing steam in the eighth, and his spot in the batting order came up in the bottom of the eighth.  However, it would have been nice to see Santana fight for the opportunity to finish the game.  Ultimately, Santana still pitched a phenomenal game and Manuel made a sound decision in turning the game over to Duaner Sanchez.  The bottom line is that a quartet of major league pitchers (Sanchez, Pedro Feliciano, Joe Smith and Aaron Heilman) absolutely need to be capable of recording three outs without allowing three runs, let alone six runs.  I don't know what it is about the ninth inning, but some pitchers are just not cut out to pitch in those situations.

Continue reading "Billy Wagner Never Looked So Good"

    Neither the good nor the bad version of Oliver Perez showed up on Thursday at Shea--the spectacular version came to play against the Phillies.  Perez struck out 12 batters over 7.2 innings, including six whiffs of Chase Utley and Ryan Howard, as he out-dueled Jamie Moyer, who pitched a gem of his own.  Carlos Delgado came through with the big hit, a two-run double off the previously unhittable J.C. Romero, in the eighth, and Billy Wagner nailed down the win in the ninth with his 26th save.  Fittingly, Jimmy Rollins, who did not start because he arrived an hour late to the ballpark, made the final out of the game.  After Tuesday night's ninth inning meltdown, the bullpen tossed 4.1 scoreless innings, including back-to-back saves by Wagner, and the Mets took two of three from Philadelphia, despite losing the first game of the series.  New York is now 9-4 against the Phillies this season.

Continue reading "Mets Continue to Roll Behind Delgado, Perez and Pelfrey"

    When the bullpen blew the game after Santana's eight stellar innings on Tuesday, fans and media types alike griped that the ace should have finished the game.  Saturday night's 14-inning marathon necessitated a long outing from Santana, and he answered the call, this time by pitching a complete game six-hitter, to put the exclamation point on the Mets' 9-1 win in the rubber game of the series against St. Louis.  The lone blemish on his masterful performance was Albert Pujols' seventh inning solo home run, but as Aaron Heilman learned early Sunday morning, you sometimes just tip your cap when that man hits one out.

    Saturday's game was a wild one in which the Mets erased deficits of four and three, and pounded out 16 hits and four home runs in the process.  Carlos Delgado continued his unbelievable resurgence, homering twice and driving in three, and Fernando Tatis continued his bid for Comeback Player of the Year, with his game-tying homer in the ninth inning.  The battle of the bullpens ensued, continuing toe for toe into the 14th inning, before Pujols put the Cardinals in front with a two-run home run off Heilman, who was in his third inning of work.  The loss itself wasn't as hard to swallow as it could have been because of the two big comebacks, but New York certainly had plenty of chances.  In all they left 16 runners on base and only had one hit in 16 at-bats with runners in scoring position.  The bullpen pitched a total of nine innings in relief of Brandon Knight, who lasted just five innings in his first start as a Met.

Continue reading "Santana Goes the Distance, Mets Stay Hot"

    Monday night in Miami was an all-around bad experience for the Mets.  John Maine cruised into the fifth inning with a 2-0 lead, and looked just fine to the naked eye.  But after Maine missed with a 1-0 fastball to John Baker, Jerry Manuel, Dan Warthen and Ray Ramirez, the trainer, jogged out to the mound to consult with Maine.  He appeared to say he was fine, and stayed in the game for the time being.  But after his next pitch to Baker left the yard for a solo home run, and his 1-2 pitch to Marlins pitcher Ricky Nolasco chased Endy Chavez to the warning track to make the catch, Manuel and Warthen decided they had seen enough, and pulled Maine in favor of Carlos Muniz.  Maine is listed as day-to-day with shoulder stiffness, and Warthen said he was most concerned that Maine might develop further injuries if he tried to compensate in his delivery to protect his shoulder.  In all likelihood Maine will miss a start in order to rest his shoulder, and hopefully pitch again next week.  After the game Manuel was adamant that Maine will not pitch through any pain.

Continue reading "Mets Fried By Fish, Maine Leaves Early"

    The trade deadline is approaching and the Mets still have some needs to fill.  It's still unknown whether Ryan Church will be able to come back and play everyday, so a corner outfielder is certainly a priority.  On Monday Jerry Manuel named Fernando Tatis the everyday left fielder, but his red-hot month may not, and probably will not, last.  Even if Tatis remains decent as a starter, the uncertainty surrounding Church's health calls for a stronger bench.  Endy Chavez is an excellent defensive replacement outfielder, but when he plays everyday he eventually gets exposed offensively, so he is really more suited to a role as a fourth outfielder.  Casey Blake would have been a good fit because he can play both corner outfield positions as well as first base, but he has already been traded to the Dodgers.

Continue reading "Trade Market: Will The Mets Be Involved?"

    For the third time in a week, the Mets showed some moxie last night in winning convincingly the day after a disconcerting loss.  First, it was John Maine's solid performance against the Phillies the day after the bullpen blew Johan Santana's eight-inning gem.  Then, it was Santana going the distance to conserve the worn out bullpen the day after the five-hour, 14-inning loss to St. Louis.  And last night Oliver Perez fought through six innings, allowing just the one first-inning run, after the bullpen blew an eighth-inning lead on Monday.  David Wright gave the Mets an early lead with an RBI double in the first and Carlos Beltran put New York ahead with a rare two-out RBI single in the sixth.  Carlos Delgado jacked a two-run homer in the eighth for insurance, and Heilman pitched two scoreless innings for the hold, before Billy Wagner tossed a perfect ninth for his 27th save.

Continue reading "Heilman Holds Perez's Lead, Delgado Puts it Away"