Mets Game 99: Loss to Dodgers

Posted on July 25, 2010 by Joe Janish

Dodgers 1 Mets

For the fourth time in ten days, the Mets were shut out.

What else is there to say?

Game Notes

R.A. Dickey was outstanding, allowing no runs on 2 hits and no walks, striking out 6, through 5 2/3 innings. However, he slipped on a pitch to Russell Martin, prompting Jerry Manuel and trainer Mike Herbst to visit the mound to inquire on his condition. This is the way it was described on MLB.com:

Dickey was dominant through the first five innings, surrendering just two hits, but he fell to one knee after a pitch to Russell Martin, prompting manager Jerry Manuel and a team trainer to visit the mound.

Dickey appeared to be fine after the brief visit and subsequently retired Martin and Clayton Kershaw without any obvious difficulties.

The two outs didn’t seem to convince Manuel, and Dickey was pulled prior to Xavier Paul‘s at-bat.

Dickey appeared unhappy with his manager’s decision to take him out of the game.

First off, Dickey did not “appear to be fine” and though he did retire Martin and Kershaw, the difficulties were apparent if not obvious. Dickey was definitely favoring his left leg and looked a bit stiff after the slip.

That said, I can’t really get on Jerry Manuel for forcing R.A. from the game — he is, after all, the second-best pitcher in a rotation that cannot afford to lost another starter. If I am to criticize Jerry it will be for leaving him in after his first visit to the mound. Manuel has said that Mike Pelfrey needs to “pitch with more conviction”, but he should take his own advice and manage with more conviction.

In the end, it didn’t matter that Dickey left, because the Mets continued their anemic effort at the plate. Clayton Kershaw scattered 7 hits in 8 innings but didn’t allow a run. The ninth inning was ably handled by Kenley Jansen, a 6’6″ rookie from Curacao who was a AAA catcher this time last year. Though, we can’t be surprised that the Mets couldn’t do anything against a catcher-turned-pitcher — they struggled against Felipe Lopez after all.

In all seriousness, Jansen looks like a tough customer. He was bringing it at 95 MPH and had a pretty nasty overhand curve. At this point he is far ahead of Jenrry Mejia, to provide a comparison.

Luis Castillo was the only Met with more than one hit, going 2-for-4 including his third double of the season. Third. I know he’s missed some time but, wow.

Next Mets Game

The Mets cannot leave the Left Coast fast enough. They take a day off on Monday to return home to beautiful Flushing and begin a three-game series against the Cardinals beginning on Tuesday at 7:10 PM. Jonathon Niese heads to the mound against Jaime Garcia.

Posted in Mets 2010 Games | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Mets Game 98: Loss to Dodgers

Posted on July 24, 2010 by Joe Janish

Dodgers 3 Mets 2

An even dozen — the Mets collected their 12th walkoff loss of 2010, losing in extras for the 7th time in 11 tries, and on the short end of a one-run ballgame for the 19th time out of 30 occurrences.

Does losing so many times in tight ballgames indicate anything? Bad luck? Poor management? Subpar fundamentals? Lack of intestinal fortitude? Or do they just plain stink?

Game Notes

Mike Pelfrey walked off the mound allowing “only” two runs, but he walked off after only five frames and 82 pitches. He gave up 6 hits and 2 walks, striking out 2, in his longest outing since June 26.

Jerry Manuel continues to insist that Pelfrey’s problems are due to his inability to establish the fastball and get ahead early. That’s partly true, but it’s mostly unhelpful. Manuel’s explanation is similar to telling you that your shirt is full of red blotches because you have a nosebleed. Thanks, I already know my nose is bleeding — but can you tell me WHY it’s bleeding? Can you tell me how to make it stop? And how to prevent it? As mentioned here before, the reason Pelfrey can’t establish his fastball, and can’t get ahead of hitters — with any of his pitches — is because of an intermittent balance problem during the leg lift that affects his arm angle and release point. You probably noticed that he was still doing that slight hunch over about half the time during the game. If he can go back to staying tall more consistently as he comes out of the leg lift, he’ll regain command, likely regain his confidence, and hopefully get back close to where he was in the first half.

Carlos Monasterios pitched pretty well for a Rule 5 pick, spinning five shutout innings. Too bad the Mets didn’t choose him in that December 2009 draft. Oh wait, they did.

