Mets Merized Online

Buffalo 3, Charlotte 4

Jon Niese had a GREAT outing today, he gave up just 3 runs (2 earned) on 5 hits over 8 innings, his longest outing of the year. He had his new 2 seamer working, as he generated 14 of his 24 outs via the groundball, and ran his ERA under 5, at 4.85. Brandon Knight allowed an UER to take the loss, his 8th.

dh Cory Sullivan 0 for 3, run, BB, .287
lf Jesus Feliciano 0 for 4, .304
cf Chip Ambres 0 for 4, .244
rf Emil Brown 1 for 4, .310
1b Michel Abreu 1 for 3, run, BB, .241
3b Javier Castillo 1 for 4, 2b, .271
c Rene Rivera 0 for 2, BB, .231
ss Wilson Valdez 1 for 2, run, RBI, BB, .200
2b Luis Rivera 1 for 3, .290
Jon Niese 8 IP, 5 H, 3/2 R/ER, 1/4 BB/K, HR, 4.85 era, 102:70:32, 14:6:4
Brandon Knight IP, R, BB, 4.95 era, 17:9:8, 2:0:0

Binghamton 2, New Hampshire 3

Eric Niesen had a rough outing tonight, giving up 3 runs on 2 hits and 4 walks in just 2.2 innings to take the loss, his 4th in the EL. On the bright side, he did strike out 5. Jake Ruckle and Stephen Clyne fired 6.1 innings of 1 hit relief, but the Mets couldn’t push the tying run across. They had 8 hits and a walk in the game, but were just 1 for 7 (.143) with RISP and left 6 on base.

Josh Thole left the game with a left hand/wrist injury after being charged with his 8th passed ball of the season in the 4th inning (told you guys he had a future with us). Jose Coronado had the only multi hit game, while Mike Nickeas (0 for 2, BB, .120), Lucas Duda (0 for 4, K, .265) and Ruben Tejada (0 for 3, .279) took 0-fers.

cf Emmanuel Garcia 1 for 3, K, .274
c Josh Thole 1 for 1, .346
1b Ike Davis 1 for 4, 2 Ks, .333
rf Josh Petersen 1 for 4, K, .296
dh DJ Wabick 1 for 4, run, .291
3b Shawn Bowman 1 for 4, run, 2 Ks, .279
2b Jose Coronado 2 for 3, 2 RBI, K, .260
Eric Niesen 2.2 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 4/5 BB/K, 7.64 era, L (0-4), 1:2:5
Jacob Ruckle 4.1 IP, 2/4 BB/K, 0.00 era, 9:0:4
Stephen Clyne 2 IP, H, K, 4.78 era, 5:0:1

Savannah 1, Asheville 4

Chris Schwinden gave up all 4 Asheville runs on 10 hits in 7 innings for his 4th loss of the season, and the Gnats went just 1 for 11 with RISP, despite 9 hits and 3 walks, dropping to 37-39 on the season. Raul Reyes (0 for 4, 2 Ks, .245) and Sean Ratliff (0 for 4, 3 Ks, .279) took 0-fers, while Jefry Marte and Wilmer Flores had multi hit games.

3b Jefry Marte 2 for 5, run, 2 Ks, .230
ss Wilmer Flores 2 for 4, 2b, RBI, .280
2b Josh Satin 1 for 4, .293
1b Stefan Welch 1 for 3, BB, K, .234
c Kai Gronauer 1 for 4, .244
lf Evan LeBlanc 1 for 3, BB, .235
dh Jose Jimenez 1 for 3, 2b, BB, K, .103
Chris Schwinden 7 IP, 10 H, 4 ER, 1/3 BB/K, 3.86 era, L (4-4), 12:5:4
Manuel Olivares 2 IP, 3.27 era, 3:3

Brooklyn 3, Hudson Valley 1

Jim Fuller had a second straight dominant outing in Brooklyn, giving up just a run on 8 hits in 7 innings for his 2nd win. Michael Powers picked up his first save with a scoreless 9th.

The Cyclones offense had 9 hits and 5 walks, but were just 1 for 7 with RISP and left 8 on base. John Servidio (0 for 4, K, .200) took the only 0-fer, while Nick Giarraputo had the only multi hit game.

