I really like Arizona and Colorado in terms of their young talent. Colorado won the season series, 10-8, but we've already seen that doesn't matter much in the playoffs.
If you look at Arizona's offensive numbers, it seems the D-backs do nothing exceptionally well other than be consistent. They hit .250/.321/.417 vs. RHP and .250/.319/.402 vs. LHP. If there is a reason for concern, it might be that they hit only .248/.320/.386 vs. Colorado pitching and batted just .244/.310/.344 at Coors.
Colorado seems to have a young, colorful group. The Rockies batted .281/.355/.443 vs. RHP and .277/.352/.420 vs. LHP. Pretty balanced. They hit .280/.361/.404 vs. the D-Backs, including .282/.365/.401 at Chase Field.
It's remarkable that the D-Backs don't have a .300 hitter (excluding pitcher Micah Owings, who honestly might be the best hitter on the team) or 100-RBI man, and just one player, rookie Chris Young, hit more than 21 HR. They scored 20 fewer runs than they allowed! According to Hardball Times, Arizona should have won 79 games.
Colorado is not only a team that's been on a roll, but I think it's the better team. I'd give the D-Backs a slight edge in starting pitching (only because of Brandon Webb, plus Owings as a hitter), maybe a slight edge in the overall bullpen, too. But I think Colorado is better offensively and defensively.
If Jeff Francis beats Webb in Game 1, the D-Backs are in big trouble. Otherwise, they've got a chance to force a 7-game series. I have no faith in Livan Hernandez. Owings could be the unknown here. He is expected to pitch Game 4, but hasn't thrown in a while because of Arizona's sweep of the Cubs.
Rockies in 7.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Hello, Charlie
The Phils gave manager Charlie Manuel a 2-year contract with a club option for a third year. As a Charlie supporter, I agree with the move.
According to the Associated Press, Manuel is 262-224 in three years in Philadelphia. Among Phillies managers, he reached 250 wins in the fewest games since Pat Moran managed the club from 1915-18.
Of course, there's been a lot of bad baseball in Philadelphia between then and now. And Charlie inherited a pretty decent squad. But I really believe that the people who get so caught up in in-game decisions -- while no doubt important -- are missing the big picture. Give Manuel credit for goodness sake; he lost four-fifths of his starting rotation, two closers, the reigning MVP and potential MVP to injuries at some point during the season and still won 89 games. I'm not saying the man is a genius or one of the game's all-time greats, but c'mon. That stuff doesn't happen by accident.
I've seen Manuel still being criticized for the Kendrick-Lohse move in Game 2 of the playoffs. The prevailing theme is Lohse shouldn't be put into a situation with that much pressure when he's unfamiliar with it. There might be some logic to this, but Lohse had pitched relief previously, and it seems guys get thrust into these situations in the postseason on a fairly regular basis.
No one probably blinked when Joe Torre brought in Mike Mussina with first and third and no outs in Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS against Boston. It was Mussina's first relief appearance of his career. He got a K and DP to end the threat. Yanks won in 11. Aaron Effing Boone.
According to the Associated Press, Manuel is 262-224 in three years in Philadelphia. Among Phillies managers, he reached 250 wins in the fewest games since Pat Moran managed the club from 1915-18.
Of course, there's been a lot of bad baseball in Philadelphia between then and now. And Charlie inherited a pretty decent squad. But I really believe that the people who get so caught up in in-game decisions -- while no doubt important -- are missing the big picture. Give Manuel credit for goodness sake; he lost four-fifths of his starting rotation, two closers, the reigning MVP and potential MVP to injuries at some point during the season and still won 89 games. I'm not saying the man is a genius or one of the game's all-time greats, but c'mon. That stuff doesn't happen by accident.
I've seen Manuel still being criticized for the Kendrick-Lohse move in Game 2 of the playoffs. The prevailing theme is Lohse shouldn't be put into a situation with that much pressure when he's unfamiliar with it. There might be some logic to this, but Lohse had pitched relief previously, and it seems guys get thrust into these situations in the postseason on a fairly regular basis.
No one probably blinked when Joe Torre brought in Mike Mussina with first and third and no outs in Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS against Boston. It was Mussina's first relief appearance of his career. He got a K and DP to end the threat. Yanks won in 11. Aaron Effing Boone.
Glove me
These are the players I think should be rewarded for defense in the AL, by position, based on almost nothing but statistical analysis:
C -- Victor Martinez, CLE
1B - Kevin Youkilis, BOS
2B - Mark Ellis, OAK
SS - Tony Pena, KC
3B - Brandon Inge, DET
LF - Shannon Stewart, OAK
CF - Curtis Granderson, DET
RF - Nick Markakis, BAL
C -- Victor Martinez, CLE
1B - Kevin Youkilis, BOS
2B - Mark Ellis, OAK
SS - Tony Pena, KC
3B - Brandon Inge, DET
LF - Shannon Stewart, OAK
CF - Curtis Granderson, DET
RF - Nick Markakis, BAL
Hello, Pudge
Pudge Rodriguez will return to the Tigers in 2008 as the club announced it has picked up his $13 million option. That's a lot of money, but 1) Detroit figured it wouldn't find a better replacement, and 2) I think ownership feels it owes Pudge for being the catalyst for the team's turnaround.
I think what you'll get from Pudge now is .280-10-65, which hardly seems worthy of $13 million, but it's only $2 million more than Pudge made this season (and Jason Varitek made $11 million for nearly the same production, and worse defense.) Pudge had a tough year behind the plate in 2007, but still managed to throw out 29% of baserunners, which was 4th among AL regulars. Most alarming was his .510 WP/PB per game, 2nd to only Jorge Posado (.530) for worst in AL. Hopefully, that's an aberration and not a trend as Pudge gets up in age.
I think what you'll get from Pudge now is .280-10-65, which hardly seems worthy of $13 million, but it's only $2 million more than Pudge made this season (and Jason Varitek made $11 million for nearly the same production, and worse defense.) Pudge had a tough year behind the plate in 2007, but still managed to throw out 29% of baserunners, which was 4th among AL regulars. Most alarming was his .510 WP/PB per game, 2nd to only Jorge Posado (.530) for worst in AL. Hopefully, that's an aberration and not a trend as Pudge gets up in age.
Goodbye, Joe?
If George Steinbrenner makes good on his threat, Joe Torre managed his final game for the Yankees last night. As much as I despise the Yanks, it's hard to hate Torre. I don't think anyone could have handled the postgame press conference yesterday any better, any classier.
