Mets Game 12: Loss to Cardinals

Posted on April 18, 2010 by Joe Janish

Cardinals 5 Mets 3

It was only a matter of time.

The Mets gave John Maine an early 3-0 lead, but even the most optimistic fan was simply waiting for that advantage to disappear. And disappear it did in the fifth, when Colby Rasmus tattooed a BP fastball over the middle of the plate, sending it into the stands for a three-run, game-tying homer.

The game remained tied until the 8th, when Ryan Ludwick blasted a homer of his own, a two-run shot on the first pitch he saw from Ryota Igarashi to take the victory.

At no point in the game did the offense appear to have a chance to score — even the three runs they did in the second were more a function of luck than anything else.

Game Notes

John Maine looked somewhat better compared to his last start, but that’s not saying much. On a night when it was imperative to save the bullpen, Maine threw 115 pitches in five innings, forcing Tobi Stoner into the game. There was much hullabaloo about Maine getting more hitters to hit foul balls — both from Jerry Manuel and the ESPN broadcast team — but is that really a good sign? I remember when Maine was “pretty good”, and we felt that all the foul balls was a BAD thing and an indication that he needed to develop an out pitch.

Meanwhile, Adam Wainwright threw 8 fewer pitches (107) and 5 more strikes (75), but he finished the game. As in, he pitched a 9-inning complete game. As in, he did exactly what the Cardinals needed: their starting pitcher to go the distance, and save the bullpen. Kudos, Mr. Wainwright.

The Mets offense continues to struggle, as they were 2-for-7 with RISP and had only 6 baserunners all night. Though, with Smithtown’s own Frank Catalanotto hitting cleanup, expectations were tempered.

The Mets remain in last place in the NL East with a 4-8 record. However, it’s still early, and as my wife points out, “the Orioles are much worse at 2-11”. Somehow, that doesn’t make me feel better.

Next Mets Game

The Mets begin a four-game series against the Cubs in Chicago on Monday night at 7:10 PM EST. Jon Niese goes to the hill against Randy Wells.

Posted in Mets 2010 Games | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

Mets Game 11: Win Over Cardinals

Posted on April 18, 2010 by Joe Janish

Mets 2 Cardinals 1

A marathon, to say the least.

Fittingly, I’m currently in Boston, where a marathon is taking place on Monday. No, I’m not running, and not even sticking around to watch it. I’m here for business, working a different kind of marathon: a wine tasting event that went from noon to 11 PM.

As such, I completely missed watching this game — the first game I’ve missed since 2004. What a game to miss, huh? Considering that the game went 20 innings, had no score for 19 frames, and TV viewers had to endure nearly 7 hours of mindless, hometown drivel from Joe Buck and Tim McCarver, maybe it was better to have missed it.

Looking at the boxscore and the play-by-play, I do have a few questions:

1. The Mets managed only 3 hits through nearly 15 innings against future Hall of Famers Jamie Garcia, Kyle McClellan, Mitchell Boggs, Trever Miller, Jason Motte, Dennys Reyes, and Blake Hawksworth? Really?

2. The Mets were shut out for an inning by middle infielder Felipe Lopez?

3. What in the world was Ryan Ludwick doing, attempting to steal second base in the 19th, down by one, with Albert Pujols at the plate?

4. Did Jerry Manuel outsmart Tony LaRussa by holding out K-Rod until the 19th?

5. Were St. Louis fans charged double since, essentially, they watched two ballgames?

6. How many of you were hoping to see Jeff Francoeur take the mound?

7. Did the high school kids still take the field after the game, even though it was past their curfew?

8. Was Yadier Molina carried off the field on a stretcher after catching 20 innings?

Even though I didn’t watch the game, I get the feeling it wasn’t well played — so I look forward to hearing your comments.

On a positive note, we have to be pleased that the Mets hung in there for 20 innings and finally pulled out a win, even if it took two innings against a backup outfielder throwing BP off the mound. Also, we MUST be happy to have seen Mike Pelfrey suck it up and take the ball on one days’ rest (or was it two by that hour?) to save the ballgame. The fact he did so speaks volumes about his growing maturity, and goes a long way toward building respect from his teammates. Kudos to Big Pelf!

Post your comments below — I’m eager to hear your thoughts.