2b Matt Bouchard 1 for 3, K, .422
1b Sam Honeck 1 for 3, run, RBI, .270
3b Nick Giarraputo 2 for 4, run, 2b, RBI, K, .237
dh Dock Doyle 1 for 3, BB, K, .235
lf Alex Gregory 1 for 4, K, .313
rf Nick Santomauro 1 for 1, 3 BBs, .300
c Juan Centeno 1 for 4, .357
ss Luis Nieves 1 for 2, run, BB, K, .219
Jim Fuller 7 IP, 8 H, ER, 1/6 BB/K, 0.69 era, W (2-0), 11:4:6
Matias Carrillo IP, 2 Ks, 0.00 era, 1:0:2
Michael Powers IP, H, K, 0.00 era, SV (1), 0:2:1

Kingsport 8, Danville 5

Eduardo Aldama allowed 3 runs (1 earned, Gered Mochizuki error) on 3 hits and 3 walks in 5 innings, but got the win, despite Luis Rojas allowing 2 runs in 2.2 innings. Travis Babin got the save with 1.1 scoreless innings, he stranded 2 runners in the 8th.

The Mets offense had 9 hits and 5 walks, and were a very good 5 for 14 (.357) with RISP, despite leaving 9 on base. Darrell Ceciliani (0 for 4, BB, 3 Ks, .100), Alonzo Harris (0 for 3, 2 Ks, .300), Ryan Mollica (0 for 2, K, .250), and Gered Mochizuki (0 for 4, K, .176) all took 0-fers, while Jeff Flagg, Cesar Puello and Mike Moras had multi hit games.

lf RJ Harris 1 for 4, run, 3b, BB, .211
3b Joe Bonfe 1 for 4, 2 runs, 2 Ks, .375
1b Jeff Flagg 2 for 4, 3 runs, 2b, 2 RBI, BB, K, .333
rf Cesar Puello 2 for 3, 2 runs, 2b, RBI, .265
c Mike Moras 2 for 5, 2b, 3 RBI, K, .333
dh John Semel 1 for 3, RBI, 2 BBs, .278
Eduardo Aldama 5 IP, 3 H, 3/1 R/ER, 3/1 BB/K, 0.90 era, W (1-0), 5:9:1
Luis Rojas 2.2 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 4/2 BB/K, 22.09 era, 2:4:2
Travis Babin 1.1 IP, H, 2 Ks, 11.57 era, SV (1), 2:0:2

GCL

Mets 7, Cardinals 1

ss Wilfredo Tovar 2 for 5, 2 runs, 2b, .222
2b Ray Van Gurp 0 for 4, run, .286
rf Kurt Steinhauer 3 for 3, run, 2b, RBI, BB, .381
lf Julio Concepcion 0 for 3, run, K, .333
c Neifi Zapata 1 for 2, run, 3b, .533, 2 HBP
1b Juan Torres 1 for 2, run, RBI, BB, .429
dh Charles Hinojosa 2 for 4, RBI, K, .429
3b Travis Ozga 1 for 4, RBI, 2 Ks, .167
cf Ruben Martinez 0 for 2, RBI, BB, 2 Ks, .143
Jhonathan Torres 6 IP, 4 H, ER, 3 Ks, 0.82 era, W (2-0), 8:6:3
Tony Feliz IP, 0.00 era, SV (1), 3:

The Washington Nationals and Pittsburgh Pirates have agreed on a deal that will send OF Lastings Milledge and RHP Joel Hanrahan to Pittsburgh in return for OF Nyjer Morgan and LHP Sean Burnett.

After reading some opinions from a few Pirates and Nationals bloggers, the consensus seems to be the Nationals have a slight edge. In my opinion the Nationals fleeced the Pirates. Of course we may not know the real winner for years to come.

Fan Graphs believes baseball’s worst outfield just got better with addition of Nyjer Morgan. I like their analysis of the trade.

Washington’s outfield has combined for a -24.5 UZR this year, easily the worst in baseball (the next lowest is the Blue Jays at -19.2). The combination of Elijah Dukes, Adam Dunn, Josh Willingham, Austin Kearns, and Willie Harris have been disastrous in the field, which is a pretty significant problem when you’re trying to develop a young pitching staff.

Morgan is far form a defensive liability. He has 743 innings between LF/RF and a career UZR of +15.4, along with 391 innings in center field and a UZR of +11.9. Those numbers are off-the-charts awesome. If Nyjer Morgan was really a +35 UZR/150 center fielder, he’d be in the conversation for the best defensive outfielder of all time.

For the Pirates, they get to try to figure out how to extract some value from Lastings Milledge who would have to take several steps forward before he was as good as Morgan is now. Can’t say I’m a fan of this move for Pittsburgh, but that’s getting to be a theme lately. The Pirates have made a series of head-scratching moves of late, and this one just continues that trend.

