13
2009
Mets Choke Again, Lose 9-8 To The Yanks
An article by 
I can’t believe what I just saw…
I find it so hard to remain optimistic after watching the Mets lose in gut-wrenching fashion once again.
With a huge victory only one out away, Luis Castillo drops the game-ending third out, allowing two Yankees runs to score and give them a walk-off victory in front of a packed house at the new Yankee Stadium.
It was a god-awful way to go down and saying that they choked would be to mild a description for this abomination of a game.
The Mets seemingly create new and inventive ways to rip the hearts out of their fan’s chest.
How can we ever win anything when this team is so fundamentally flawed that even the 1962 Mets would be shaking their heads in disgust.
Every loss only magnifies how easily the pressure just eats them up on the field.
Today it happened to be Luis Castillo who dropped the ball, yesterday it was David Wright and Carlos Beltran, these losses had little to do with half of the team being on the disabled list and were more indicative of how easily this team can implode at any given time.
Were their positives in this game?
Yes there were plenty, especially when you consider that the Mets came back against the Yankees three times in this game, but none of that hardly matters when the game ends like an Alfred Hitchcock horror movie.
The Mets went into the bottom of the ninth up by one run with the score 8-7, and Frankie Rodriguez on the mound. K-Rod’s control was not sharp tonight, and after a hit by Derek Jeter and an intentional walk to Mark Teixeira, Alex Rodriguez came up to the plate with the Yankees down to their last out.
K-Rod induces A-Rod to lift a popup between second and first that Luis Castillo one-handed and dropped allowing the tying and winning runs to score.
Frankie Rodriguez is the undeserved loser and his perfect saves streak comes to an end. His expression of disgust on the mound tells the story.
For the Yankees it was pure ecstasy and an electrifying win.
For the Mets it was a loss that burned a hole in the pit of your stomach that won’t be easily shaken off for the rest of this series.
It was mind-jarring and stunning defeat…
That’s all I can say for now…
About the Author: Joe DeCaro
Went to my first Mets game, a Mayors Trophy game at Shea, in '73. We beat the Yankees 8-4 and I was hooked. I marched in two Banner Day parades, and before the Grand Slam single, there was the "Hendu Can Do" grand slam - I was there. I've collected Mets memorabilia all my life and started Mets Merized Online to feed my addiction.
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The ending of this game just seems so typical for this team it is sickening
That was the absolute worst play I have ever seen any player make in my entire life. It was a disgusting display and I’m thoroughly embarrassed to be a Met’s fan. Luis Castillo was an abomination before, and more so after that disgusting display tonight.
Everything positive (which isn’t much) has been erased by tonight. He needs to be cut immediately and Omar Minaya should be fired for his pathetic signing of this piece of garbage for 4 years. Enough is enough. The Mets brass needs to grow some balls and make executive decisions that will benefit this team. Castillo can’t hit his way out of a paper bag. The least he can do is make a catch that any level headed high school freshman would make in a game. There is NO excuse and I don’t want to hear about the “it could have happened to anyone” adage. News flash: it didn’t. It happened to Luis Castillo with the game on the line.
I can take losing; just not like this. Castillo will forever be etched in Met’s History as a POS who couldn’t catch a ROUTINE pop up and cost us the game. This game in the grand scheme of things could mean nothing…but what if it makes the difference? How many games made the difference between playoffs and golf? Exactly….
Castillo, Omar and Jerry need to disappear off the face of the earth. The Mets should be sellers by the All Star Break at this rate.
The Wilpons suck, all they care about is their money.
MONEY IS THE ROOT OF ALL EVIL!
I could have even caught that ball. I can’t wait to hear the fans when he steps up to the plate at Citi Field
CAPSLOCK=DISABILITY ACCOMODATION
ALPHIE? ALL THW WILPONS CARE ABOUT IS MONEY???? BASED UPON WHAT? I’M SORRY, IS THERE ANY OTHER NL TEAM SPENDING MORE? MOST SPORTS ECONOMISTS
SAY THE 2 BIGGEST BOOSTS TO A SPORTS’ FRANCHISES BOTTOM LINE IS 1) A DEDICATED SPORTS NETWORK & 2) OPENNING A NEW STADIUM.
