For a while, it looked like Terry Collin’s weird lineup choice going into the evening would actually work when Marlon Byrd ripped a three-run home run in the bottom of third. Perhaps unsurprisingly, however, the Mets would fail to score again the rest of the night and could not stage a comeback after Jay Bruce hit a go-ahead home run off Shaun Marcum in the sixth. To be fair to Marcum, he handled the Reds lineup pretty decently considering all things. His tough inning was in the first, where he allowed three runs off RBI hits from Brandon Phillips and Jay Bruce. He did strike out seven over six innings, and did retire ten straight at one point in the ball game.

The issues of the night were compounded, however, by some bad work on the field from Ike Davis – who was really struggling in every aspect of the game tonight. Davis was called for an interference error in the first that moved Votto up a base into scoring position. In addition to that, he grounded out with the bases loaded in the bottom of the first when he had a chance to redeem himself. Davis entered the game in a 1-for-30 slump and finished 0-for-3 with two strikeouts. He was actually double switched out in the sixth inning.

The Mets never really showed much life after the three-run home run, allowing opposing starter Johnny Cueto to retire the last eight batters he faced. Latroy Hawkins did some dancing out of trouble in the seventh and shared some words with HP Umpire Tom Hallion, who incorrectly awarded a HBP to Brandon Phillips. Terry Collins left the dugout to argue three times over the game, and was ejected alongside Hawkins.

The Mets continue their series at 7:10 tomorrow when Jon Niese takes the mound for the Amazins’ against Mike Leake.

Byrd captured the attention of Mets fans and earned himself a spot on the roster with an incredible spring training, in which he hit .357 with a .965 OPS and a team-leading nine doubles, five more than anyone else on the team. However, once the calender turned and regular season play began, Byrd struggled, and was relegated to a lesser role. He finished the month of April with a .232 batting average and a .759 OPS.

Since May began, Byrd has turned it on at the plate. Despite having a diminished role, Byrd has hit .357 with a  .988 OPS this month along with two home runs in 29 plate appearances.

The reason for Byrd’s decline over the past two seasons (other than just getting a little bit older) may very well be his plate discipline. Byrd, in his best years, was swinging at pitches outside the strike zone somewhere in the range of 29 to 30% of the time. That number has increased to the high-30% range over the past few years. This year, he is swinging at a career high 40.9% of pitches outside the strike zone, but recently, has improved on that dramatically. He stuck out in almost 32% of his plate appearances in April, striking out at least once in almost every game, but has lowered that significantly, to just 24% this month.

Compared to the rest of the outfield recently, Byrd has been by far the best hitter. Here is how he compares to the rest of the outfield this month:

Byrd has been overlooked the entire season, when in reality, he one of the best options the Mets have on the 40-man roster. Remember, not too long ago, Byrd was a reliable 10-15 home run hitter with a .280-.290 batting average, which isn’t great, but it is certainly better than the struggling Mike Baxter.

Matt Harvey settled down after a rocky two-run first inning to produce one of his most impressive starts of the season in a 3-2 victory at Wrigley Field. The victory was the Mets’ second straight after losing six in a row.

ON THE MOUND: Flirting with perfection is one thing, but pulling it together when it isn’t going well is more indicative of what he’ll normally face. Harvey gave up three hits in the first inning and only two after, at one point retiring 14 straight.. … In 7.1 innings, Harvey gave up two runs on five hits and no walks with six strikeouts. … Bobby Parnell worked the ninth for his fifth save.AT THE PLATE: David Wright homered in the first, Daniel Murphy homered to tie the game in the fourth, and Harvey drove in the game-winner with a seventh-inning single. … Wright had three hits. He also stole his ninth base. … Ike Davis snapped a 0-for-25 slide with a single in the sixth.

IN THE FIELD: Davis missed coming up with Ruben Tejada’s one-bouncer that allowed two runs to score in the first. Amazingly, the official scorer gave Alfonso Soriano an infield hit and a throwing error to Ruben Tejada. … Marlon Byrd threw out Darwin Barney at the plate to preserve the lead in the eighth inning.

METS MATTERS: Zack Wheeler returned to Triple-A Las Vegas and resumed throwing today. He received a cortisone injection in the AC joint of his right shoulder Wednesday. … Terry Collins suggested a platoon with Justin Turner at first base and/or dropping him to fifth in the order if his problems continue.