Should the Yanks dismiss Joe, where will he end up? He made it clear he's not ready to quit. Might Philadelphia be a possible landing spot? Frankly, I'm not sure Joe is much different than Charlie Manuel -- only possessing a better vocabulary. But hiring Torre might calm the Charlie haters and make it appear the Phils are taking positive steps to improve in 2008.
I wonder if Torre would want to manage in Philly and be in the same division as Willie Randolph? But Philly would seem like a good fit because it's a team that's ready to win now.
Should the Yanks dismiss Joe, where will he end up? He made it clear he's not ready to quit. Might Philadelphia be a possible landing spot? Frankly, I'm not sure Joe is much different than Charlie Manuel -- only possessing a better vocabulary. But hiring Torre might calm the Charlie haters and make it appear the Phils are taking positive steps to improve in 2008.
I wonder if Torre would want to manage in Philly and be in the same division as Willie Randolph? But Philly would seem like a good fit because it's a team that's ready to win now.
Friday, October 05, 2007
Second guessing
Charlie Manuel is taking a lot of heat for lifting Kyle Kendrick in Game 2 of the playoffs, but I don't think it was a horrible move. Everyone loves Kendrick for being a gamer, and I agree. But down 1-0 in the NLDS didn't give Manuel a chance to let Kendrick gut one out.
Kendrick started two previous games against Colorado and had an ERA of 7.00, WHIP of 2.11, and BAA of .425. Those numbers don't instill confidence, and he wasn't exactly lights out Thursday. Plus, Kendrick was going to face the top of the Rockies' lineup for the third time in Thursday's game when he was lifted. If Kyle Lohse does his job, it's moot.
Lou Piniella is also taking heat for pulling Carlos Zambrano out of Game 1 of the Cubs' series against Arizona. No one is immune.
''When you manage a team, everybody's a manager, what can I tell you? The only thing is the people that write it have a chance to write it after the fact, not during,'' said Piniella.
Kendrick started two previous games against Colorado and had an ERA of 7.00, WHIP of 2.11, and BAA of .425. Those numbers don't instill confidence, and he wasn't exactly lights out Thursday. Plus, Kendrick was going to face the top of the Rockies' lineup for the third time in Thursday's game when he was lifted. If Kyle Lohse does his job, it's moot.
Lou Piniella is also taking heat for pulling Carlos Zambrano out of Game 1 of the Cubs' series against Arizona. No one is immune.
''When you manage a team, everybody's a manager, what can I tell you? The only thing is the people that write it have a chance to write it after the fact, not during,'' said Piniella.
Thursday, October 04, 2007
I think I'm ready to talk about it
You may have seen some Mets fans referring to Sunday's loss as something of a relief, coming as it did on the heels of an often difficult season of baseball to watch. They might have told you that this particular band of New York Mets was somehow unlikable or that the players had "quit" on us, the fans. Maybe they think that the bullpen would have gotten this team slaughtered in October. I am not one of these fans. This hurt.
This past Sunday ranks right with 1999 NLCS Game Six and July 30th, 2004 among the darkest days of my Mets fandom. The fact that the Mets spent the last week of August and the whole month of September blowing chance after chance to put the division away only means the agony was prolonged. The Mets could be playing a playoff game right now if Marlon Anderson had slid a little closer to second base or Billy Wagner could get six outs without giving up three runs. In the end, the Phillies were one game better than the Mets, but the way we reached that conclusion couldn't have been any more painful. The fact that we had to watch the Yankees stage a comeback from sure defeat at the same time didn't help any.
The Mets had a pretty good team this year and chances are they'll have almost exactly the same pretty good team next year. Willie Randolph will be back, but Paul Lo Duca and Shawn Green likely won't be, so Willie will have two fewer chances to choose experience over ability every day as he did so many times this year. The bullpen, a weak point both in September and in terms of Randolph's managerial tactics, will return largely intact. Giving Willie fewer terrible relievers to use in key situations in big games would seem like an easy way to improve this team, but Scott Schoeneweis and Guillermo Mota are both under contract for at least one more year. If Omar Minaya could spend his way to a great bullpen, I'm sure he would and even if he can't, he might try. But relief pitchers are inherently unpredictable and going out to spend a bunch of money on proven veterans is how you wind up giving multi-year deals to the Motas and Schoeneweises of the world.
The Mets are rich, they have reasonable expectations of contending for a division title next year and they're coming off a historic collapse. This seems like a recipe for a wild offseason. But there won't really be many flashy free agents available at positions where the Mets have need, like the starting rotation, or might think they have need, like catcher or right field. So, while I'm sure the next few months will be filled with stories that Omar is about to send every prospect the Mets have or ever will have to Minnesota in exchange for Johan Santana, I think the time between now and Spring Training might turn out to be fairly quiet. Which is a good thing. I could use some time to recover.
(Go Indians!)
This past Sunday ranks right with 1999 NLCS Game Six and July 30th, 2004 among the darkest days of my Mets fandom. The fact that the Mets spent the last week of August and the whole month of September blowing chance after chance to put the division away only means the agony was prolonged. The Mets could be playing a playoff game right now if Marlon Anderson had slid a little closer to second base or Billy Wagner could get six outs without giving up three runs. In the end, the Phillies were one game better than the Mets, but the way we reached that conclusion couldn't have been any more painful. The fact that we had to watch the Yankees stage a comeback from sure defeat at the same time didn't help any.
The Mets had a pretty good team this year and chances are they'll have almost exactly the same pretty good team next year. Willie Randolph will be back, but Paul Lo Duca and Shawn Green likely won't be, so Willie will have two fewer chances to choose experience over ability every day as he did so many times this year. The bullpen, a weak point both in September and in terms of Randolph's managerial tactics, will return largely intact. Giving Willie fewer terrible relievers to use in key situations in big games would seem like an easy way to improve this team, but Scott Schoeneweis and Guillermo Mota are both under contract for at least one more year. If Omar Minaya could spend his way to a great bullpen, I'm sure he would and even if he can't, he might try. But relief pitchers are inherently unpredictable and going out to spend a bunch of money on proven veterans is how you wind up giving multi-year deals to the Motas and Schoeneweises of the world.
The Mets are rich, they have reasonable expectations of contending for a division title next year and they're coming off a historic collapse. This seems like a recipe for a wild offseason. But there won't really be many flashy free agents available at positions where the Mets have need, like the starting rotation, or might think they have need, like catcher or right field. So, while I'm sure the next few months will be filled with stories that Omar is about to send every prospect the Mets have or ever will have to Minnesota in exchange for Johan Santana, I think the time between now and Spring Training might turn out to be fairly quiet. Which is a good thing. I could use some time to recover.
(Go Indians!)
