Category: Game Results

Delgado Hits Two As Mets Beat Braves 6-3

John Smoltz didn’t have it right from the start today. It was good to see the Mets finally get to jump all over a pitcher. He gave up four runs over four innings to take the loss. The Mets win 2 out of 3 in the series which is critical. They have to win these home series within the division if they expect to be playing in October.

Nelson Figueroa was okay again today going 5.1 innings and giving up three runs to get the win. He hasn’t showed me that he’s markedly better than Mike Pelfrey if a decision comes down to which one stays in the rotation when Pedro Martinez gets back.

The Mets again used five pitchers in the win. It’s worrying me that we’re not getting more depth from the starters. The guys from the bullpen are in there every day. Although today wasn’t the day for it, Willie needs to start thinking about stretching out the starters to give the guys in the bullpen a break. Billy Wagner locked the game down again in the ninth. He actually gave up a hit for the first time this year. But he’s looked better this season than at any time since he’s been with the Mets. He looks like a man on a mission and I like to see that. I wish everyone on the team played with the same intensity that he does.

Raul Casanova was 3 for 4 with a home run. He’s done a terrific job backing up Brian Schneider, and playing frequently since Schneider has been hurt. Luis Castillo was 3 for 5 and is inching his average back up. He’s hitting .284 now and doesn’t look “lost” at the plate like he did last week.

The story of the day has to be Carlos Delgado. He was 2 for 2 with two home runs and three runs scored. The fans called on him for a curtain call but he sat down in the dugout spurning the crowd. I don’t blame him at all. I’d probably do the same thing. Rightfully, he’s been scorched in the press and booed at Shea. I’ve let him have it myself.

The question is still valid about who Delgado is at this point in his career. He can’t be in a slump because it’s lasted for more than a season. Can he be a one trick pony hitting occasional home runs in bunches with a .200 average? I don’t know what to make of him. I’m sure the Mets management doesn’t either.

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Mets Use Six Pitchers To Beat Atlanta Braves 4-3

John Maine went five innings and got the win today to go to 2-2 on the season. Five other pitchers from the bullpen combined to hold the Braves down over the last four innings. The only scare was Aaron Heilman giving up two hits and a run in the sixth. Heilman was heartily booed by the crowd of 51,000.

The Mets offense seemed to start waking up today too. Willie Randolph canceled batting practice this morning and told the players they could show up late at 11:30am. He’s pulling out all of the tricks in his book to try to get the Mets back on track. Yesterday he made the team take fielding practice before the game which is a rarity these days.

Reportedly Jeff Wilpon visited Willie in his office before the game. yesterday Maybe Willie is starting to get a little desperate and pushing every button he can think of. If it works, that’s great. If not, it comes across as grabbing at straws.

David Wright and Damion Easley both had two hits in the game. Ryan Church hit a triple off Tim Hudson, and Angel Pagan had a pinch hit triple off reliever Jeff Bennett.

Carlos Delgado took another “O-fer” and heard about it from the crowd in every at-bat. They’ve got to move him down to seventh or eighth in the lineup. He’s got nothing at the plate right now. He’s still hitting sixth on his reputation from a few years ago but it’s hurting the team. Willie needs to come to grips with that.

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Chipper Jones Out Today

Sports Illustrated is reporting that Chipper Jones injured his back in the locker room while getting dressed for the game today. He’ll be out of the Atlanta Braves lineup for today’s game.

Jones is a really hot hitter right now, so the Mets caught a break here. Not that I hope for anyone to get hurt. Hopefully, Jones isn’t seriously injured.

Pelfrey, Mets Lose To Braves 6-3

It took me a while to work up to writing this post game recap. It’s starting to feel like a continuation of the way last season ended. The Mets are now 1-5 in their last six games. It’s only April so it’s not like the season is lost at all. The Mets are still at .500. But something is very wrong with this team.