I like the deal for the Nationals simply because in Nyjer Morgan they get an everyday player with value who won’t embarrass himself at the plate, and they lose a major headache in Milledge who was sent to AAA after a slow start with the Nationals that saw him batting .167 after seven games.

Morgan was batting .277 (77-for-278) with six doubles, five triples, two home runs and 27 RBI in 71 games. Morgan was leading the Pirates in batting (.322, 66-for-205) against right-handed pitchers in 2009. He currently ranks fifth in the National League with 18 stolen bases, and he currently leads all MLB left fielders in total chances per 9.0 innings and range factor per game. Morgan is a great addition for the Nationals and it upgrades their speed and defense.

Sean Burnett, 26, was 1-2 with six holds, one save and a 3.06 ERA (11 ER/32.1 IP) in a team-leading 38 appearances for Pittsburgh. A two-time (2001 and 2002) Pirates Minor League Pitcher of the Year, Burnett is 7-8 with 14 holds, one save and a 4.54 ERA (81 ER/160.2 IP) in 109 games (13 starts) spanning three big league seasons with Pittsburgh. The Nationals even got the better pitcher. Burnett was having a solid season and he definitely becomes a nice weapon in the Nationals bullpen.

Joel Hanrahan, 27,  finished 0-3 with five saves (10 save opportunities) and a 7.71 ERA (28 ER/32.2 IP) in 34 appearances with the Nationals in 2009.

Seriously, I don’t know what the Pirates were thinking here…

It seems to me that the Mets are in a lot of trouble.  I’m not talking about the fact that the Mets are now in 3rd place and are now under .500.  I’m talking about the 9 baseball players that are currently on the disabled list or that their salaries equal almost 70 million dollars.  The organization itself seems to be in disarray.

The organization from top to bottom seem to be throwing each other under the bus to preserve themselves.  Last winter we all know that Manny Ramirez was a free agent.  Before it was revealed that Manny used performance enhancing drugs there was a lot of people who wanted Manny to be part of the Mets.  Omar Minaya we all know had been trying to get Manny to become a member of this team since he became the general manager.  Last year we all found out that the Wilpons were one of the many clients Bernie Madoff cheated out of millions of dollars, but they insisted that Madoff’s lack of a soul had nothing to do with the New York Mets.  In January of this year Mets COO Jeff Wilpon said the following regarding Manny Ramirez to Bloomberg.com.

“Mets GM Omar Minaya has not brought the idea to ownership because the baseball staff is not interested in Manny.”

Wilpon not citing a cash flow problem all but threw Omar Minaya and the baseball staff under the bus because as per usual the Wilpon’s refused to admit that there was a problem.

Fast forward to Spring Training and Johan Santana developed some sort of injury in his pitching arm.  There was miscommunication from the start on the exact injury and the severity of the injury.  Dan Warthen was concerned, the trainers were but Santana went out of his way to tell the press that nothing was wrong when other were saying that there was a problem.  Once again there is a lack of communication in this organization.

Santana’s injury was just the start of the Mets feeding misinformation within the organization.  The medical staff and Omar told Delgado that his injury was day to day and that he would be in pain throughout the season, but that he would be able to perform.  Two weeks later and Delgado is having perhaps season ending surgery on his hip.  Jose Reyes goes down next and Jerry Manuel tells us that the training staff has assured him that Reyes is day to day, but Reyes has not played in over month.  Last week Carlos Beltran went down and was placed on the disabled list in what is being called a bone bruise on his knee.  Omar, Jerry and the training staff insist it is only an injury that would heal in 2 weeks.  Beltran has said otherwise, in fact he has gone to Colorado on his own to see one of the best knee surgeons in the country because he believes the injury is worse than what the Mets have told him.

With 3/4 of the core down the Mets are struggling to stay alive in the National League East.  Omar refuses to make a deal, he would rather sit and wait for the guys to heal and then try and catch up to the Phillies.  Reports came yesterday that veteran Mets players are begging Omar to add some depth to this lineup.  The manager also seems to recognize that a bat needs to be added to this team and quick.  Jerry in his post game show has all but begged for Omar to add a bat on Sunday night after the Yanks swept the Mets in their home ballpark.  Last night in his post game show he said about the under .500 team:

“We’re a below-average team — period”

The manager is lashing out at the GM for not doing enough with the team struggling, the team is under-performing and the Mets seem to be coming apart before our eyes.  Departments are not talking to each other and misinformation is being put out into the public and this is causing more harm than good.  The organzation as whole is guilty of this from the owners all the way down to the minor leagues.  This didn’t get a lot of press but the Mets had 3 minor league players suspended last week for the use of PED’s. 

