Braves 5 Mets 3

It had to happen eventually. Surely we didn’t expect the Mets to go 162-0.

Things started out well, beginning with Paul LoDuca’s solo homerun in the top of the first and Tom Glavine’s first-pitch out in the bottom of the frame.

Just one problem — that first-pitch out was dropped by Carlos Delgado, and everything snowballed from there.

Well, maybe not exactly snowballed … but Glavine never really got into a groove for the rest of the game. He missed badly on balls, and many of his strikes were borderline. He seemed to be behind every batter, causing every sequence to feel forced and a frustrating battle. Hopefully it had something to do with the cold and wind — it was in the 40s at game time with 25-MPH winds. In any case, it was not the same Glavine we saw on Opening Day.

Still, Tommy might have pitched well enough to win, if only the Mets had played the same as they’d been playing in the previous four games. Though some of the scores were overwhelming, in truth the Mets went 4-0 behind pitchers who threw strikes, impeccable defense, and manufacturing runs. In Game Five, Glavine wasn’t throwing too many strikes, but enough to survive had the defense remained impenetrable. Unfortunately, Delgado’s early error set the tone for the remainder of the game. Overall the Mets’ defense was less than stellar, as several players fell victim to the same harsh winds that afflicted several Braves the night before. The second crucial error in the game was charged to Shawn Green, who fell prey to the swirling winds on a Matt Diaz fly ball in the sixth. Unlike earlier games, there was no double play to save the day, and a total of four runs were tied directly to the miscues by Green and Delgado — in other words, enough to beat the Mets’ three.

Green nearly made up for his error in the ninth. With two men on and two out, he hit a blistering line drive toward right field that was snared by first baseman Craig Wilson to end the game.

There was one shining light in the ballgame. In the battle of the bullpens, the Mets clearly had the edge. Though the Braves supposedly improved their pen, their prime relievers — Mike Gonzalez, Rafael Soriano, and Bob Wickman — were underwhelming. Gonzalez struggled through a 24-pitch 7th, allowing a run on two hits and a walk. Soriano and Wickman threw scoreless innings, but Wickman was lucky to squeak out a save. The Mets batters seemed right on his pitches, and were on the verge of taking control of the game before Green’s liner. On the other hand, the Mets’ relief corps was commendable, throwing two and two-thirds scoreless innings, scattering two hits and two walks and never allowing the Braves to sniff a rally.

Easter Sunday pits Orlando Hernandez vs. Kyle Davies at 1:05 PM.

Mets Braves

What else is there to say? The Mets rock!

After all the concern surrounding the Mets’ starting rotation, it appears now to be the area of least concern. Of course, it’s early, but if the first four games of the season are any indication, the Mets’ starting rotation could be a strength, rather than a weakness.

Oliver Perez was absolutely brilliant, scattering five hits, walking none, and striking out six in seven innings. Key to his performance was his efficiency — he threw only 82 pitches, 56 for strikes — and would likely have pitched through the eighth inning and possibly finished the game if the Mets didn’t have such a long time at bat in the top of the 8th.

In this game, Ollie had the most important weapon in a pitcher’s arsenal working: strike one. Consistently, Perez started batters 0-1, most often spotting his fastball on the low outside corner against righthanded batters. With Perez nailing that low strike time after time, Braves batters were constantly in the hole, easy prey for Ollie’s swerving slider. He made only one mistake all night — a fastball left over the middle of the plate, chest-high, that Jeff Francoeur blasted over the centerfield fence — and exuded confidence throughout the game. If this Oliver Perez can show up most of the time in 2007, the Mets will have one of the top lefthanded starters in the National League.

Similar to Game Three, the final score of this contest was not indicative of how close the game really was. It was a one-run game until the sixth inning, when the Mets scored three runs in chasing soft-tosser Mark Redman to the showers. The lead remained cushy until the 8th, when the “much improved” Braves bullpen allowed only two Mets batters to hit more than once in the inning, and held New York to just six runs in the inning.

If there was an offensive hero in the game, it would have to be Jose Reyes, who hit two triples and continued hot streak belied the cold weather. Reyes was 3-6 with four RBI and two runs scored, but was unable to draw a walk and left a runner on base — so there’s still room for improvement. Every other Met in the starting lineup had at least one hit, including Oliver Perez.

