Tag Archives: Gary Matthews Jr.
There’s been no June swoon for the Mets this month as they are undoubtedly playing their best baseball of the season. Their record stands at 11-2 this month and they are winning games that they need to be winning as the road gets a little tougher with the Yankees and the Twins looming in the not too distant horizon.
Many have noted a shift in the club’s attitude. They actually look like they are enjoying winning. Imagine that? And as Met fans, it’d be safe to say that we are enjoying it too—for a change. This is a far cry from the lackadaisical and complacent Met teams that have been running out on the field the past couple of seasons, going through the motions, taking their at-bats with as much enthusiasm as watching grass grow.
No doubt, the addition (and subtraction) of different clubhouse personalities have infused the team with an approach that is refreshing to see. Rookies, like Ike Davis, Jenrry Mejia and Hisanori Takahashi know nothing of past seasons. They only know the here and now and they are helping players that have been around for multiple seasons turn the page on some ugly, ugly memories.
But more than the infusion of rookie blood, there is much more to the successful June than that. I believe the biggest moves that the Mets have made the past couple of weeks have not been what’s happening on the field but rather some of the dead weight the Mets have lifted from their roster. Don’t they just seem leaner, meaner…less heavy? They certainly have done some necessary trimming of excess “fat” and it’s all for the better.
I believe it’s no coincidence that since the Mets designated Gary Matthews Jr. (and have since released him), put Luis Castillo on the DL and done whatever you want to call what they have done with Oliver Perez, that this team has thrived. And as much I root for a successful return of John Maine, he was doing the team no favors by rolling himself out there every fifth day with only 50% velocity and not enough command to get through 5 innings much less 5 pitches.
The problem with some of the transactions they have made though is that they are not permanent. Matthews’ departure thankfully is a sure thing, but Castillo will eventually come off the DL as well as Perez. Omar Minaya has done is best to move Castillo, but with a year and a half and roughly $9.0 million left on his contact, who wants a singles hitter with bad legs for that price?
And then there’s Ollie. Ollie who is technically on the 15-day DL with knee tendonitis. Conspiracy theorist can debate the legitimacy of the move but the most important part is that he is not with the team. But eventually, the Mets will give him another shot. They need to get some return value on the $36.0 million they have wasted on him. But for now, it’s a good thing that he stays away as his innings pitched were infecting the team like a disease and the Mets seem much “healthier” and better off without him. And don’t we all sleep a little better at night too?
The Mets will continue to maneuver through June with the tougher schedule ahead. They have been playing solid baseball, but who could blame the dedicated Met fan for watching the games with eyes covered, peeking through the slits of their fingers and breathing a heavy sigh of relief after every recorded out? Isn’t it normal to flinch when kicked to the ground so many times? The good news is that management seems to be recognizing some of the issues (players?) that were holding them back and they are finally acting on these issues.
Going forward, Met fans may hold back on their enthusiasm for this team with rightful skepticism. Can we really keep giving all of our heart and soul into rooting for a team that may potentially crush our hopes yet again? Like Lucy and Charlie Brown with the football, can the Mets really tease us once more and move the football as it’s about to be kicked and we go falling to the ground? It takes a lot to be a Met fan. It takes vulnerability, dedication and yes, perhaps a little bit of masochistic pleasure.
But for now let’s take a moment and enjoy the solid baseball we have seen over the past couple of weeks. This Mets team has been a much better team to watch and a much more fun team to root for. And perhaps most importantly…they are a likable team again.
8 comments | tags: Gary Matthews Jr., Hisanori Takahashi, Ike Davis, Jenrry Mejia, John Maine, Luis Castillo, New York Mets, Oliver Perez | posted in Uncategorized
After what we’ll call an extended holiday break, I am back with the series preview! I know you’ve all been missing it so much. I mean, where else are you going to get such in depth analysis on upcoming Mets games? Anyway, the Mets continued to show us all that for as good as they are at home, they’re that bad on the road. The good news is they are back home for six games. The bad news is they open the weekend with a three game set against the Marlins, who are 6-1 against the Metropolitans this season, including that horrendous four game sweep in May.
The pitching matchups for this series are as follows: Anibal Sanchez vs. RA Dickey (Friday), Nate Robertson vs. Jonathon Niese (Saturday), Ricky Nolasco vs. Hisanori Takahashi.