Next Mets Game

Luckily for these two weary clubs, the final game of the series isn’t until 8:05 PM EST on Sunday, so there will be some rest for the weary. Also lucky (for the Mets), innings-eater John Maine takes the mound against Adam Wainwright, so the Mets bullpen will get at least 4-5 frames of rest.

Posted in Mets 2010 Games | Tagged , , | 17 Comments

Inside Look: Cardinals

Posted on April 17, 2010 by Joe Janish

Fellow ESPN SweetSpot blogger Matthew Philip agreed to do a Q&A regarding the St. Louis Cardinals. I meant to get this up prior to the series, but it’s still relevant and insightful. Matthew is the lead blogger for “Fungoes“, which is a saber-slanted site. Oh, and it just so happens there is a similar Q&A featuring the “inside knowledge” of MetsToday on his blog as well.

My questions are in bold, Matthew’s answers are in the light blue boxes.

1. Is Tony LaRussa still doing that pitcher hitting eighth thing? What are your thoughts on that strategy … does it really make sense and does it work for the Cardinals?

The last time La Russa used the pitcher-hits-eighth tactic was July 21, 2009. What many people thought (and a few showed through research) to be a marginally helpful idea has since been picked up by the Dodgers and Brewers, who employed it for a handful of games last year, and the Pirates, who have batted the pitcher eighth every game this year. La Russa apparently now only reserves it as a gimmick to gig the offense when it’s struggling, but I’d prefer he use it regularly, since it most likely helps. One Cardinal blogger even named his blog after the practice.

2. You have been following Adam Wainwright’s release points and correlating success. Can you quickly give us the gist of where his release point needs to be to pitch at the peak of his potential, based on what you’ve studied?

Early last season, Wainwright was struggling with walks and claimed it was a release-point issue. He adjusted down and over — in the direction of a three-quarter arm angle, though really only imperceptibly (an inch or two). He went on to have a Cy-Young-like year. So far in 2010, his release has been somewhere between where he was at the beginning and end of 2009, but he’s having success. We’ll find out more on Sunday!

3. Do you feel confident late in games knowing Ryan Franklin is the closer? If he should falter, who is next in line and why?

I’m not confident in Franklin, simply because, by being a pitch-to-contact guy, he leaves so much to chance. Though, that’s better than a reliever who walks people or gives up a lot of fly balls that turn into home runs. During the 2009 NLDS with the Dodgers,we saw a preview of what could happen this year if they don’t turn to someone who can miss bats when the game is on the line. That guy could be Kyle McClellan, though he doesn’t offer much more than Franklin, or Jason Motte, who was given early-season save chances in 2009 but failed. My pick is Mitchell Boggs. Whether La Russa eschews his veteran “closer”,however, is a big question.

4. Give us a quick analysis of David Freese, who many Mets fans don’t know much about.

The Cards picked up Freese a couple of years ago as a token when they shipped Jim Edmonds’s contract to the Padres. Originally from St. Louis, he worked his way through the minors, quietly jumping from high A to AAA while the team’s more-heralded prospects got the attention. When Troy Glaus revealed his injury prior to the 2009 season, Freese seemed poised to try to win the third-base job but he injured his foot in a car accident, requiring arthroscopic surgery on his left ankle, and he spent most of the season at AAA Memphis. Coming into 2010, with Glaus and former top prospect Brett Wallace gone, Freese was the heir apparent, when he drove drunk and was arrested in December, casting his 2009 accident in a new light. But despite his insolent off-the-field behavior, he projects well as both a hitter (~.340 wOBA projected for 2010) and fielder. Could be a real find for the team at the hot corner.

5. Which Ryan Ludwick is the real one — the 2008 version or the 2009 vintage?

Somewhere in-between, probably slightly better than he was last year. La Russa has had him batting second the last few games, and he’s getting on-base like a madman in front of Pujols (.438 OBP batting second). It’ll be interesting to see how Jerry Manuel deals with him in late innings, since he has a reverse platoon split (career .337 wOBA vs. LHP, .368 vs. RHP).

6. What do you see as a key for the Cards to get into the postseason in 2010?

The Cardinals have enough talent to win their division and may be the most well-rounded since their 100-win days in 2004-2005. The key will simply be staying healthy. Spring injuries to Pujols, Holliday and Molina proved to be minor, but the staff ace, Chris Carpenter, has a checkered history, and his questionable start to 2010 — 8.50 FIP — has raised eyebrows. Ludwick has been healthy two years straight for the first time in his career, so he may be due to regress to an injury-marked campaign.