The only disappointment on offense came from Shawn Green, who went 1-3 with two walks, two runs scored, and an RBI. He’s hitting only .333 on the season, and no one can figure out why he continues to be placed in the lineup with Lastings Milledge perfectly healthy and able waiting on the bench.

Ambiorix Burgos got into another non-pressure situation and threw another perfect inning, striking out one and throwing only nine pitches — eight for strikes. Joe Smith had an equally stressless ninth, giving up one hit, striking out one, and getting two ground ball outs on 12 pitches (9 for strikes).

Overall, an awesome game from every angle, and especially pleasing in that it resulted in the Braves first loss of the year. There’s a remarkably different aura in these Mets vs. Braves games compared to three years ago — it’s as if the teams have traded places. No longer will the Mets have a mental block or feeling of initimidation going into Atlanta; however, it could be the other way around when the young Braves make their way to Shea.

Saturday afternoon game has Tommy Glavine vs. his old teammate John Smoltz in 28-degree weather. Isn’t it supposed to be warm in Atlanta this time of year?

Mets 10 Cardinals 0

Talk about breaking it open.

Behind the spectacular pitching of John Maine, it appeared that the Mets would grind out another good-baseball, well-executed win against their former closer Braden Looper. What began as a pitchers’ duel quickly became a laugher as Looper fatigued in the sixth, and the St. Louis relief corps was pounded and pillaged by the Mets’ batters.

The Mets exploded for ten runs over innings six through eight, highlighted by two homeruns by Carlos Beltran and another by Jose Reyes. Three runs in the sixth gave Maine his first lead, two more in the seventh added insurance, then another five in the eighth put the game away for good. Five Met batters had at least two hits in the game, and Beltran and Reyes combined for seven RBI. Even Shawn Green was impressive, stroking two hits and driving in a run. I guess he’s bought himself another day before being run off the team by the Milledgers.

John Maine was beyond impressive, spotting his 90-MPH fastball at the knees and mixing in an effective assortment of change-ups and sliders, keeping the Cardinals guessing all night long. Clearly, this was not the same pitcher who dominated them in the NLCS — in fact, he was much better. The “old” Maine was quite predictable: fastball, fastball, fastball. The new Maine was anything but. In addition, Maine was remarkably efficient for most of the game, averaging between ten and 12 pitches per inning through the first six innings. His only “bad” inning was the fifth, when he allowed a leadoff single to Scott Rolen followed by a walk to Jim Edmonds. That was the closest the Cardinals came to a rally, as Maine mowed down the St. Louis batters from that point forward. When it was all said and done, Maine pitched seven innings, allowing one hit and two walks, and striking out six. He threw 97 pitches, 65 for strikes.

While Maine was the main story on the mound, it was good to see was Ambiorix Burgos making his Mets debut. Burgos pitched a perfect eighth, striking out one. He threw 13 pitches, 10 for strikes.

Also making his Mets debut was Aaron Sele, whose performance was nearly as auspicious. He struck out the first batter he faced (David Eckstein), gave up a long double to Chris Duncan, came right back to strike out Albert Pujols looking, then retired Scott Rolen on a weak ground ball. Two things struck me about his appearance: 1. he displayed a hellacious 12-6 curveball; and 2. he showed no fear in going right after Albert Pujols. Granted, he had a ten-run lead, but it’s surprising how many hurlers will still pitch around a Pujols or Bonds in that situation.

The Mets remain undefeated and in first place in the NL East. They have Thursday night off, then travel to Atlanta to begin a three-game weekend series against the Braves. Friday night’s game begins at 7:35 PM and pits Oliver Perez vs. Mark Redman.

Mets 4 Cardinals 1

Hey! We’re still undefeated!

It wasn’t particularly spectacular, or filled with dramatic moments, but it was a win. The victory was due in large part to Orlando Hernandez, who pitched seven strong innings and allowed only one run on five hits. That one run came in the seventh inning — a homerun by Scott Rolen — when El Duque was clearly fatigued. He barely squeaked through the rest of the inning, getting away with several high, flat fastballs around the middle of the plate. All in all, a great performance by Hernandez, and particularly encouraging in that he went so deep in the game while remaining efficient (just over 100 pitches).

Instead of highlights and homeruns, the Mets won again behind strong fundamentals and execution — particularly on defense. El Duque threw strikes, the Mets turned three double plays, no errors were made, and the offense made the most of opportunities.

