The Woes Continue

You couldn't have asked for anything more of Mike Pelfrey. He went seven innings giving up one run while striking out four. It was amazing how Odalis Perez bounced back from his last start against the Mets. Facing the team that lit him up for seven runs last go around, Perez struck out six last night, allowing only for hits and surrendering no runs. After Perez came out, the Nationals bullpen allowed no hits for what was a great night for Washington pitching. Pelfrey faced trouble early on when he had runners on the corners with two out and Elijah Dukes stepping to the plate. Pelfrey prevented any Deja Vu and struck out Dukes to end the inning. On to the worst inning of the night, the fifth inning. Anderson Hernandez started the inning off with a walk, and next Wil Nieves grounded into a double play. Why does that sound so bad you may ask. Well, I'm about to tell you. The starting pitcher, Odalis Perez stepped up to plate, so you assume, alright let's get this guy out and end the inning, right? WRONG. Perez hits a fly ball to left field, in comes Fernando Tatis, he lays out and doesn't come up with it. the ball rolls a little ways in the outfield and standing at second base with a double is Odalis Perez. On the diving catch attempt, Fernando Tatis hit the ground hard on his shoulder and stayed there in major pain. Tatis walked off the field under his own power(he hurt his shoulder, not his leg) and after the game, the injury was reported to be a separated shoulder. The injury will end Fernando Tatis' amazing comeback year. So, Nick Evans came in to play in left field and Willie Harris, the next batter is walked. On comes Christian Guzman who has been such a difficult out not only for the Mets but for many teams this season. The Mets got lucky but not too lucky. Guzman hit one deep to left center which hopped once before going over the wall for a ground rule double. Obviously allowing a run isn't lucky, but it initially looked as if the ball had a chance to get over the wall on a fly(a homerun). Ryan Zimmerman flew out to end a dreadful inning for New York in which they lost a key player for the year and allowed the one run that beat them. What makes that one run worse is that a pitcher scored it. The closest the Mets came to scoring the rest of the game came when Ramon Martinez was on third base with two outs and Ryan Church at the plate. And......Church struck out swinging. Joel Hanrahan had a 1-2-3 inning in the ninth, striking out two to send the Mets half a game back of the Phillies in the NL East. Yes, the Mets are still a half game ahead of the Brewers in the wild card and we should be somewhat satisfied they remain in the playoff race but YOU CAN'T LOSE 1-0 TO THE WASHINGTON NATIONALS! Now that the Mets are trailing the Phillies, we can only hope they will have more fire and more of a will to climb back up into first place.

Mets Fall to Nats as the Ship Continues to Sink

The down trodden Mets made there way into Washington Monday night looking to regain their footing amongst their opponent, the Nationals who were the bearer of the worst record in the MLB. The pitching matchup was Pedro Martinez vs. John Lannan, who I can still not say enough about, and New York looked to redeem themselves. Pedro had a shaky first inning after the first two batters he faced got on base. Ryan Zimmerman came up and grounded into a double play, which allowed Willie Harris to score and just like that, the Mets were losing again. Pedro finished off the inning without any more damage done and the Mets looked to get things tied up. In the third inning, Brian Schneider who had doubled and gone to third on a sac fly scored on a Jose Reyes ground out to shortstop. Now with a 1-1 score, we move to the bottom of the fourth inning, where the Nats struck again. With Lastings Milledge on second, Aaron Boone singled to center(he was thrown out a second) to score Milledge and New York was down again. Through seven innings, John Lannan had stifled the Mets, allowing only one hit and walking three batters. Lannan proved again that he could perform well against one of the league's better offensive teams and continues to put his name out there. Since I first saw him pitch against the Mets earlier this season, I have seen what great potential Lannan has. I'll put it out there again, the Mets should see if they can get him because if he were on a team that could produce runs more consistently then his record would be far greater than it is now. And John Lannan has pitched much better than his record shows. With two men on in the sixth, former Met Anderson Hernandez upped the Nats' lead to 4-1 with a two RBI single. Although the Mets offense had not been getting things going this game, you couldn't count them out with only a three run deficit with three innings more to play. However, things began to go from bad to worse in the seventh when Elijah Dukes took Duaner Sanchez deep for a three run homer. The Mets showed a bit of life in the eighth after Lannan came out, as they had got runners on first and second for Jose Reyes. Reyes took advantage of the situation and scored Luis Castillo with a single to center. Ryan Church came up next and singled to load the bases for David Wright who was coming off his two home run performance against Atlanta. Nationals fans looked on in terror as Wright stepped in but had no trouble dealing with his double play ground ball. There was a bright spot to the bottom of the eighth inning though. Mets prospect Bobby Parnell pitched the eighth and had a nice debut, surrendering nothing and pitching with some good velocity. Fernando Tatis doubled with two out in the ninth, but the Mets made nothing of it and fell to Washington 7-2. This was a game where the Metropolitan offense looked dead. As we saw the game before, the Mets had trouble converting with runners in scoring position and not many positives could be taken out of this game. After this loss, the Mets lead was down to a half game.