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
Rockies 4, Phils 2
I'm not sure what to make of today's game at the Zen. Cole Hamels pitched like a youngster in his first postseason game for one inning (the 2nd) and pitched like a veteran No. 1 the other frames. Hamels retired 13 in a row at one point and retired Colorado in order in the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th. He let the Rockies bat around in the 2nd. Odd.
The real story was the lack of production by the Phils, particularly at the top of the order. The 1-4 spots went 0-for-15 with 9 Ks and a GDP. You might attribute some of that to the fact Jeff Francis is a lefty, which theoretically can hamper Utley and Howard a bit (they both SLG more than 100 points lower vs. LHP than RHP), but the Phils roughed up Francis in two meetings this season. I'd say it was a case of the Phils either being flat or pressing, or both.
Colorado won for the 15th time in 16 games. Maybe the Rockies are destiny's darlings. But the Phils are in trouble if they don't win games in which Colorado scores "only" four runs.
Of course, it could just be the SI Jinx.
The real story was the lack of production by the Phils, particularly at the top of the order. The 1-4 spots went 0-for-15 with 9 Ks and a GDP. You might attribute some of that to the fact Jeff Francis is a lefty, which theoretically can hamper Utley and Howard a bit (they both SLG more than 100 points lower vs. LHP than RHP), but the Phils roughed up Francis in two meetings this season. I'd say it was a case of the Phils either being flat or pressing, or both.
Colorado won for the 15th time in 16 games. Maybe the Rockies are destiny's darlings. But the Phils are in trouble if they don't win games in which Colorado scores "only" four runs.
Of course, it could just be the SI Jinx.
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
M-V-P
We'll get the easy lifting out of the way first. As much as it pains me to say it, I think A-Rod will be the AL MVP. There seems to be no way around this fact. According to Hardball Times, he led the league in total win shares with 39 (Maggs was second at 36), win shares above bench with 26 (Maggs 24), runs created with 163 (Maggs 155), OPS with 1.067 (Ortiz 1.066) and VORP (value over replacement player) at 96.6 (Maggs 87.8).
The National League race is, excuse me for sounding like John Sterling, obviously, tougher. David Wright led in total wins shares with 34 (Albert Pujols 32), and win shares above bench with 21 (Pujols 19). Miguel Cabrera led in runs created with 138 (Wright 136). Chipper Jones led in OPS with 1.029 (Prince Fielder 1.013). Hanley Ramirez led in VORP at 89.5 (Wright 81.1).
Of course, none of those players will see the field in October. Notice the two prime candidates now, Jimmy Rollins and Matt Holliday, aren't among the top two in any of those categories.
Holliday led in win shares over Rollins, 30-28, and win shares above bench, 16-13. It should be noted pitchers Jake Peavy and Brandon Webb rated above both with 18 and 17, respectively, and Chase Utley led the Phils with 17.
As for runs created, Holliday led Rollins, 129-122. Both players led their respective teams in that category. Holliday posted a 1.012 OPS while Rollins' was .875. Rollins ranked behind several teammates, but was second among NL shortstops, trailing Ramirez at .948.
I'm not sure what credit Holliday received for creating a run Monday night that he apparently didn't create.
Holliday no doubt will get votes for leading the NL in batting (.340) and RBI (137). Rollins was tops in runs with 139. And Rollins became only the 4th player in history with at least 20 HR, 20 2B, 20 3B and 20 SB in a year. Rollins had 88 extra-base hits, second in history among SS to only A-Rod's 91 in 1996.
I'd say both are worthy. Holliday might lose votes because he plays in Coors Field and because you rarely got to see him play. Rollins might gain votes because of his spring training pronouncement the Phillies were the team to beat and leading the Phils to the NL East title.
If Holliday loses the award, he can join the list of people disappointed with the Mets. The pick here is Rollins, not because I'm 100% sure he deserves it, but because I think that's the way the voters will go. I'd give him the edge because he played 162 games at SS, which is a more demanding position, and fielded well (zero throwing errors, 11 fielding). Holliday is no slouch in LF, but it's not the same.
Then again, I've seen deserving shortstops overlooked before. (No, I'm not still bitter about 1987.)
The National League race is, excuse me for sounding like John Sterling, obviously, tougher. David Wright led in total wins shares with 34 (Albert Pujols 32), and win shares above bench with 21 (Pujols 19). Miguel Cabrera led in runs created with 138 (Wright 136). Chipper Jones led in OPS with 1.029 (Prince Fielder 1.013). Hanley Ramirez led in VORP at 89.5 (Wright 81.1).
Of course, none of those players will see the field in October. Notice the two prime candidates now, Jimmy Rollins and Matt Holliday, aren't among the top two in any of those categories.
Holliday led in win shares over Rollins, 30-28, and win shares above bench, 16-13. It should be noted pitchers Jake Peavy and Brandon Webb rated above both with 18 and 17, respectively, and Chase Utley led the Phils with 17.
As for runs created, Holliday led Rollins, 129-122. Both players led their respective teams in that category. Holliday posted a 1.012 OPS while Rollins' was .875. Rollins ranked behind several teammates, but was second among NL shortstops, trailing Ramirez at .948.
I'm not sure what credit Holliday received for creating a run Monday night that he apparently didn't create.
Holliday no doubt will get votes for leading the NL in batting (.340) and RBI (137). Rollins was tops in runs with 139. And Rollins became only the 4th player in history with at least 20 HR, 20 2B, 20 3B and 20 SB in a year. Rollins had 88 extra-base hits, second in history among SS to only A-Rod's 91 in 1996.
I'd say both are worthy. Holliday might lose votes because he plays in Coors Field and because you rarely got to see him play. Rollins might gain votes because of his spring training pronouncement the Phillies were the team to beat and leading the Phils to the NL East title.
If Holliday loses the award, he can join the list of people disappointed with the Mets. The pick here is Rollins, not because I'm 100% sure he deserves it, but because I think that's the way the voters will go. I'd give him the edge because he played 162 games at SS, which is a more demanding position, and fielded well (zero throwing errors, 11 fielding). Holliday is no slouch in LF, but it's not the same.
Then again, I've seen deserving shortstops overlooked before. (No, I'm not still bitter about 1987.)
Saturday, September 29, 2007
All tied up
The Mets woke up Saturday in second place for the first time in more than five months. They did all they could not to stay there for long. The offensive was explosive from the start. John Maine was absolutely brilliant. And with a little help from the Washington Nationals, the Mets are once again tied atop the NL East with one game to play.