Thanks again to Matthew Philip for sharing his thoughts. Be sure to visit his blog Fungoes to get a saber-centric analysis of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Posted in Inside Looks | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Mets Game 10: Loss to Cardinals

Posted on April 17, 2010 by Joe Janish

Cardinals 4 Mets 3

If I told you Oliver Perez pitched into the seventh inning, allowing only one run on four hits, you’d probably think that either I had the wrong information or that the Mets won the game.

Yet, Perez DID put up that performance, and the Mets lost.

Wasting a rare occasion of superbness by Perez, the Mets bullpen finally caved, as Felipe Lopez blasted a grand slam homer in the seventh off 32-year-old rookie Raul Valdes to give the Cardinals all the runs they needed to win the game.

As well as Ollie pitched, Chris Carpenter pitched just as well — maybe a bit better — as he held the Mets offense to 4 hits and 3 walks and struck out 10 in 7 full innings. The Mets rallied for two runs against “closer” Ryan Franklin in the ninth, but it was too little, too late.

Game Notes

The Mets hitters were a woeful 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position. They left 8 runners on base.

Jeff Francoeur, buried in the #6 spot, remains red hot, going 2-for-3 with a walk (!) and two runs scored. He’s now hitting .457, and has a hit in every game this year, but it makes more sense to bat Mike Jacobs ahead of him against a righthanded pitcher because, after all, Jacobs hits from the left side.

Frank Catalanotto rapped an RBI single for the Mets second run on the first and only pitch he saw, as a pinch-hitter in the ninth.

Garry Mathews, Jr. scored the Mets’ third and final run but struck out three times.

The Mets’ first run of the game came on a throwing error by Brendan Ryan on a sac bunt by Ollie Perez.

Yes, the bullpen failed. Did you expect them to be perfect through 162 games?

Felipe Lopez hit his first grand slam since April 4, 2008 — he hit that one against the Mets, too, but as a member of the Nationals. For those unaware, Lopez plays both SS and 2B, hits from both sides, and was a free agent this winter. He signed a one-year, $1M contract at the end of February. However, he doesn’t have the clubhouse presence of Alex Cora.

You can get frustrated watching the Mets lose this game, thinking, “jeez, they finally played a good game for nine full innings, and battled, and they still lost”. However, what the Mets need to do is compete and perform like this EVERY game, and eventually the wins will outnumber the losses. You can’t expect a team to win just because they play well — this is the big leagues, and to be a contender you must play well all the time.

Next Mets Game

The Mets and Cardinals do it again at 4:10 PM on Saturday in St. Louis. Johan Santana faces Jamie Garcia.

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

Mets Game 9: Win Over Rockies

Posted on April 15, 2010 by Joe Janish

Mets 5 Rockies 0

Mike Pelfrey stepped up to be the stopper, taking the bull by the horns in the Rocky Mountains to shut out Colorado through seven strong innings.

Game Notes

Pelfrey allowed only 5 hits and walked none in 7 innings, striking out 6. He was the first Met in 2010 to pitch beyond the sixth frame. He pitched the way we expect him to pitch at least 20 times a year — like a true #2 or strong #3 starter, hitting spots on either side of the plate and changing speeds just enough to keep batters off balance. In this game he kept his focus from pitch one through 106, which of course is key to his success. If he can keep doing this, Mets fans can truly have faith that it will be worth tuning in to SNY come August and September.

David Wright walked 3 more times and saw 30 pitches on the night, which is crazy. He has a .286 AVG but a .512 OBP. He’s on pace to walk 234 times this year.

Jeff Francoeur remains red-hot; he had another two hits and is hitting .438 on the season. Would Jerry Manuel really be silly enough to drop Reyes to third, which in turn would bury Francoeur at #6 or lower? Not that I expect Frenchy to continue at this pace for very long, but while he’s rolling, doesn’t it make sense to get him as many at-bats as possible?

Next Mets Game

The Mets travel to St. Louis for a three-game weekend series with the Cardinals. Friday night’s opener pits Oliver Perez vs. Chris Carpenter, with a game time of 8:15 PM EST. Both pitchers have 0-1 records thus far, but the similarities end there.