I don’t know when it began or even how it started. Perhaps the collapse, perhaps building Citi Field took too much attention and now the Mets are paying the price, perhaps the Madoff scandal has had more of a negative impact than the Wilpons would like to admit.  But something has happened to this organization since the end of 2006, and needs to be fixed and now. Otherwise there will be more times like this coming.

It was the year 2000.  The Y2K scare had come and gone.  Music fans were wondering who let the dogs out.  Mets fans were still cursing out Kenny Rogers for ball four.  The nemesis of the day wore a tomahawk on his chest.

The Braves were the Mets’ chief rivals in 1999 and 2000.  The Mets’ mojo was rising in 1999 and it took them all the way to the sixth game of the National League Championship Series where the Braves ultimately came out on top, denying the Mets their first trip to the World Series in thirteen years.  Throughout the course of that classic series, a new villain had surfaced for Mets fans to hate.  That villain was John Rocker.

If Rocker’s macho attitude and overinflated ego hadn’t already caused Mets fans to want to run his pickup truck off the dirt road and into the creek, his incendiary comments about New Yorkers he encountered on the 7 train surely did.  Rocker soon became Public Enemy #1 at Shea Stadium.  When the Braves made their first trip to New York in late June of 2000, Rocker was with them and the Mets were prepared to do battle.

It appeared as if Mets fans were prepared to do battle with John Rocker as well.  The police presence inside the stadium was unprecedented in that pre-9/11 era.  The extra security had to be called in for fear that unruly fans who wanted a piece of Rocker would pelt him with more than just words.  In the first game of the series, Rocker was called upon in the eighth inning by Braves manager Bobby Cox to protect a two-run lead.  When he sprinted in from the bullpen, as was his wont to do at the time,  he entered to a chorus of boos with a side order of plastic bottles.  Despite all the negative energy being directed at him by the fans, he pitched a 1-2-3 inning and appeared unfazed by the derogatory epithets being hurled venomously at him by the raucous crowd.  The Braves went on to defeat the Mets by the final score of 6-4, setting the stage for one of the greatest and improbable comebacks in Mets history the following night.

Friday, June 30, 2000.  It was Fireworks Night at Shea Stadium.  The crowd of 52,831 had settled into their seats for a blood match.  I was among the throng of Mets fans who had bought a ticket for that game, hoping to see fireworks in more ways than one.  I had to wait a few hours but I was not disappointed.

Before I go any further, allow me to inform you that I was a regular at Shea Stadium on Fireworks Night.  I never missed one until they stopped doing them after the 2006 season in order to build Citi Field.  I was at the 13-1 loss to the Padres in 1996.  After the game had ended, a band called The Fool played a short set to entertain the fans while the pyrotechnicians put the finishing touches on the fireworks.  The band was booed off the stage before they could sing a note.  I was also at the 16-0 loss to the Braves in 1999.  That game was significant because Mets closer John Franco got hurt with two outs in the ninth inning.  Since the game was already a blowout and Bobby Valentine had already used six pitchers, he called upon infielder Matt Franco to relieve John Franco.  Of course, he gave up a long 3-run HR to Gerald Williams to put the finishing touches on that 16-0 final score.  John Franco’s injury caused Armando Benitez to have to step in as closer, a job he unfortunately never gave up.  Needless to say, the fans were not very patriotic during the fireworks show that night either.  Now back to our original story, already in progress…

The Braves had jumped out to a 5-0 lead.  When the Mets finally put a run on the board in the seventh inning to cut the lead to 5-1, Mets fans were hoping for a dramatic victory.  That was quickly stomped on by the bat of Brian Jordan when he hit a 3-run HR off Eric Cammack in the eighth inning to give the Braves what appeared to be an insurmountable 8-1 lead.  It appeared as if Fireworks Night would fizzle out as it had in previous years.  But then the sparklers made an appearance.

The Mets had put runners on second and third with one out.  Robin Ventura was the next batter and the fans in my section (Upper Deck Section 47, the dictionary definition of nosebleed seats) were pleading for him to hit a home run to make the score respectable.  Perhaps he could stir up the ghosts of Game 5 of the 1999 NLCS with another bomb off a Braves reliever.  But alas, he grounded out weakly for the second out.  A run scored on the play making it 8-2, but the Mets were now one out away from ending the inning.  It was now up to Todd Zeile to continue the rally.  Little did I know that the real fireworks were about to begin.

