This afternoon the Mets face Justin Verlander, who will have 8 fielders from the Detroit Tigers standing around him and a DH from that same team hitting for him. The Mets will send this lineup to face the King and His Court:
Jose Reyes – SS
Jason Pridie – RF
Carlos Beltran – DH
Daniel Murphy – 3B
Angel Pagan – CF
Jason Bay – LF
Lucas Duda – 1B
Josh Thole – C
Ruben Tejada – 2B
If you are wondering why Pridie is starting in RF and batting second, it is because Justin Verlander has NEVER retired Pridie (though, he’s never faced him, either). Additionally, Willie Harris has returned to NY to tend to his wife, who is 5 months pregnant and going into labor. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Willie, his wife, and the baby.
What do you think — is Lucas Duda going to go ape on Verlander? If so, the confidence boost could transform Duda into a legitimate monster going forward.
I think we have to run Duda and Bay out there to see if they can provide needed power!
They both look a lot better at the plate, overall.
Jason Pridie is something of a forgotten person of late.
This game had “Mets loss” written all over it. Well, it’s not over yet, but Pelfrey, Verlander, long odds against sweeping particularly against a decent team (with apparently a suspect starting rotation) etc. made it a long shot.
Off Topic: “The Way of Baseball: Finding Stillness at 95 MPH” by Shawn Green is getting some good press.
Sadly, the baby died.
Oh man that is HORRIBLE news. Very sad.