IF THOSE ARE FACTS HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN THE ATLANTA BRAVES, WHO OPENED TURNER FIELD YRS AGO, PARTIALLY FUNDED BY OLYMPICS, AND ARE ONE OF THE PIONEERS IN S[PORTS NETWORKS WITH TBS(UNLIKE MOST CARRIED AS PART OF BASIC CABLE PKGS THROUGHT MOST OF THE US.
YET WITH ALL THAT FINANCIAL ADVANTAGE, THEY ALLOWED STAR PLAYERS IN THEIR PRIME(TEIXEIRA) WALK AWAY FOR PURELY MONETARY REASONS. WHAT OF OTHER FORMER TOP CONTENDING FRANCHISES? CARDSPIRATES & REDS WERE ALL PERENNIAL TOP CONTENDERS THAT BID AFOU TO TOP TALENT RATRHER THAN SPEND MONEY. I DON’T REMEMBER THE WILPONS DOING THAT? DO YOU?
FIRE OMAR? FOR WHAT? FOR INHERITING A FOURTH PLACE FRANCHISE SANS A MINOR LEAGUE TALENT POOL OR MAJOR LEAGUE STARS WITH VALUE? WHILE MANY, MANY RIGHTFULLY COMPLAIN IT’S IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THE CAUSE OF YOUR CONDITION. BY THE TIME OMAR WAS HIRED, THE SUPPOSED TOP POSITION PROSPECT(ESCOBAR) AND TOP PITCHING PROSPECT(KAZMIR) WERE HISTORY. THE MAJORITY OF OVERPRICED, UNDER PERFORMING VETS DEALT FOR MEDIOCRE TALENT. THE SCOUTING DEPT WAS INADEQUATE AS WELL AS INCOMPETANT. THE FRANCHISE HAD MUCKED UP THEIR MID-INFIELD REPOSITIONING REYES TO 2B & SCREWING WITH HIS RUNNING. ALL THIS OMAR INHERITED, YET HE STILL GOT THEM INTO PLAYOFFS IN ’06 WITH SUCCESSIVE CONTENDING SECOND PLACES. COMPARE THAT TO PRE-OMAR YRS:
’05 – TIED FOR THIRD
’04 – FOURTH
’03 – FIFTH(LAST)
’02 – FIFTH
’01 – THIRD
AGAIN, ALPHIE, WHAT DID OMAR DO WRONG? GIVEN THAT WOEFUL HISTORY ON THE MAJORS LEVEL COMBINED WITH A STRIPED MILB SYSTEM. THIS FRANCHISE HADN’T BEEN VIABLY COMPETITIVE SINCE FRANK CASHEN RETIRED. EVEN AS A 47 YR NETFAN, I KNOW THEY DIDN’T BELONG ON THAT WS FIELD IN ’00. ZIELE, VENTURA LAST HOORAHS. PHILLIPS HAD WANTED TO PASS ON PIAZZA DEAL OFFERRD BY FL UNTIL HE & FRED WERE OVERRIDDEN BY DOUBLEDAY.
PLEASE TRY TO TARGET THE RIGHT VILLIAN IT ISN’T OMAR, IT’S PHILLIPS. PHILLIPS FEARED OMAR’S ABILITIES SO MUCH HE TRIED BANISHING HIM TO MONTREAL SO HIS BOSES COULDN’T SEE WHAT COMPETANT GMING WAS ALL BOUT.
Are you actually asking “What did Omar do”? What planet have you been on? Castillo was guilty of one of the worst plays in the history of the Mets going all the way back to the Throneberry days. Who signed him to an exorbitant 4 yr contract when it was pretty universally known that he was over the hill? Meanwhile Orlando Hudson was available this spring as a literally FREE FA. Joe Torre was smart enough to see that and had his GM pick Hudson up on the cheap. But Omar stayed with Castillo because of the $ committed under his ridiculous contract which still has more than 2 full yrs to run. How about that for just 1 thing that Omar did or didn’t do! Let’s bring in DeRosa to play 2nd and leave Castillo’s butt on the bench through the 2011 season. That’s what Omar can do now! Let’s make that trade and get a competitive versatile player like DeRosa in exchange for Martinez, Nieve, and Murphy.
I can understand AND appreciate the anger toward Castillo right now, as I am JUST as angry as anyone else that calls themselves a Met Fan.