Desperately trying not to make the final out of the inning, Zeile lined an RBI single to left to make the score 8-3.  A single by Jay Payton brought Bobby Cox out of the dugout to make a pitching change.  In came Kerry Ligtenberg.  He fared no better.  Benny Agbayani walked to load the bases, followed by walks to pinch-hitter Mark Johnson and Melvin Mora.  That made the score 8-5 and the tying runs were on base.  Out popped Bobby Cox from his hole in the dugout to remove Ligtenberg from the game.  Perhaps not trying to rile up an already excited crowd, Cox did not go to John Rocker.  Rocker had told Cox before the game that he would have difficulty pitching because of a callus on his left thumb.  Instead, he brought in fellow lefty Terry Mulholland to face Derek Bell.  This would be the biggest mistake made by Bobby Cox on the night.  Mulholland continued the merry-go-round by walking Bell to force in another run.  It was now 8-6 and Section 47 was on its feet, cheering as loudly as we could, hoping the Mets wouldn’t strand these runners on base.  Edgardo Alfonzo was next.  If Mike Piazza and Robin Ventura were the heart of those teams, Fonzie was the soul.  I was 100% confident he was going to come through and sure enough, he rewarded my faith in him by hitting a sharp single to left scoring the tying runs.  My sandwich had fallen on the floor in front of my friend’s seat and he almost slipped on it while jumping up and down, but he wasn’t mad at me.  The Mets had just erased a seven-run deficit to tie the game.  Nothing was going to bother us now.  It was so loud in Section 47 that we couldn’t even hear the airplanes flying above us.

The score was now 8-8.  Mike Piazza was the next batter.  I knew this game was ours.  There was no way Mulholland was going to get Piazza out.  Shea Stadium was ready to explode even more than it already was.  Then came the pitch to Piazza and with one mighty swing, Piazza yanked a screaming line drive down the left field line.  From our seats in the right field corner, we couldn’t tell if the ball was going to hook foul.  Then came the moment of sheer euphoria.  The ball hit the padding above the left field wall, just barely fair.  The crowd erupted.  Strangers were hugging strangers.  People were stepping on my dropped sandwich and didn’t care that their shoes were going to have a turkey and cheese smell.  The upper deck was shaking as if it was going to collapse and we didn’t care.  I had completely lost my voice and it was the best feeling in the world!  The Mets had just scored ten runs in the eighth inning against the hated Atlanta Braves, nine of which came after two men were out.  The fireworks were out at Shea before the game had ended, courtesy of Mike Piazza’s bat.  Then we realized something.  The game wasn’t over yet.  There was still one inning left in the game.  Our closer was Armando Benitez.  It was only a three-run lead.  The bullpen gates opened and the fate of the game was in his hands.

Benitez always had trouble pitching 1-2-3 innings and this was no exception.   Two of the first four batters he faced reached base.  The Braves had the tying run at the plate in the form of Wally Joyner.  My fingernails were no longer with me by this time so I needed the out recorded now!  Somehow, Benitez must have heard me because he got Joyner to fly out to Jay Payton in center to secure the 11-8 victory for the Mets.  Soon after the final out was recorded, the fireworks show began, giving the fans a double dose of fireworks for the night.

Nine years ago today on June 30, 2000, I attended the most exciting comeback I had ever seen in person.  The tension was palpable during that miraculous eighth inning at Shea.  It’s a game I will never forget.  To this day, I still can’t believe the boxscore to that game.  Ten runs in the eighth inning, capped by a Mike Piazza line drive home run against the Mets’ most hated rivals.  It might be a cliche, but I have to say it.  It absolutely did not get any better than that.

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Braves          1  0  3   0  0  0   1  3  0    8 11  1
Mets            0  0  0   0  0  0   1 10  X   11 12  2

As most of you know, the Cardinals picked up utility infielder Mark DeRosa for reliever Chris Perez and a player to be named later.

Of course some of us were shocked that the mets couldn’t up that offer, and there has been plenty of debate as to whether or not trading Bobby Parnell was worth it. Of course Mets fans always place such a high premium on Mets prospects even when they don’t warrant it. The funny thing is that the Indians flat out told Omar Minaya they didn’t particularly care for any Mets relief prospects and that includes Parnell, and last year’s untouchable Eddie Kunz.

We sometimes for get you don’t make a deal by giving the other team what you want to give them. You make a deal by giving them what THEY want.

