Game 131: Win
This is just getting silly.
The Mets have won 11 of their last 12, scored in double digits for the fourth time in the last week, Steve Trachsel has become a legitimate Cy Young candidate, and late-season retreads Dave Williams, Guillermo Mota, and Oliver Perez are making a strong case to be considered for postseason pitching. It’s as if the Mets can do no wrong.
Did I mention that starting pitcher Williams — who pitched seven strong innings, allowing only three runs — went 2-2 as a hitter and reached base in all four of his plate appearances?
Checking the ears of Mr. Williams, it appears he, like Trachsel, is also a vulcan, which may explain the tremendous run support he’s been given. Impressively enough, he didn’t need all those runs, as he pitched a helluva game. In fact, for all intents and purposes, the third run was a gimme, as the Mets didn’t even try to throw out Jamey Carroll on a steal attempt before he scored on Kaz Matsui’s single.
For the second night in a row, the Mets poo-pooed the whole “humidor” farce. David Wright — who is still in a slump — started the damage with a first-inning grand slam. Jose Valentin knocked two warm, damp baseballs over the fence, and Carlos Delgado socked a soggy one over the leftfield wall. Shawn Green and Michael Mother Tucker were the only Met starters not to collect a hit, as the Mets banged out eleven hits and walked eight times.
Notes
Something I’m not understanding regarding the humidified baseballs: didn’t Connie Mack (and others) freeze baseballs to deaden them? And by putting baseballs in the freezer, wouldn’t that DE-humidify them? I’d like to get some perspective and theories from a scientist on this …
In the last post I mentioned that David Wright was still slumping because he was swinging at first offerings and getting behind on counts. His grand salami came on a 2-1 count.
Was Guillermo Mota part of a conspiracy contrived by Omar Minaya? This guy has been downright magnificent, making one wonder how the heck he could have been thrown away by three different teams in less than a year. Did he pitch awful on purpose, with the goal of eventually returning to his original organization? True, he hasn’t yet been in a pressure situation, but he’s been almost perfect and his stuff looks deadly.
The Mets have been pursuing a backup infielder, with 2B Jose Valentin still nursing a sore hamstring and David Wright in need of a break. There was talk of acquiring Luis Gonzalez from Colorado, and I bet Craig Counsell is available. Here’s a crazy idea: how about Edgardo Alfonzo, who has been stepping it up lately and has raised his average to .262 at Norfolk? He’s a 2B/3B who would fit in quite nicely, don’tcha think ?
Oliver Perez will get another start on Thursday, facing Rockies ace Jeff Francis. We hope to see him build on his somewhat impressive Met debut. The good thing is, the Rockies don’t have Ryan Howard, so he has that going for him. The soggy baseballs should help, too.
With 31 games to play, the Mets’ magic number is 17.