However, the whole we could have had Hudson and ate Castillo’s contract is just plain silly. Sure he had a bad 07 and YES he should NOT have been given a 4 year contract, but fixing 2nd base was far from a priority knowing the weak spots of this team going into this season. Castillo a career .300 hitter and gold glover earned the respect at that point to be given another chance for 09, and to spend on another 2nd baseman at that point was not a wise business decision and yes, this is a business.
Prior to last nights disaster, Castillo has hardly been a cause for concern for this team, and just the night before he was responsible for scoring all the only three runs of the game. His fielding, again until last night, was decent.
I am NOT telling anyone to not be angry about last night, but lets put somethings into perspective, what are alternatives right now? I believe him when he says how awful he feels, and I am tolerant enough to know that we can not sit on our couchs, watch post game interviews on the tv, or watch as the cameras scan faces to truly know what they are feeling. I am confident that the team feels as awful as we do.
We are Met Fans, no one said it was going to be easy……
“It’s supposed to be hard. If it wasn’t hard, everyone would do it. The hard… is what makes it great. .”
- Jimmy Dugan, A League of Their Own
Kay,
I understand completely what you are saying. I did not like the original idea of signing him for 4 yrs to that amount of money and thought that was rediculous on Omar’s part. Had that contract not been given, the Mets would have been in position to pick up Hudson. However, with that nasty contract in place, that was not a viable option. He then followed that with a totally lackluster 2007. To give him credit, he did work hard on the offseason and he has been much better and one of the reasonably reliable performers in 2009 up to last night. Last night was absolutely terrible and brought back the bad feelings associated with the contract signing and last year. I do think Omar needs to do something and going after DeRosa for 2nd base would be a great idea in my view.
CAPSLOCL=DISABILITY ACCOMODATION
MASK? U REPRESENT YOURSELF AS A VERY LONGTIME FOLLOWER. ARE YOU SUGGESTING THAT OMAR HAS THE AUTHORIZATION TO EAT CONTRACTS OR TO DOUBLE THEM UP BY SIGNING A NOAH’S ARK TYPE ROSTER OF TWOs 2 SECOND BASEMEN, 2 FIRST BASEMEN? ala NYY? CAN WE TRULY OPEN UP THE DOORS OF CONSIDERATION? #1 PRIORITY AT THE TIME WAS ACQUIRING SANTANA. RIGHT? HOW DID OMAR DO THIS? HE PKGD AN ACCEPTABLE OFFER TO MINNESOTA AS STEP ONE. STEP TWO WOULD HAVE TO BE GETTING SANTANA TO VOID HIS NO-TRADE PROVISION ALLOWING THE DEAL. ANY INTELLIGENT PLAYER IS GOING TO FULLY VETTE HIS PROPOSED NEW TEAM BY TALKING TO EVERYONE HE KNOWS & TRUSTS RE. THE ACQUIRING TEAM. IT HAD ALREADY BEEN ESTABLIDSHED THE HIGH REGARD SANTANA HAD FOR HIS TEAMMATE CASTILLO WHEN JOHAN CASTIGATED TWINSMNGT FOR DEALING LUIS TO NY. IT CERTAINLY ISN’T A GIANT LEAP TO ASSUME JOHAN’S FITRST CALL FOR A REFERENCE WOULD BE LUIS CASTILLO. WHAT SORT OF REFERNCE COULD U EXPECT HAD LUIS BEEN NON-TNDERED OR LOW BALLED WITH INSINCERE CONTRACT OFFERS. ESPECIALLY FROM A TEAM HE HADN’T WANTED TO PLAY FOR A COUPLE OF YRS EARLIER( TURNED