As much as we like to convince ourselves about the future greatness of Jon Niese, Fernando Martinez and Bobby Parnell, the fact of the matter is they are just not looked at the same way outside of Mets circles. It doesn’t matter how valuable we think they are. All that matters is how valuable the rest of the league thinks they are.

Getting back to the Mark DeRosa deal, it’s mind boggling when you consider how brilliant this move was from every angle you look at it. The Cardinals are such a first class operation from top to bottom.

The Cards already knew that Khalil Greene was going to be out with stress related problems. They were able to get DeRosa without getting squeezed by the Indians because everyone in the organization operates on the same page unlike the Mets. The Indians would have demanded much more if they knew the Cardinals were about to DL their third baseman. Loose lips, sink ships.

The Cardinals also stand to gain two more prospects if they decide to let Mark DeRosa walk at the end of the season. And we are not talking 5th and 6th rounders either. If DeRosa continues to rake as he has, he will be a Class A free agent. That means who ever signs him in the off season, forfeits their first round draft pick. Plus the Cardinals get a supplemental pick before the start of the second round.

So the bottom line is they get the services of a 100 RBI bat with a great clubhouse attitude and a winning mentality, and then after the season they get two top draft picks, and all that for a middle relief prospect and a player to be named later. Considering the enormous drafts the Cardinals have had in this decade, what a bonanza of riches.

Genius… I tip my hat to the Cardinals… Well played guys…

Don’t blame Omar for not trying to get DeRosa. We have no evidence to suggest he didn’t. But if you believe some of the stuff circulating out there, the Indians told Minaya that we were not a good match. In other words, they had no interest in any of our relievers, and that includes Parnell and Kunz.

Parnell will be back in the minors as soon as Maine and Perez are activated. You could put that in the bank.

You can all breathe easier Mets fans, as our good friend Adam Rubin of the Daily News reports the following…

Carlos Beltran’s trip to Vail, Colo., provided a reassuring diagnosis, a source familiar with the examination told the Daily News.

Dr. Richard Steadman, who examined Beltran on Monday, agreed with the team medical staff’s assessment that the center fielder is suffering from a bone bruise. Steadman is expected to recommend Beltran remain inactive slightly longer than Mets doctor David Altchek initially suggested — until after the All-Star break. The doctors had yet to speak as of Tuesday morning, according to a source.

After suffering through countless injuries on so many of our key players including our core players, this news is very comforting to say the very least.

I saw many a fan hitting the panic button when one paper hinted that Carlos Beltran could be lost for the season and that his injury could be career ending. I refused to post that unsubstantiated hyperbole and innuendo on this site.

So, after all the flubs the Mets medical team has made this season, It’s only right that I commend them for getting this diagnosis right after beating them over the head with some of their earlier follies.

I can certainly deal with the fact that Beltran is okay and that he may only be out a little longer than first anticipated.

What a relief…

Last year when the Milwaukee Brewers traded for C.C. Sabathia, it was apparent that the Brewers were doing what they had to do to win now. As further proof, when the Brewers struggled late in the season they fired field manager Ned Yost and replaced him with batting instructor Dale Sveum. We all know how that worked out, the Brewers edged out our Metropolitans by one game for the NL Wild Card.

In the off season we saw both Sabathia and Sheets leave to free agency. Sveum was relieved of managing duties and replaced by Ken Macha (with Willie Randolph as bench coach no less). The Brewers looked doomed!

Entering action this week, the Brewers were in a virtual tie with the St.Louis Cardinals in the Central Division of the National League. How could that be? Forty percent of their starting pitching staff, the number one and number two guys from last year are gone. At first glance the starting five for the Brewers don’t look like much: Braden Looper, Yovani Gallardo, Seth McClung, Jeff Suppan, and rookie Mike Burns who will be making his second big league start against the Mets on Tuesday night.

The Brewers also happen to have some pretty good players on their team. Prince Fielder, JJ Hardy, Bill Hall, Ryan Braun, veteran catcher Jason Kendall, veteran utility man Craig Counsell.

Yes the Brewers lost 40% of their starting staff during the off season, the front end of their staff. For the most part the Brewers have remained healthy, everybody is contributing to the winning. Maybe our Mets should take note.

To [Have] be[en] meeee… at Miller Park. There I was one among a couple of hundred Mets fans (I guess) screaming my lungs out like an idiot, jumping up and down trying to say hi to Keith and Gary (who I am sure saw me as the resident nut w/ the vintage Hernandez jersey), and all the while the Mets–from top to bottom–looked a lot like a minor league team. I mean that.

