Mets Lose Argenis Reyes to Dodgers
It wasn’t bad enough that the Phillies stole Wilson Valdez from the Mets, but now it’s come to light that the Dodgers have won the heated offseason bidding war for Argenis Reyes.
How is this fair? Why must the rich always get richer? “To the victor belong the spoils” is a concept that is nearly 200 years old and does not belong in MLB. How will there ever be parity or fairness in baseball when perennial postseason teams like Philly and LA can cherry-pick the best “backup to the backups” from every other organization? Bud Selig needs to table ancillary issues such as instant replay and steroids and address the big problems such as this that are truly killing the game.
Dodgers Trade Juan Pierre to White Sox
The Dodgers have traded Juan Pierre to the White Sox. What does this mean to the Mets? Read more
Dodgers Owners Separate
According to a public statement issued by the couple, Dodgers owner Frank McCourt and his wife Jamie, the team’s chief executive, have separated.
Though they have separated, there is no word on whether they will divorce. So, we won’t know if there could be another San Diego Padres situation, where the team has to be sold.
Strange timing — couldn’t they have waited to make this announcement until after the postseason? One must wonder if the news will be a distraction to the Dodgers ballplayers as they head into the NLCS vs. the Phillies.
Though, who knows — it may take some of the spotlight and pressure OFF the team on the field.
If nothing else, it’s nice to know there are baseball soap operas playing outside of Flushing.
Difference Between Mets and Champions
After 162 Mets games, I forgot how much fun it was to watch good, hard-played, exciting baseball games. Right there, one of the key differences between the Mets of 2007-2009 and championship teams.
Not yet a week into the postseason, and we’ve already seen “championship baseball” at its best. How many times in the past three years have we seen similar passion and tenacity from the Flushing Futiles, as we’ve witnessed from the Twins and Dodgers? Even in losing, the Tigers put out a tremendous effort in what may go down as one of the most exciting one-game playoffs of all-time. Sure, you can say these teams are playing at a notch above because it’s the postseason — but are they “dialing it up” from their usual 9 to 10 or are they usually at 10 and breaking the knob to find 11?
Some other differences noted while watching these championship clubs:
Pitching
John Lackey is the pitcher the Mets keep waiting for John Maine to be — not in terms of style, but in performance / results. In other words, the 7-8 inning pitcher, with occasional spurts of greatness, but otherwise a very solid #2 starter.
The difference between Lackey and Maine: Lackey has very simple, efficient, squared-up mechanics that keep him on a straight line from the rubber toward home plate, which are the foundation to strong command of all pitches. As a result Lackey can hit spots all over the strike zone with all of his pitches. In contrast, Maine’s mechanics cause him to constantly be fighting himself and his “natural”, narrow location of up and in the righthander / up and away from the lefty.
Lackey leads an Angel rotation that has Scott Kazmir and 16-win Joe Saunders rounding out the back end. Compare those two at the end to anyone after Johan Santana on the Mets’ starting staff.
The bullpens of nearly all the postseason teams are equally impressive. Consider that the Red Sox have at least four men in the ‘pen not named Papelbon who would be closing for at least a dozen MLB teams. The Yankees have so much pitching depth that they don’t really need Joba Chamberlain. The Phillies may have an issue with Brad Lidge as a closer but their depth is such that it’s hard to find postseason innings for Pedro Martinez, Joe Blanton, and Brett Myers.
Lineups and Hitting
The Red Sox had JD Drew batting eighth and Alex Gonzalez ninth. The Yankees had Robinson Cano and Nick Swisher in the same spots. The Cardinals had Mark DeRosa 7th and Colby Rasmus 8th. Think about that. Any of those hitters would be batting cleanup for the Mets. That’s the difference between the Mets and a playoff team’s lineup.
Free Agent Signings
Bobby Abreu had some kind of year, huh? A .390 OBP, .293 AVG, 103 RBI, 30 SBs. This is the same guy who was practically begging the Mets for a contract. But the Mets were “set” in the outfield — they had Dan Murphy, Ryan Church, and Fernando Tatis. It was ironic that the Angels had a much deeper surplus of OFs than the Mets (Gary Mathews Jr., Reggie Willits, and Juan Rivera were all presumably fighting for one corner spot), yet they signed Abreu anyway — his bargain price of $5M was too good to pass up (rumor at the time was the Mets could’ve had him for $4M).
Managerial Boldness
Joe Torre has benched All-Star, Gold-Glove second baseman Orlando Hudson in favor of Ronny Belliard — mainly because Belliard is hot and Hudson is not. Can you see a Mets manager pulling a similar move in the playoffs? For example, if Jose Reyes were hitting .200 going into a playoff series, do you think Jerry Manuel would dare sit him in favor of a shortstop who was on a hot streak?