THEY SAID IT:  “The run support has been lacking, but most of our starters can complain about run support the last couple of weeks. … Pitching, run support and defense; we got all three of those.’’ – Wright on Harvey’s performance.

BY THE NUMBERS: 18: First-pitch strikes thrown out of 27 hitters faced by Harvey.

ON DECK: Jeremy Hefner attempts to win for the first time in eight starts Saturday afternoon.

Please follow me on Twitter @jdelcos

There are many adjectives that are used in conjunction with the 86 Mets. Confidence. Arrogance. Swagger. Obnoxious. But they were good, damn good. And they knew it. That’s a far cry from the 2013 Mets.

However, it’s not just wins that count. It’s playing as a cohesive unit. It’s playing as, no pun intended, a TEAM. And that is something this club does not do. You don’t have to get along off the field. You don’t even have to like it each other. But when you’re on that field, you play as a team. You fight as a team. The Jordany Valdespin situation shows in glaring fashion how incredibly dysfunctional this “team” is.

The 86 club was a bawling and brawling brazen bunch of ballplayers chasing women and partying. But there were exceptions. For all intents and purposes, Gary Carter was an outcast. He was a family man, religious and clean-cut. Heck, the guy was so pure he did a commercial for Ivory soap. Mookie Wilson was one of the longest tenured players on that club. Yet, he graciously accepted becoming a platoon player with Lenny Dykstra. Or moving to left. But yet, they won. 108 times. The 4th highest win total in the last 50 years.

That club had issues. No doubt about it. Darryl referred to Wally Backman as a “(expletive) redneck.” In his 1985 book, “Bats,” Davey Johnson referred to Dykstra as “an ***hole kind of guy.” When they were posing for their team picture in the spring of 1987, Keith Hernandez and Strawberry came to blows about seating proximity to Davey. What is this, 3^rd grade? But yet, on the field, they pulled together.

After being chided with chants of “Daaaah—ril” in Fenway, Straw answered back. In the 8^th inning of Game 7, it was he who hit a towering blast off of Al Nipper that was the final nail in the Sox coffin. And then he strolled around the bases in probably the longest HR trot in history. Confidence. Swagger. The following spring Nipper beaned Darryl. And the dugouts promptly emptied. Who else but the Mets could get in a bench-clearing brawl in spring training? Straw was not overly popular with some of his teammates. But they immediately came to his defense. Why? Because that’s what teams do. That’s what winners do.

When Valdespin gets set-up by his manager to get plunked, what do the 2013 Mets do? They sit on their ass. And then rub salt in the wound by condoning the actions of the Pirates.

This is a team?

Baseball is filled with players that did not get along off the field. But yet, they pulled together and they won. The Oakland A’s of the early 70s bickered constantly. Yet, they won 3 straight World Series. Barry Bonds and Jeff Kent loathed each other. But they put their differences aside and gave their team 2 division titles and 1 pennant over 6 seasons. Ruth and Gehrig were polar opposites who disapproved of the other’s lifestyle. Yet, the Yankees of the 1920’s and 30’s seemed to do okay. And how about ‘The Bronx Zoo’ of the late 70’s. Those guys not only clashed off the field but on the field. And in the dugout on national TV. When Reggie Jackson wasn’t avoiding being punched by Billy Martin, he was getting into it with Thurman Munson. Talk about a dysfunctional mess! But yet, the Yankees won 5 divisions, 4 pennants and 2 World Series over a 6 year span.

The Mets, meanwhile, bicker amongst themselves. Then, go out and lose.

Did Valdespin act bush league by hitting that HR and then showboating on a very small scale? Did he act inappropriately for a rookie? Personally, I don’t give a damn. He’s a New York Met and as such he should be defended by his, pardon the pun, “team” mates. Terry Collins set him up to get beaned. I guess we should be thankful Collins allowed him to wear a batting helmet.

Had any other rookie done that they’d be praised for trying to light a spark on a team where no spark exists. Last season Bryce Harper played with arrogance rarely seen in a rookie. And although Valdespin is no Harper, I don’t recall Harper getting blowback from his teammates. He gets praised while Valdespin gets violently slammed in the face by John Buck. John Buck who is on his 4^th team in the last 5 years. John Buck who will be riding the pine once D’arnaud arrives. Can you imagine back-up catcher Ed Hearn violently slamming a pie into the face of Lenny Dykstra? I can’t either.