Bullpen Blows Up on Mets

Yep, the title doesn't lie, the bullpen blew it again! We have a long way to get there though, so bare with me. Oliver Perez had himself a nice outing Sunday afternoon, pitching seven innings, with eight strikeouts, allowing only two runs. One of those runs came early on, in the first inning, giving the Braves a 1-0 lead over the Mets. David Wright tied things up in the bottom of the first with a solo shot, his 30 of the season. Mets fans had a bad feeling about the game, knowing it was Chipper Jones' last game at Shea, which is a relief, yet it gave him one more chance to strike. Jones has performed so well at Shea Stadium in his career that he named his daughter Shea. So, onto the third inning, Chipper Jones is up at bat with Josh Anderson on base, and what do you know, he hits an RBI double. Once again, the Mets are faced with a one run deficit. Bottom of the third, Daniel Murphy singles, and up comes David Wright again in position to tie up the game. Wright steps in and crushes a two run homer to left field and gives the Mets a 3-2 lead. It was a very positive game for Wright who had recently been struggling but went 4 for 5 with two home runs and three RBI. In the fourth, the Mets tacked on another when Oliver Perez scored on Brent Lillibridge's throwing error. Scott Schoeneweis and Joe Smith held things together for the ninth inning as the Mets maintained their two run lead and with luck would prepare for their second straight victory. So, Luis Ayala comes out and immediately gives up two quick singles to Casey Kotchman and Kelly Johnson. Next up was Greg Norton, who was pinch hitting for Jorge Julio. At this point fans are starting to fret and after the at bat, the fretting was over. On came the boos because Greg Norton hit a pinch hit three run dinger to right field to make the score 5-4 Atlanta. Nice job, another blown game for the brutal Mets bullpen. Luis Ayala is now done and Pedro Feliciano comes out to halt Atlanta, only to allow two runners to get on base while retiring one batter. Gregor Blanco steps up and belts a double to left center which gets to the fans even more. Now with runners at second and third, Feliciano intentionally walks Omar Infante to try to set up the double play for new pitcehr Brian Stokes. The first batter Stokes faces hits a sacrifice fly to deep center field which allows Chipper Jones to score. And, just before getting out of the inning, Stokes scares everybody by getting Casey Kotchman out on a fly ball that flew high and far but stayed in play. Bottom of the ninth, time for redemption. Back to back singles for Wright and Delgado keep things moving and get the fans alive. Carlos Beltran steps in, the fans are on their feet and........Beltran lines out to center field. Fernando Tatis steps in for Ryan Church and HE strikes out swinging. Now, the game lays in the hands of Luis Castillo. And I won't even get your hopes up, Castillo pokes the ball over to second and is retired to send the Mets into a devastating defeat. This was a game the Mets needed, but around this time of the season, every game is one the Mets need. After the dismal loss, the Mets look to set things straight in Washington where they head out to face the Major League worst Nationals. By the way, I couldn't find a picture that showed how upset the Mets were, so I got one that showed how happy the Braves were.