RA has been more than serviceable in his short time with the Mets, but the question is will it continue? When comparing his career numbers with his numbers through three starts, most stats are very similar. The one that sticks out, however, if his FIP. RA has a career FIP of 5.15, but so far his FIP this season is 4.31. Tim Wakefield, probably the most notable current knuckleballer, sprots a career FIP of 4.72, so that shows that just how successful RA has been. Now, whether he can sustain that success or if his respectable FIP is just an example of small sample size will be found out through time, but the Mets have to be very happy with his contributions thus far.
Here’s a look at the Mets offense vs. Sanchez:
| METS HITTER |
AB
|
BA
|
OBP
|
SLG
|
OPS
|
|
Jeff Francoeur
|
21
|
.190
|
.190
|
.381
|
.571
|
|
Jose Reyes
|
17
|
.118
|
.250
|
.176
|
.426
|
|
David Wright
|
15
|
.200
|
.294
|
.200
|
.494
|
|
Luis Castillo
|
7
|
.143
|
.250
|
.143
|
.393
|
|
Angel Pagan
|
6
|
.333
|
.429
|
.500
|
.929
|
|
Fernando Tatis
|
4
|
.500
|
.600
|
.500
|
1.100
|
|
Jason Bay
|
3
|
.333
|
.333
|
.333
|
.667
|
|
Ike Davis
|
3
|
.333
|
.333
|
.333
|
.667
|
|
Henry Blanco
|
2
|
.500
|
.500
|
2.000
|
2.500
|
|
Alex Cora
|
2
|
.500
|
.667
|
.500
|
1.167
|
|
Rod Barajas
|
2
|
.500
|
.667
|
1.000
|
1.667
|
|
Chris Carter
|
1
|
.000
|
.000
|
.000
|
.000
|
On Saturday, Jon Niese makes his return from the DL to face the team he suffered his hamstring injury against. Prior to getting hurt, Niese was struggling a bit, which is to be expected of any young pitcher. In his last full start against the Nationals, he only went 4.1 innings in which he threw 91 pitches and allowed 6 runs on 6 hits. Then in his next start, when he left in the third inning with the injury, he had thrown 46 pitches in 2+ innings, and allowed 5 runs (2 earned) on 8 hits. Hopefully the couple weeks he had to recover help him settle himself and go back to the way he pitched in April.
Meanwhile, the Mets will face off against Nate Robertson. Here’s a look at the team’s numbers against the journyman lefty:
| METS HITTER |
AB
|
BA
|
OBP
|
SLG
|
OPS
|
|
Luis Castillo
|
26
|
.308
|
.379
|
.308
|
.687
|
|
Gary Matthews Jr.
|
18
|
.278
|
.316
|
.389
|
.705
|
|
Rod Barajas
|
18
|
.333
|
.400
|
.389
|
.789
|
|
Jason Bay
|
7
|
.286
|
.286
|
.286
|
.571
|
|
Henry Blanco
|
5
|
.600
|
.714
|
1.200
|
1.914
|
|
David Wright
|
5
|
.400
|
.333
|
1.000
|
1.333
|
|
Angel Pagan
|
5
|
.400
|
.500
|
.400
|
.900
|
|
Fernando Tatis
|
4
|
.250
|
.333
|
.250
|
.583
|
|
Jeff Francoeur
|
4
|
.500
|
.500
|
.750
|
1.250
|
|
Jose Reyss
|
3
|
.333
|
.333
|
.333
|
.667
|
|
Ike Davis
|
3
|
.333
|
.333
|
.667
|
1.000
|
The series wraps up Sunday with Hisanori Takahashi looking to rebound from his last start against the Padres, where he allowed more than just his first run as a starter. Takahashi allowed 6 runs on 8 hits in 4 innings. Despite that outing, Takahashi’s numbers are still outstanding, which just goes to show how well he’s been pitching this season. His FIP is an exceptional 2.79 and his K/9 rate is 9.64, despite only striking out just one batter Monday night in San Diego.