Kevin Mitchell was a rookie in 86. Does anyone think had Mitch been purposely beaned like that, the Mets would not have retaliated? Tell me Bobby Ojeda wouldn’t have had someone kissing the dirt the next inning. In 1969 Wayne Garrett was a rookie. Garrett was unassuming and quiet. But can you imagine Gil Hodges setting up Garrett to get beaned? I can’t either.

Why should we expect the 2013 Mets to fight the other teams in the NL when they don’t even fight for each other?

You can clearly see the dissension on this “team” by some of the quotes of Valdespin’s “team” mates.

Latroy Hawkins: “What, now we’re supposed to get into a fight for that?” First of all, I didn’t even know Hawkins was still in the majors until the Mets found him on the scrap heap. Secondly, to answer your question, Latroy, yes. Yes you are.

Marlon Byrd: “The Pirates did what you’re supposed to do. We would have done the same thing.” With all due respect, Marlon, I disagree. When was the last time the Mets protected one of their own and retaliated?

If the Mets are going to lose, at least lose with some dignity. Losing is one thing. Being a doormat is unacceptable.

And to David Wright, you’re the captain. Avoid the politically correct statements and settle this in the clubhouse. You’ve got that “C” on your jersey. Now act like a captain. I can’t imagine Keith or Gary or John Franco allowing this to fester. Isn’t it David who said, “You play for the name on the front of your jersey, not the one on your back.”

One vivid memory of 86 was the all-out bench-clearing brawl when Ray Knight decked Eric Davis in Cincinnati. Dugouts emptied…except for one player. Former Red George Foster sat on the bench and watched the Mets fight his old team. And although Foster was the 2^nd highest paid player on the team (and yes, an outcast even before), GM Frank Cashen had no problems immediately getting Foster out of New York. Why? He realized that Foster was not a team player.

Thank goodness Alderson was not the GM in 86. He would’ve kept Foster and gotten rid of Ray Knight.

And ask yourself this: What’s easier to imagine—a guy like Valdespin fitting in with the 86 Champions…or a guy like Keith Hernandez fitting in with the 2013 Mets?

So, to Valdespin, I say, hang in there. Your time here is probably limited. The fact that you’re exciting, try to light a spark and want to win, is clearly not in synch with the 2013 Mets. Management wants everyone to be nice and quiet. We don’t want to upset anyone else in the league.

Shhh. Heaven forbid someone gets mad at us. So, sit tight, Jordany. We’ll probably get rid of you like we did Beltran or Pagan. You know, two ex-Mets who escaped this madness. Two ex-Mets now wearing or pursuing World Series rings. Yes, World Series rings, something Terry  Collins can only view on Google Images.

I was driving in to work and listening to WFAN today, much like I would on any other day. I happened to hear Joe & Evan discussing some quotes from LaTroy Hawkins and Marlon Byrd regarding the incident that took recently place with Jordany Valdespin, when he got hit by a pitch, in what seemed to be a show of revenge from tossing his bat after a home run, in a lopsided loss to the Pirates.

Joe & Evan said that the quotes really give a taste for how much the Mets dislike their teammate, and his immaturity…after reading the quotes, you can be the judge.

Here are the quotes from Hawkins, and a couple of other Mets, from USA Today:

LaTroy Hawkins

“I couldn’t believe he did that, we were all dumbfounded. It was a bonehead thing to do. And to do that against Jose Contreras? He’s old enough to be his father, and one of the nicest guys in the world. What were we supposed to do there? We were down six runs, he hits a home run and he acts like it’s a walk-off. This isn’t Little League.”

“What, now we’re supposed to get into a fight for that? We’re supposed to throw at somebody because he did a bonehead thing? Now, if they throw at him for no reason, that’s a different story. We protect our team. But to do what he did put us in a bad spot, a real bad spot.”

“He showed absolutely no respect. If you’re going to pimp it, you’re going to suffer the consequences. I have no problem defending my teammates, but some things, you just can’t defend against. He’s created a lot of unnecessary tension around here.”

“Sometimes you have to look yourself in the mirror. He’s got to ask himself, ‘What can I do to gain the respect back from my teammates?’ And he’s got to come up with that answer on his own.”