Maine's performance was the best by any Mets' starter this year and very nearly the stuff of legend. He walked a batter in the top of the first only to see him erased on a strike 'em out, throw 'em out double play. He retired the next sixteen batters in order before allowing another walk with one out in the seventh. He got the next two batters to end that inning and the first two to start the eighth. At this point his line read seven and two-thirds innings, no hits, two walks and a career-high fourteen strikeouts. He had already thrown over 100 pitches but it looked like nothing would stop him from finishing this game. Then backup catcher Paul Hoover, in his thirty-fourth major league at bat, only in the game because Miguel Olivo was ejected for instigating a bench-clearing fracas in the fifth inning, hit a weak little dribbler down the third base line. David Wright charged and barehanded it, but there was nothing he could do. For the 7311th consecutive game, a Mets starter failed to pitch a no hitter. Still, it was a tremendous performance by Maine and he deserved every bit of the standing ovation he received as he walked to the dugout with two outs in the eighth.
Of course, the Mets' offense gave Maine a bit of breathing room right from the start. They scored twice in the first and at least once in every inning but the fourth. In total, they put up thirteen runs on nineteen hits and four walks. Lastings Milledge had three hits including two home runs. Ramon Castro had two hits with a longball of his own. It makes one wonder what the division standings might look like if these two hadn't been banished to the bench for the past week. Luis Castillo and David Wright each had three hits and two of Castillo's were doubles. Maine was the only New York starter without a hit, but he did draw a walk and score a run. Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran were the only other starters without at least two hits. Quite often this month the Mets have gotten great offensive production only for the pitching to fail them anyway. A couple of times they got good pitching but the offense dried up. This time both came through in an absolutely crucial game. Hopefully there's a little left in the tank for tomorrow.
It'll be Tom Glavine vs. Dontrelle Willis with the season on the line for the Mets. Willis has not had a good season, but he's been solid in his last couple of starts. Glavine, meanwhile, allowed ten runs in ten innings his last two times out. By Sunday night the Mets could be anything from outright division champs to part of a four-way tie with the Phillies, Padres and Rockies. All they can do is win. We'll worry about Monday (and Tuesday and Wednesday) when we have to.
Maine's performance was the best by any Mets' starter this year and very nearly the stuff of legend. He walked a batter in the top of the first only to see him erased on a strike 'em out, throw 'em out double play. He retired the next sixteen batters in order before allowing another walk with one out in the seventh. He got the next two batters to end that inning and the first two to start the eighth. At this point his line read seven and two-thirds innings, no hits, two walks and a career-high fourteen strikeouts. He had already thrown over 100 pitches but it looked like nothing would stop him from finishing this game. Then backup catcher Paul Hoover, in his thirty-fourth major league at bat, only in the game because Miguel Olivo was ejected for instigating a bench-clearing fracas in the fifth inning, hit a weak little dribbler down the third base line. David Wright charged and barehanded it, but there was nothing he could do. For the 7311th consecutive game, a Mets starter failed to pitch a no hitter. Still, it was a tremendous performance by Maine and he deserved every bit of the standing ovation he received as he walked to the dugout with two outs in the eighth.
Of course, the Mets' offense gave Maine a bit of breathing room right from the start. They scored twice in the first and at least once in every inning but the fourth. In total, they put up thirteen runs on nineteen hits and four walks. Lastings Milledge had three hits including two home runs. Ramon Castro had two hits with a longball of his own. It makes one wonder what the division standings might look like if these two hadn't been banished to the bench for the past week. Luis Castillo and David Wright each had three hits and two of Castillo's were doubles. Maine was the only New York starter without a hit, but he did draw a walk and score a run. Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran were the only other starters without at least two hits. Quite often this month the Mets have gotten great offensive production only for the pitching to fail them anyway. A couple of times they got good pitching but the offense dried up. This time both came through in an absolutely crucial game. Hopefully there's a little left in the tank for tomorrow.
It'll be Tom Glavine vs. Dontrelle Willis with the season on the line for the Mets. Willis has not had a good season, but he's been solid in his last couple of starts. Glavine, meanwhile, allowed ten runs in ten innings his last two times out. By Sunday night the Mets could be anything from outright division champs to part of a four-way tie with the Phillies, Padres and Rockies. All they can do is win. We'll worry about Monday (and Tuesday and Wednesday) when we have to.
Friday, September 28, 2007
Ya gotta believe
What else can ya do?
The Mets lost again, this time to the the last place Florida Marlins, while the Phillies beat the Nationals to claim sole possession of first place in the National League East. For the first time since the thirteenth of May, the Mets are not in first place. They have lost eight straight home games and now need help to even manage a tie for the division lead.
Oliver Perez was excellent against the Marlins last Saturday, but this time he was not nearly as sharp. He allowed six runs in three and two-thirds innings on six hits, two walks and three hit batsmen. All three of those occurred in third inning, including two with the bases loaded. Overall, Perez has had a very good season, but he failed to come up big tonight and it cost the Mets the division lead.
The offense did not have a great night either, but at least they improved over Thursday's performance by putting four runs on the board. David Wright, Carlos Delgado and Shawn Green each had two hits while Luis Castillo had three. Carlos Beltran hit his thirty-third home run of the season. The team had its chances to put more runs on the board, though. In the seventh inning, the Mets had two runners on and only one out but failed to score. In the fourth and sixth innings, the Mets had runners on base with the pitcher scheduled to bat. Willie Randolph chose to use his two worst pinch hitters, David Newhan and Jeff Conine, in these situations. Newhan grounded into a double play and Conine flied out to end the inning. Ruben Gotay also failed to get a hit with a runner on later in the game, but Lastings Milledge and Endy Chavez never stepped into the batter's box. Paul Lo Duca left the game in the ninth inning, having apparently injured his left knee earlier in the game, but he did manage to waste one at bat while clearly in pain. I guess part of being a leader is staying in the game when you're clearly not helping in order to look like a tough guy.
All the Mets can do now is win their two remaining games and hope the Phillies don't do the same. Saturday afternoon John Maine will take on Chris Seddon. The Mets scored two runs in five innings against Seddon on Sunday and wound up winning the game. Maine gave up three runs in five innings and got a no decision in that game. This seems like a good matchup for the Mets, but that could have been said about so many games this week that the Mets wound up losing.
Things look bleak, but the Mets franchise has overcome worse. In 1999 the Mets trailed the Wild Card-leading Reds by two games with just three to play. That team came back to tie and then won a one-game playoff in Cincinnati. If the Mets earn a tie this year, there won't be any Al Leiter rested and ready to pitch on Monday. But that doesn't matter now. All the Mets can do now is win tomorrow's game. Anything less is unacceptable.