Every Mets fan knows the Mets have had success against Nolasco, so these big numbers shouldn’t be any surprise:
| METS HITTER |
AB
|
BA
|
OBP
|
SLG
|
OPS
|
|
David Wright
|
41
|
.341
|
.386
|
.659
|
1.045
|
|
Jose Reyes
|
35
|
.400
|
.417
|
.743
|
1.160
|
|
Jeff Francoeur
|
26
|
.308
|
.321
|
.654
|
.975
|
|
Jason Bay
|
17
|
.235
|
.278
|
.294
|
.572
|
|
Luis Castillo
|
16
|
.375
|
.389
|
.375
|
.764
|
|
Fernando Tatis
|
9
|
.222
|
.222
|
.444
|
.667
|
|
Alex Cora
|
8
|
.500
|
.556
|
.875
|
1.431
|
|
Angel Pagan
|
8
|
.375
|
.500
|
.500
|
1.000
|
|
Rod Barajas
|
4
|
.250
|
.200
|
.250
|
.450
|
|
Henry Blanco
|
3
|
.000
|
.000
|
.000
|
.000
|
|
Chris Carter
|
3
|
.333
|
.333
|
.333
|
.667
|
|
Gary Matthews Jr.
|
2
|
.000
|
.333
|
.000
|
.333
|
|
Ike Davis
|
2
|
.000
|
.333
|
.000
|
.333
|
Expect the Marlins outfielders to be playing as if their jobs are on the line because…well…they are, as top prospect Mike Stanton is rumored to be getting called up from AAA next week.
Leave a comment | tags: Alex Cora, Angel Pagan, Anibal Sanchez, Chris Carter, david Wright, Fernando Tatis, Gary Matthews Jr., Henry Blanco, Hisanori Takahashi, Ike Davis, Jason Bay, Jeff Francoeur, Jonathon Niese, Jose Reyes, Luis Castillo, Marlins, Mets, Mike Stanton, Nate Robertson, R.A. Dickey, Ricky Nolasco, Rod Barajas | posted in Uncategorized
After the road trip from hell, the Mets come stumbling home and will open the first of a three game set with their crosstown rivals, and defending World Champions, the New York Yankees. Just what they need to get back on track! This homestand could very well determine the fate of Jerry Manuel and company, so some extra emphasis is added to this series, which will feature a couple of very interesting pitching matchups.
Tonight, Hisanori Takahashi will make his first Major League start against Javy Vazquez. Interleague play might be a huge break for Vazquez, whose 8.01 ERA and 6.48 FIP suggest that he can’t pitch in the American League. As for Takahashi, the 35 year old rookie has been one of the few bright spots for the Mets this year, posting a 2.69 FIP in 26 innings of relief. It will be interesting to see how long Manuel will stretch him out, as he has yet to throw more than 60 pitches. RA Dickey was apparently available in relief last night, so he should probably be available again tonight.
Here’s a look at how the Mets have stacked up against Vazquez. It’s worth noting Luis Castillo has a home run off him:
Saturday night should be an exciting night for my good friend and colleague, Matt Falzano, as Mike “he’s better than Phil Hughes” Pelfrey will go head-to-head with…the one and only Phil Hughes! Hughes has been stellar for the Yankees this year, posting a 2.25 ERA, 3.12 FIP, and an 8.59 K/9 ratio in the daunting AL East. Mike Pelfrey’s numbers, though good, are not quite as impressive: 3.02 ERA, 3.67 FIP, and a 6.04 K/9 ratio. It should be an interesting duel between two up and coming New York stars.
There is not nearly enough of a sample size for any Mets hitters to post a chart. Jason Bay has the most at-bats against Hughes and is 1-for-6 with four strikeouts. Meanwhile, Mark Teixeira has a .308 average off Big Pelf in 13 at bats.
The best matchup of the series will come in the finale Sunday night, as CC Sabathia goes up against Johan Santana. The last time Santana pitched on Sunday night was a total nightmare, so hopefully there won’t be a repeat performance. Johan has only struggled with two Yankees in his career: Derek Jeter (.423, 1 HR, 5 RBIs, 26 AB) and Robinson Cano (.412, 1 RBI, 17 AB).