The Mets used 7 pitchers in the 13-inning game, with Oliver Perez the last man standing. Somehow Ollie managed to work out of trouble started by Elmer Dessens in the 11th, and his luck continued when Matt Kemp flied out on a 3-0 pitch to lead off the 13th, but that luck ran out with the next batter James Loney — who hit a walkoff homer.

Just what the heck was Kemp thinking, by the way? There’s nothing wrong with swinging away on a 3-0 count when the situation warrants it, but considering Ollie’s wildness, hacking away there made little sense.

More bad baseball: Jose Reyes going from first to third on a groundout with one out in the top of the third. Had Reyes been thrown out — and he nearly was — it would have been out number three. Not worth the risk, since with two outs it would’ve taken a base hit to score him anyway.

Reyes pulled a Marv Throneberry and lost a ground ball in the sun in the first frame. A few minutes later, it appeared that Ike Davis similarly lost sight of a pickoff throw. The disappearing ball trick resulted in the Dodgers scoring the first run of the game.

Jason Bay had two more hits. Let’s hope these past two games are the beginning of a rampage by Bay.

Rod Barajas left the game with an oblique strain in the sixth inning. Henry Blanco took his place as a pinch-runner on second base with one out and Jose Reyes coming to bat with the score 2-1 Dodgers. Reyes singled to left to score Bay (who was on third) but station-to-station Blanco had to stop at third base. Luis Castillo hit into a DP to end the inning and strand Blanco on 3B. Why did the lead-footed Blanco pinch-run instead of Josh Thole? Hmm … well, Blanco did throw out an attempted base-stealer in the bottom of the sixth, so maybe Jerry Manuel saw that coming. (Blanco threw out another runner in extras, but there wouldn’t have been extras if the Mets score a third run in the 6th.) Maybe Thole — who isn’t exactly a speed demon, though more fleet of foot than Blanco — doesn’t score either, but it did seem to be a curious decision at the time and looks even worse after the fact.

Next Mets Game

The final game of this four-game set begins at 4:10 PM EST. R.A. Dickey goes to the hill against Clayton Kershaw. The contest will be broadcast on channel 11 / WPIX.

Posted in Mets 2010 Games | Tagged , , , , , , | 9 Comments

July 24: Saturday Mets Links and Open Thread

Posted on July 24, 2010 by loge mezzanine

The Mets Police – At least one fan thinks the Mets Hall of Fame induction ceremony is a money grab by the Wilpons. Make that two fans.

MetsMerizedOnline – Darryl Strawberry thinks the Mets lack swagger. Looks like Fred Wilpon’s plan is coming together quite nicely.

OnTheBlack – Kerel Cooper breaks down Johan Santana’s fantastic resurgence.

MetsBlog – Ted Lilly could be dealt soon. Does anyone think he will land with the Mets? Kind of scary when the bargain basement options are seemingly too pricey for the Wilpons.

Long Live Shea Stadium – A scouting report on Dodgers starter Carlos Monasterios.

TODAY’S GAME

The Mets (50-47) look to build on their one-game winning streak today at Dodger Stadium. Mike Pelfrey (10-5, 4.01) will face Carlos Monasterios (3-2, 3.61). First pitch at 4:10pm EST.

Posted in Gameday Open Thread, Link Dump | 2 Comments

What Happened to the Chemistry?

Posted on July 24, 2010 by Joe Janish

It wasn’t that long ago that nearly every New York baseball journalist and blogger was talking about the great “chemistry” of the 2010 Mets — and how the players loved playing for Jerry Manuel. Such comments about the positive vibe in the Mets’ clubhouse continued even through the team’s tough times in mid-May.

But there seems to have been an accident in the lab, because that chemistry has vanished. In the past week, Alex Cora demanded an end to laughter in the clubhouse, Jeff Francoeur said he wouldn’t mind being traded, Jerry Manuel had to call a closed-door team meeting, and now Rod Barajas is clearly unhappy with being unseated by Josh Thole.