The Mets lost again, this time to the the last place Florida Marlins, while the Phillies beat the Nationals to claim sole possession of first place in the National League East. For the first time since the thirteenth of May, the Mets are not in first place. They have lost eight straight home games and now need help to even manage a tie for the division lead.
Oliver Perez was excellent against the Marlins last Saturday, but this time he was not nearly as sharp. He allowed six runs in three and two-thirds innings on six hits, two walks and three hit batsmen. All three of those occurred in third inning, including two with the bases loaded. Overall, Perez has had a very good season, but he failed to come up big tonight and it cost the Mets the division lead.
The offense did not have a great night either, but at least they improved over Thursday's performance by putting four runs on the board. David Wright, Carlos Delgado and Shawn Green each had two hits while Luis Castillo had three. Carlos Beltran hit his thirty-third home run of the season. The team had its chances to put more runs on the board, though. In the seventh inning, the Mets had two runners on and only one out but failed to score. In the fourth and sixth innings, the Mets had runners on base with the pitcher scheduled to bat. Willie Randolph chose to use his two worst pinch hitters, David Newhan and Jeff Conine, in these situations. Newhan grounded into a double play and Conine flied out to end the inning. Ruben Gotay also failed to get a hit with a runner on later in the game, but Lastings Milledge and Endy Chavez never stepped into the batter's box. Paul Lo Duca left the game in the ninth inning, having apparently injured his left knee earlier in the game, but he did manage to waste one at bat while clearly in pain. I guess part of being a leader is staying in the game when you're clearly not helping in order to look like a tough guy.
All the Mets can do now is win their two remaining games and hope the Phillies don't do the same. Saturday afternoon John Maine will take on Chris Seddon. The Mets scored two runs in five innings against Seddon on Sunday and wound up winning the game. Maine gave up three runs in five innings and got a no decision in that game. This seems like a good matchup for the Mets, but that could have been said about so many games this week that the Mets wound up losing.
Things look bleak, but the Mets franchise has overcome worse. In 1999 the Mets trailed the Wild Card-leading Reds by two games with just three to play. That team came back to tie and then won a one-game playoff in Cincinnati. If the Mets earn a tie this year, there won't be any Al Leiter rested and ready to pitch on Monday. But that doesn't matter now. All the Mets can do now is win tomorrow's game. Anything less is unacceptable.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
It'll all be over soon
The Mets got a well-pitched game for the first time in ages (or five days) but it was not enough as they were shut out by Joel Piñeiro. As a result of this and the Phillies' 6-4 win over the Braves, they are now tied atop the NL East and one game behind the Padres in the NL Wild Card race. The Mets still control their own destiny as all they have to do is win all of their remaining games to win the division. The only problem is that now one of those games might take place on Monday in Philadelphia.
Pedro Martinez was not perfect, but he was very good. A Luis Castillo error allowed a run to score and forced Pedro to throw 25 pitches in the first inning. But he moved past that and got through seven innings on 105 pitches, allowing a total of three runs on seven hits and one walk with eight strikeouts. He allowed two doubles to Albert Pujols, one of which drove in a run, but got the only threat in the Cardinals' lineup to fly out with two on and two out in the seventh. Aaron Heilman and Pedro Feliciano each pitched a scoreless inning in relief.
Unfortunately, the Met bats chose this night to make Joel Piñeiro look like Johan Santana. They managed just three hits and one walk in eight innings against the man who entered the game with a 4.50 ERA and hadn't pitched as many as eight shutout innings in a game since July 26, 2003. David Wright doubled in the first and walked in the fourth, never advancing past second base. Carlos Delgado led off the fifth with a single only to be erased by the inevitable Paul Lo Duca double play. Shawn Green followed this with an infield single, but Pedro couldn't keep the inning alive and the Mets' offense was done for the evening.
This role reversal was astounding and at the same time completely unsurprising. If the Mets (87-72) have done anything consistently this year, it's been finding ways to lose games they should win. They've got three more of those on the schedule with the Marlins (69-90) coming to town having lost three straight to the Mets last weekend. Oliver Perez (15-9, 3.32), John Maine (14-10, 4.07) and Tom Glavine (13-7, 4.14) will take the mound for New York against Byung-Hyun Kim (9-8, 6.11), Chris Seddon (0-1, 6.89) and Dontrelle Willis (10-15, 5.20). It all comes down to this. If the Mets can't wake up against the last-place Marlins, they will be remembered forever as chokers. And rightly so.
Pedro Martinez was not perfect, but he was very good. A Luis Castillo error allowed a run to score and forced Pedro to throw 25 pitches in the first inning. But he moved past that and got through seven innings on 105 pitches, allowing a total of three runs on seven hits and one walk with eight strikeouts. He allowed two doubles to Albert Pujols, one of which drove in a run, but got the only threat in the Cardinals' lineup to fly out with two on and two out in the seventh. Aaron Heilman and Pedro Feliciano each pitched a scoreless inning in relief.
Unfortunately, the Met bats chose this night to make Joel Piñeiro look like Johan Santana. They managed just three hits and one walk in eight innings against the man who entered the game with a 4.50 ERA and hadn't pitched as many as eight shutout innings in a game since July 26, 2003. David Wright doubled in the first and walked in the fourth, never advancing past second base. Carlos Delgado led off the fifth with a single only to be erased by the inevitable Paul Lo Duca double play. Shawn Green followed this with an infield single, but Pedro couldn't keep the inning alive and the Mets' offense was done for the evening.
This role reversal was astounding and at the same time completely unsurprising. If the Mets (87-72) have done anything consistently this year, it's been finding ways to lose games they should win. They've got three more of those on the schedule with the Marlins (69-90) coming to town having lost three straight to the Mets last weekend. Oliver Perez (15-9, 3.32), John Maine (14-10, 4.07) and Tom Glavine (13-7, 4.14) will take the mound for New York against Byung-Hyun Kim (9-8, 6.11), Chris Seddon (0-1, 6.89) and Dontrelle Willis (10-15, 5.20). It all comes down to this. If the Mets can't wake up against the last-place Marlins, they will be remembered forever as chokers. And rightly so.
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
It is not easy to type from the fetal position
I don't know why I even care if the Mets make the playoffs. There's no way they could go anywhere with pitching this astonishingly atrocious. Thirty-two runs allowed in three games to the Washington Nationals in this series. Fifty-seven runs allowed in six games in the last two series. To the Washington Nationals.
Four games left. One game up. Tomorrow it's one game against the Cardinals. Pedro vs. Joel Piñeiro. If Pedro can't save us, no one can.