The first run of the game was manufactured by Jose Reyes. He led off the game with a walk, took second on a throwing error by pitcher Kip Wells, moved to third on a good bunt by Paul LoDuca, and scored on a sac fly by Carlos Beltran.

In the fifth inning, it was Reyes instigating again, hitting a two-out base single. He attempted to steal on the second pitch to Paul LoDuca, and despite a bad jump, was called safe as Yadier Molina double-clutched before releasing the ball. What was perhaps overlooked was LoDuca, who squared around to bunt on the pitch, and as the pitch came in, pulled the barrel of the bat back — in the line of Molina’s vision. Of course, LoDuca was never going to bunt, he was merely making life more difficult for Molina. The combination of LoDuca’s bat in his eyes, compounded by the urgency of Reyes running, caused Molina to flub the exchange from his glove to throwing hand. On the very next pitch, LoDuca blooped a fly ball to right field that was misplayed by Skip Schumaker, allowing Reyes to score. These two first runs were reminiscent of the way Bobby Cox’s Braves won for years — scoring ugly. Scary for opponents to know that the Mets will not only belt you to death, but will score via execution of fundamentals and the “little things” that win ballgames.

Local Boy Nearly Makes Good

Long Branch, NJ native Scott Schoeneweis made his debut and was so-so, getting two quick outs but then unable to finish off the inning. Aaron Heilman was again summoned to drop the hammer, and he induced slugger Albert Pujols (the potential tying run) to fly out harmlessly to centerfield, stranding runners on the corners. Billy Wagner finished the game without incident. Wagner and Heilman are on course to shatter Mike Marshall’s record of 106 pitching appearances.

Tough At-Bat for Alou

In the sixth inning, with men on first and second and no out, it looked like Moises Alou was primed to bust the game open and chase starter Kip Wells. The first pitch was low and outside, but the home plate umpire called it strike one. No big deal. But then the next pitch, in a similar location, Alou started at, but then checked his swing. Except that first base umpire disagreed and said he went around. The next pitch, Alou got great wood on the ball, and broke into a homerun trot. However, the strong crosswinds blew the ball back onto the field and turned into a harmless fly ball out. It’s at-bats such as this that keep a batter humble.

What’s Up, Shawn?

Loyal readers know I’m a big supporter of Shawn Green, but in this contest he was a major letdown. A critical point in the game came in the top of the sixth. The Mets had men on second and third with one out and Shawn Green at the plate. Cardinals pitcher Kip Wells was on the ropes, and could have elected to pitch around Green to load the bases and then hope for a double play from Jose Valentin. Instead, Wells went after Green, and worked the count to 3-2 before striking him out looking. What bothered me about this at-bat was Green’s lack of aggression. Generally, I like to see batters take pitches and get into deep counts. However, this was a situation where Green could have broken the game wide open with a base hit. Wells threw four pitches that were borderline strikes; two were called as such, and Green waved at a change-up out of the zone. If Green wants to keep Lastings Milledge on the bench, he needs to be more aggressive in those type of situations — specifically because of his spot in the order. Because Green struck out, the Cards were able to intentionally walk Valentin to face the pitcher with two outs. Luckily, Orlando Hernandez hit a rare double to erase Green’s strikeout — I wonder if El Duque was so disgusted with Green’s lack of aggressiveness that it motivated him to mash. In any case, Shawn Green needs to take advantage of those opportunities to shine — both for the Mets to win and for Green to remain in the lineup.

Huh …

Fans of Baseball This Morning on XM Radio may know there’s a new segment called “Huh…” Well I’m stealing the concept to point out something that made me go “huh…” : Aaron Heilman throws a splitfinger fastball. At first I thought Billy Wagner didn’t know what he was saying, when he mentioned to reporters in a postgame interview that Heilman could throw his fastball, changeup, split, or slider whenever he wanted. Then later, when the microphones were in front of Heilman, Aaron mentioned that he mixed in a few splits in the all-important Albert Pujols at-bat. Huh. So there you have it — Aaron Heilman is NOT a “two-pitch pitcher”, as many claim. In fact, he throws FOUR pitches, and all for strikes.

Next game: Wednesday night in St. Louis at 8:10 PM (carried by SNY). John Maine faces former Mets fan favorite Braden Looper.