Before I get started, let me say to my Mets fans brothers and sisters that if you haven’t been to Miller Park, it’s really worth it. Great crowds of fairly passionate and mainly tipsy Wisconsinites (clearly not as into baseball as football), who tailgate for hours with beers an brats. They will tease a little, but they are not nasty, and they really want to know if you like their stadium–yes. The Brew Crew is a team that’s hard to hate, likable players who are high-octane for the most part.

Anyway, when Argenis Non-Reyes leads off you can be pretty sure you’re not starting out well. Question: since we all know that Slappy McSlapster is a way better lifetime hitter at the front end of the lineup rather than the backend, Why in the Name of God, does Manuel bat him eighth???

As I wrote yesterday, the Mets overall defense is now as great a liability as any aspect of their uniformly bad game (yes, for the most part we still hit). You don’t see errors necessarily, but simply badly played MLB. One friend asked me if the Mets infielders were stuck in cement, given how late and badly they react to sharply hit balls. It’s true. For example, Cora is fundamentally sound, but the reflexes aren’t quite there. Murph again does not know how to hold a runner and get to his right quickly when the ball is hit in his vicinity. One can only imagine the uncharitable things Keith mutters under his breath as he observes. It’s sad my friends, very sad. The OF not quick to the BB, and simply not calculating speed and proportions properly. Martinez ain’t no Beltran.

We are all witnessing the sorry erosion of the bullpen. Look at the ERAs–worse and worse by the day. As far as I can tell, Parnell needs some remedial AAA work right now. Stokes is what he is–mediocre to the core. Yes, he’s been reliable most of the season, but he will not be reliable late, just like last year.

You know how bad the starting pitching is when–if like me–you are inning hopes on the return of OP–yikes!

Since we all like a bright spot, I was happy when Sheff hit that laser beam. Milwaukeeans had been tormenting him the whole game with chants of “Garyyyyyy, Garrrrrryyyyyyy…you suck! He showed those creeps!

Other than that I walked away from the ballpark, drained from screaming, watching 32 base hits ping all over the place, and coming to the most miserable of realizations that our Mets are set to wallow in suckdom for the long haul barring something really miraculous.  Didn’t feel so good leaving that place.

My last plea: for the time being we should leave Manuel out of this. As I said before, he blunders plenty, and I don’t think he’ll be a Mets manager for that much longer, but how on earth is this guy supposed to lead them to victory given this roster. There’s talent people, and then there’s talent.

The Mets lost to the Milwaukee Brewers 10-6 tonight although it wasn’t as close as the score would suggest.

The Mets looked lifeless out there tonight and their body language has become a concern to me. Every now and then when the cameras peeked into the dugout, all you saw were a bunch of sad sacks, with shoulders shrugged and listless looks on their faces. It was so tough to watch…

Fernando Nieve (3-1) finally looked mortal and lost for the first time this year in four starts. He was slapped around like a piñata and was pulled in the fourth inning with the bases loaded and one out, after he had given up three runs on 11 hits. Adiós Fernando…

Elmer Dessens came into the game and stopped the bleeding courtesy of a tremendous play by right fielder Ryan Church, who then threw out Braden Looper at home plate after Looper tagged up, to complete the inning ending double play.

New York scored two runs in the sixth courtesy of Brewers’ third baseman Casey McGehee who did a great Luis Castillo impersonation and dropped an infield popup by Fernando Martinez with Church on base. On the very next pitch, Brian Schneider smacked a double off the wall in left to score both Church and Martinez.

However, McGehee redeemed himself in the bottom of the inning with a grand slam of Brian Stokes that put the Brewers up 7-2.

With the Mets down 10-3 going into the ninth, the Mets showed signs of life when David Wright hit an RBI double and Gary Sheffield followed with a two-run homer. The Mets racked up five straight hits until closer Trevor Hoffman came in and induced a game ending double play from Schneider on the only pitch he threw. One pitch, two outs, game over.

The Mets need someone or something to shake some life into them. How can the Mets compete when they need to string 4-5 hits in a row just to score a run or two? 

Does David Wright scare anybody? Can we give him a day off already? 

I’m tired of hearing that we don’t need Adam Dunn or Aubrey Huff, and that everything will be okay when everyone comes back. How the hell do we know if they are EVER coming back?

During the broadcast they said Delgado might be back in mid August, and that Beltran and Reyes have no timetable and they could be out another two weeks or eight weeks.

