Mets Love Rain and the Pirates

Two of the Mets favorite things occurred last night. First they got to play the Pirates. Second it was a rain shortened game.

Last night marked the second rain shortened game of the year that the Mets came out victorious. I can't say I remember the last time the Mets won multiple shortened games in a single season. It was a welcomed outcome though as Jon Niese was able to preserve his arm and it prevented the Mets bullpen from ruining another starter's great outing.

The Mets bats have come alive against the Pirates, but that's like saying it's cold in Canada. You kind of expect that outcome. The thing is the Mets have been awful this year against teams under .500. In fact they're about 7 games under .500 against losing teams.

You have to beat the teams you're suppose to beat if you want to be competitive. For once the Mets are doing just that and anything but a series sweep would be unacceptable.

Gut Punching Entertainment

Just when you think you can't sink any lower, the Mets find a way. The Mets teased their way to a 2-1 lead behind a solid performance by Jon Niese only to have the rug pulled out from under them by Bobby Parnell and the bullpen as they gave up a 6 spot in the bottom of the 8th.

A nice bounce back performance in hostile territory is now replaced by an epic fail. But such is the way of the Mets. In the 9th inning the Mets score 3 runs they could have used earlier in the game only to fall short. Typical Mets. Dangle a carrot, then slap you with the stick on which it hangs.

There is no hope for 2010. There hasn't been hope since a Johan Santana pitched game at the end of September 2008. And even the year before that was nothing but delayed psychological torture for Mets fans.

The Mets might very well win tomorrow, but don't be fooled. There's a kidney punch lingering in the shadows.

Impressive Start End in Disappointing Loss

Jon Niese is becoming more valuable a starter to the Mets every time he goes out there. Too bad he had to lose yesterday. Niese pitched a terrific game from a statistical standpoint. He went 7 and 2/3 innings. Struckout 8. Walked only 1. And limited his pitch count. But he did give up 3 runs which was enough for Mets villain, Bronson Arroyo, to notch the win.

It was an odd game to watch as the Mets just couldn't do anything at the plate. The game was moving so quickly that only an hour and a half after the start you were already in the 7th inning.

In the 9th with the Mets down 3-1, Ike Davis was on second with Ruben Tejada on first. Alex Cora was allowed to bat even though the Mets had Frenchie and Barajas as power bats on the bench. Not the worst move that Jerry Manuel has made but I still question why on earth he didn't bat for Cora. There were 2 outs and he had Frenchie in the on deck circle.

I understand the lefty/right matchup, but at that point Cora isn't exactly the power bat who can drive in both runs, nor has he been a clutch hitter. I would have much rather seen Barajas up there and take a chance on him ending the game with one swing.

Nevertheless, the Mets lost their first series at home in what feels like months. The Reds aren't exactly a scary team, but the long ball is how they win games and Mets pitchers gave up plenty this series. And so the first place Braves roll into town with a 3 game leads on the Mets.

Let's see what this team is made of and if they can make up any ground before heading into the All Star break.

Link: Mets Plain Niese-ty

Head on over to Metszilla to check out a recap of Saturday's victory over the Marlins. This is the first I've seen someone use "Niese-ty" but it's kind of kitchy.

The Mets have 21 wins at home which is a major league leading best. But as Metszilla points out as soon as they leave home sweet home the wheels fall off the wagon.

The most impressive thing to me about yesterday's win was the way Niese pitched with ease. He kept his pitch count to 90 over 7 innings and was using his fastball and curveball effectively. For a first start after coming off the DL this was a fantastic performance and leaves Mets fans with hope that the rotation might not be as bad as we thought.

Ok, it probably is, but let's ride this high for a bit. Mets face off against the Marlins again at 1 pm on Sunday.

I'll Take My Mets With a Side of Grit

This is not your ordinary Mets team. The softness, nonchalant type of play that we've seen in years past is not present on this team. Wonder if it has anything to do with a missing center fielder? Hmmm, but in any case I'm loving the grit and intensity I've seen from this team over the past two weeks.

Running into walls, stretching doubles into triples,  and retaliating bean balls are all a sampling of the things we're seeing from this club that you couldn't have found with a fine tooth comb last year.