Conclusion
Watching these games a Mets fan, it’s hard not to think about your team and compare / contrast it to the teams still playing. There’s another big difference I’ll detail in a future post.
Mets Game 84: Loss to Dodgers
Dodgers 11 Mets 2
So much for building on a big win over the best team in baseball.
The Dodgers shrugged off a 5-4 loss on Wednesday night to demolish the Mets, reminding them of their place in the world.
Orlando Hudson wrapped a three-run double in the first frame, putting the Dodgers up by four, and from there it was just a long, painful, dreary wait for the game to end. I’ve had two root canals, and the agony did not compare to what had to be endured through the final 8 1/2 innings of this dreadful contest.
By the time Livan Hernandez was mercifully removed, he had allowed 8 earned runs on 11 hits and 4 walks in 4 frames. Pat Misch and Brian Stokes were passable in relief, but Tim Redding was Livanlike in his two innings, allowing another 3 runs on 6 hits and a walk.
Notes
What is there to say? Livan Hernandez put the team in a hole, and this team — with or without “the cavalry” — does not have the gumption to come back from such a deficit. There’s no way you can convince me that Carlos Delgado, Carlos Beltran, and Jose Reyes would’ve made a difference in this game.
On a positive note, David Wright was 2-for-3. Gary Sheffield showed a modicum of interest, showing enough emotion to get himself tossed from the game. I’m not saying it’s good to get thrown out, but, it’s nice to see that someone on this team gives a crap.
The score could’ve been worse when you consider that the Dodgers left 13 men on base. Thirteen. Wow.
Jerry Manuel finally came to his senses in penciling in Luis Castillo and his .380 OBP at the top of the lineup. Though, I can’t explain Nick Evans in the two-hole, the insistence of forcing Fernando Tatis into the lineup, nor the decision to sit Dan Murphy after a two-double day. Is the lefty-lefty thing really THAT big a deal? And how can that be, when Manuel openly admits that he doesn’t pay much attention to the numbers?
Speaking of the numbers, Fernando Tatis is now 3-for-31 lifetime vs. Randy Wolf.
Manny Ramirez was 5-for-11 with 3 runs scored and 6 RBI in this series. Good thing I sat him on my fantasy team. I left Randy Wolf on the bench, too. This is why I finish last every year.
Next Mets Game
The Mets navigate their way to the All-Star Break via a three-game weekend series hosting the Cincinnati Redlegs. Fernando Nieve faces Bronson Arroyo in the opener at 7:10 PM on Friday night in Flushing.
Mets Game 83: Win Over Dodgers
Mets 5 Dodgers 4
In the previous post we introduced the sequel to The Bionic Man. I neglected to mention that as a kid, I always wondered if Steve Austin would ever cross over to Mission:Impossible to join the IMF for an episode.
Finally, my wonderment found fruition.
The 36-Million-Dollar Man, played by Oliver Perez, teamed up with Jim Phelps (played by David Wright), Barney Collier (Jeremy Reed), Dan Briggs (Dan Murphy), Willy Armitage (Gary Sheffield), Rollin Hand (Frankie Rodriguez), and the rest of the Impossible Missions Force to take down that evil organization known as the LA Dodgers.
Perez kicked and strode that bionic knee for five innings, miraculously escaping his demise despite 7 walks, 4 hits and 2 runs. The bullpen was just good enough the rest of the way to deliver a rare, and impossible, victory over the best team in baseball.
If Oliver Perez gaining his second victory of the year against the mighty Dodgers wasn’t impossible enough of an achievement, the feeble Mets offense cobbled together five runs — their first scores in over twenty innings — and did so AS A TEAM. Wright, Reed, Brian Schneider, and Luis Castillo drove in one run apiece, and four different Mets scored runs.
Sean Green and K-Rod did their best to undo the impossible by allowing the Dodgers two runs in the final two frames, but it was too little, too late — and for once, it was the Mets on the right side of that phrase.
Notes
It is after watching games like this that I have a hard time buying into the idea that the Mets need “the cavalry” to score runs and win ballgames. No, it wasn’t a beautiful game, but it was a win and everyone on the field played a part in it. Despite my fun with recalling the Bionic Man and the IMF, the truth is, this team doesn’t need superheroes in order to compete for the NL East crown. All they need is to focus, execute, and play the game the way it was meant to be played. Injuries or no injuries, there is no team in their division that can beat them consistently on pure talent alone (for that matter, there are few teams in all of the NL). The notion of the Mets manhandling everyone and walking into the postseason without a struggle is now a pipe dream, but that doesn’t mean they can’t compete. It’s time that the crepe-hanging Jerry Manuel and the rest of his squad stop feeling sorry for themselves and making excuses and start carrying themselves like men. It’s baseball, for goodness sake — a boys’ game. If these individuals are going to crumble against the “pressure” of losing a few teammates to injury I’d hate to think what might happen if they ever had to face real adversity — the type of obstacles the rest of us face every day in the real world.