Four games left. One game up. Tomorrow it's one game against the Cardinals. Pedro vs. Joel Piñeiro. If Pedro can't save us, no one can.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
So close and yet so far
Nothing comes easy for these Mets. This week they scored fifty runs in seven games and barely managed to escape with four wins. They allowed 47 runs, 19 of which were scored against the bullpen. They led in each of the three losses and nearly blew a fourth on Sunday. But an extra-inning win left them with a 2.5 game lead and a magic number of 5 with seven games to play. All seven are at home and against sub-.500 teams, so missing the playoffs at this point should not be easy. Still, nothing this team might do would shock me.
David Wright continued to play like a player who is more valuable than any other player you might name, hitting .452/.486/.613 this week and driving in Sunday's game-winning run in the eleventh. His continued excellence is all the more important given than neither Jose Reyes nor Carlos Beltran did much with the bat this week and Carlos Delgado only returned from injury on Friday.
Wright did have some help, though, as Moises Alou continued to prove that if he's healthy enough to step on to the field, he will hit. This week he hit .414/.469/.483 and extended his hitting streak to a team-record 27 games. Somewhat more surprisingly, Shawn Green and Paul Lo Duca combined to go 18-for-36 this week with three home runs and four doubles. Green is actually hitting .396/.491/.604 for the month of September, his best month in terms of OPS since June of 2002, which was his last year as a serious power hitter. Lo Duca is also having quite a month at .324/.316/.574, but it was still nice to see Ramon Castro finally return and homer in Saturday's game.
The Mets needed every bit of that offense as only one starting pitcher lasted more than five innings in a game this week and the bullpen was no help. Aside from Oliver Perez's terrific eight-inning, two-run, eight-strikeout, no-walk performance on Saturday, every starter struggled. Brian Lawrence pitched so badly on Monday that he got designated for assignment despite the fact that the AAA season is over and thus there isn't anywhere to assign him to. John Maine gave up eleven runs in 9.1 innings over two starts, though the second one was definitely an improvement over the first. Tom Glavine and Pedro Martinez each gave up four runs in five innings, though only three of Pedro's were earned and he did strike out seven. The Marlins' offense is one of the best in the game and I'll still take my chances with Pedro and Glavine against anyone in October, but asking the Mets' bullpen to pitch 26.1 innings this week was a bit much.
Of those nineteen runs they allowed, seventeen were earned, adding up to a 5.84 ERA. Guillermo Mota somehow pitched 4.1 innings without allowing a run, but everyone else had a rough week. Billy Wagner only pitched twice and he gave up a run both times. Aaron Heilman pitched in five of seven games and was doing fine until Sunday when he gave up two runs on two hits and two walks in one inning. Perez's great start on Saturday gave most of the bullpen a rest, but for some reason Heilman had to pitch to preserve a five-run lead in the ninth. That didn't work out too well on Sunday when the Mets wound up using eight different relievers. Pedro Feliciano is supposed to be the third good reliever in this bullpen, but this week he gave up three runs in two innings on four hits and two walks. This pen might not be any good even if it is well-rested, but it sure would be nice if a few starters pitched at least seven innings this week. With Mike Pelfrey and Philip Humber scheduled to start two of the next three games, that may be asking a lot.
The week will start with the Mets (87-68) hosting those pesky Nationals (69-87) for three games. Pelfrey (3-7, 5.24), Glavine (13-6, 3.97) and Humber (0-0, 3.00) will face Matt Chico (5-9, 4.74), Jason Bergmann (5-5, 4.30) and Shawn Hill (4-5, 3.42). The Mets nearly have a second straight division title in their grasp, but as this season has proven time and time again, it ain't over 'til it's over.
David Wright continued to play like a player who is more valuable than any other player you might name, hitting .452/.486/.613 this week and driving in Sunday's game-winning run in the eleventh. His continued excellence is all the more important given than neither Jose Reyes nor Carlos Beltran did much with the bat this week and Carlos Delgado only returned from injury on Friday.
Wright did have some help, though, as Moises Alou continued to prove that if he's healthy enough to step on to the field, he will hit. This week he hit .414/.469/.483 and extended his hitting streak to a team-record 27 games. Somewhat more surprisingly, Shawn Green and Paul Lo Duca combined to go 18-for-36 this week with three home runs and four doubles. Green is actually hitting .396/.491/.604 for the month of September, his best month in terms of OPS since June of 2002, which was his last year as a serious power hitter. Lo Duca is also having quite a month at .324/.316/.574, but it was still nice to see Ramon Castro finally return and homer in Saturday's game.
The Mets needed every bit of that offense as only one starting pitcher lasted more than five innings in a game this week and the bullpen was no help. Aside from Oliver Perez's terrific eight-inning, two-run, eight-strikeout, no-walk performance on Saturday, every starter struggled. Brian Lawrence pitched so badly on Monday that he got designated for assignment despite the fact that the AAA season is over and thus there isn't anywhere to assign him to. John Maine gave up eleven runs in 9.1 innings over two starts, though the second one was definitely an improvement over the first. Tom Glavine and Pedro Martinez each gave up four runs in five innings, though only three of Pedro's were earned and he did strike out seven. The Marlins' offense is one of the best in the game and I'll still take my chances with Pedro and Glavine against anyone in October, but asking the Mets' bullpen to pitch 26.1 innings this week was a bit much.
Of those nineteen runs they allowed, seventeen were earned, adding up to a 5.84 ERA. Guillermo Mota somehow pitched 4.1 innings without allowing a run, but everyone else had a rough week. Billy Wagner only pitched twice and he gave up a run both times. Aaron Heilman pitched in five of seven games and was doing fine until Sunday when he gave up two runs on two hits and two walks in one inning. Perez's great start on Saturday gave most of the bullpen a rest, but for some reason Heilman had to pitch to preserve a five-run lead in the ninth. That didn't work out too well on Sunday when the Mets wound up using eight different relievers. Pedro Feliciano is supposed to be the third good reliever in this bullpen, but this week he gave up three runs in two innings on four hits and two walks. This pen might not be any good even if it is well-rested, but it sure would be nice if a few starters pitched at least seven innings this week. With Mike Pelfrey and Philip Humber scheduled to start two of the next three games, that may be asking a lot.
The week will start with the Mets (87-68) hosting those pesky Nationals (69-87) for three games. Pelfrey (3-7, 5.24), Glavine (13-6, 3.97) and Humber (0-0, 3.00) will face Matt Chico (5-9, 4.74), Jason Bergmann (5-5, 4.30) and Shawn Hill (4-5, 3.42). The Mets nearly have a second straight division title in their grasp, but as this season has proven time and time again, it ain't over 'til it's over.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Weighing in on 5 ways
In March I provided 5 simple ways the Tigers could be better/worse than 2006. Let's do a quick review.