And it's not just veterans either. Ike Davis is jumping over railings to catch foul balls. Jon Niese is digging deep to get the most powerful lineup in the NL out while runners are on base. Mejia isn't backing down from the likes of Utley and Howard. But the key to the Mets grit is a guy named Frenchie.

Jeff Franceour is the epitome of what is great about baseball. The guy makes right field one of the most feared positions when he's out there. Did you see Jayson Werth pull a Scooby Doo skid stop in the 2nd inning when he thought he had a double? As soon as he saw Franceour had the ball it was like he saw a ghost and scrambled back to first on all fours.

Sure Franceour strikes out a lot. He swings at bad pitches too much. But this is the guy I want on my team because of his unbelievable hustle, his desire to win, and his rocket of an arm that keeps base runners at bay.

Grit. It's not an adjective used of the Mets, but this team is gritty. I love it. Let's go beat Halladay today.

The Kids Come Through

Baseball is so much more fun when you win, but last night's Mets game was even more fun as you got to watch two of the Mets young prospects perform at a high level.

Jon Niese pitched a great game yesterday. He gave up a ton of hits, but the beauty of it is he got out of the jam every time. Niese was pitching Derek Lee like he owned him. Jamming him inside with the fastball. Then throwing the off speed pitch outside. The way he was changing velocity and location was textbook pitching. Something we rarely see as Mets fans.

Then of course, there's Ike Davis. I honestly thought the guy would go 0 for 4 because of all the hype and anticipation around his arrival. But he showed that he can deal with pressure. He packaged a couple of hits with a nice RBI and made everyone watching forget that there's this guy Daniel Murphy who's supposed to be starting at first base.

This is what the Mets have been missing. Some energy around some young guys and being able to watch them play. Citi Field looked rather empty last night, but if these young guys continue to perform well (even if the Mets don't win) you'll see more fans wanting to come to the ballpark.

Picture: NY Daily News/Antonelli

Mets Blow Deal For Roy Halladay

This is idiotic.

Jon Heyman of SI.com is reporting that the Mets turned down (that's right, the Mets turned it down) a deal for Roy Halladay (that Halladay; you know, the second best pitcher in baseball?).

Want to hear who the Blue Jays were asking for? The Blue Jays wanted Fernando Martinez (injured), Bobby Parnell (okay, sure), Jon Niese (reasonable), and 17-year old SS Ruben Tejada (who?).

FMart, Parnell & Niese are all reasonable requests for the current leading contender for the Cy Young. Tejada is a kid everyone hopes becomes great, but he's 17 years old and still a long ways from getting an answer to that one.

The Mets and Omar Minaya haven't confirmed or denied this rumor, but if it's true this will be possibly the worst move of the season.

Why?

Because the Blue Jays are going to head down the parkway and go trade Halladay to the Phillies who will then sign him to a 5-year deal and we'll have to face this guy five times a year for the next half decade.

This trade would have energized the fan base. The fans would have forgiven the Mets for this season's debacle and start looking forward to next year with a healthy lineup and the most devastating tandem in baseball.

I don't even care that the Mets won last night. I'm so infuriated that the Mets had the potential to get Roy Halladay and didn't do it. Where are all those "experts" who said the Mets didn't have the pieces to get Halladay?

Omar, hit redial on the bat phone and get the Blue Jays GM. Get this done and you'll save your job.

Omar's Wish: Livan is the 5th Starter

It took a few years, but it looks like Omar Minaya's wish will finally come true. Livan Hernandez looks like the 5th starter in the Mets rotation.

I think Livan has been linked to the Mets in trade rumors every year for the last 4 seasons, and somehow we've gotten lucky and didn't give up anything for him. But here he is now and we'll see how much gas he has left in his tank.

The good news about Livan is...well...wait...hold on....ok, he eats up innings...in theory. Frankly, there's not a whole lot of upside to Livan Hernandez at this point in his career. He normally doesn't get injured a lot and he has a history of being able to throw a ton of pitches with zero long term effect.

But he doesn't exactly strike fear in the hearts of batters, and we're guarnateed to have a 10 run performance at least once a month from him. I have to keep reminding myself that no ballclub has a dominant 5th starter so Livan is merely just bridging a gap until Santana pitches again.