Next Mets Game
The rubber match will occur at 7:10 PM on Thursday evening. Livan Hernandez faces Randy Wolf. It is not known whether Cinnamon Carter will be in attendance.
If You Can’t Beat ‘em, Join ‘em !
For those curious as to where Fred Wilpon’s loyalties ultimately lie …
Mets Game 82: Loss to Dodgers
Dodgers 8 Mets 0
This game was so bad for the Mets for so many reasons … I’m not sure where to start.
I’ll try.
To begin, Mike Pelfrey was awful. Big Pelf completed three innings and allowed five runs (four earned) — that’s 3 innings short and one run too many to qualify for a “quality start”, for those who are wondering. The relievers following weren’t much better, but not that it mattered. After all, the offense scored zero runs, and MLB rules dictate that you must score at least one in order to win a ballgame.
The Mets did manage to collect four hits, though I don’t remember any of them. That doesn’t mean they didn’t happen, however.
Notes
The Dodgers did a phenomenal job of forcing Pelfrey to throw strikes. Even with runners in scoring position, most LA batters consistently took a strike from Pelf, and were rewarded by getting into comfortable hitter’s counts as a result.
We talk quite a bit here about “the little things”, and fundamentals, and how the Mets seem to be challenged on those subjects. For those who poo-poo concepts that can’t be measured by the propellerheads and their calculators, witness the fourth inning performance by Manny Ramirez. Immediately prior to his at-bat, Ramirez stood behind home and directed Rafael Furcal to slide on a play at the plate. As a result of Ramirez’s help, Furcal was safe with the Dodgers’ fourth run. Minutes later, with Orlando Hudson on second and none out, Ramirez hit a grounder to the right side that zipped through the infield, enabling Hudson to score the fifth run. Now understand something: Ramirez INTENTIONALLY hit the ball on the ground to the right side (I know this because it was an inside pitch, and Manny purposely took an inside-out swing). The idea behind such intention was to advance Hudson to third base — it was a bonus that he scored. These are just two of the immeasurable, invaluable “little things” that win ballgames. They also happen to be the type of things we rarely see the Mets execute.
I stand by my opinion that even with “the cavalry”, the Mets still would not execute these “little things” often enough to change the outcome of ballgames. This team was built to out-talent everyone, in spite of their fundamental flaws. But hey, keep believing the “woe is us” mantra if it makes you feel better. Whatever it takes to get you through the day.
Mets pitchers approached Rafael Furcal like he was Manny Ramirez. Maybe they got confused by the scouting reports. Furcal walked twice by pitchers who seemed to be pitching around him — in both cases loading the bases — despite the fact he’s hitting around .250 and never a threat to hit the ball over the fence.
Great work by Bill “Wizard” Webb in capturing an extreme close-up of Ramirez’s helmet on the ground just prior to Ramirez getting thrown out of the game for flinging his arm guard. A picture is worth a thousand words.
The Mets have gone 22 consecutive innings without a run, and three games without an extra-base hit. To push it a bit further, there has not been an RBI by a position player since last Friday. So, why haven’t we heard much lately about Jerry Manuel’s opposite-field curveball machine drill from spring training? Hmm …
Manuel says the Mets are in a “team funk”. Guess it’s time to bring in George Clinton and some Atomic Dogs.
Next Mets Game
The Mets and Dodgers do it again on Wednesday night at 7:10 PM. Livan Hernandez goes against Met killer Randy Wolf, who will not be in sheep’s clothing. Ooops … actually the scheduled starters are Oliver Perez and Hiroki Kuroda … guess I was wishing away Ollie. And really, does it matter who is pitching any more?
Mets – Dodgers: Quick Preview
The Brooklyn Dodgers of Los Angeles come into Flushing with a 52-30 record, the best in MLB, with their guns a-blazing. They send three starters to the mound with ERAs under four, and none of them can be considered their “ace”. They have scored the third-most runs in the NL — 43 more than the Mets — and lead the league in team batting average (.272, or two points better than the second-place Mets). And they score without the longball — they have 64 HRs, which is 14 more than the Mets but far below average compared to the rest of MLB. Which means they play “small ball”, which happens to be the brand of baseball best suited to the vast expanse of Citi Field.
Oh, and they’ve accomplished all this without Manny Ramirez for three-quarters of their games. And Manny is back.
The only thing going for the Mets is the Dodgers have been “treading water” over their last ten games, with five wins against five losses.
Game 1: Mike Pelfrey (6-3, 4.26 ERA) vs. Clayton Kershaw (5-5, 3.49 ERA)
Big Pelf has really been an enigma this year, mixing in starts like his last against Milwaukee (nearly 8 innings, 6 hits, no runs) with debacles like his June 4th start in Pittsburgh (3 IP, 9 hits, 8 ER). Which version of Pelfrey will show up tonight is anyone’s guess.