Jon Niese: Take 2

Going into game two of Saturday's double header, the Mets were in need of a win to tread water in the NL East. And win is exactly what they got. In his second career start in the majors, Jonathon Niese was outstanding. Niese threw eight scoreless innings, surrendering only six hits while striking out seven. The Mets offense put up a solid performance with scoring beginning in the first inning via a David Wright two run homer. On to the second, Jose Reyes kept the early drive alive with a solo home run. In the third, the Mets had runners on the corners with two out and Luis Castillo at bat. However, he grounded into a fielder's choice to halt a scoring opportunity. The Braves looked to get on the board in the fourth with men on first and third and two out but Brent Lillibridge struck out looking. That was the only major threat to Jon Niese and he handled the pressure of the situation far better than he did in his first start against the Milwaukee Brewers. The Mets had another shot to beef up their lead in the fourth with Carlos Beltran at the plate and the bases full. The result was one that has become too often occuring throughout the season, a strike out. Looking to redeem himself in the seventh inning, Carlos Beltran took Jeff Bridgway deep for his 24 home run of the season. When it came to the ninth inning, Luis Ayala got the job done and provided Jon Niese with his first career win, a 5-0 victory over the Atlanta Braves. It was a big win for the Mets who were pressed to win after the Phillies defeated Milwaukee.

Mets Lose it Late

Johan Santana was on the mound for the first game of a double header with the Braves Saturday afternoon and Mets fans had to be feeling pretty confident. There hadn't been much action in the game until the Mets found themselves with the bases loaded in the bottom of the fourth inning. Damion Easley stepped up the bat and smacked a single to left field , scoring Carlos Beltran and keeping the bases juiced. Next up was Brian Schneider, who grounded into a double play, but allowed Carlos Delgado to score. Johan Santana ended the inning by grounding out to second, stranding Fernando Tatis at third. The game went into cruise control for Santana and Mike Hampton after that until the Mets made a bid to score in the bottom of the sixth inning. After a Carlos Beltran walk, Delgado belted a double deep to left field. Fernando Tatis, the next batter was intentionally walked, so now the bases were loaded once again for Damion Easley. Looking to add on to the lead, Easley hit a ground ball short, which was thrown straight to Brian McCann, the catcher, for the force out, and then thrown over to first base to get the difficult double play. Brian Schneider was up next and was intentionally walked to get to Santana who can hit the ball alright for a pitcher. With two strikes, Santana took a big hack and struck out. Santana began the eighth inning, but was unable to retire the first two batters, allowing to single to center field. Scott Schoeneweis came in for relief, mustache and all and immediately gave up a single to load the bases. That was all for him and on came Brian Stokes. Facing his first batter of the day, Stokes gave up a single to Jeff Francoeur which scored two and just like that, the game was tied. Those two runs would be charged to Santana, but before the inning was over, the Braves would score again when Omar Infante hit a sacrifice deep to center field that scored Casey Kotchman. I hate to be a downer, but nothing else really happened after that, the Mets were stuck with a 3-2 defeat, unable to pick up a win with their ace on the mound. After a nagging loss, the Mets looked to rookie Jon Niese to bring things back to speed in the second game of the double header.

NL East Lead Mounts as Magic Number Declines

In what felt like a repeat of Tuesday's win, the Mets, donned in their hats for 9/11(they don't have a game today so they wore them last night) defeated the Nationals in a wild one in which the Nationals again picked away at the Mets any time they got a lead. First off, I am sorry to say Carlos Delgado wasn't able to hit two home runs however he did score a run and notch another RBI. For the first time in a long time, David Wright showed up to the ballpark, going four for four with two RBI coming from a two run home run in the eighth inning which gave the Mets more insurance for the ninth inning. Cristian Guzman killed the Mets at the plate, going three for five with two home runs and five RBI. I think it's safe to say Lastings Milledge defined lack luster defense last night continuing to do what he always seems to do at Shea Stadium, his former home. Milledge, a center fielder, played so deep in the outfield that he was unable to make plays that should be routine. Carlos Beltran and Fernando Tatis were basically handed an extra base when Cristian Guzman wasn't able to handle the ball. However, as the ball rolled to center field, we would soon learn it wouldn't be Guzman's fault, but none other than Milledge. Beltran had just finished a head first dive back to second and seemed to begin to call time while Milledge still isn't in possession of the ball. After he picked up the ball, he proceeded to fall as he continued to show off a bad defensive performance. Mike Pelfrey was not the man he has been of late, pitching oddly off as did Oliver Perez the night before. Pelfrey allowed five earned runs and had great difficulty spotting his pitches. He couldn't take control of the game like we have seen him do so well and gave up eight hits while lasting only five innings. In just five innings, Pelfrey tossed 96 pitches and more than half of those for balls. Aaron Heilman returned to his old self, giving up two earned runs and Brian Stokes, a man who people have been raving about because he hasn't killed the Mets like other relief pitchers. Well, their goes that option, the bullpen is back to normal. And now starting to become normal, Joe Smith recorded his second consecutive win which was secured by another Luis Ayala save. Sounds a lot like Deja Vu. Readers, don't worry, Elijah Dukes will not pop out of this article.

