Month: July 2011

Mets 8 – Reds 6 July 26, 2011

PORT ST. LUCIE, FL - FEBRUARY 24: RY 24: RY ...
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The Mets won a strange game scoring 6 unearned runs off Johnny Cueto. That’s right, I wrote “unearned” runs. The Reds defense was completely asleep in the first half of the game. They were literally kicking the ball all over the field.

The Mets needed the help too because Jon Niese was pretty bad giving up 5 runs in 5 innings pitching back home in Ohio. He gave up 4 in the fifth inning and the capper was a 2-run homer by Joey Votto into the left field seats.

In addition to the errors, the Mets were hitting tonight with 12 hits and 3 walks in the game. The big game came from Daniel Murphy who went 3 for 4 with 2 RBI’s.

The Mets bullpen gets the game ball though. They got through 4 innings while Ryota Igarashi allowed the only run. They didn’t have Jason Isringhausen or Bobby Parnell available so it was a mix and match job for Terry Collins. Tim Byrdak got the save. That tells you how much the bullpen was held together with duct tape and gum.

The Mets won the second straight game in Cincy and go again tomorrow afternoon in what’s supposed to be some scorching hot weather.

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Who Will Get 300 Saves First? Isringhausen or K-Rod?

PORT ST. LUCIE, FL - FEBRUARY 24: RY 24: Jas...
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So with Carlos Beltran pretty much gone and the Mets having almost no shot at the wild card, there’s not much left to watch the Mets for. At least for the rest of the season. Especially since I don’t see a massive fire sale going on. Beltran’s trading may be the last big story for a while.

I am curious as to who gets to 300 saves first, Jason Isringhausen or Francisco Rodriquez. Izzy has 296 career saves, KRod has 291. KRod should have more save chances but Izzy is the guy I want to see get to 300 first. Wouldn’t you?

So let’s watch this little race to 300 saves. I’m really rooting for Izzy to have a better year than KRod. I feel like Izzy is homegrown talent who’s come home to finish out his career. It may be the only bright spot to the rest of an irrelevant year.

Let’s hope the Mets do the right thing and acknowledge the achievement. Do they even know it’s coming up? This save race may be the only race interesting enough to watch for the rest of the year and of course, 4 saves could take less than a week if the Mets get on a roll but who knows…

If the Mets are out of the hunt, what other milestones will you be watching for this year?

Mets 4 – Reds 2 July 25, 2011

NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 11: Jason Isringhausen #...
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What a game! R.A. Dickey pitched really well going 6.2 innings and allowing only 2 runs. He had 7 K’s and only 1 walk too. Although he gave up 8 hits, he was pretty sharp. It was one of his best starts of the season.

The Mets scored all 4 runs in the seventh inning when they strung several hits together. Even in a pronounced hitter’s park, they didn’t have any home runs tonight. But they did have a lot of traffic on the bases with 11 hits and 3 walks. Daniel Murphy and Jason Bay had the run scoring doubles in the seventh inning.

It was an exciting finish as Jason Isringhausen got a save the hard way. He loaded the bases. Although one runner was on by a David Wright error. Then Izzy struck out Brandon Phillips to end the game. It was a real thriller!

The Mets take the first game of the series in Cincy and go again tomorrow night.

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Marlins 5 – Mets 4 July 24, 2011

David Wright
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The Mets lost a close one when Bobby Parnell blew the game in the bottom of the eighth inning. They went into the eighth with a 4-3 lead and Parnell gave up 2 runs to lose the game.

Dillon Gee was struggling more than I’ve ever seen him before. But he got through 5 innings while allowing only 3 runs. It could  have been much worse as he gave up 7  hits, 3 walks, and hit a batter.

The Mets had a lot of offense today with 12 hits as a a team. David Wright was 3 for 4 with a HR, 2 runs and 2 RBI’s.

Daniel Murphy dropped two pop-up’s in foul territory and failed to get in cut off position from first base. It’s become comical how bad he is in the field. The Mets can’t hide him anywhere.

The Mets lose the series in Miami to the last place Marlins before heading to Cincinnati for three games this week.

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Video: Mets Weekly Report – Carlos Beltran and Trades

PORT ST. LUCIE, FL - FEBRUARY 24: RY 24: Car...
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This week I talk to Kerel Cooper from On The Black about the upcoming non-waiver trading deadline. The deadline is next Sunday at 4pm and there are several Mets that are being mentioned pretty heavily in trade rumors.

Of course, nobody in baseball is being talked about more heavily in trade rumors than Carlos Beltran. There are several teams tied to Beltran including the Phillies, Braves, Giants, Rangers, and Red Sox.

In this week’s video we talk about some of the other Mets that could be traded this week. And we talk about whether we think the Mets front office will completely break down the team in a “fire sale”. Check out the video below.

Marlins 8 – Mets 5 July 23, 2011

LOS ANGELES, CA - JULY 6: Lucas Duda #21 of t...
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The Mets got another fair start from Chris Capuano. He was cruising until the sixth inning when he gave up 4 runs including the first of Gaby Sanchez’ two home runs. D.J. Carrasco and Ryota Igarashi didn’t do much better either. Carrasco gave up 3 more runs in the seventh inning and Igarashi gave up another run in the eighth.

Jose Reyes and Justin Turner had 3 hits apiece in the game. And Carlos Beltran had 3 walks as teams continue to pitch around him and go after the rest of the weak lineup behind him. Lucas Duda finally hit his first homer of the year in the ninth inning, as he and Reyes went back-to-back. But it wasn’t enough to come back from the bullpen’s implosion.

The Mets and Marlins will play the rubber game of the series tomorrow afternoon before the Mets leave for Cincinnati.

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Johan Santana Visits Mets in Miami

During last night’s game against the Marlins, Johan Santana visited with the Mets. He’s been rehabbing from shoulder surgery in Port St. Lucie and even threw a three inning simulated game this week. Santana will be throwing a bullpen session for the Mets front office tomorrow at Sun Life Stadium to gauge his readiness for pitching rehab minor league games.

Unfortunately, Santana isn’t going to make it back in time to have a positive impact on the season. The rumors are swirling about Carlos Beltran trade partners. And Fox Sports reported that the Mets want to trade Beltran early next week so they can work on trading away some other players like Chris Capuano, Willie Harris, Scott Hairston, and Tim Byrdak.

Even without having an impact on 2011, it sure would be nice to see Santana back and pitching well for the Mets in August and September. It would certainly instill some confidence going into the offseason that 2012 won’t be another wasted season.

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