Are we just supposed to stand around and do nothing while the walls are crashing down all around us?

With the loss, the Mets have now lost four games in a row and find themselves under .500 for the first time since early April. On Friday, Jerry Manuel said that if the team fell below .500 they would need to do something drastic.

So lay it on me Jerry… What are you going to do that’s so drastic?

Didn’t someone give Jerry Manuel the memo? Omar said he wouldn’t do anything drastic and that he is not interested in trading for a rental player and that he would rather wait it out and hope the team hangs in there. REALLY?

Also, can somebody please tell Manuel to stop the joking and laughing after each loss. I find it insulting. In the old days nobody would dare laugh, play the radio or tell jokes after a loss, but now we have a manager who doesn’t seem to take these losses to heart. Everything is a big joke. Well I don’t like it. 

And another thing, I know we have $70 million dollars worth of players on the disabled list, but that doesn’t explain the lack of fundamentals exhibited by the healthy players.

The series continues tomorrow with Johan on the mound. Heaven help us, because it looks like Omar and the Wilpons won’t…

With all of our stars sidelined aside from D Wright – it’s been an interesting year for many players in the organization that probably never figured to have an opportunity to play as much as they have in 2009.  So continuing our analysis of these role players that have suddenly become so crucial to our fate this season – let’s take a look at Nick Evans – who gets a second chance to prove he belongs in the majors as an important right handed bat in 2009.

The Background

Nick Evans is a fifth round draft choice of the Mets – selected out of high school in the 2004 Amateur Draft.  He was a third baseman in high school – but has spent the bulk of his minor league career at first base.

Here’s a recent scouting report on Nick Evans:

Nick Evans 1B/OF/3B…..R/R…..23…..2004 (5) high school (AZ)

Strengths: Strength. Moderate bat speed/ power. Plate discipline. Soft hands
Weaknesses: Contact/BA ability. Pull conscious. Speed. Arm strength
Comments: Strong hitter recovered well from ankle/hand injuries in 2007 to play a prominent role for NYM. Drives ball hard to pull field with moderate bat speed and hit for BA, though his plate discipline regressed. Proved to be versatile on defense, though tools are average at best.

Evans first broke out in 2007 in High A Ball (St. Lucie) – batting .286 with 15 HRs – but importantly showing greatly improved plate discipline 53 BB/64 K’s.

As Joe D. wrote in a prior post – Evans continued his success in 2008 at AA (Binghamton) leading to brief callup last season. However he’s struggled a bit since being demoted and hasn’t been having a great 2009 in the minors before getting called up a few weeks ago.

Expectations

Evans call up in 2009 is more due to the fact that we are in desperate need of a right handed bat than any great leap in performance on his part.  In fact he’s struggled in the few ABs he’s had in AAA this season.  But believe it or not – Evans is the most promising and close to major league ready righty bat we have in the system (the only other options are veterans Emil Brown and Mike Lamb in AAA).

While Evans has shown some promising signs – possible 20 HR power and decent plate discipline – he hasn’t proven any of those things at a level higher than AA.  In 2008 – he certainly didn’t look ready for MLB pitching – and honestly there hasn’t been any indication in 2009 that that’s changed.

Unfortunately Evans probably still needs another year or two in the minors – and hopefully this second MLB stint will not set his development back should it prove to be similar to last year.  Also it’s never a good thing to run out of options on a possible prospect  (see Nieve, Fernando).

While it would be nice to see him do well – Evans is not a 2009 solution for the Mets – only a stopgap until starters return or an outside replacement is found to fill our need for another right handed hitter.

In the long term it’s possible he could be in the mix – but at this point with either Danny Murphy or (more likely) some outside player playing 1B for the Mets in 2010 – Evans will again have to look to the OF for ABs.

In the short term – Delgado’s timetable for return looks like August at best – although that’s completely speculative – since there hasn’t been much encouraging news about his rehab.  At best he is a late season returning commodity to help us down the stretch – if we are still relevant.  (and please – IF we resign Delgado to anything more than a 1 year deal – shoot me..)

A three month replacement like the much discussed Derosa (now gone to the Cards) – and potential pickups like Nick Johnson and Aubrey Huff make sense – but only if the price is negligible.  Neither of these options are enough of an upgrade to make a panic type trade of prospects (see: Zambrano, Victor for Kazmir, Scott  aka – the Genius of Steve Phillips).

Dealing prospects is a chip that we should resort to only if we think we need one final piece for a potential WS run – not for a stab at possible contention.