If we get 8 wins out of Livan this season, I'd be pleased. I do expect Jon Niese to make an appearance this summer if Livan becomes unbearable.

But please tell Freddy Garcia to go home.

Please No More Pedro

I've heard this topic debated from both sides and until now I haven't really cared. But now I'm ready to take a side (in case you care). The Mets should not get Pedro Martinez.

One person posed it to me this way: "Pedro Martinez at 60% is better than any other 5th starter option at 100%." If you said this in 1995, I'd say you're correct, but today, I don't think so. First off we won't be getting a 60% Pedro Martinez. More like a 25% Pedro Martinez.

Pedro's best days are behind him. We all know that he's going to be injured at some point during the season and for a long stretch you'd have to rely on a revolving door of 5th starters until he comes back. His fastball is non-existent. His changeup is losing movement.

I think it's time to burn that bridge. I love Pedro in the clubhouse, but I'm done seeing him on the mound.

At this point, I'd let Jon Niese have at it. He's young. He's got decent stuff. He needs to be tested to see if he's legit. Let him start the season in the 5th spot of the rotation with little pressure on him. If he works out, fantastic. If not, we were going to have a rotation of Livan Hernandez, Tim Redding, and a pitcher to be named later anyway, so it's not a huge loss.

Low risk, potentially high reward. The same can't be said about signing Pedro...again.

Mets Reality Show: The 5th Starter

The folks over at VH1 or Fox Reality Channel should be calling Omar Minaya any day now about a new reality show called, The 5th Starter.

You see with the bullpen in better order than last year and the fact that the Mets are not getting Manny, the only drama left for spring training is who will be the 5th starter in the rotation? And just like any good reality show we definitely have a cast of characters.

You have Jon Niese, the young stud looking to fulfill the hopes and dreams of his childhood by being a big league starter. We have the washed up veteran in Freddy Garcia who is trying embark on a comeback for one last flight of glory in the majors (a la Mickey Rourke). Then we have the teacher's pet in Livan Hernandez who was long coveted by the GM, but didn't get him until he had one foot in the pitching grave. And lastly there's the unknown, no-name, dark horse, Tim Redding.

There should be a rose ceremony or at least Ryan Seacrest appearance in there somewhere. The fact is the Mets 5th starter will be a revolving door this season. I don't think any of these guys will last an entire season. Livan has the longevity, but we all know he's losing his stuff. Garcia is guaranteed to be injured if not utterly implode. Redding and Niese will have their ups and down and find their getting 10 days rest inbetween starts.

My money is on Livan getting the 5th starter job to start the season just because he's Omar's favorite. However by June I expect Redding or Niese to be getting spot starts. I want Niese to get the job just to see what he can do when he's in a regular rotation instead of getting spot starts like he did last year.

Whatever happens, the fact remains that the 5th starter is just that. He's a guy to fill in the gaps and not an arm to be relied upon. Don't let the drama make you think anything different.

Don't Pitch Garbage on Saturday

I'm sorry Jerry Manuel, but on this topic you're dead wrong. Manuel went on WFAN yesterday talking to Mike Francesa about who the potential starter will be on Saturday. Manuel said he will not use Johan Santana on short rest.

That's almost the dumbest thing I've heard all year.

I understand why Manuel is saying this. The plan is to use Santana on Sunday for the last game of the season, but unless something providential happens I think the Mets need to win Saturday's game first before they worry about Sunday.

There is no reason not to pitch Santana on short rest. Do you honestly think Santana will say no he can't pitch? Of course not. Look at how the Brewers are using C.C. Sabathia. You don't think we can do the same with Santana? He's got the whole winter to rest.

The Mets have to win Saturday's game. They have to win all their games at this point. If you send out Figueroa or Niese or Stokes, you're basically settling for second best when you've got filet mignon sitting their in the fridge. You can't pitch garbage in one of the most crucial games of the season. Haven't we already learned our lesson from Niese's last outing. The kid may be great some day, but he's not ready for prime time yet.

Pitch Santana on short rest on Saturday and then all hands on deck for Sunday. I'm telling you if you don't win these next few games it won't matter who you pitch on Sunday because we'll be out of it by then.

Man Am I Glad I Watched Heroes

Monday night was the season premiere of the NBC show Heroes which I happen to love. I was watching the Mets game up until the 4th inning and then my eyes drifted over to channel 4 to catch up on one of my favorite shows.