Posted in Mets 2010 Games | Tagged , | 17 Comments

Maine Will Revert to Old Ways

Posted on April 15, 2010 by Joe Janish

Believe it or not, the Mets had a communications breakdown prior to last night’s ballgame.

To get the full story, listen to Rich Coutinho’s report on 1050ESPNRadio’s “Baseball Tonight” (Coutinho comes on at the tail end, during the last 10 minutes or so).

The gist of it was this: When asked if Maine would remain in the rotation (during the postgame press conference on Tuesday night), Manuel told the world he’d “have to sleep on it”. Somehow, Maine didn’t hear about this, so when Coutinho told him on Wednesday afternoon that he heard Manuel was keeping him in the rotation, Maine was stunned — he had no idea removal was being considered. Maine then spoke with Manuel behind closed doors for about 45 minutes.

In the end, it turns out that Maine is on a very short leash, and his next start could be his last. Maine doesn’t have access to the internet and couldn’t read MetsToday for tips, so instead he spent time with Dan Warthen looking at video of himself from 2007. Apparently the two of them discovered some differences in his delivery then compared to now, and John will spend the next few days trying to fix his mechanics prior to Saturday’s start. Maine had this to say (courtesy of MetsBlog):

“I wanted to tell (Manuel) was that I’m fine, my shoulders fine. I know the No. 1 priority is to get back and throw my fastball. That’s what I’m going to do in my bullpen. That’s what I’m going to do in my next start I’m going to get back to where I was… There’s a big difference (in my delivery). I don’t want to get into why that it is, but there’s a difference. I’m going to scratch everything I’ve been doing this Spring, and get back to what I was doing two years ago… I’m just going to go back to that delivery, going back to throwing the fastball. Hopefully it turns out fine. I may get hit, but, you know, at least I know I’m going out there, getting beat with my best pitch and not my second and third pitch.”

Sooo …. Maine’s going to address the “big difference” in his delivery, but he doesn’t “want to get into why that is”. But John, inquiring minds want to know!

I haven’t yet had a chance to look at any of Maine’s outings from 2007 to compare to his current delivery so I can’t yet guess on what exactly is the “big difference”. (I do vaguely remember thinking something looked “different” about Maine while seeing him live in Jupiter and Port St. Lucie during ST ’08, with his follow-through toward 1B being an indicator of an issue.) But, if I were a gambling man, I’d bet that the change he made had something to do with avoidance of pain. Perhaps he had a mild injury of some sort — not necessarily with his arm — that he learned to deal with by changing something in his mechanics. My next-best guess was he changed something about his delivery with the goal of being more effective, and the change simply didn’t work. For example, maybe he thought he could get a few more ticks of velocity by using his hips and over-rotating — thinking that the extra hip swing would result in more MPH. Again, I haven’t yet looked at the old videos so can’t say for sure.

Assuming there is in fact a mechanical issue, the biggest questions are:

1. Why did it take this long for Maine, Warthen, and the Mets to realize something was wrong with Maine’s mechanics?

2. Why wasn’t this addressed when Maine looked bad in the spring?

3. Is it possible to “fix” the mechanical problem in three days?

4. If the issue is fixable, will it result in Maine rediscovering his 94-95+ velocity?

5. Why does it make sense for Maine to make these tweaks at the Major League level, against a Cardinal lineup that includes, among others, Albert Pujols, Matt Holliday, and Ryan Ludwick?

Oh … and is anyone else concerned that Maine is going to try to throw more high fastballs — likely to be in the 88-90 MPH range — to those three sluggers? Yikes!

I’m a bit skeptical that Maine can transform himself so quickly without the aid of a telephone booth and red cape. But we can assume that if things don’t go well this weekend, Maine will find himself either in the bullpen or in the minors — a la Steve Trachsel — to work things out. Part of the problem is Maine may not have an option remaining, in which case a minor league trek would be difficult to navigate.

Posted in News Notes Rumors, Opinion and Analysis, Pitching Mechanics | Tagged , | 4 Comments

David Wright Sugercoats No More

Posted on April 15, 2010 by Joe Janish

After last night’s loss, Mets manager Jerry Manuel offered up this quote (courtesy of Adam Rubin):

“We have to keep positive,” Manuel said. “I think there were a lot of good things that happened tonight for an early-in-the-season ballgame. We fought back. We had a few chances, too. We have yet to solve the issue of men in scoring position getting hits. I mean, we hit a line drive the last out. Other than that we haven’t solved that riddle yet. But there were a lot of good things that happened for us tonight.”