For better, the 5 simple ways were:
1. Sheffield wears out pitchers. OUTCOME: After a slow April, he did, when healthy.
2. Maroth makes successful return from elbow surgery. OUTCOME: Successful enough to pitch, not enough to stay in Detroit.
3. Granderson blossoms into top leadoff man. OUTCOME: That, and more.
4. Bonderman ascends to ace status. OUTCOME: Maybe we meant to say Verlander?
5. Casey in clubhouse and lineup for full season. OUTCOME: Great presence, sporadic stick.
For worse, the 5 simple ways were:
1. Sheffield wears out welcome. OUTCOME: He did, but only in NY.
2. Rogers, Jones, Pudge, Casey, Mesa, Sheff all start to feel their age. OUTCOME: Mixed bag; Mesa didn't make it out of April and Rogers and Sheff battled injuries.
3. Inge and Monroe don’t come near duplicating 2006. OUTCOME: Monroe was sent out of town and Inge, for the most part, struggled with the bat.
4. Injuries. OUTCOME: Wounded included Kenny Rogers, Joel Zumaya, Fernando Rodney, Gary Sheffield, Nate Robertson, Jeremy Bonderman. Nuff said.
5. Leyland loses magic touch. OUTCOME: Kept banged up team with mediocre bullpen in race until final week.
For better, the 5 simple ways were:
1. Sheffield wears out pitchers. OUTCOME: After a slow April, he did, when healthy.
2. Maroth makes successful return from elbow surgery. OUTCOME: Successful enough to pitch, not enough to stay in Detroit.
3. Granderson blossoms into top leadoff man. OUTCOME: That, and more.
4. Bonderman ascends to ace status. OUTCOME: Maybe we meant to say Verlander?
5. Casey in clubhouse and lineup for full season. OUTCOME: Great presence, sporadic stick.
For worse, the 5 simple ways were:
1. Sheffield wears out welcome. OUTCOME: He did, but only in NY.
2. Rogers, Jones, Pudge, Casey, Mesa, Sheff all start to feel their age. OUTCOME: Mixed bag; Mesa didn't make it out of April and Rogers and Sheff battled injuries.
3. Inge and Monroe don’t come near duplicating 2006. OUTCOME: Monroe was sent out of town and Inge, for the most part, struggled with the bat.
4. Injuries. OUTCOME: Wounded included Kenny Rogers, Joel Zumaya, Fernando Rodney, Gary Sheffield, Nate Robertson, Jeremy Bonderman. Nuff said.
5. Leyland loses magic touch. OUTCOME: Kept banged up team with mediocre bullpen in race until final week.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Star arrival
As DTFT readers know, Curtis Granderson was long touted here as a star in the making. Today, Sports Illustrated arrived with a glowing feature about Granderson and what a great player, and guys, he is. Hooray. There is no one more fun to watch leaving the batter's box than Granderson. I hope it continues.
Ch-ch-ch-changes
No matter what happens the last handful of games, the Tigers will have a number of decisions to make entering next year.
Kenny Rogers and Todd Jones are at the end of their deals. I think Rogers should be signed again, as long as the price is right and he can overcome the injury trouble that doomed his season, and probably Detroit's, this year. Jones is a roller-coaster ride, but another year wouldn't be the worst thing. There are very few top-shelf, worry-free relievers out there. And Zumaya isn't ready.
All reports point to Carlos Guillen moving to first base, ending the term of The Mayor. It would be sad to see Casey go simply because he's a great guy and busts it every night, but there's no question Guillen's bat is a huge upgrade. It seems Ramon Santiago would be the SS. He can't hit a lick, but is a very good glove man. He'd better be. Jim Leyland loves defense up the middle.
Brandon Inge just signed a long-term deal, so he would seem safe at 3B -- unless the Tigers might consider moving him to LF? I haven't heard anything about a move, but Inge has played CF, so why not consider it. I hope not, because I love Inge's D at 3B. But it might be easier to sign a 3B than OF. Mike Lowell would be a possibility, although he might demand a big-money contract off this season, and I'd be worried because he's 33.
Some of this also depends on what the future holds for Ryan Raburn and Cameron Maybin. If Maybin is going to be in the Show next season, will it be in LF or CF? I would hope Curtis Granderson's historic season and strong play in CF will merit leaving him alone.
Here's a look at the list of potential free agents I found.
Kenny Rogers and Todd Jones are at the end of their deals. I think Rogers should be signed again, as long as the price is right and he can overcome the injury trouble that doomed his season, and probably Detroit's, this year. Jones is a roller-coaster ride, but another year wouldn't be the worst thing. There are very few top-shelf, worry-free relievers out there. And Zumaya isn't ready.
All reports point to Carlos Guillen moving to first base, ending the term of The Mayor. It would be sad to see Casey go simply because he's a great guy and busts it every night, but there's no question Guillen's bat is a huge upgrade. It seems Ramon Santiago would be the SS. He can't hit a lick, but is a very good glove man. He'd better be. Jim Leyland loves defense up the middle.
Brandon Inge just signed a long-term deal, so he would seem safe at 3B -- unless the Tigers might consider moving him to LF? I haven't heard anything about a move, but Inge has played CF, so why not consider it. I hope not, because I love Inge's D at 3B. But it might be easier to sign a 3B than OF. Mike Lowell would be a possibility, although he might demand a big-money contract off this season, and I'd be worried because he's 33.
Some of this also depends on what the future holds for Ryan Raburn and Cameron Maybin. If Maybin is going to be in the Show next season, will it be in LF or CF? I would hope Curtis Granderson's historic season and strong play in CF will merit leaving him alone.
Here's a look at the list of potential free agents I found.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
The final nail
That's what Jhonny Peralta drove into the Tigers' coffin last night, I fear. Cleveland feels the magic, much like Detroit did last season. The Indians have won 18 of their last 23.
Detroit's bullpen, in this case Joel Zumaya, failed again. Zumaya was pitching for the third consecutive day for the first time in his short career. These numbers tell a story: The Indians have converted 78% of their save chances (42 of 54) while the Tigs have converted 67% (43 of 64). That's 7 more blown saves than last season. What would 7 games mean to Detroit right about now?
Sure, the Tigs could get white hot and win 9 of 11, but even then they would need a lot of help to reach the postseason. Nonetheless, it's hard to complain when a team keeps you interested into the final two weeks. It's just tough to look back on all those missed chances.