Immediately I was hooked and I started tracking the game on my computer.

Boy was I ever glad I didn't sit and watch that debacle. Even through MLB Gameday the Mets game was painful. A grand slam by the pitcher? How does that happen twice in a year to one team? But the bullpen came in to let up just as many runs as Niese did.

And of course the Phillies manage to shutdown the Braves. The Braves had a man on 3rd with no outs in the 8th inning, but the Phillies were able to get out of the inning without giving up a run. I can't even fathom that happening to the Mets.

The NL East is done. Pack it up. It's Wild Card or bust right now and the Mets are one loss away from busting it yet again.

In the last week of the season with the pennant on the line and the team in a freefall the Mets send out an inexperienced pitcher to decide their fate only to have that pitcher fall flat on his face. You know that pitcher's name? It's Philip Humber. Oh wait, that was last year. Guess the Mets didn't learn from their mistakes. You think we would have learned by now.

Do the fans know that much more than Mets management not to make this error twice?

By the way, if you wasted your Monday night on the Mets, head over to NBC.com to catch up on Heroes.

Solving the Pitching Equation

Move over John Nash, I'm here to rewrite the formula for the Mets pitching.

So Billy Wagner is out. John Maine is questionable. Pedro Feliciano is dead to me. And there's crazy talk about limiting Mike Pelfrey. Last I checked this was the major leagues, not Little League where you could only pitch 6 innings a week.

Here's my not-so-humble opinion on what the Mets need to do with their current pitching situation.

1. Leave Johan Santana, Oliver Perez, and Mike Pelfrey alone.
Don't touch 'em. Don't talk to 'em. Just let them be. Right now all three of these guys are pitching consistently well. They're in a groove and you don't want to screw with that. Who knows what an extra day off will do to Perez's psyche? Extra time to think is the last thing he needs. Pelfrey is at the top of his game and is getting into the flow of pitching every 5th day. Giving him a week off at a time could totally throw off his timing. If it's not broke don't fix it.

2. Bring Me Young Arms
Get on the phone and call New Orleans or Binghamton and bring up some young arms. If John Maine is out I want Jon Niese pitching in the big leagues. If we're going to blow this season let's get the kids some reps so we know what kind of chops he's got. I don't want this year's version of Brian Lawrence or has beens. Let the kids pitch. Also bring back Eddie Kunz. If I have to watch Feliciano, Heilman or Duaner blow another game I might just kidnap them so I don't have to see them again. Let someone else blow games. Kunz wasn't given the opportunity to get into an every day role and he deserves a better chance. Can he possibly be any worse than what we saw against the Astros?

3. One more arm
If the Mets are serious about a run this year, they have to go out and get one more arm. Don't tell me that no one's available. We got Luis Ayala for a song and a dance. There are people to be had, but the Mets aren't taking the risk to get them. I'm not for trading any top prospects for a two-bit reliever, but I think it's fairly evident that this bullpen needs an enema. Give me another arm to change the scenery behind that right field wall. I don't care who it is, but I'll take anyone over Blowenwess at this point.

Youth Movement

Brad over at Bugs & Cranks has just put together a very intriguing post about the current Mets situation, and is asking Omar Minaya to Roll the Dice with the young stars the Mets have protected over the recent trading deadline.

It's something a lot of Mets fans will argue is dumb to do in the heat of a pennant race, but I think it's because we're fooling ourselves into thinking this team is better than it is.

With injuries galore and lackluster clutch hitting, what makes you think this team will magically put it all together for a run deep into October? On the other hand how rejuvenating would it be to see these young players come up and be given a shot to play for a team in contention?

What's that? You'd rather see Marlon Anderson and Robinson Cancel get more playing time? Or would you rather Omar go out and get some great waiver wire pickups like Freddy Garcia or Rich Aurillia because they would really turn the tide for this team?

I find myself falling into the same trap. I just hope that this team will find their groove and take off. I'm starting to think that's not going to happen. Why not take a shot at Dan Murphy, Jon Niese and Eddie Kunz getting some regular roles? Why not see what FMart has in store for us in the future?

What's the worst that could happen? We lose the pennant? We're already in position to do that now.