Jonathon Niese went five and one-third innings, and Bobby Parnell ruined a comeback attempt in their 3-2 loss against the Nationals Game Notes Jonathon Niese looked very good for five innings, and then came unraveled in the sixth, allowing three straight doubles. Jonathon’s final line was five and one-third innings, allowing two runs on eight hits while striking out six. Niese looked good, but seemed to lose his location and that summoned his early exit. [...]

If the Mets were truly in a fire sale mode there was more they could have done prior to the 4:00 p.m., trade deadline. As a competitive team that to many overachieved through July, the Mets had plenty of chips they could have played to bolster their depth. Chris Capuano and Jason Isringhausen both could help a contender, but are the types of players the Mets would need to plug in next season Capuano has [...]

I read this quote in the Daily News by R.A. Dickey which I thought was interesting because it’s an actual player’s reaction to the Beltran trade. “One of the things you can’t help but communicate to the team with a move like that,” says R.A. Dickey, speaking of the front office, “is, ‘You may do it, but we don’t believe this is our year.’ “That’s what’s being communicated and you have to be honest about that. And [...]

Here is an UPDATED Trade Deadline edition of our NL East Report… Philadelphia Phillies Phillies GM Ruben Amaro does it again with another huge trade deadline acquisition – he traded for Cliff Lee in 2009 and Roy Oswalt in 2010. This year Amaro adds All-Star right fielder Hunter Pence from the Houston Astros. The NL East-leading Phillies got Pence PLUS cash from Houston for three minor leaguers and a player to be named, but get this, [...]

As the Mets winning streak came to a halt at five games last night after a 3-0 loss to the Washington Nationals, I couldn’t help wondering if Carlos Beltran would’ve made a difference. Out of curiosity I decided to look up how Beltran had performed against the Nationals in his career. I was surprised to learn they were one of the teams he enjoyed punishing with his bat throughout his career. His .959 OPS against [...]

Buffalo Bisons 2 – Leigh Valley IronPigs 1 Miguel Bautista was not very sharp at all allowing eight hits and six walks in 5.2 innings, but the IronPigs hit a putrid 1-for-11 with RISP to score just one run against him. Justin Hampson left the 8th inning in a bit of a jam and Dale Thayer came on to bail him out and earn a four-out save. Luis Figueroa, Mike Baxter, Josh Satin, and Val [...]

Nothing lasts forever and the Mets found that out when their five-game winning streak came to a screeching halt Saturday night in a 3-0 loss to the Washington Nationals. For the Mets it was their fifth shutout loss of the season and it cut short what had been a phenomenal stretch of run production for the Mets on this road trip. Initially slated to face Jason Marquis, the Staten Island native was traded before the game and [...]

With less than 24 hours to go until the non-waiver trade deadline (Sunday, 4PM EST), here is what’s gone down so far tonight. Done Deals The Pirates have announced that they have acquired Derrek Lee from the Baltimore Orioles for minor league first baseman Aaron Baker. Lee gives the Bucs some pop in the lineup and great defense at first base. Orlando Cabrera has been traded to the San Francisco Giants by the Indians in [...]

Willie Harris pulled a Tug McGraw before one of the games in Cincinnati and shouted out “Ya Gotta Believe!” after Terry Collins had addressed the team. Harris told his teammates that this season was far from over and that the odds the Mets could rally to make the playoffs were very good. He even joked and said, “then we can knock out Carlos Beltran’s San Francisco Giants off in October.” “I mean, how cool would [...]

At 55-51, the New York Mets are playing their best baseball of the 2011 season. This is without Carlos Beltran or Frankie Rodriguez. Two players that when they were dealt, some claimed this was a white flag from management. There are two sides to Ya Gotta Believe in 2011. To me, I enjoy watching this team very much. In fact, I probably haven’t enjoyed watching a Mets team this much since 2005 or 2006. (2006 [...]