DOWN PHILLIPS’ OFFER TO TALE LESS FROM FL AS FREE AGENT) WHICH, IF YOU REMEMBER CAUSED PHILLIPS TO BRING IN MATSUI. ALL THIS TELLS ME A SIGNIFICANT OFFER WOULD BE REQUIRED TO SECURE CASTILLO & IN SO DOING, SAINTANA. WHERE DOES THIS SCENERIO FALL APART? NOWHERE! IT’S AS LIKELY AS ANY OTHER & MORE LIKELY THAN OMAR’S IGNORING HIS OWN TALENT EVALUATION SKILLS & BLOWING HIS WAD ON THE WRONG PLAYER. WHEN IS HE GOING TO STOP BEING SECOND GUESSED ON HIS ACQUISITIONS. FANS CRUCIFIED HIM FOR DEALING CAMERON FOR NADY. BERATED HIM FOR ACQUIRING JORGE JULIO IN BENSON DEAL. DEALING AWAY MILLEDGE FOR CHURCH, SCHNEIDER. WHAT I SEE AS THE TREND IS OMAR’S BEEN RIGHT MUCH MORE OFTEN THAN PUBLIC OPINION OR NY DAILIES. NO, NOT ALL OF OMAR’S DEALS HAVE BEEN GEMS. THOSE, I BELIEVE INFLUENCED BY THE PITCHING CZAR, PETERSON,(BELL, LINDSTRUM,BANNISTER) WERE ILL ADVISED; DO U FORGET ALL PITCHING RELATED DECISIONS WERE CONTROLLED BY PETERSON(INCL MINORS) AS BESTOWED BY JEFF WILPON. U WANT A VILLIAN OTHER THAN PHILLIPS HOW ‘BOUT PETERSON WHO’S REIIGN OF ERROR BANISHED KAZMIR,BELL,LINDSTRUM. WHHILE ACQUIRING BOSTICK,BURGOS,ZAMBRANO,BENSON.
MASK, IF U R AS OLD AS U SAY, I’D A THOUGHT YOU’D UNDERSTAND ALL THIS. IN AN ORGANIZATION BERIFT OF FRONT OFFICE BASEBALL SKILL, OMAR NOT ONLY IS THE ONLY BASEBALL EXPERT; BUT IS WORKING UNDER & AROUND VERY TIGHT CONSTRAINTS. TRY TO SEPERATE THE COMPLAINTS U HAVE INTO THOSE CONTROLLED BY OMAR & THOSE NOT. BTW, VERY FEW CREDIT HIM WITH THE DOMINICAN ACADEMY SINCE IT PREDATES HIS GM TENURE; BUT WAS HIS ASSUIGNMENT AS ASS’T GM UNDER PHILLIPS. REYES, GOMEZ, F-MART.
MASK, HERE’S THE OTHER PROBLEM U ARE IGNORING…NOT ONLY DOES OMAR HAVE VERY FEW ASSETS TO DEAL, HE ONLY AS APPROX. $12M BUFFER TO LUXURY DEATH LINE. TO REDUCE EITHER OF THOS ITEMS AVAILABLE ASSETS & ACQUISTION BUFFER WIOULD CERTAINLY DERAIL,NEGATE PICKING UP A SP. YOUR CHOICE. ME, I’D PREFER TO RIDE OUT WHAT WE’VE GOT POSITIONALLY AND BE READY FOR A #2 SP ACQUISITION SHOULD ONE BECOME AVAILABLE, PEVY?, HALLIDAY? LONGSHOTS CERTAINLY; BUT AS THEY SAY ABOUT THE LOTTERY, U FIRST HAVE TIO BUY A TICKET. EVEN NOW, A HALLADY ACQUISITION WOULD NECESSITATE REWORKING THE CONTRACT RATHER THAN EXTENDING IT SINCE HALLADAY’S CURRENT CONTRACT OF 14.2M DOESN’T QUITE FIT, UNLESS HE’D ACCOMODATE MOVING A COUPLE OF MILL INTO SUBSEQUENT YRS ON A REWORK. I DON’T KNOW HOW ACCOMODATING HIS AGENT, GREG LANDRY WOULD BE; BUT AT LEAST IT ISN’T DARTH BORAS.
Joe,
This loss stings like so much more than I would have imagined. I mean, what can you say? Castillo is supposed to be veteran second baseman and (from what it seemed like to me) he takes his eye off the ball? I really don’t know what else to say other than I hope the team puts this behind them.
Big Wes
Let’s Go Mets
I’m sick to my stomach. This one hurts really bad.
Omar is the only person to be blame for this. This team is going nowhere. Pitching and defense win ballgames and we have neither. Its omar fault for relying in players playing out of position everygame. I know it was castillo this one and he is a second basemen, but we have the most atrocious defense in baseball. did u hear the espn announcers laughing about this unbelievable ending? Thats exactly how I felt. Just pathetic.