“For some reason, he doesn’t want to do things the right way. He wants to do it the hard way. Hopefully, he’ll figure it out, because he’s got a chance to be a damn good ballplayer.”

Marlon Byrd

“The Pirates did what you were supposed to do. They just sent a message that you don’t do that. We would have done the same thing to another team. Any of the 29 other teams would do the same thing. Anybody around baseball who knows anything about the game knows that’s what’s supposed to happen. It should have been done and over with.”

According to USA Today, Byrd has already counseled Valdespin many times this season.

Terry Collins

“I tried to explain to him that if you were a (expletive) star or a big-time star and you do that, you might get away with it, but we’re getting beat 7-1 with a 12-year veteran on the mound. Come on.”

“I don’t care what the fans think. This is the big leagues. It’s a big-man’s game. I told him, look, it’s not about you. It’s about us. It’s about the team. We’re all trying to teach you a lesson here. We’ll see if he gets it.”

David Wright

“The easiest way to describe this is that it’s stupid. The whole incident is stupid. It’s gotten way too much attention. This thing should have been over, and now it’s turned into a life of its own. To read these reports how we don’t have his back and how we don’t care about him is absolutely ridiculous. It couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s ridiculous.”

David Wright is sticking to his neutral stance, but the other quotes were pretty strong. Even if a teammate does something stupid, you come to their defense. If a teammate makes an error, you pick him up. If he strikes out in a clutch spot, you pat him on the back and tell him we’ll get them next time. If he gets plunked on purpose, you come to his defense, regardless of the events that led up to the plunking.

Ankiel is a good outfielder, even though during his debut with the Mets, he dropped a ball. But, I will give it to him for going all out and diving for the ball, and the fact that he didn’t have his own glove because he had to have it shipped, so it wasn’t available for him to play with. So far he is hitless in two games with two strikeouts.

I know we don’t have anyone on the team that can be the power boost that we need right now, but it feels like Terry Collins hasn’t even given most of the guys like Lagares and Valdespin real time to audition.  Will Ankiel be the player that we need?  Will he turn his mediocre season around and turn back the clock to 2008 when he batted .285 with 25 HR and 71 RBI?

Even anything near those numbers will be what the doctor ordered for the Mets.  But his 37 strikeouts in 65 at bats will not help the Mets. Was there a better option for the Mets out there? Should they have given him a guaranteed major league deal off the bat?  I am not stating Ankiel won’t play hard for his new team, but just wondering if there might have been a better option. Of course, I hope Ankiel proves me wrong and plays a high a level.

I begin to wonder what this will mean for players like Mike Baxter and Jordany Valdespin. If they’ll end up relegated to pinch hitting duty, you can only have so many bench players related to left-handed pinch hitting on a team. Furthermore, if Baxter continues to share right field with Marlon Byrd, where does that leave JV1 specfically? Now I don’t have any inside information on that, but if Ankiel can put up the numbers that the Mets expect and play decent defense, then someone may just be expendable.

The offense has been struggling mightily as of late, not scoring more than five runs in a game since May 3rd, and a change in personnel with some fresh blood might shake a few things up. Unfortunately, it could just be a ruse where we will end up seeing more of the same. I don’t have a solution to our problem, and I’m not sure if Ankiel is the answer, but I definitely hope things don’t get any worse.

I know, lets blame batting coach Dave Hudgens and his approach to work the count, be selective, and get a pitch and drive it.

That’s it, his approach is wrong. It is why they are striking out so many times. They are taking, taking, falling behind, and then whiffing. Damn, it’s Hudgens’ fault.

That’s the current analysis of the Mets’ offensive woes and it is nonsense.

There is nothing wrong with the approach, the game plan, if you will. It is fundamental baseball, and it only doesn’t work if you don’t have the hitters with the ability to make it work.

There is nothing wrong in working the count and taking a strike. What IS wrong, is taking that strike if it is a pitch you can drive. This is about pitch selectivity and recognition, and Mets hitters don’t have it.

Remember when Yankees-Red Sox games lasted close to four hours? The approach from both teams was to run up the count. For the Yankees, when they faced Pedro Martinez, the magic number was 100. Once Martinez reached that number he became less effective.

Surprise, surprise, it works that way with all pitchers on a consistent basis. Some games they’ll have the stuff to go long, but usually they’ll break down.