Heres a look at how the Mets have fared against Carsten Charles:
Weather stats (courtesy of weather.com): Unlike the last homestand, the Mets will be playing in some much better conditions. Tonight calls for 75 degrees and clear skies, with 11mph winds from ESE and Saturday will be the 71 with 9mph winds from the same direction. Sunday could be a little bit of a damper, however, as the forecast calls for a chance of showers and temperatures in the low-mid 60s with 10mph winds from ENE. According to weather.com the most favorable conditions for the Mets are day games (which there will be none of this series) with temperatures between 46 and 60 (also not happening) and winds out to left field (nope). Excellent!
1 comment | tags: Alex Cora, Angel Pagan, CC Sabathia, david Wright, Derek Jeter, Fernando Tatis, Gary Matthews Jr., Henry Blanco, Hisanori Takahashi, Jason Bay, Javy Vazquez, Jeff Francoeur, Jerry Manuel, Johan Santana, Jose Reyes, Luis Castillo, Mark Teixeira, Mets, Mike Pelfrey, New York Yankees, Phil Hughes, RA Dickey, Robinson Cano, Rod Barajas | posted in Uncategorized
When I talked about the importance of the rest of this road trip for the Mets on Monday, I didn’t expect to scare Mr. Wilpon so much that he and the rest of the front office felt the need to fly down to Atlanta to “talk” about things. Regardless, it seems as though management’s sudden sense of urgency didn’t seem to rub off on the team. Though they split the two game series in Atlanta, neither game featured an energized ball club that was determined to turn things around.
So now it’s onto the nation’s capital, where the Mets will look to take a winning streak into this weekend’s Subway Series. This short two game series will feature possibly the two least exciting pitching matchups you will ever see, with RA Dickey facing the ageless Livan Hernandez and John Maine going against Luis Atilano.
The former Met, Hernandez, has seemingly dipped into the Fountain of Youth early in the season, posting a 4-2 record and a 1.46 ERA. You might remember, He began his season with 7 shutout innings en route to a 5-0 victory over Johan Santana on April 11. But look a little closer and you’ll see he will probably show himself as Fool’s Gold sometime soon. His FIP is 4.90, over three full points greater than his ERA, and he has a LOB% of 98.6%. That last stat should come as no surprise to Mets fans, who know Livan is prone to give up many hits.
As for RA (I’m sorry, but I feel awkward having to type “Dickey”), he makes his Mets debut after a 4-2 record with a 2.42 ERA in AAA-Buffalo. The highlight of his season, and maybe his professional career, came on April 29 of this year against the Durham Bulls, when RA gave up a lead-off hit then went on to retire the next 27 batters in a row. Obviously, Crash Davis was not in the lineup.
While the Nationals will try to figure out how to handle RA’s knuckleball, here is how the Mets have fared against Livan (Note: David Wright will most likely get the night off tonight which, despite his numbers against Hernandez, is much needed):
Tomorrow, the series wil conclude with a re-match from May 10 at Citi Field, when Luis Atilano bested John Maine in a 3-2 Nats victory. Atilano did not allow a run in 5.1 innings, while Maine allowed 2 runs in 6 innings. This will only be the rookie’s second appearance against the Mets, so posting stats would be a waste of everybody’s time. As for Maine, he has handled the big bats of the Nationals pretty well. Ryan Zimmerman has a measley .189 average against him in 37 at-bats, though he does have two home runs. Adam Dunn has also struggled in 12 at-bats off Maine with a .167 average, and Josh Willingham is only hitting .154 in 13 at-bats. Each also have a home run off him, however.
Weather stats (courtesy of weather.com): Conditions will be mild tonight, with clear skies and temperatures in the mid-60s and 6mph winds from the west. Tomorrow will be much of the same, with a daytime high of 79 degrees and winds blowing at 7mph from the north. The Mets have yet to win a game this season when it’s been greater than 70 degrees. The Nationals have won six.
Leave a comment | tags: Adam Dunn, Alex Cora, david Wright, Fernando Tatis, Gary Matthews Jr., Henry Blanco, Jason Bay, Jeff Francoeur, Johan Santana, John Maine, Jose Reyes, Josh Willingham, Livan Hernandez, Luis Atilano, Luis Castillo, R.A. Dickey, Rod Barajas, Ryan Zimmerman | posted in Uncategorized
Well if that wasn’t the weekend from hell, I don’t know what is. Thanks to the four game sweep of the Marlins, these next two short series could be pivitol for the fate of Jerry Manuel and co. With the Yankees visiting Citi Field this weekend, followed by the Phillies, if the Mets do not gather themselves in Atlanta and Washington, the 2010 season may have crashed and burned before we even get to Memorial Day.
