BLOWenweiss Lives

Hated more in Queens than Osama Bin Laden. Ladies and gentleman, Scott BLOWenweiss

Bring Me Relief

Let's say you're Omar Minaya. How do you feel about your job security right now? That's what I thought. Probably not too secure. You've got a bullpen that can't hold a lead. Your closer is injured. You made zero moves at the trading deadline. And if the Mets don't make the playoffs, you'll need to freshen up your LinkedIn profile.

So what do you do? If you're Omar, you do nothing. But if you're smart you go out and make every possible move that can be made to change this bullpen.

Now I fully understand that Omar can't go out and get a top notch closer, like a Lidge or KRod. I understand it would be tough to get a respectable reliver like a Huston Street or Broxton. I also get that you don't want to give up more prospects like Nick Evans, FMart, or Daniel Murphy.

But that doesn't leave you without options.

There are relievers out there that have cleared waivers or are free agents. Off the top of my head I know that David Weathers, Eric Gagne, and Al Reyes are all available in some form. Now are they the top notch arms we would covet? Absolutely not. Are they any worse than the arms we currently throw out there every day? No.

Omar needs to go get two more arms for this bullpen, one at the very least. I don't care if their ERA is over 4 and they have a losing record. At this point I'm willing to take my chances with pretty much any arm that is not Duaner Sanchez, Joe Smith, or Scott Blowenweiss. Give me Gagne who at least has a history of success. I'll take my chances with Al Reyes who used to be a reliable arm. I'll even give David Weathers a swan song at Shea.

This bullpen has to change. Would you feel confident playing in the playoffs with this group of arms in our current BLOWpen? Did you know that the Mets have been outscored by opponents by more than 50 runs after the 7th inning? Don't you think it's time to roll the dice and see what happens? Could it be any worse than our current situation?

I think any legitimate Mets Lifer knows the answer to these questions. Your job is on the line Omar. You're the king of chances. It paid off with Oliver Perez and John Maine when you signed them. Take a shot Omar, because if you don't I'm pretty sure the Mets pennants chances are shot too.

Character Tested, Character Approved

I love it when I'm right and things work out. In yesterday's post, I mentioned how this series with the Braves would be a test of the Mets character to see if they can overcome their archnemesis even though the Braves are no longer contenders.

Well, they passed their first test in dramatic fashion last night, coming back to beat the Braves in the bottom of the 8th inning. Carlos Delgado came through with a monster double to drive in the lead runs. I honestly thought Delgado hit a grand slam the way the ball came off the bat. The beautiful thing was that he hit it to the opposite field. Seeing Delgado drive the ball with power to the opposite field is such a great site for Mets Lifers.

After that the flood gates opened and the Mets won 7-3 even with Blowenweiss pitching the 9th inning. After Delgado's double I kept thinking "no lead is safe." Fortunately, Easley and Castro came through with some extra runs to pad the lead.

This was a win the Mets needed especially with the news of Billy Wagner's season potentially being over (hear that Omar, that's the sound of your job being on the line) and that the Phillies came back to beat the Nationals.

It's Pelfrey vs. Jurrjens tonight. Let's please sweep the Braves.

Blown Again

I've had enough. You've had enough. We've all had enough of this compost pile known as the Mets bullpen.

Aaron Heilman. Take a hike.

Scott Blowenweiss. Go take a long walk off a short pier.

Joe Smith. Here's a one way ticket back to Wichita State.

Carlos Muniz. Get lost in Triple A.

Pedro Feliciano. If he's not left handed I don't want to see you.

Today's loss to the Pirates is possibly the most disgraceful of the year. It's just beyond pitiful. You're up 5-1 to one of the worst teams in baseball and you're bullpen can't shut them down for 3+ innings. You've got to be kidding me.

How many times does this have to happen? We are slowly giving the pennant away. These are games you HAVE to win. No excuses. The Pirates, the Padres, the Nationals are teams you must beat to be in contention.

I just can't comprehend how nothing has been done about this for so long. I mean nothing. At this point I'm ok with watching Eddie Kunz blow games for the rest of the season because at least he's a rookie trying to find his way in the big leagues. These are supposedly veteran arms who are doing nothing for this team.

Just blow up the whole unit. Let's start over.

It's Obvious. Mets Need Bullpen Help.

Through 7 and a half innings last night the Mets looked like a team that had everything going for them. The Marlins couldn't field the ball. The Mets were getting hits when they needed them, and the pitching was in order.

Then enters the Mets bullpen.

For the second time in the last two weeks the Mets bullpen exploded for 5 runs in half an inning to lose the game. John Maine had to exit early and Carlos Muniz did an ok job of filling in. Sanchez even looked ok. But Joe Smith, Scott Blowenweiss couldn't get a batter out giving up 6 hits and 5 runs between them.

It should now be crystal clear what the Mets need to do before the trading deadline: go get some relief pitching.

I read yesterday that the Tigers are interested in Scott Blowenweiss. Good, call 'em up and hand him over. Outside of Billy Wagner do you know who the most reliable arm in the bullpen is? It's Aaron Heilman, which is incredible considering how Heilman started this year. But outside of Wagner and Heilman, there's no one I would trust to come into the game and get a tough out. Sanchez and Feliciano are good arms to have, but neither of them have proven to be reliable.

Let's go out and get ourselves some bullpen help. If you think about it the last two seasons what has been the downfall of the Mets? It's the pitching. Last year the starting pitching and bullpen couldn't get anyone out in the final week of the season. And ultimately in 2006 it was the bullpen that blew the games against the Cardinals.

The Mets can score runs. They've proven that over the last two weeks. One thing they can't do consistently is stop their opponents from having big innings late in the game. At this point I'd take any reliable pitching that the Mets can get on the market. Between Maine's shoulder and Pedro's nagging injuries, there's no harm in getting an extra arm that can start either, but I think the bullpen should be the top priority.

If you still don't believe, go watch a tape of last Monday's game against the Phillies.