I look at a team like the phillies, and I am sad to have to say, they are a way way more fundamentally sound ballclub than the mets. Its like the mets have no idea on how to win ballgames.
Santana, K-rod, beltran, pedro, = Still Nothing!!
Chokers. There is no other way.
wow, I can’t believe we lost this game. Terrible. Did anyone else feel really bad for K-Rod? I felt worse for him than anybody else on that field who are already used to choking, but for K-Rod it was a new feeling that he had never experienced before.
The fact that Manuel is defending Castillo tells me all I need to know.
Just a disgrace.
I watched the video of Castillo dropping the ball. Then, I watched it again. Then, a 3rd time. And a 4th. Why? Cause I just couldnt believe it.
I love the Mets and considering all the injuries we’ve had, we are lucky to be where we are. On the other hand, it’s getting tough to ‘believe.’ It’s getting tough to NOT be embarrassed.
I just hope we can rebound–somehow–and take these next 2 games. If not, this night’s loss may send us on a downward spiral.
Do you know why this could be classified as a choke? Look at the way even a former Gold Glover played that ball….drifting, shuffling, using one hand…it was as if he didn’t want the ball hit to him. When a ball like that is hit you run to spot where it’s going to start coming down and square under it and catch it with two hands. How much more of this 1962 type baseball can we take? It seems like we are paying for 1986 every day.
i cant sleep….all i see is that play over and over again. we are loyal, die hard fans and dont deserve the product that omar has put on the field. i cant put into words how upset this one stupid game is making me feel. we take a lot of crap for being mets fans and we do what we can to defend them. but tonight was too much. castillo has to go. there is no other way around it. i am sure he has more baseball left in him but he will now be a distraction for the rest of the season. release him. he has his money, he will be fine. i on the other hand dont have 20 million and right now, am not fine. release him or fire omar. i am sick of this…sick.
this was a game we had to win and we had it won until some idiot named Luis Castillo takes his eyes of the ball and drops it! Saturday’s game is pretty much a given defeat with what’s his name pitching. Castillo should be benched tomorrow but he won’t be.
The fact that nobody on this team is angry, says it all. Manuel didn’t seem upset at the least, speaking in that stupid tone of voice of his.
I am really sick of expecting the MEts to pull something like this. This will not be the last time this year that we feel like this due to some kind of bone head play. I understand they are having some severe injury problems, but they should have won this game, and even with the team healthy, they still would have done this.
Minaya has to make some moves to get some better players in this lineup, or we will be far out of the playoff race when delgado, reyes, and putz come back off the DL
what the f@#k! This is b.s. I don’t care who’s on the dl, they are big leauge ball players. Omar has to get on the phone and work some magic. we’re not out of this yet, and god knows they have enough money, even with madoff. Christ, our own network, new stadium, more than enough! This is really getting old!!!
I’m Originally from NY but currently live in Hawaii. I’ve been a die hard Mets fan since 1984(Gooden and Strawberry) and i have to say this is the worst, most pathetic lost i have EVER seen from the Mets!(Now considered to be the Other NY baseball team in my mind!) This team is embarrassing, and I’m SOOOO glad i didn’t pay the $160 to my cable company to see THIS circus of losers!!!
I don’t even know what to say. I had a good feeling going into this series, like maybe they would break out of their funk and sweep the Yanks. But now I fear they will be swept after giving that game away. I’m starting to wonder if there is something bigger going on here…like, if the games are being fixed….because I have never seen big league players drop balls like this and make stupid mistakes at critical times as much as we have this season. Has anyone else thought about this?
Holliday, Sheets, DeRosa.
Get them all.
If not, Wilpons have to get some balls and fire Omar, but they won’t because all they care about is their money.
Castillo is spanish for Buckner
Great comment but you are so cruel!
Geez, gang, are you sure you’re all comfortable with the word “CHOKE” now?
Well, if we can survive this one as Mets fans, I’m guessing we can survive just about anything.
Somebody in the clubhouse needs to curse, scream, and throw stuff.
Choke? I don’t think so.
The Mets play very mediocre defense and then they do stupid things defensively like drop balls by trying to catch pops and flys with one hand.
The Mets also run themselves out of big innings.
Nice bounceback