What bothers me is how ugly their losses are. The Atlanta Braves shouldn’t be hammering this team. If you look at the Braves and Mets on paper, the Mets are just a better team. The Braves swept the Mets in a short series earlier this month and came to town with their best starters lined up for this weekend’s series.

The Mets offense (what offense?) only mustered two hits against Braves starter Jair Jurrgens. Jurrgens walked three runs in during the third innings and threw over 40 pitches. Then he went on to retire 10 consecutive batters.

Kelly Johnson homered off Mike Pelfrey in the sixth which brought back bad memories of his pinch hit grand slam in the last series. Pelfrey was pretty bad tonight giving up five runs over 5.1 innings. He didn’t have good control all night walking four and giving up nine hits.

There isn’t much good to report about this game. Nobody was hitting and Pelfrey didn’t give the Mets a chance.

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Nats Smoke Mets 10-5

Oliver Perez didn’t pitch well but it certainly wasn’t as bad as his line shows. He went 5.2 innings and gave up three runs but left two on for Aaron Heilman in the sixth. Heilman promptly walked Lastings Milledge and then gave up another grand slam to Felipe Lopez, and the game was over.

The Mets bullpen has given up three grand slams now. The entire National League has only had four grand slams.

Jorge Sosa got knocked around again in the seventh inning giving up three runs but only one was earned. Jose Reyes made an error and then Carlos Delgado let one go right past his glove on the ground in what should’ve been scored an error too.

Delgado went 0 for 4 again and his average is down to .198 now. There have been so many columns and blog posts about what the Mets can do with him. This is now his second season of not hitting. I think he may be “done”.

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Mets Take Out Listless Nats 7-2

Johan Santana looks like he’s worth the money, and the prospects that the Mets gave up. He was good again tonight keeping the Mets in the game through seven innings. He had seven strikeouts, and gave up two runs, seven hits and one walk. I might also mention that he was 2 for 2 at the plate with two doubles.

Carlos Beltran was 2 for 4 and looked really good hitting left handed. Ryan Church was 2 for 5 as well. Angel Pagan had two steals, Reyes had one, and Luis Castillo had his fifth steal of the year. That’s one more than Reyes has.

The death knell for Carlos Delgado was subsided for one night mostly because the Mets won. But Delgado did have a hit and an RBI to stave off the vultures circling his career.

Playing against the Nationals is a good way to make a team feel good about themselves. They’ve got very little talent on that team. Their new stadium looks great though and has me looking forward to seeing Citi Field.

The Mets fans are traveling really well this season. There was an audible presence during the game. That’s great to see in another team’s stadium.

I have to mention that Willie Randolph is the last person to notice that Delgado should move lower in the order and Duaner Sanchez should pitch the eighth inning. It’s amazing to me that everyone else recognizes that before he does. He’s far too loyal to players that aren’t getting the job done. That’s all that I’ll say about that… I feel like I’m beating a dead horse.

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Cedeno Grand Slams Mets 8-1

Update: I watched the game on the SNY re-broadcast and I’m sorry that I did. That was pathetic. Figueroa was just okay, he wasn’t terrible. The bullpen, however, was terrible. Jorge Sosa is pitching to an almost 8 ERA right now. That just doesn’t get it done! I know he signed a $2 million contract for this year but the Mets may have to release him. He’s that bad.

Carlos Delgado is another story. This was one of the worst overall games that I’ve seen from him. He looked lost in the field and he’s been lost in the batters box for more than a year now. More to come in another post on that.

Willie better get this ship righted quickly or there’ll be more calls for his head than there already are. He’s abused the bullpen and paid way too much respect to the veteran players in the lineup. After the way last season ended, there won’t be much tolerance for bad decision making by him.

I was at work today and only got to hear parts of the game. I’m going to watch the depressing re-broadcast on SNY tonight. I’ll post a more detailed review after I get to watch the horror unfold on Jorge Sosa. For now, here’s the box score.

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