Luckily the Mets get a break, as they will not have to face some of the great pitching the Braves have to offer. Tonight, Mike Pelfrey takes the mound against Derek Lowe. Big Pelf will have to be careful with Brian McCann, who has a .464 average against him with a home run and seven RBI. As for Lowe, Luis Castillo and David Wright have a nice stat line, but other than that the righty sinkerballer has kept Mets hitters in check.
Tomorrow, the Mets will catch a huge break as Kris Medlen will come out of the bullpen to make a spot start for the Braves, with Jair Jurrjens on the DL. Meanwhile, the Amazins will throw out Johan Santana. On paper, this is a gimmie game for the Mets, but as we all know, there really is no such thing with this team. The Braves have had some success off Johan. Troy Glaus has a .333 average in 24 ABs with a home run, and Chipper Jones has hit .294 off the Mets ace. Brian McCann also has two home runs off Santana.
The numbers for Met hitters against Medlen are rather useless to look at, but here they are nonetheless:
Weather stats (courtesy of weather.com): The weather for the series should be a non-factor, with temparatures expected to be in the upper 70s both nights. On Tuesday, there will be 13mph winds WNW, but that should have little impact, if any. This is all good news for the Mets, as they have won eight games in clear skies and have won 10 games with winds of less than 15mph.
Leave a comment | tags: Alex Cora, Angel Pagan, Brian McCann, Chipper Jones, david Wright, Derek Lowe, Fernando Tatis, Gary Matthews Jr., Henry Blanco, Jair Jurrjens, Jason Bay, Jeff Francoeur, Johan Santana, Jose Reyes, Kris Medlen, Luis Castillo, Mike Pelfrey, Rod Barajas, Troy Glaus | posted in Uncategorized
After a 3-3 home stand which showed the Mets actually have a little fight in them, the Amazins will now hit the beach for a four game series with the Marlins. There are some interesting pitching match-ups for this series, tonight’s in particular, with Johan Santana going up against Josh Johnson. The Mets got to Johnson on Opening Day, getting four runs off him in five innings en route to a 7-1 victory. Meanwhile, Santana has dominated the Fish in his Mets career. Out of all Marlins hitters with 10 or more at-bats against Johan, Jorge Cantu leads the way with a .259 average. Here’s a look at how the Metsies have fared against Johnson:
On Friday, everybody’s favorite pitcher, Oliver Perez, will face-off against the other prospect in the Josh Beckett-for-Hanley Ramirez trade, Anibal Sanchez. Ollie will want to look out for Cody Ross, who has a career .346 average with three home runs and 10 RBI against him. In reality, this could be a win-win situation for the Mets. If Ollie pitches well and the Mets win, then it’s a good day. If Ollie pitches like Ollie, then perhaps we finally see the Mets do some shaking up in their starting rotation. As far as the other side of the coin goes, here’s a look at the Mets numbers against Sanchez, whose 4.08 ERA might be a little misleading, as he has a 3.45 FIP:
On Saturday, the reborn John Maine hits the bump against Nate Robertson. Robertson had a nice start against the Mets in the third game of the year, allowing one run over five innings while striking out four. As for Maine, say what you want about his fastball, it’s working. His last three games have all been quality starts in which he has struck out 20 batters in 18 innings.
Look for Luis Castillo to have a nice game at the plate to help Maine out.
The series concludes Sunday afternoon with Jonathon Niese taking on Ricky Nolasco. It looks like Niese has hit the inevitable bump in the road for any young pitcher, having given up 10 runs on 18 hits in his last two starts, his latest which saw him go only four and a third innings. He was decent in his first start of the year against the Marlins, however, going six strong and allowing three runs in a 3-1 loss. Lucky for him, this time he will be matching up against Nolasco, who the Mets feast off of:
Weather stats (courtesy of weather.com): The Mets will be estatic to get out of the blistering cold in New York and into the gorgeous sunshine in Miami. All four games call for temperatures in the mid-high 80s, though strong winds are also expected. The Mets have played only one game this year when it was over 80 degrees, which they lost.