From Mike Sielski’s article in The Wall Street Journal:

“To give up on somebody after what they’ve done to help the team, for me, it’s not a good thing,” Mr. Barajas said. “It’s not the way a team wants to see their teammates treated.”

and …

“I don’t want to say it in a bad way, but if you look at the scenario, how we got here and how we got in this situation, whatever we were doing before worked,” he said.

We’ve gotten to where we are because of a certain system we’ve had in place. For me, once you start making drastic changes and changing the landscape of the team, it could go either way.”

Sounds like trouble in Metsville.

On the one hand, there is every reason for Josh Thole to be getting more chances to play, because of his hot bat. On the other hand, the offseason winter mantra from the Mets front office, manager Jerry Manuel, and pitching coach Dan Warthen was that defense and leadership behind the plate was valued as much or more than offensive skills.

In other words, there has been a sudden change in philosophy — a reactionary decision rooted in desperation. That’s fine if the change works. Or is it? Because yes if it leads to success then it’s the right decision but it also proves that the original plan was flawed. The fact that Thole is playing ahead of Barajas can be construed as a lack of confidence in that plan as well.

When leadership lacks confidence in the plan that they put together, the people below can sense it and in turn question the plan and the leaders that put it together.

And suddenly that chemistry breaks down.

While it’s true that “good chemistry” is generally identified when a team is winning, and “bad chemistry” is blamed when a team is losing, you have to think that chemistry — good or bad — may be insignificant and/or ineffectual on its own, but can be a symptom or clue to something much larger that does have an impact on a team’s on-field performance.

Posted in Opinion and Analysis | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Mets Game 97: Win Over Dodgers

Posted on July 24, 2010 by Joe Janish

Mets 6 Dodgers 1

After two days of journalists, shock jocks, and bloggers (including this one) criticizing the recent lackluster effort of the Mets, a series of sliding, diving catches and a six-run outburst put the matter to rest.

Along the way, Jason Bay may have singlehandedly saved Howard Johnson’s job — and Jerry Manuel’s — for another day.

For those hoping to see Manuel dismissed by the end of this weekend, Friday was a bad day. Because Manuel pulled out all the stops to hold onto his job, namely:

– working with Jason Bay during batting practice, and Bay responding with a big day

– juggling the lineup and winding up with a win

– getting thrown out early, to show how fiery and supportive he can be

Additionally, each of the three outfielders made sparkling, high-effort catches during the game, disproving the theory that Manuel cannot motivate his players. But is it too little, too late? Or is it the beginning of another job-saving winning streak? Two more games in LA will give us the answer.

Game Notes

Johan Santana has settled back into his role as the staff ace, allowing one run on 5 hits in 7 innings. He looked a little better than “not having his best stuff”.

In addition to blasting a huge 3-run double to put the game out of reach, Jason Bay also did a faceplant into the leftfield wall to rob Jamey Carroll of an extra-base hit. On the replay he resembled a bobblehead after hitting the wall, and it appeared he’d be knocked out of the contest. I personally was stunned to see him remain in the game, and have to believe his neck and/or back will be pretty sore tomorrow. Bay may have disappointed us with his homerun total this year, but he is the “gamer” we have been clamoring for since 2006.

During the SNY postgame, Gary Apple mentioned that Manuel “lit a fire under the club” no less than SIX TIMES in a five-minute period. I get the whole idea of following talking points to push the station owner’s agenda, but six times in five minutes? Try not to make it so obvious next time — we know the Wilpons would rather not pay two managers simultaneously if they can help it.

Henry Blanco got a rare start and went 2-for-4. How does he keep doing that? The guy is a terrible hitter, yet somehow his average is .280. How many 38-year-olds suddenly learn how to hit and post an average 50 points above their career line?

After Luis Castillo bunted in the first frame, Ed Coleman mentioned that “Jerry Manuel loves to see Castillo at the top of the lineup because he shows a lot of energy there”. Here I thought his high career OBP, ability to drop a bunt, and patience at the plate (to allow Reyes a chance to steal and to wear out the pitcher) were the reasons.

Though the Mets were probably shafted on the out call in the top of the second that resulted in Manuel getting tossed, they also were extremely lucky to score a run in the first frame. With Reyes on third and Castillo at first with one out, Vicente Padilla struck out David Wright on a nasty, slow, 12-6 curveball — except home plate umpire CB Buckner called it ball three. On the next pitch, Castillo attempted to steal second while Wright struck out, and Russell Martin‘s throw beat Castillo by a good six feet. He was out by so much he didn’t even slide, but Blake DeWitt dropped the ball, and in addition to Castillo being safe, Reyes raced home to score the Mets first run.