It worked because those teams had hitters capable of recognizing their pitch and reacting. Bernie Williams, Paul O’Neill and Manny Ramirez. The term used is “professional hitter.’’

Trouble is, when you look at the Mets, you don’t find many. David Wright, sure. You can even make a case for Daniel Murphy, but he’s in a dreadful slump, which happens to everybody.

We knew going in Ike Davis and Lucas Duda were strikeout machines. Looking at their roster, so is everybody else.

Of their most-used lineup, only Murphy and Ruben Tejada are projected to finish with less than 100 strikeouts, and their numbers of 93 and 79, respectively, are high for supposed “contact’’ hitters.

For all the talk of John Buck’s hot start, he has come to Earth average-wise and his power numbers have cooled. But, not his strikeouts; on pace for 162.

Here’s the projected numbers for the rest: Wright (106, which is a marked improvement from recent years), Duda (153), Rick Ankiel (154), and Marlon Byrd (139).

Even in his limited at-bats, Jordany Valdespin is on pace to whiff 65 times. Give him full time at-bats and it would be over 100, also.

Given this, then why have an approach of taking pitches?

Answer: Because that gives them the best chance to succeed, if they have the ability to do so.

Early in the year we were thrilled about Duda taking walks and having a high on-base percentage. What went wrong is two-fold: 1) he fell back into bad habits and started chasing, and 2) he didn’t swing when he got his pitch.

Too often, Mets’ hitters still swing at garbage. In fact, they aren’t taking enough. Consider Davis’ last strikeout Sunday against Pittsburgh when he flailed at three pitches outside the zone, either low or away, or both.

If the Mets had a roster of guys such as Wade Boggs or Barry Bonds, who knew how to wait out a pitcher and what to do when he got his pitch, this wouldn’t be an issue.

But, they don’t. They have a roster of guys who aren’t major leaguers.

Pitchers know the Mets are taking, so they adjusted and are throwing down-the-middle strikes early and hard-to-reach strikes late in the count.

If the first pitch is there, swing at it. The approach isn’t about taking until you have two strikes. It is about driving one strike. Sometimes, that’s the only good pitch you’ll get.

Outside of Wright, who is getting better, few Mets know how to protect the plate with two strikes, which is shorten your swing, foul off pitches that are close, and go to the opposite field.

No, the problem isn’t the approach. The problem is a roster of hitters who don’t understand the fundamentals of hitting.

The problem is also general manager Sandy Alderson, who is about the funky stats of Sabermetrics and has settled for a roster of players not able to hit, but oh boy they can walk.

But, the easiest thing to do is blame Hudgens, who after all, is only trying to get his hitters to understand Hitting 101.

Please follow me on Twitter @jdelcos

As the Knicks were getting pasted in Indianapolis, the Mets did their part to put New York sports fans in a gloomy mood in tonight’s 10-4 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. It was the Mets’ fifth straight loss to drop them to eight games under .500. Since Jordany Valdespin’s tenth-inning grand slam, April 24, beat the Dodgers to go to 10-9, the Mets have gone 4-13.

ON THE MOUND: The Mets needed innings from Dillon Gee, or more to the point, effective innings. Instead, the Cardinals got to him for six runs through three innings. … Robert Carson gave up a three-run homer to Carlos Beltran. He also gave up a homer to John Jay.AT THE PLATE: So much for the decision to go with Ike Davis and Lucas Duda back-to-back in the batting order. Terry Collins attributed his move to the match-up against John Gast, who was making his first start. Didn’t he know Gast would be pitching tonight? More importantly, this juggling of Davis – because of an unproven pitcher such as Gast – speaks loudly of Collins’ confidence in Davis. … John Buck prevented total embarrassment with a RBI single. … Marlon Byrd hit a two-run homer.

OLD ACQUAINTANCES: Carlos Beltran was a one-man wrecking drew offensively and defensively for the Cardinals. In addition to a couple of nice plays in right field, the former Met Gold Glove All Star went 3-for-5 at the plate incuding the back-breaking three-run homer, four RBI and two runs scored.

WHEELER INJURED: Zack Wheeler will come to New York to have his right clavicle examined. After three straight strong starts, Wheeler complained of soreness in the area. He’s expected to miss at least one start.