Detroit's bullpen, in this case Joel Zumaya, failed again. Zumaya was pitching for the third consecutive day for the first time in his short career. These numbers tell a story: The Indians have converted 78% of their save chances (42 of 54) while the Tigs have converted 67% (43 of 64). That's 7 more blown saves than last season. What would 7 games mean to Detroit right about now?
Sure, the Tigs could get white hot and win 9 of 11, but even then they would need a lot of help to reach the postseason. Nonetheless, it's hard to complain when a team keeps you interested into the final two weeks. It's just tough to look back on all those missed chances.
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Wake Me Up When September Ends
The Mets' play against the Phillies recently has been nothing short of embarrassing. The bullpen has been awful. The defense has been sloppy. The offense has been shut down by some very ordinary pitchers. Thinking rationally, it is obvious that the Mets are not this bad and the Phillies are not this good. But right now I would rather these two teams didn't meet in the NLCS.
The bullpen, which so spectacularly failed the Mets a couple weeks back in Philadelphia, took the loss in all three of this weekend's games. On Friday and Saturday, the Mets got excellent starting pitching, including six brilliant innings from Pedro Martinez on Saturday. But the bullpen wasted little time in giving those games away and when the Mets overcame a poor start from Oliver Perez on Sunday to put tie the game at five, the bullpen blew that, too. Altogether, Met relievers pitched 8.2 innings in this series, allowing ten runs (eight earned) on six hits, eight walks and two home runs. Last year the Mets' bullpen was among the best in the game. This year many of the names are the same, but the results have been very different. The starting rotation is better this year than last year, perhaps a lot better by the time October rolls around. But if the 'pen continues to perform as they have recently, that may not matter. And if Guillermo Mota makes the postseason roster, someone should probably be fired.
The defense, another apparent strength of this team, completely let them down in this series. Three unearned runs were scored and a total of eight errors committed, including six in Sunday's debacle of a game. Errors by people like Paul Lo Duca, Shawn Green and Jeff Conine aren't surprising. But Jose Reyes's two errors on Sunday just seemed like a continuation of the overall decline in his game. Even if he hadn't been charged with an error in a long time, he hasn't looked nearly as sharp lately as he did early in the season. This is also true offensively, where the line drives and walks of the first half have been replaced by a lot of pop flies. The Mets have been beating teams other than the Phillies pretty often lately, but if that's going to keep up for another month and a half, Reyes needs to get back on track.
Offensively, this series closely resembled the one in Philadelphia with the Mets' bats being held in check by pitchers they should really have pounded. They finally got to Adam Eaton on Sunday, but eleven runs in three games is pretty sad against the Phillies' staff. David Wright did hit his thirtieth home run of the season to become the third 30/30 man in Mets' history, but that was the only real offensive highlight. The lineup just has a black hole in the sixth and seventh spot right now with Shawn Green and Paul Lo Duca back-to-back most days. When Conine plays first, things don't get any better. These spots went one for twenty with three walks in this series. Carlos Delgado's return doesn't appear to be imminent, but all indications are that Ramon Castro is healthy enough to play. Hopefully he'll be back on the roster and in the lineup very soon.
The Mets (83-65) now lead the division by just 3.5 games, but their schedule is about to get a lot easier. They don't have a day off for the rest of the month, but they only have one day on which they play a team other than the Marlins (65-84) or the Nationals (66-83) and that one day will see them take on the Cardinals (70-78). The Mets are 20-9 against these teams so far this year. The leisurely stroll to October begins Monday in Washington. The Mets will send Brian Lawrence (1-2, 6.31), John Maine (14-9, 3.72) and Mike Pelfrey (2-7, 5.23) to the mound against Tim Redding (3-5, 3.45), Joel Hanrahan (4-3, 5.83) and Matt Chico (5-8, 4.61).
The bullpen, which so spectacularly failed the Mets a couple weeks back in Philadelphia, took the loss in all three of this weekend's games. On Friday and Saturday, the Mets got excellent starting pitching, including six brilliant innings from Pedro Martinez on Saturday. But the bullpen wasted little time in giving those games away and when the Mets overcame a poor start from Oliver Perez on Sunday to put tie the game at five, the bullpen blew that, too. Altogether, Met relievers pitched 8.2 innings in this series, allowing ten runs (eight earned) on six hits, eight walks and two home runs. Last year the Mets' bullpen was among the best in the game. This year many of the names are the same, but the results have been very different. The starting rotation is better this year than last year, perhaps a lot better by the time October rolls around. But if the 'pen continues to perform as they have recently, that may not matter. And if Guillermo Mota makes the postseason roster, someone should probably be fired.
The defense, another apparent strength of this team, completely let them down in this series. Three unearned runs were scored and a total of eight errors committed, including six in Sunday's debacle of a game. Errors by people like Paul Lo Duca, Shawn Green and Jeff Conine aren't surprising. But Jose Reyes's two errors on Sunday just seemed like a continuation of the overall decline in his game. Even if he hadn't been charged with an error in a long time, he hasn't looked nearly as sharp lately as he did early in the season. This is also true offensively, where the line drives and walks of the first half have been replaced by a lot of pop flies. The Mets have been beating teams other than the Phillies pretty often lately, but if that's going to keep up for another month and a half, Reyes needs to get back on track.
Offensively, this series closely resembled the one in Philadelphia with the Mets' bats being held in check by pitchers they should really have pounded. They finally got to Adam Eaton on Sunday, but eleven runs in three games is pretty sad against the Phillies' staff. David Wright did hit his thirtieth home run of the season to become the third 30/30 man in Mets' history, but that was the only real offensive highlight. The lineup just has a black hole in the sixth and seventh spot right now with Shawn Green and Paul Lo Duca back-to-back most days. When Conine plays first, things don't get any better. These spots went one for twenty with three walks in this series. Carlos Delgado's return doesn't appear to be imminent, but all indications are that Ramon Castro is healthy enough to play. Hopefully he'll be back on the roster and in the lineup very soon.
The Mets (83-65) now lead the division by just 3.5 games, but their schedule is about to get a lot easier. They don't have a day off for the rest of the month, but they only have one day on which they play a team other than the Marlins (65-84) or the Nationals (66-83) and that one day will see them take on the Cardinals (70-78). The Mets are 20-9 against these teams so far this year. The leisurely stroll to October begins Monday in Washington. The Mets will send Brian Lawrence (1-2, 6.31), John Maine (14-9, 3.72) and Mike Pelfrey (2-7, 5.23) to the mound against Tim Redding (3-5, 3.45), Joel Hanrahan (4-3, 5.83) and Matt Chico (5-8, 4.61).
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