I just want to point out the kid on the right in the second picture telling Elijah Dukes to go back to the dugout. That boy better pray he has a strong dad or good health insurance.

As of right now, the Mets have, please say it with confidence, 17 games left this season. Compared to last year, the Mets lead is 3 1/2 games fewer and the Mets this year have one fewer win meaning obviously, one more loss. Don't fret! The Mets have been hitting the ball well lately and are showing they are able to win even if their starting pitching STINKS! Let's hope that the starting pitching can get back on track in time for the upcoming three game series with the Atlanta Braves. The Mets' magic number is 14 and as the Phillies are losing, the Mets are winning. This is good. Fans, please don't worry about another collapse. I was at the last game of the season last year and things were not pretty. When I go to what I hope will be the last regular season game at Shea Stadium, I am sure things will be very different. Tomorrow night, Johan Santana goes up against former Met Mike Hampton who has actually been pitching alright this year, the surprise being that he is actually pitching. So, take a breather and relax. For now things are going well. If things go wrong, then you can flip out, but lighten up because I have great news.....starting tomorrow, there will be a new poll. I know, I myself have been sick of seeing the same names with the same results for this long. You voted Francisco Rodriguez as the player the Mets should make a run at when he becomes a free agent, and you made a great decision. Looking at the Mets now, they could use a proven closer. It will cost them but I would have to agree that K-Rod was the right choice for this poll, but there is no right or wrong. And besides, every single vote for him was made before the news of Billy Wagner being out for the rest of this year and next year. Expect something new soon in the upcoming days, keep reading!

Delgado Continues Rampage as Mets Win an Ugly One

Tuesday night was another Carlos Delgado night. Words can't explain how much of a tear he is on now. As I have recently said, all of this offensive explosion is coming during a season that was supposed to be his last and one that would confirm his decline. Delgado has beat the critics, in this 10-8 win, he went three for three with two home runs and three RBIs. Also homering for the Mets in this game that the Nationals kept clawing back in were Ryan Church and Carlos Beltran who hit his right before Delgado's second in the sixth. Oliver Perez didn't have it, lasting only 3 and 1/3 innings and taking credit for all seven runs that were scored while he was on the mound. For one of the first times in recent memory, the Mets bullpen allowed an earned run when former Met Anderson Hernandez grounded out to second while the run scored. Brandon Knight gave up that run, but every relief pitcher who appeared after him surrendered one or no hits while striking out one. Joe Smith got the win and Luis Ayala recorded save number six. 

Speaking of saves, Billy Wagner has promised he will return to the MLB and do what he can with his age and arm. It's sad for a great pitcher late in his career like Wagner to have a setback like this preventing him from finishing his career on a high note. Anyway, I ddn't want to get too much into this game because most of you have already seen highlights and heard about it by now. Basically, Carlos Delgado has become a force to be reckoned with. And, if anyone would like to contribute to this Blog, I am considering expansion to more areas of professional sports and could use some help if I choose to pursue it. If anyone is interested, please leave a comment stating what you would want to write about. I can get back to you and then you can send me an article for me to consider your spot with. Keep watching games.