The Dodgers played sloppy baseball all evening, particularly up the middle with both DeWitt and Rafael Furcal.

Next Mets Game

The Mets and Dodgers play game three in LA at 4:10 PM EST on Saturday afternoon. Mike Pelfrey faces Met-for-a-Minute Carlos Monasterios. Good thing the Mets got cold cash for Monasterios, since they had no need for a young pitcher.

Posted in Mets 2010 Games | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Tonight’s Lineup: Kinda Strange

Posted on July 23, 2010 by loge mezzanine

Via Andy Martino at The Daily News:

Jose Reyes – SS
Luis Castillo – 2B
Angel Pagan – RF
David Wright – 3B
Carlos Beltran – CF
Ike Davis – 1B
Jason Bay – LF
Henry Blanco – C
Johan Santana – LHP

Posted in Mets 2010 Games | 1 Comment

Quotes of the Day: Omar on Jerry, Willie

Posted on July 23, 2010 by loge mezzanine

Omar Minaya on Jerry Manuel’s job status:

“Jerry Manuel is our manager. Look, any time you’re going to have a couple of losing streaks, those things are going to pop up. But there’s no discussion at all. Jerry Manuel is our manager, will be our manager. I’m very happy with the job that he’s doing.” (MetsBlog, July 22, 2010)

Omar on Willie Randolph’s job status, just a few weeks before Willie was fired:

“Willie has my support. He has the support of our ownership,” Minaya said. “Willie’s job was never in danger going into this meeting.”

After the two-hour session, Minaya said: “There is no limbo period. Willie is the manager.” (ESPN, May 27, 2008)

For the record, our sources tell us Wally Backman will be the Mets manager on Tuesday, if the Mets lose 3 of 4 in Los Angeles. But it is clear that the Mets front office is in disarray and they’ll probably change their minds fifteen times between now and then.

Posted in Mets 2010 Games | Tagged , , | 16 Comments

Wally Backman Watch: Wally Wins Again, But It Won’t Matter in the End

Posted on July 23, 2010 by loge mezzanine

If the Mets lose their current series in Los Angeles, Wally Backman will likely be managing the team next week. But don’t get your hopes up – Bob Melvin was set to take over the team back in May. Ownership was going to pull the trigger after the team finished getting annihilated by the Yankees and the Phillies at Citi Field (May 21-27). This is coming from multiple sources that have knowledge of the situation.

Of course, the team won five out of six during that homestand, shutting out the Phillies for an entire three-game series.

And that is the heart of the problem. This isn’t about Jerry or Wally as much as it is about the lack of focus by ownership and the front office. If MetsToday knows that Bob Melvin was ready to take over the team back in May, you can bet Jerry Manuel knew it at the time.

Think about it – Jerry Manuel was going to be fired, but ownership wanted to wait because they felt the team had no chance of winning against the Yankees or the Phillies. That shows no faith in the team that they assembled and it shows no faith in either Jerry or Bob Melvin. It’s like a bad rewrite of the plot of Major League. In short, it’s disgusting.

So, if Jerry knows he is being set up to fail again, then Wally Backman will surely know that he is being set up to fail. And if the manager has no faith in his front office, it follows that the players will lack trust in their manager, GM and owner. It’s a vicious cycle and it shows no sign of letting up.

Another reason not to get your hopes up – if Wally Backman does take over, he will be taking over a team with no chance of making the postseason. Furthermore, there is no way the front office will acquire any outside talent at the trading deadline. In short, the team will be left to twist in the wind for the final two months of the season. Wally Backman may be a fiery manager who deserves a shot to manage in the big leagues, but getting Backman at this point is just a desperate maneuver by a team looking to sell tickets on the memories of the 1986 World Series team.

Anyway, Wally Backman’s Brooklyn Cyclones won again yesterday, defeating the Lowell Spinners by a score of 4-3. The Cyclones remain in first place and now own the New York-Penn League’s best record.

Posted in Mets 2010 Games | 13 Comments