Leave a comment | tags: Alex Cora, Angel Pagan, Anibal Sanchez, david Wright, Fernando Tatis, Gary Matthews Jr., Hanley Ramirez, Jason Bay, Jeff Francoeur, Johan Santana, John Maine, Jonathon Niese, Jorge Cantu, Jose Reyes, Josh Beckett, Josh Johnson, Josh Thole, Luis Castillo, Nate Robertson, Oliver Perez, Ricky Nolasco, Rod Barajas | posted in Uncategorized
Finally! Frank Catalanotgonnaworkhereanymore (it’s been tweeted by the masses – but I think I saw AmazinAvenue do it first) was designated for assignment Sunday night after going 4 for 25 on the season. By now, many Met fans are well versed in the plight of Chris Carter but let’s just reinforce his quadruple-A stud status.
In 5 AAA seasons, mostly within Arizona and Boston’s system, Carter has amassed 2324 PAs with a triple slash of .305/.373/.499. He isn’t a tremendous homerun hitter, but he definitely has some pop as he has hit 84 home runs in 2070 at bats, good for a HR% of 4.1%. He has walked 223 times to 299 strikeouts, good for a 9.5% bb rate and a 12.9% k rate.
In 123 PAs for the Bisons this year, he hit .336/.390/.611 with 6 home runs, 8 walks, and only 8 strikeouts. He’ll serve mostly as a left-handed pinch hitter for the Mets, but will provide significantly more punch than Frank Catalanotto could have and more than Gary Matthews, Jr. will. Frankly, he should have been up since the start of the season, but I suppose the extra confidence from crushing AAA pitching won’t hurt him. He probably won’t see many games at first base with Ike Davis also being a lefty, and Daniel Murphy on the mend, but he’d be a good candidate to steal some at bats from Jeff Francoeur in RF against right-handed pitching and maybe even Jason Bay if he continues to struggle.
Carter’s career minor league splits suggest he could be more than just a strict platoon player. He hits for a high average against both lefties and righties, though his HR per at bat against righties is over 5% while his rate against lefties, as expected, is only 2%. Carter hits a ton of ground balls, 43% for his career, with only a 17.5 LD% and a 39.5 FB%, but his career .315 BABIP is pretty normal. He will likely have to show some improvement in his LD% to stick in the majors, but his 2009 campaign in Pawtucket featured a 23.6% rate which is encouraging.
It’ll be a shame if he doesn’t rack up some ABs in the corners, but his defense is uninspiring and he is probably best suited as a DH. Still, at age 27 and after significant AAA production, he deserves a chance to prove his worth. With Bay and Francoeur struggling, there’s hope that Carter can get a chance to earn more responsibility. I’d love to see at least a part-time platoon in RF, and Francoeur would make an excellent defensive replacement in the games Carter starts. I guess we’ll have to wait and see, but at the very least, our bench and corner outfield depth just got a whole lot stronger.
Leave a comment | tags: Chris Carter, Daniel Murphy, frank catalanotto, Gary Matthews Jr., Ike Davis, Jason Bay, Jeff Francoeur | posted in Uncategorized
Well that was a fun road trip, wasn’t it? Nevertheless, after an off-day in which Jerry Manuel had Fernando Nieve and Pedro Feliciano throw bullpen sessions just to stay fresh (kidding, though I wouldn’t put it past him), the Mets return to New York for a six game home stand. It all starts this weekend against the NL West leading San Francisco Giants.
The pitching matchups are as follows: Jonathan Sanchez vs. Mike Pelfrey on Friday, Todd Wellemeyer vs. Johan Santana on Saturday, and Tim Lincecum vs. Oliver Perez on Sunday.
Hopefully, Pelfrey and Santana can rebound from their nightmare outings in Philadelphia last weekend. Being back at Citi Field should be comforting for Big Pelf, as he is 3-0 with a 1.00 ERA at home this season. Here are the Mets stats vs. Sanchez. Look for David Wright to continue his recent hot streak.
The Giants have had limited at-bats against Pelfrey, with Aaron Rowand leading the way at 9.