Delgado Does Work

Anyone Mets fan who saw the second game of the double header Sunday night breathed a deep sigh of relief thanks mostly to a man who at the beginning of the season seemed like a very unlikely MVP candidate. After a season of great decline last year which continued on into the first half of this season, all of the experts said Delgado was done. They said he would never be able to put up his natural numbers which used to be at least 30 home runs and at least 100 RBIs. Sunday night, on ESPN, broadcasted all throughout the U.S. Delgado continued his hot streak by going 3 for 4 with two home runs and four RBI. Delgado handed it to Cole Hamels, who lasted only five innings and threw 110 pitches. Johan Santana bounced back well after giving up an RBI single and a solo shot to Ryan Howard early on, managing to strike out six and lower his ERA by 0.01 for what it's worth. For yet another game, the Mets bullpen was right on cue, allowing only one run, which wasn't earned, and trying to give Mets fans a good feeling about their relief pitching. This 6-3 victory was much needed for the Amazins who would have fallen into a tie for first place with the Phillies which would have phsycologically messed with them as well as put on the obvious pressure of being right with them in the race. Oh and just to throw it in there before it's too late, Charlie Manuel was ejected from the game in the bottom of the first inning for arguing balls and strikes.

Tonight, the Mets are currently tied 2-2 with the Washington Nationals who have John Lannan starting for them, a pitcher who I think very highly of. This year, in what will be recorded as his rookie season, Lannan has allowed more than four runs in only six of his 28 starts including tonight. Lannan is already after the game after surrendering five runs to the Mets. He has 101 strikeouts with an ERA of 4.09 and a record of 8-13. Before tonight's game he had a solid WHIP of 1.34 and has been pitching great for a Nationals team that hasn't provided him with too much run support. If he were to play for say the Mets, I would say his record would be at least 14-8. Lannan has proven he can pitch well against good offensive teams with solid performances against the Cubs, Rangers, Dodgers, Brewers, and Mets. At times, he has been throwing beautiful pitches that get batters swinging silly while he has also shown a few explosions as he did tonight against the Mets. Three of the five runs Lannan has allowed have come from two home runs, one a solo shot from Ryan Church and the other a two run shot from non other than Carlos Delgado. Delgado now has 67 RBIs in his last 66 games, including tonight's game which hasn't concluded. Right now, Delgado is making himself an MVP candidate. Well all in all, I do have to say I love John Lannan's stuff and really wish the Mets could try to get him seeing as the may be running dry in the starting pitching department next year.

DONE:The Sandman is Blown Away

      

Today, an announcement was made that Billy Wagner will not be back this season, nor is it likely he will throw a pitch in 2009. The news broke today when an MRI showed he had a torn medial collateral ligament in his pitching elbow. This type of injury should require Tommy John surgery which is known to take a long period of time to recover from. Now, it looks like the Mets will be a big part of the bidding for current Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez whose contract is up at the end of the season. Even if Wagner were to recover successfully, it is unlikely that with his older age and an older, aching elbow that he would be able to throw similar to how he had been recently. Unless Luis Ayala improves significantly, the Mets might have to make a big run at K-Rod. The down side is that his price is likely to be very high and the Mets won't be the only team competing for the closer who is only two saves away from tying the single season MLB record. Billy Wagner is owed $10.5 million next year and it is going to be a whole lot to chew on. At this point, Mets fans can only hope that either K-Rod will come with out spending too much money(doubt that) or a proven relief pitcher emerges somewhere from within the organization.

When Will it Stop?

This afternoon, the Mets offense continued to stall as New York fell to the Phillies 6-2. Today, Jamie Moyer pitched incredibly, using all of his stuff. He went seven innings, allowing two hits, which didn't even get out of the infield. One of them was a bunt for a base hit by Robinson Cancel and the other, a grounder that went to second which Damion Easley beat out. And, it looks like we have found a new candidate for Mets killer. After his two run homer Friday night, Greg Dobbs wasn't done. Today he went 2-4 with his big hit being a three run homer. Pedro Martinez looked awful. He couldn't get anyone out as he allowed seven hits, walked a batter and took credit for all six runs given up. There were two positives for the Mets this afternoon, one of them being.....yes I'm saying it again, the bullpen. Everyone coming out of the pen today threw great today. It seemed like when they found trouble, they got out, kind of like Aaron Heilman's double play. Talk about perfect timing, the next batter he faced got a single and before the inning was over, his replacement Pedro Feliciano walked a batter. So once again the Mets avoided another bullpen meltdown. The other high note of the game was the eighth inning rally sparked by three consecutive doubles with two outs. But, the downer was Carlos Delgado striking out with Carlos Beltran on third. But, you can't win 'em or hit 'em all. The two runs scored by the Mets in the eighth inning stopped a 16 inning scoreless streak. Today, the outfield wasn't exactly solid. Both Carlos Beltran and Fernando Tatis misjudged/couldn't get to a few balls. In Fernando Tatis' case, you can't really blame him. Asides from the sun beaming down the entire game, there were so many balls hit fair and foul to right field, but every single one seemed to be about 50 feet away from Tatis. I thought he was going to need oxygen. Play after play, he would sprint across the field trying to track down ball after ball. I guess one of the best ways to put the game into one scene was when Jose Reyes ran out as Nick Evans came in, neither of whom could quite find the ball, allowing it to drop inbetween them. Well, enough with the negativity of the afternoon, because right now things look great tonight, despite David Wright just striking out with one out and the bases loaded.

