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August 14, 2011 Mets 2011 Games Joe Janish

Mets Game 119: Loss to Diamondbacks

Diamondbacks 6 Mets 4

There was a point early in this game when I thought the Mets had a genuine chance to win. They fought back from a two-run deficit to tie the game, then scored another pair to take a two-run lead. Then it all went bad, and the Mets couldn’t recover.

Mets Game Notes

Mike Pelfrey had “great stuff” according to manager Terry Collins but was knocked out of the game in the fifth when a line drive bounced off of his right elbow. I don’t know about the “great stuff” descriptor, but, everyone has a right to his own opinion. Pelfrey left the game with a 4-2 lead but replacement pitcher D.J. Carrasco turned that into a 5-4 deficit in less than ten minutes.

Daniel Hudson didn’t have “great stuff” either but it was good enough to get him through eight innings and a victory. The Diamondbacks are now 61-0 when leading a game after the 8th inning.

Just about all of the Mets offense came from the bottom of the lineup. Batters six through nine — Ronny Paulino, Mike Baxter, Ruben Tejada, and Mike Pelfrey — were a combined 7-for-14 with three runs scored and 4 RBI. The rest of the Mets were 1-for-22 on the day.

The Mets are now three games below .500, and 11.5 games behind the Braves in the Wild Card standings. The Nationals are only one game behind the Mets. In short, the ship is sinking.

Next Mets Game

The Mets and Diamondbacks play the final game of the series beginning at 4:10 PM EST on Sunday afternoon. Chris Capuano goes to the hill against Jason Marquis.

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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. Florian August 14, 2011 at 2:28 am
    That’s all so sad, I really had hopes after the sweep of the Reds. At least we can say at the end of the season: these players had some great moments and fought whenever they could, despite the injuries and the suboptimal lineup they had. They did not just fold, they fought back against whatever blows they were dealt, and had some glorious moments. I am proud of this team and feel more as a fan than ever.
    • Izzy August 14, 2011 at 6:25 am
      Wow! Is this the first crappy team where the fans could say the players had some great moments? The PR machine has worked to prefection; too bad the effort to produce a contending team was a total failure. Hate to break it to the PR machine but every team even the ’62 Mets had great moments. And what about the we’re going in the right direction line? Only used by every losing team in history that dumped a couple of its best players to rebuild for the coming someday. Sometimes that right direction takes forever, just ask a Cubbie fan.
      • gary s. August 14, 2011 at 7:55 am
        Izzy, well said.The bottom line is wins and losses.As coach Parcells always said you are what your record is and that means we’re not very good.I’m getting real tired of the feel good stories also.They don’t give parades for losing teams.This will be 3 consecutive years of losing teams.Starting to feel like a pirate or royal fan.At least if the Wilpons were forced to sell, something positive could have happened this year.We have a losing team and the world ‘s wprst owners.YECH!!!!
        • Florian August 14, 2011 at 10:36 am
          I am not saying “we are A-okay”. I have not listened to any PR machine. I just wanted to express a bit of optimism and remark that despite their losses, this is the year when I really became a fan. Sorry if I have appeared a bit superficial, that was not my intention.
        • gary s. August 14, 2011 at 11:53 am
          Florian, good post.The mets have not quit as a team.I think a lot of that has to due with Collins being in his first year.How can you quit on a first year manager?The saddest part about this years outcome is that they now are making dumb Fred Wilpon look good on his predictions when they were 5-13 in April.Reyes can’t stay healthy and Wright is not a superstar.It all makes for bad baseball and an upset stomach.
        • Florian August 14, 2011 at 7:12 pm
          What is a bit mind-boggling to me: according to Forbes, the Mets are currently the 5th most valuable team ($747 Millions) behind Yankees, Red Sox, Dodgers and Cubs. They are more valuable than the Phillies and Giants.
          http://www.forbes.com/lists/2011/33/baseball-valuations-11_New-York-Mets_334564.html
          I can’t speak for the Dodgers and Cubs, but with that much value, shouldn’t the Mets rank much better in the division than they do? I did not crunch the numbers, but to play on that mediocre level with that much team value – there MUST be some responsibility on the owner’s part.
        • Joe Janish August 14, 2011 at 8:20 pm
          Florian, I think that many of the people who frequent this blog share your viewpoint. It is absolutely ridiculous that the fifth-most valuable franchise in baseball has to operate a season as though it was the KC Royals. And it’s unacceptable.

          A major league sports franchise in New York — be it baseball, football, or basketball — should NEVER, EVER be concerned with financials. Mismanagement of finances is one thing, but if an owner in NY can’t outspend $50M in mistakes, then they shouldn’t own a NY team. Mark Cuban has the wherewithal to compete with the Yankees — why doesn’t he own the Mets? Because Bud Selig has turned MLB into his private club, and he’d be thrilled to see a NY team operate on a limited budget so that player salaries in general can be kept down.

        • Florian August 14, 2011 at 10:22 pm
          Interesting. I thought the New Yorker article earlier this year speculated that the Wilpons could soon be forced to sell their majority share of the Mets, if Irving Picard gets his way. Would they then contact Cuban for that? One might hope. Thanks for bringing up Mark Cuban’s name, I just realized that there is apparently even a ‘Save the Mets! Mark Cuban For Mets Owner!’ movement out there…
          Joe and everyone else on this blog, thanks again for taking the time to answer my questions.
        • Joe August 15, 2011 at 8:42 am
          Is this the reason other teams’ owners are allowed to mismanage their assets? To keep down NY budgets?

          Some owners in sports are crummy. Point taken.