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May 14, 2014 Mets 2014 Games Joe Janish

Mets Game 39: Loss To Yankees

Yankees 4 Mets 0

After breaking out in the Bronx, the Mets sluggers are quieted in Queens.

Mets Game Notes

Yes, the Mets lost — even though Eric Young, Jr. was at the top of the lineup “in the middle of everything” and despite the fact Anthony Recker was catching. Go figure.

The Mets had four hits, no walks, struck out 8 times, and saw all of 114 pitches as Masahiro Tanaka delivered pretty much as advertised. He didn’t even get to a three-ball count, nor did he allow an extra-base hit, until the sixth inning. It was his first MLB complete-game shutout. The first of many, it would seem.

Similarly, Rafael Montero, in his MLB debut, also delivered as advertised. His control was very good and his composure even-keeled as we’ve been told. Will he be a solid mid-rotation starter? Hey, can we see him a few more times first?

There was some talk about the Mets hitting a few balls that “would’ve been out of Yankee Stadium.” Yes. There were also a few balls hit by the Yankees that would’ve been out of their home park. It’s a different ballgame between the two locations.

Mets made several mistakes in this game, motivating Ron Darling to quip, “you hit four home runs a game, it makes up for a lot of mistakes.” Agreed, and exactly the reason my tone was so bitter in games one and two. I don’t enjoy “home run derby,” I like well-played ballgames.

Maybe the Mets should bring in their fences another 40 feet. Or maybe the front office should have considered the home field dimensions and built a team accordingly. Oh crap, did I type that out loud? Sorry!

Next Mets Game

The final game of the subway series begins at 7:10 PM on Thursday night. Headliners Jacob DeGrom and Chase Whitley hook up on the mound. Who?

Joe Janish began MetsToday in 2005 to provide the unique perspective of a high-level player and coach -- he earned NCAA D-1 All-American honors as a catcher and coached several players who went on to play pro ball. As a result his posts often include mechanical evaluations, scout-like analysis, and opinions that go beyond the numbers. Follow Joe's baseball tips on Twitter at @onbaseball and at the On Baseball Google Plus page.
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  1. meticated May 15, 2014 at 2:35 am
    movable fences that can be moved in when we bat…out when the opposition is hitting…get the skunkworks engineers to build us a stealth outfield wall…and was every reporter walking on razor blades while interviewing Farnsworth. ..staying outside of arms reach…and pretending to be sympathetic…too bad Jeffy wasn’t nearby…that might have been humorous
  2. DaveSchneck May 15, 2014 at 2:50 am
    Citifield fences didn’t seem to bother Yankees. I agree that the short porch cheapens the game. Not as much as the Designated Adulterer. The combination of the two is pretty bad.
  3. DanB May 15, 2014 at 8:53 am
    I was surprised Joe didn’t comment on Farnsworth being DFA to save $750,000 on his contract. Nobody is arguing Farnsworth’s err.. worth but on a team trying to win 90 games and has a problem bullpen, how wise was it to swap Josh Edgin for Farnsworth? What message are you sending not only to your current players but to future marginal players the Mets hope to sign?
    By the way, nice article on Jose Abreu in SI. What a shame that we had a log jam at first this offseason or else Jeff Wilpon would of led the charge to sign him. So close.
    • DaveSchneck May 15, 2014 at 9:11 pm
      Dan,
      The bullpen is a huge issue, and continues to be, but Farnsworth was part of the problem. Sorry, no tears for Kyle, he pitched himself off the team.
  4. micalpalyn May 15, 2014 at 9:04 am
    -Farnsworth was a decent shout as a mature experienced reliever….unfortunately the kids are better and cheaper…may be even more mature.
    -Abreu: hmmm That Ike Davis seems to be doing well with his chance in Pitt.
  5. Garett May 15, 2014 at 9:34 am
    2013 New York Mets National League 74 88
    2012 New York Mets National League 74 88
    2011 New York Mets National League 77 85
    2010 New York Mets National League 79 83
    2009 New York Mets National League 70 92

    Since Citifield debut in 2009.

    Speed, defense, pitching is great….but hitting I would venture to say is also how games are decided. I love the Mets as much as the next guy, and hope we win every game 1-0 next year at Citi Field with all these studs coming on board. But ya’ still gotta hit for power & average and get R’s; which apparently is what its all about in Sandy’s world of Sabermetrics. They seem to be working so far… hope it all comes together in 2015!

  6. DanB May 15, 2014 at 10:48 am
    The real connection with CitiField and Met hitting is that the Wilpons did a bad job financing it and now they are stuck with a mortgage they are trying to refinance. Until that happens, they will not be investing in the team. As such, the do not have winning ball players and their focus is not on development but finances. I don’t think it will be that way forever, but it has been that way since Madolf and the bad loans. Move the fences in and you still have a team that wins 75 games per year.
    • micalpalyn May 16, 2014 at 9:54 am
      This team is being primed for sale. It is mediocre. Has little PR value. No expectations….BUT a bright future.
  7. The Truth May 15, 2014 at 5:54 pm
    Actually your tone is bitter after every game regardless of outcome or results.
    • Joe Janish May 15, 2014 at 7:57 pm
      Perfect! Thank you for confirming. My therapist will be pleased that writing this blog continues to be an outlet for releasing my inner demons. The people I interact with outside the virtual world will also be happy to enjoy my contrastingly chipper demeanor.
    • Joe Janish May 15, 2014 at 8:04 pm
      Hey all, I missed the news of Farnsworth — didn’t know until I saw the comments here. Thanks for expanding the conversation to include it.
  8. david May 15, 2014 at 7:42 pm
    Apropos of Mr Farnsworth’s departure, I agree 100% with this move. Having brought up the youg arms, there was no need to keep him. Yes, he started out strong but his last 3 or 4 appearances have been nibbling exercises that showed his stuff just does not play as it used to. Any doubts were disspelled by his stupid comments. I expect his teammates won’t miss him and would much rather see De Grom jogging in from the Pen. Bottom line – he was blocking one of the kids, and it was time to get out of the way. Let’s not confuse resentment of ownership with sound baseball decisions – this, IMO, fits into the latter esp. given the need for another lefty. Edgin may not be the answer but he’ll be gone if he underperforms when Germen comes off the DL.
  9. argonbunnies May 16, 2014 at 2:23 pm
    That’s all for Montero’s debut?

    Here’s what I saw:

    Fastball looked straight on TV, but netted a lot of pop-ups. Not sure what that means. Sneaky fast? Fastball control downstairs was great, but when he went upstairs it was too high to invite chases.

    Offspeed stuff, looked like he was trying not to make a mistake in the zone. Maybe AAA hitters chase sliders and change-ups that start an inch or two off the plate, but the Yankees did not.

    Neither the change nor the slider looked sharp enough to risk missing over the middle, so he may have to hit corners with them. Very few pitchers can do that consistently, but if he can it one out of three starts, and the other two are like this one, we’ll take it.

    Doesn’t look like good relief material due to lack of an outstanding second pitch.