Mets 2 Brewers 1

There’s no way the Mets can lose this series. And we can thank a man with the power of voodoo. Who do? Miguel do.

Brewers 6 Mets 2

R.A. Dickey deserves better, doesn’t he?

Here is the lineup the Mets will send to the plate against Brewers pitcher Yovani Gallardo:

Angel Pagan – CF
Justin Turner – 2B
David Wright – 3B
Lucas Duda – 1B
Jason Bay – LF
Josh Thole – C
Jason Pridie – RF
Ruben Tejada – SS
R.A. Dickey – P

What to say … what to say … a win would be nice to prevent a sweep at home. I’m considering rooting for rain so the game gets washed out — is that bad?

Mets 4 Brewers 1

A pretty win for Jonathan Niese.

Brewers 2 Mets 0

The bad news: the 1969 Mets record of 42 consecutive scoreless innings remains intact.

Sorry, no good news.

Johan Santana and Yovani Gallardo locked horns in a good old fashioned pitchers’ duel — a real barn-burner of a contest, matching goose eggs for 8 innings. The Mets had a couple of mild threats that were extinguished, and in the end it was the Brewers who finally crossed home plate — but not before Mets pitchers extended their scoreless innings streak to 35 2/3.

Game Notes

Johan Santana allowed only 3 hits and 2 walks in 8 shutout innings, expending 105 pitches. If I were manager, I might’ve allowed Santana to go out there for the ninth. But I’m just a blogger, second-guessing from the comfort of my couch.

Yovani Gallardo gave up 8 hits and a walk, but went the distance, earning the first shutout of his career and completing only his second game ever. He struck out 7 and tossed 121 pitches in all. Several Mets batters were miffed by called strikes by home plate umpire Jeff Nelson, but from the perspective of our TV viewing angle, it appeared that Nelson was fairly consistent with the zone for both sides. Yes, many pitches were close, but I don’t trust the off-center cameras to give us the best viewpoint. Santana was getting several close calls as well.

Interestingly, Santana and Rod Barajas were the only Mets to collect more than one hit in the game. Santana blasted a double off the rightfield wall literally moments after SNY announcer Gary Cohen suggested that Johan could swing for a homerun.

Ryota Igarashi was the scapegoat and losing pitcher, as he allowed an infield single to Ryan Braun and a walkoff 2-run homer to Corey Hart with two outs in the bottom of the ninth.

Next Mets Game

The Mets face the Brewers again on Saturday night at 7:10 PM in Milwaukee. Fernando Nieve attempts to keep his arm anatomically connected while Manny Parra takes the mound for the Brew Crew.

Mets 1 Brewers 0

Too much, the magic bus … magic bus!

Fresh off a wonderful bonding session through the streets of Milwaukee, the New York Mets pounded Yovani Gallardo for five hits and an entire run to claim their first victory in six games.

Mike Pelfrey was spectacular, exhibiting the skillset and resolve of an ace. No temper tantrums in the dugout, no glaring at teammates for making mistakes, no meatballs to sluggers on 0-2 counts, and no free passes to the opposing pitcher — just 7 2/3 solid innings of hard-nosed pitching.

The lone Mets run was scored by Luis Castillo on a single by red-hot Ryan Church in the sixth inning.

Sean Green retired the one batter he faced in the 8th to pull Pelf out of a jam, and Frankie Rodriguez made things interesting before notching his 21st save.

Notes

No one has confirmed whether it was the magic bus ride or the family talk that was the reason for the Mets victory. But it had to be either one or the other, if not both. That Jerry Manuel is one heckuva motivator, as we all know.

Next Mets Game

The Mets ride the magic bus to Pittsburgh for another day game on Thursday. Tim Redding faces Pat Maholm in a 12:35 PM start.