As for Santana, the good news is he is 3-1 with a 2.70 ERA at home this season. The bad news, however, is that many of the Giants hitters have had success off him in the past. Bengie Molina has a career .438 batting average with a 1.189 OPS vs. Johan. Aubrey Huff has also feasted off of him back in their AL days, with a .714 slugging percentage, and Aaron Rowand has a .295 lifetime average. Pablo Sandoval sports a .714 average and 2.179 OPS against Santana, although in only 7 at-bats. Luckily for the Mets, Todd Wellemeyer has an ERA of 5.55 this season, and a 6.24 FIP. As you can see, D-Dubbs should be looking forward to this match-up as well.
If one of the Mets top two starters fail to deliver this weekend it might be disastrous, as perhaps the best pitcher in baseball will take the mound against them in the series finale. Coming off a game in which he struck out 13 Marlins in 7 innings, Tim Lincecum enters pitcher-friendly Citi Field with a 1.92 FIP. That is not a typo. He also carries an 11.91 K/9 ratio and a 50% ground ball rate. If that fails to make you wary, then check out these stats vs. The Freak:
Weather stats (courtesy of weather.com): The weekend forecast in Flushing calls for partly cloudy skies with temperatures in the low 70s and winds blowing W at 10mph Friday evening, mid 70s with a 50% chance of scattered thunderstorms and winds blowing WSW at 20mph Saturday, and a grey, chilly Sunday with temperatures in the low 60s and 21mph winds blowing NW. The Mets have only won three of their 15 games in winds greater than 15mph, however, the Giants have also only won three games in the same conditions. Continue reading
Leave a comment | tags: Aaron Rowand, Alex Cora, Angel Pagan, Aubrey Huff, Bengie Molina, david Wright, Fernando Nieve, Fernando Tatis, Gary Matthews Jr., Henry Blanco, Jason Bay, Jeff Francoeur, Johan Santana, Jonathan Sanchez, Jose Reyes, Luis Castillo, Mets, Mike Pelfrey, Oliver Perez, Pablo Sandoval, Pedro Feliciano, Rob Barajas, San Francisco Giants, Tim Lincecum, Todd Wellemeyer | posted in Uncategorized
I just finished a piece for ESPN about Tony LaRussa’s big mistakes in the game last night, so it seems only fair to point out the blame on the other side of the ball. It was an epic game that was fun to watch, and Jerry Manuel deserves some portion of the credit – and some of the blame for letting the game go as long as it did.
1) The Angel Pagan / Gary Matthews Jr Debacle
Look, I know this team is going to run with Manuel at the helm. And Pagan can steal a base. But Sarge Jr is striking out 40% of the time this year so far, 20% career, and was facing a left-hander. He’s striking out 60% of the time against lefties this year, 21.6% career, and has a career .324 OBP against lefties. Alex Cora hasn’t struck out this year, has a 12.4% career strikeout rate which drops to 11.1% against lefties. He has a .321 career OBP against lefties. IF you were going to pull some base-stealing shenanigans with Pagan out there, Cora would have been the better guy to have at the plate. And you’d have GM Jr on the bench later.
2) Luis Castillo bunting in the 19th
Seriously?!! A position player is pitching and you need to bunt the fastest guy on your team to second base? You’re going to give their centerfielder-as-pitcher a free out? That’s crazy talk. Jose Reyes must be hurting more than we think, because you either steal second there are just wait for the position player that is pitching to make a couple hundred mistakes. He was throwing 70 MPH! This one is a real forehead-smacker.
3) Waiting so long to put Francisco Rodriguez in the game
Why would you pitch Fernando Nieve, Hisanori Takahashi, Jenrry Mejiia and Raul Valdes before you put your best reliever in the game? Seriously, you don’t have last licks in this road game – what are you waiting for? Are you really trying to get Rodriguez a save in this game? How about the win? Is that stat worth less than a save? Enough questions. Here’s an answer: It was stupid. Not only was it stupid to save him so long, it was stupid to warm him up so often. K-Rod said his arm felt ‘dead’ when he entered the game because he had thrown what felt like 100 warmup pitches. Not surprising then that he blew the save. Hey, he got the win!
I’m sure there’s more gaffes to be pointed out, and surely Manuel did a little better than LaRussa because he didn’t take his cleanup hitter out of the game too early and he didn’t have to resort to position players pitching… but he didn’t manage a great game. Just good enough to win.