The typical blah-blah, earth-non-shattering rhetoric we normally hear from just about any MLB manager. Which is saying something for the loose-lipped Manuel these days.

And normally, you would expect Mets Official Mouthpiece David Wright to echo those sentiments, and provide similarly uncontroversial, throw-away quotes.

Instead, we got this:

“I don’t, and I don’t think anybody else in here, takes too much pride in the fact that we fought back,” Wright said. “It is what it is — and that’s another loss. We are going in there with the preparation. We’re going in there with the right attitude. We’re just not executing. That’s a problem in this league when you’re not going out there and doing what you’re supposed to do. It is still early, but it’s gotten to a point where we need to turn this thing around and really get going and get some momentum on our side. It’s good to see us fight back. It’s good to see go in with that kind of attitude. We need to start winning these close games if we’re going to accomplish what we set out to accomplish.”

Is the REAL David Wright starting to emerge from beneath the many layers of public image filtration? Could be. Could also be a sign of Wright finally taking over the vacant role of Mets leadership.

Posted in Latest Mets News | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Mets Game 8: Loss to Rockies

Posted on April 15, 2010 by Joe Janish

Rockies 6 Mets 5

The Mets showed signs of life by fighting back, but it was too little, too late.

Potential stopper Jon Niese was disappointing and ineffective, giving away an early 1-0 lead and then a 3-1 lead, leaving the game after five innings in which he allowed 5 runs on 9 hits and a walk. The Rockies held the lead until the ninth, when defensive miscues allowed the Mets to tie. It began when what should’ve been an error charged to Troy Tulowitzki gave Gary Matthews, Jr. an infield single. GMJ stole second and continued to third when a poor throw by Chris Iannetta went into centerfield, and GMJ scored the tying run on a sac fly by Luis Castillo.

However, Iannetta redemmed himself in the 10th with a solo homer to break the tie and give the Rox the win. I have to say with complete honesty that I never believed the Mets would win this one — I was waiting for the Rockies to end it. Not because I’m a negative person but because the Mets gave me no indication that they sincerely wanted to take this game away from the Rockies. Even though they “came back”, it didn’t feel like a spirited comeback.

Game Notes

Jon Niese threw 99 pitches, but only 10 were curveballs — supposedly his signature “out” pitch and what many feel is his best weapon. Though, from what we understand, the thin air in Colorado destroys the vertical break of even the best curves. I liked what I saw from Niese’s ability to handle himself in the postgame interviews, and believe he is mentally and emotionally prepared to pitch in New York. Unfortunately, he appears to be extremely vulnerable without the deuce. But, it’s likely the last time in 2010 he pitches at a mile-high altitude, so he should get back to being the MLB-average pitcher the Mets need him to be. I’m not concerned in the least.

Jeff Francoeur hit a solo homer in the second inning to give the Mets their first lead in 7 games and make the Mets the first Rockies’ opponent in 2010 to have the first lead. Francoeur has a hit in all 8 games and is red-hot, hitting .429 with an OPS close to 1.500. Which explains why he was hitting sixth behind Mike Jacobs. Did I mention that Jacobs flied out with two runners on to end the first? But, lineups don’t have an impact on a team’s success / failure, right?

David Wright also went yard, though he surprisingly didn’t walk.

Rod Barajas went 2-for-5 with an RBI, earning the distinction of being the only Met out of a dozen to get a hit with runners in scoring position.

OK, if you didn’t understand that last sentence, the Mets were 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position. They came into the game hitting something like .180 with RISP, so I’m assuming this drops them down into the .150s.

Jennry Mejia was the unfortunate soul who gave up Iannetta’s walk-off, game-winning dinger. It was a flat fastball over the middle of the plate, about chest-high. In other words, he doesn’t resemble Mariano Rivera when pitching at an altitude of 5000+ feet above sea level.

Mike Jacobs hit a double, walked twice, and is finally lookin comfortable at the plate. See, I found something positive!

Next Mets Game

The Mets drag themselves back into Coors Field for a third time on Thursday at 3:10 PM. Mike Pelfrey will attempt to be the stopper against Jorge De La Rosa.

Posted in Mets 2010 Games | Tagged , | 3 Comments