One last thing I have to rant about. Are you kidding? In case you aren't watching, Beltran just popped out to Ryan Howard in foul territory. Back to my anger and frustration. When the Mets win, fans get to enjoy the song Takin' Care of Business. Have you ever noticed the song fans listen to when the Mets fail to win? After the recent defeats I have noticed the Jurassic Park song being whisped into the mellow Flushing air. Who wants to think about either an exciting dinosaur movie directed by Steven Spielberg or a fantastic ride at Universal Studios after a defeat. My point is, what kind of a song is that to play. I guess it's a little mellow and depressing so it adds to the mood but talk about picking a completely random song to denote your defeat with. Well that's all for now, be sure to get back her to read the next post for Mets Baseball. I couldn't resist putting in two pictures for this game.

Mets Fall But Can Make Up In a Big Way

Friday night was not a very exciting one for Mets fans. Brett Myers dominated as the Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Mets 3-0. Anyone who watched the game could tell you that there was not much to cheer about. After Shane Victorino scored unearned, the Mets could never quite put things together until late. To be honest, there were three moments where you felt any positive energy watching the game. They were both times Daniel Murphy doubled, and the bottom of the ninth. As the game progressed, Greg Dobbs came up to bat in the top of the seventh with Ryan Howard on board. Dobbs took a cut at the delivery from Mike Pelfrey and drove it to right field. Ryan Church did a great job of positioning himself at the wall while looking up at the ball. He leapt into the air, but the ball just nicked the end of his mitt. Following the home run, Church slapped his glove on his leg in frustration. That inning would be Pelfrey's last. However, you have to credit Pelfrey with keeping the Mets in the game as he continued his streak of fine outings which seem to be coming every start now. The bullpen allowed nothing and going into the bottom in the ninth, the Mets still had a shot. After Daniel Murphy flied out, David Wright hit a shot to center that went for a ground rule double. Next up was Carlos Delgado who singled to center, sending Wright to third. Now with runners at the corners and only one out, Carlos Beltran came to bat, and a week after his ninth inning grand slam, he was looking to do the same sort of thing. When Beltran found a pitch he like, he took a home run swing at the ball that would have been gone had there been more break on the ball. However, he hit the ball right off the end of the bat and flew out to left. Ryan Church came up to bat and Delgado got over to second base on defensive indifference, which is the defense opting not to throw to make sure they don't make an error. Defensive indifference usually occurs in the later innings of a game. So, Ryan Church had a shot at being a hero. With Mets fans standing awaiting the fate of the club, Church hit a shot to center which looked very promising. Shane Victorino didn't appear to have solid footing and a comeback looked imminent but Victorino found his way over to the ball to extinguish the fire.

Today is a huge day for the Mets. After being rained out yesterday, New York is host to a double header with the Phillies in two games that could make or break a shot at the post season. As of right now the Mets hold a two game lead over the Phillies, and the race is continuing to heat up. That'll do it for Mets Baseball today. And, just for the record, anyone who has a question, thought, or suggestion for the blog's appearance or writing can just leave a comment on the latest post. Try not to watch too much football today!

Enter Sandman?

