Fox Sports Rob Dibble and Kevin Kennedy talk about the Mets and Phillies pitching this season. They discuss the need for Mets pitchers to go deeper into games, which I agree with. I think that’s something that Jerry Manuel needs to do differently. He needs to trust that the starters can go to 110 or 120 pitches.
The Fox guys also talk about the Phillies acquisition of Joe Blanton.
Image by Getty Images via DaylifeWFAN beat reporter Eddie Coleman just reported that Mets closer Billy Wagner is day to day with shoulder spasms. He had an MRI that didn’t reveal any structural problems with his left shoulder.
Coleman said that he believes that Wagner will be available to pitch tonight.
Great news for the Mets! Duaner Sanchez could handle closing but I’m much more comfortable with Wagner closing and Sanchez in the eighth inning, especially for this huge series against the Phillies.
Here’s a link to a great blog post by Fire Joe Morgan (one of my favorite blogs). The blog post is in response to Chicago Tribune columnist Phil Rogers mid-season awards column. Talk about a tired idea. The mid-season awards are done by every sports writer on the planet it seems.
Anyway, Rogers give Johan Santana the award for “Worst Surprise, Player”. If you read this blog regularly, you know that I’ve supported Santana big time this season. That’s my disclaimer.
Fire JM does a great job of completely de-bunking Rogers’ argument for Santana as the worst surprise of the early season. Check it out.
Image via WikipediaThe biggest story of the Mets game wasn’t the game. It was Pedro Martinez throwing a bullpen session during the game. He’s trying to recover from hip, groin, and shoulder pain and had a cortisone shot in his hip just days ago.
Last night the word came from Jerry Manuel after the game that Pedro won’t pitch against the Phillies this week. The plan is for him to pitch in next weekend’s series against the Cardinals. Pedro did feel good after throwing last night though, the first time he’s thrown since his last start on July 12th.
“OK, for the time being,” Martinez said. “I’d say it’s a positive day. We’re going to see how it feels tomorrow.”
He’s pitched so poorly this season (3-2 6.25 ERA) and missed so much time with injuries that it’s really been a wasted season for Pedro. Unfortunately, this is the last season he’s under contract with the Mets. So his pre-season comments about proving his health and ability to gain another deal with the Mets is seriously in question.
It would take a big run by Pedro in the last two months of the season to warrant the Mets offering Pedro a contract beyond the end of this year. He’s a definite Hall of Famer but he’s been hurting the Mets for more than two years now.
Image by Getty Images via DaylifeI read an interesting post by Peter Bendix of Beyond The Boxscore about Mike Pelfrey. Basically, the gist of it is that Pelfrey has dominated bad offensive teams but struggled against good teams. The conclusion is that he hasn’t really figured anything out or turned a corner this season. He’s just beating up on bad teams.
I hadn’t really thought about the level of competition while watching Pelfrey dominate in his starts since May 31st. He looks like he can get anyone out, regardless of their offensive stature. But I’ll certainly be keeping a closer eye on that in the second half of the season.
It looks to me like he’s taken a little bit off his fastball to improve control. He’s throwing a higher percentage of fastballs. He’s mixes in an occasional curveball and he’s throwing a lot of rising four seam fastballs at the top of the strike zone. Those are tangible changes to his strategy over the past month and a half.
Image by Getty Images via DaylifeMike Pelfrey was named the National League player of the week. The New York Mets pitcher has won six consecutive games and has a 2.26 ERA in his last nine starts. Pelfrey has just been phenomenal for the last month and a half. I know that this run started under the tutelage of Rick Peterson but new pitching coach Dan Warthen has clearly had a tangible impact on the Mets pitching staff.
Tony Armas was placed on the 15 day disabled list with an abdominal strain. He’s been with the big league team since July 2 going 1-0 with a 7.56 ERA in three games.
Carlos Muniz is back again. He knows the flight patterns between New Orleans and New York by now. He’s 0-1 with a 6.17 ERA in eight games this season.
The Mets Report 