Kershaw, in many ways, is the lefthanded version of Pelfrey. The 21-year-old can be absolutely dominating at times, while looking lost at others. He’s induced as many as 12 ground balls in a game, and struck out as many as 13. Rarely does he get past the fifth inning, and he’s often his own worst enemy, particularly when it comes to bases on balls. Could this be any more fitting a matchup?
Game2: Oliver Perez (1-2, 9.97 ERA) vs. Hiroki Kuroda (3-4, 3.91 ERA)
The Thirty-Six-Million-Dollar Man returns to a Mets uniform in an attempt to keep his ERA from going into the teens. In four rehab starts covering 17 innings, Ollie allowed 17 hits, 11 walks, 2 homeruns, and 10 runs total (6 earned). However, he did strike out 18, so there’s that.
Perez faces Hiroki Kuroda, who is averaging 6 innings per start and sports a svelte 1.01 WHIP. How good is Kuroda’s control? He’s walked 9 batters in 48 innings. However, he’s been roughed up in four out of his last five starts — though, three of those came against American League teams.
Game 3: Livan Hernandez (5-4, 4.56 ERA) vs. Randy Wolf (3-3, 3.49 ERA)
Can we glaze over Livan’s last start? I think so, considering that he powered through 7 innings in 5 of his 6 starts previous to Philly. Those days are going to happen, and with Hernandez, they’ve happened rarely (4 bad starts out of 16 is pretty OK for a scrap heap reject). In Livan’s last start against LA, he was on the wrong end of a 2-1 ballgame. If Joe Torre checks the stats prior to making out the lineup card, he may consider writing in Brad Ausmus (.323 lifetime vs. Hernandez) and Mark Loretta (.333), who along with Rafael Furcal (.333), Andre Ethier (.375), James Loney (.364), Casey Blake (.400), and Manny Ramirez (.600) are members of the Livan Hernandez Fan Club.
Wolf is the guy that all the Monday morning quarterbacks say the Mets should’ve signed instead of Oliver Perez. Well gee, thanks for that bit of afterward wisdom. Looking back, maybe the Mets should’ve signed him for no reason other than to prevent him from starting against them, as he’s become a Mets killer over the last few years. In his last start vs. the Mets, he held them to two earned runs — and that lineup included Carlos Beltran in the 3-hole and a red-hot Angel Pagan at leadoff.
Final Thoughts
Not much to talk about. The Dodgers are a better team than the Mets on paper, on the field, on the mound, at bat, and fundamentally. That doesn’t mean they can’t be beat. It does, however, suggest that the Mets will have their hands full.
Mets Game 40: Loss to Dodgers
Dodgers 2 Mets 1
Apparently, the Mets made like Tony Bennett and left their heart in San Francisco … because they had none in LA.
Livan Hernandez pitched a gem of a ballgame, giving the Mets seven strong innings of one-run ball and allowing just six hits and a walk. But it was all for naught, as the Dodgers squeezed one out of Livan in the first frame, and a second in the eighth off J.J. Putz, while the Mets offense remained anemic.
The Mets managed to stroke seven hits, but unfortunately they weren’t in a row. Carlos Beltran collected two of them, and drove in the Mets’ lone run.
Not much else to describe about this game, so on to the notes.
Notes
This was the most boring close game I’ve watched in a long time. You would think it could be described as a pitcher’s duel, but if you saw it, you would agree that descriptor is inappropriate. Just a lot of lazy ground balls. But then, I may be mistaking boredom for fatigue — these late-night West Coast games are wearing on me.
According to Gary Cohen (I was too tired to check), the Mets have gone 307 plate appearances without a homerun. Even Rey Ordonez popped one every 284 at-bats (I looked up that one).
Danny Murphy was spectacular in his debut at first base. Other than some trouble with his footing on the Mets’ first defensive play of the game, he handled everything that came to him, made NO game-deciding errors, and even jumped up really high once — an absolute natural. I think the Mets have found their first baseman of the present AND future. Hang up the phone, Omar, we’ve got our man!
Oh wait … Omar, get back on the phone. We need a shortstop. Jose Reyes left the game after attempting to beat out a grounder to second, reinjuring his calf. The big question, of course, is, will the Mets take their typical course of action, and play a 24-man roster for a week and a half, or will they do the sensible thing and place him in the DL immediately? Time to inquire on the availability of Bobby Crosby. Billy Beane might be willing to take a pair of nondescript A-ballers, who knows?
Next Game
Good news: the Mets will make like Snake Pliskin and Escape from L.A. The bad news: they’re on their way to Beantown. The weekend series opens at 7:10 PM on Friday in Boston. Johan Santana squares off against Daisuke Matsuzaka. Tomorrow we rest and reflect.
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