Mets Game 87: Win Over Giants

Mets 10 Giants 6

Mets continue to feast on the NL West. The Giants continue to reel.

Remember when it was a big deal for the Mets to be at .500? Well, now it’s a big deal that they’re less than ten games under .500 for the first time since June 1. That’s called “progress”!

Mets Game Notes

Dillon Gee battled enough to win, but it was far from his best outing of the year. He struggled with his command on all of his pitches, falling behind batters frequently but being saved by the ineptitude of San Francisco’s hitters. The Giants really had him on the ropes in the bottom of the sixth, scoring a run before putting runners on the corners with one out, but Gregor Blanco hit a laser that found Gee’s glove and resulted in an inning-ending double play when Tony Abreu was doubled off first.

After struggling so mightily in that sixth frame, I was surprised to see him start the seventh. Check that: once realizing what team I was watching, I wasn’t surprised at all that Terry Collins sent him out thee again. I suppose Collins was hoping against hope that Gee’s finger would keep the dam from breaking, since the bullpen was worked pretty hard the night before. Considering how futile the Giants hitters have proven to be, it wasn’t the worst gamble in the world. But once Gee took the mound, it was almost a certainty the lead would be lost. One can use smoke and mirrors to wiggle out of only so many situations against big-league hitters.

In the end, Collins looked like a genius for pushing Gee, since the Mets won and were able to give the bullpen at least two-thirds of an inning of rest.

It was a fairly close and somewhat interesting game until D-Byrd put one over the ball with the bases juiced to break the game open in the eighth. At that point I found it OK to hit the sack — it was 1:11 AM, after all.

When Brandon Belt first came up to MLB, he appeared to be a good-looking hitter. Now, I’m not so sure. His pitch recognition and plate discipline seems to have gotten worse, and usually that’s something that gets better with experience. Further, he cuts down his follow-through — his swing looks like a rusty gate that stops before opening completely. That severely cuts down his bat speed. Too bad, because as a youngster he had a lot of promise, with an approach and style similar to that of Freddie Freeman.

It stuns me whenever someone says that Daniel Murphy is anything other than a below-average / mediocre second baseman. This series — and the previous one — is a prime example of why. If you’re not sure what I’m talking about, watch the games again. He’s been lucky in that his flubs have not had much, if any, impact on the final score.

Next Mets Game

The final game of the series in San Francisco begins at getaway-day time — 3:45 PM ET. Zack Wheeler takes the mound against Matt Cain.