BY THE NUMBERS: 6: Homers given up by Carson in 8.1 innings.

THEY SAID IT: “We’ve gone through a bad streak and it’s two weeks long. … We have to play better. We have to coach better. We have to manage better.’’ – Collins on this miserable stretch.

ON DECK: Shaun Marcum (0-3) will start against Shelby Miller (5-2) on Wednesday.

Usually, it isn’t until after the All Star break, when we need to combine series to come up with 3 Ups and 3 Downs. This week was an exception with the Mets winning 2 out of 6 games against the Chicago White Sox & the Pittsburgh Pirates. Unless the Met offense wakes up real soon, we’re going to be in for a long season. Sorry to say, a first baseman batting .190 in the middle of May does not belong on the big club. Anyway here are this week’s 3 & 3.

Harvey Winless Twice: On Tuesday night Matt Harvey pitched a gem. It’s pretty safe to say we will probably never again see another nine inning, one-hit shutout, with the starter leaving the game getting a no decision. It was a darn shame the Met offense couldn’t squeeze out a run for Matt on Tuesday. On Sunday, Matt was once again very masterful. At this point it appears that young Mr. Harvey may be lone Met to make the All Star Game at Citi Field.

Robin Returned: One of my all time favorite Mets, Robin Ventura returned to Flushing. It was great to see Robin, who was one of the great Met leaders from 1999-2000. All the best to Ventura and the White Sox.

Baxter’s Big Hit: Mike Baxter is starting to remind me of Rusty Staub, with his pitch-hitting skills. It was Baxter who had the game-winning hit in Tuesday night’s game, driving in Marlon Byrd in the bottom of the tenth inning, and not totally wasting Harvey’s one hitter.

Offense Is AWOL: Where was the Mets offense this week? 28 strikeouts in the last two games alone? Outscored 21-7 in their last three losses to the Bucs? This team is in huge trouble here. Other than Wright, who are the established hitters? Buck and Murphy are in horrendous slumps, Ike Davis should be in Area 51, and not Flushing… I could give a rat’s behind what he did last season, he’s done squat this year and his team is losing. I don’t even want to get into the “who will replace him argument.”

Niese Not Nice: For the second start in a row Jon Niese looked horrible. Niese’s role this season is to be a front of the rotation pitcher and the Mets were banking on that. It hasn’t been happening so far in May. Niese needs to get his act together. They tell me the Met’s farm is ripe with good, young arms (I’ve heard this before). If the hype is to be believed, Niese may find himself as a back end guy.

Talk Of Change: Naturally, as the team struggles, people want to see Terry Collins replaced. In my 40 years of watching baseball, other than a handful of player-managers, I’ve never seen a manger, swing the bat in a game. I like Terry Collins, but this disaster isn’t on Terry. Does the GM even go to the games? Does he see the garbage he’s assembled? First base is a black hole. The outfield is a disaster, the bullpen has been better, but still stinks. I’ve said it before, Sandy needs to get some bats in here. He needs to stop the skid, and stop it now. Firing Terry isn’t the answer, whoever the new guy is will still be stuck with the same awful hand.

Old NL East rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals, will be hosting the Mets for a four game set beginning tonight. The Cardinals are a true example of how an MLB franchise should be run. Sandy and the Wilpons should take notes. As usual, Lets Go Mets!!

The legend of Mike Baxter continues to grow as he came through in the clutch for the Mets yet again on Thursday night, with his second walk-off hit in three games!

This was a low scoring affair for the Mets due to Dillon Gee dancing out of trouble in each of his first five innings on the mound tonight, without allowing a run through them. He started the sixth for the Mets and allowed two singles and hit a batter to load the bases before he was removed in favor of Brandon Lyon, who allowed a game-tying sacrifice fly.

The only run support the Mets were able to provide Gee while he was on the mound was a sacrifice fly via Marlon Byrd in the second. They would rally to score in the seventh, via a smoked RBI double by Ike Davis, but LaTroy Hawkins gave up a solo shot to Pedro Alvarez in the top of the eighth, which tied the game up…again.

But fear not, Mets fans, as Mike Baxter, heroic wings and all, drilled an RBI single off Pirates closer Jason Grilli to win the game in exciting fashion for the Mets.

Say what you want about Baxter, but when you think about all the work he has put in for us, he has definitely become a fan favorite.