PS: Props to Cora for that big catch. That was Jeterian.
Leave a comment | tags: Alex Cora, Angel Pagan, Francisco Rodriguez, Gary Matthews Jr., Jose Reyes, Luis Castillo | posted in Uncategorized
Mondays can be tough. It’s the start of the work week and there’s a tendency to expect the worst and hope for the best. For Met fans, that perspective is engrained in our very being. And so, it was with this cautious attitude of optimism mixed with fatalism that we approached the Mets opening day game against the Florida Marlins. Like a bad meal that turns out to be very satisfying or blind date to meet for coffee that turns out to be a pretty good time, the Mets victory on Monday provided some promise that they could compete in the early part of the season with primary players on the disabled list.
As Matt already touched on, it was hard to find too much fault in the Mets’ performance yesterday save some of the questionable choices with regards to the lineup. But when all was said and done, it was a day to savor, so let’s briefly revisit some of the positives.
Johan Santana was crisp and mostly efficient throwing 103 pitches through 6 innings. He got the big outs when he needed them and schooled Cameron Maybin three times in the art of the change up. Like manna from heaven, David Wright ran a Josh Johnson pitch down the right field line and out of the ballpark, providing some proof that 2009 is in the past and more baseballs will be finding the seats off of Mr. Wright’s bat this season.
Against one of the league’s toughest pitchers in Johnson, the Mets displayed a tremendous amount of patience, forcing Johnson to throw 99 pitches through 5 frames. They were able to work out 4 walks against him. In fact, even Jeff Francoeur managed to work out a base on balls. Whether or not this was the intended game plan to work up the pitch count on Johnson, it was successful and the Mets were able to open the game up from that point.
Some of the biggest contributions of the day came from the new faces in the lineup. Jason Bay, Gary Matthews Jr. and Rod Barajas were all central figures in ensuring the Mets victory. All three players had two hits each. Matthews not only contributed with his bat but also excelled in the field, tracking down balls that swirled in the wind and besting his counterpart on the opponent’s side. Yes, Matthews’ insertion in the lineup over Angel Pagan was a bit of a head-scratcher at the start of day, but Jerry Manuel’s gut feeling paid dividends.
While Matthews’ addition to the lineup was a success, the same cannot be said for Mike Jacobs. Jacobs, who has become this blogs favorite whipping boy (and rightfully so), went 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts. Both Eno and Matt questioned the logic of Jacobs in the cleanup spot and with good reason. While I don’t want to sound redundant or keep beating the same drum over and over again, I will. I’ll happily jump on this bandwagon with them and take my turn holding the reins. They are 100% correct in their assessment that batting Jacobs in front of Bay would take at-bats away from Bay. Wouldn’t it be more prudent to have Bay driving in the runs? But to have Jacobs bat 4th, a guy who makes contact only 62% of the time, will probably end up killing more rallies then keeping them alive. A strikeout can be a momentum killer and if killing momentum were a crime, Jacobs would be at the top of “The Most Wanted” list. Also, let’s not forget that Bay in the cleanup spot would provide better protection for Wright. Jacobs in that spot would allow pitchers to pitch around Wright to get to him. And what pitcher wouldn’t take their chances with Jacobs before Wright in any key situation? Forget about having two right-handed hitters in a row. So what? It was very evident in the opening game, that Jacobs is and will be a black hole in the lineup, especially in the clean up role. Hopefully, this was evident to Manuel as well.
But enough of the negative. The Mets started off their 2010 season on the right foot. It was a game the Mets needed to win especially with their ace on the mound. The Mets needed to exorcise some of the awful memories of last season and turn the page. If not for their sake, at least for the sake of the fans. They pitched well, hit well, fielding well and showed solid patience at the plate. They need to remember all the things they did well yesterday and carry that forward, because the next game their ace won’t be on the mound. They will have to prove to themselves that they can succeed without him. So with one win in the books, the Mets can feel good about what they achieved yesterday. Yes, it was a good day. And hopefully after tomorrow’s game, we will all still be smiling.
Leave a comment | tags: david Wright, Gary Matthews Jr., Jason Bay, Johan Santana, Mike Jacobs, New York Mets, Rod Barajas | posted in Uncategorized