The latest news on Billy Wagner is in and if all goes as planned, he should be back with the Mets Tuesday when they begin a two game series with the Nationals. Right now, the options for Wagner based on how he feels are to pitch for Class A, with the Brooklyn Cyclones to get ready. Or, the other option would be to throw a simulated inning as opposed to a simulated game, because he is a closer. A simulated game/inning is simply when a pitcher faces live batters and has a coach or teammate keep track of the count, outs, and decide whether or not a ball hit into play would be a hit or an out. If Wagner where to be able to get back to the Mets and pitch close to where he was prior to his trip to the DL, it would make the road to the playoffs much easier and stress free for all Mets fans. Although they have pitched well of late, the Mets bullpen cannot be trusted, and not to say Wagner hasn't ever blown games, but Billy Wagner is the best man the Mets can throw out of the pen. He is by far the most reliable, and even listening to Enter Sandman just makes fans feel more energized and secure. No other Mets pitcher can provide as much of an adrenaline boost like Billy Wagner. You know the Mets are in a good position to make the playoffs when they can blow multiple games late and still win consistently enough to maintain a large lead over the Phillies. Below is a video of Billy Wagner after he enters the game. Hopefully we'll be seeing a lot of this for games and weeks to come. Enjoy.

Another Win and the Magic Begins

Yesterday the Mets had another solid victory over the Brewers to give them a relaxing three game lead over the second place Phillies. I will talk about yesterday's game but I want to talk more about the playoff race and other matters. The first inning of yesterday's game was highlighted by a Delgado RBI single, a Ryan Church grand slam, and a Brian Schneider solo home run. The grand slam was obviously big for the Mets but it was even bigger for Church who has been struggling to get on base since his latest return from his post concussion symptoms. Church had been saying that he was just looking to get up to bat and crank one to get the feel back and try to retain the performance he had at the beginning of the season prior to his injury. Oliver Perez had a solid outing with five strikeouts. He allowed a solo shot to J.J. Hardy, and the Brewers scored their only other run on a Corey Hart RBI double. Perez went 6 and 2/3 but one number that he would like to go down is the five walks he surrendered yesterday. Not as much so in the second half, but in the first there were many occasions were Perez would lose control and blow away a great game stemming from two walks. Early on, with Perez, after allowing a hit or two and a walk, the wheels began to fall off immediately and the decision seemed to be lost. But, in his last few starts, Perez has proven himself to be a solid number two pitcher in the rotation. If he keeps it up and can help the Mets get into the playoffs, the odds of the Mets resigning him will definitely be heightened. However, don't be surprised to spot Perez missing next year, as it is likely he will be asking for a pretty hefty raise. The Mets would win yesterday's game 9-2 and after a Phillies loss to the Nationals, the Mets finally got their magic number of 20. As said best by Yahoo.com "The magic number represents the combination of wins by the leading team and losses by the second-place (or tied) team that would clinch the division title."

Beginning on Friday, the Mets open up a three-game series with the trailing Philadelphia Phillies. This series is one of the most important of the whole season. If the Mets were to win two of the three games, their lead would over Philly would be four games. The Mets would be in great playoff position with a four game lead and only 17 games left in the season. If the Mets were to either drop or split the first two games of the series, they will throw out ace Johan Santana on Sunday to face the Phillie's #1, Cole Hamels. Santana who has been the stopper this year when the Mets begin to skid is coming off one of his best starts of the season in which he pitched six innings, allowing two runs and striking out 10 batters. 

As the games left in the season begin to dwindle down, we must not alo forget that this is the last season at Shea Stadium. After the conclusion of this season, the Mets will play all of their home games right next door at their new stadium, Citi Field which looks to be in great shape. The down side to the new stadium is the large plummet in seat numbers. The approximate number of fewer seats in Citi Field will be around 12,000. This will surely make ticket prices go up, especially if the Mets make the playoffs. It's sad that not all fans will be able to experience the new home of the Amazins. The rocketing MLB ticket prices are not right, but let's just be happy we aren't Yankees fans(Sorry to all Yankee fans reading this). No matter how much the Mets single game and season tickets go up, there is now way to beat the Yankees. It's absolutely absurd how much ticket prices are going up for the Yankees, a team that most likely will not qualify for the playoffs. A team that blew millions of dollars on pitcher Carl Pavano who is one of the biggest wastes of money is sports history. I recently checked out what tickets were going for at Yankee Stadium for the final game ever played there. My jaw dropped. Fans are trying to sell BLEACHER SEATS for $20,000! What I tell you next is clearly a joke by the seller, but one fan is selling his/her tickets for $999,999. With that kind of money, you could probably by two decent tickets for every game the Yankees play for about the next 15 years.

Well, I'd say I rambled on for a good chunk of time in the last paragraph. As for new posts, expect a minimum of two a week, but check every two days. That's it for Mets Baseball, keep reading to stay up to date with the New York Mets, the MLB, and anything else that pops into my mind. Thanks.

Mets Win it in 10 after a Rocky Debut

It was a debut that could be characterized by one at bat, the first. Facing his first Major League batter of his career, Jonathon Niese gave up a leadoff home run to Milwaukee second baseman Rickie Weeks. Niese could not spot his pitches and walked the next two batters. After getting Prince Fielder to ground out to Carlos Delgado for what should have been a double play, Niese settled in a bit. He began to throw pitches with more accuracy. However, his two strikeouts to end the inning both came from swings at balls in the dirt. In the second inning, the Mets got the offense going early which has seemed like the story of the second half. After a Beltran walk and a Delgado single to left, Fernando Tatis, arguably the acquisition of the year, doubled in Beltran. On the following play, Damion Easley grounded out to the shortstop, allowing Delgado to score. The Mets continued to pump up the score when Beltran hit a home run to right field that bounced off the top of the wall. Going into the fourth, Niese ran into more trouble when he allowed the first to batters to get hits. The third batter of the inning, Brewers pitcher Manny Parra, who can hit very well for a pitcher, double in two runs. The score now being 5-3 with the Mets ahead, Niese gave up a single to Weeks, which was followed by a J.J. Hardy single. After that, Niese was done and Nelson Figueroa came in to stop the bleeding. He struck out the first batter he faced but walked Prince Fielder to load the bases. Corey Hart singled to score Weeks but J.J. Hardy was gunned down at home. From that point on, the Mets bullpen gave up next to nothing and showed Mets fans a sign of hope. Later in the 10th with the score tied 5-5, Daniel Murphy had a pinch hit single and Jose Reyes reached first base on catcher, Jason Kendall's throwing error. Endy Chavez was the next man up, and he got the job done by hitting a sacrifice fly to right field. That was it for the Mets in the tenth, and then came Luis Ayala to close things out. After retiring the first two batters, Ayala allowed the next two runners to get on base with a single and walk. With two men on and two out, Ayala struck out Rickie Weeks swinging to give the Mets their second win of the series against Milwaukee. 

The above photo of Jonathon Niese was shot at spring training and was shot by Orlin Wagner

In the Midst of a Division Race

    

Welcome to Mets Baseball, a blog that will cover all areas of the New York Mets and various parts of the MLB. As of right now, the Mets are in the middle of a three game series with the Milwaukee Brewers. Yesterday, the Mets defeated Milwaukee despite trailing 2-0 after six innings. Johan Santana pitched brilliantly after the 1st inning and tallied 10 strikeouts to contribute to the club's total of 15 yesterday. The Mets breathed a sigh of relief after Brewers pitcher Ben Sheets took himself out of the game after 5 innings of shutout baseball. New York was unable to get anything going against Sheets who allowed only two hits. The injury sustained to Sheets is said to be a groin injury. If this injury requires him to sit out for an extended period of time, it could be a major blow to a deep run in the playoffs for the Brew Crew. David Wright who has lengthened his swing recently went 0 for 5, but luckily Carlos Delgado continued to perform offensively. Down 2-1 in the eighth, Delgado hit a two-run homer over the right field wall to give New York a 3-2 lead. Later in the inning, Carlos Beltran scored on a double to left by Ryan Chruch. However, when Beltran slid into home plate, he collided with umpire Ed Rapuano and is day-to-day with a knee injury. Beltran did come out to play in center field after the top of the eighth but took a bit of time getting out of the club house. The Mets bullpen was able to strike out three batters in a row after a Ryan Braun lead off double in the eighth. And, in the ninth, Luis Ayala was able to set down three in a row to record his fourth save of the season.

Tonight the Amazins look to take the middle game of the series against Milwaukee as September call up Jonathon Niese pitches in his first major league game against Manny Parra. It is questionable whether or not Beltran will see any action, but if he isn't ready to go, Endy Chavez should get the nod to prevent any defensive loss in the outfield. That's it for now, hope you come back to read Mets Baseball again tomorrow. Thanks.