Lets Go Mets!

Among the highs and lows to already come out of the first month of this season, the continued improvement of Daniel Murphy has certainly been one of the brighter spots to this point so far.

Playing out of his natural position, Murphy has slowly made the proper adjustments on both sides of the diamond. After being jostled all over both the infield and outfield, Murphy has finally found himself a home at second base with the Mets while also improving significantly with the bat. I caught up with Murphy at Citi Field yesterday and he spoke with me about his strides so far this season.

“I didn’t get a whole lot of work in Spring Training since I was injured” said Murphy regarding his defense. “But I think that having more time there has made me become more consistent, more comfortable, and has given me a better understanding of how to position myself and how much time I have.”

Another Met playing out of his original position is Lucas Duda. What has lacked with his .239 batting average he has made up for in his power and improved ability to get on base. After being sent to Buffalo following an extremely poor first half of 2012, Duda came back showing more plate discipline and emerging as an overall better hitter. Murphy says he has been impressed with how Duda has performed this year.

“He’s been awesome.” said Murphy. “I think Justin Turner said yesterday that ‘Duda really knows how to grind out an AB’ and I have not seen him give many at-bats away this year. That’s kind of a goal we have as an offense personally to not give at-bats away, and he’s been locked in and done a great job of getting on base.”

All the while, Duda has not only had to learn to adjust with the bat, but also with the glove as he learns on the job patrolling left field at Citi. As he has done, Murphy sees the similarities in both of their defensive improvements.

“The same thing as I have at second.” said Murphy. “He’s become more comfortable, he’s starting to understand how to position himself and to read swings. What he’s doing is not easy. It’s very difficult to go from the infield to the outfield and I think he’s done a great job.”

Murphy can relate to attempting to make the transition from the infield to the outfield, although he knows that their results have varied significantly.

“He’s doing better than I did.”

Although the situations are similar, Murphy understands why Duda wouldn’t ask him for advice about making such a transition after his failed outfield experiment.

“No, I don’t know if I’d have anything good to give him.” said Murphy, when asked if Duda has come to him about the transition from infield to outfield. “Try to be as relaxed as you can. Tom Goodwin has done an awesome job with him and a great job with positioning him. I think he does a good job of picking the brain of Marlon Byrd.”

Although the outfield did not work out for Murph, it seems to be suiting Duda in 2013. Murphy in turn has found his niche at second. Both came up with the Mets as talented bats that needed a position other than the corner infield and through several trials and tribulations have both found where they belong for the New York Mets.

I want to thank Daniel Murphy for taking some time during batting practice to speak with me. He’s a terrific guy who really adds a lot to the clubhouse and chemistry of the team. You can see how his teammates respect him as a leader as well as a productive player and integral part of the everyday lineup.

Starting Lineup

1. Ruben Tejada, SS
2. Daniel Murphy, 2B
3. David Wright, 3B
4. Lucas Duda, LF
5. John Buck, C
6. Ike Davis, 1B
7. Marlon Byrd, RF
8. Jordany Valdespin, CF
9. Jonathon Niese, LHP

Game Notes

The Mets earned their first win in Atlanta when trailing in the ninth inning since September 18, 1993. Friday night David Wright tied the game with a solo home run in the ninth before New York plated two runs in the 10th. In 1993, the Mets won 3-2 in 10 innings when the club scored twice in the ninth and once in the 10th.

The Mets hit four home runs on Friday (John Buck, Lucas Duda, Marlon Byrd and David Wright). It was the second time this year New York hit four home runs in a game, also on April 19 vs. Washington (Ike Davis-2, Duda-2). The Mets hit four home runs in a game once last season (June 27 at Chicago-NL). The last time the Mets had four separate players hit a home run in the same game was September 30, 2006 at Washington when five players went deep (Wright, Endy Chavez, Shawn Green, Julio Franco and Ramon Castro).

New York optioned struggling outfielder Collin Cowgill to Triple-A Las Vegas on Friday and promoted Andrew Brown. After hitting a grand slam on Opening Day, Cowgill hit just .130 in 18 games. He had not recorded an extra-base hit since April 6 and made a game-changing mistake on defense that led to an extra-innings loss Monday in Miami. Brown has been heating up with Las Vegas, hitting .367 with two home runs in 25 games, with an .882 OPS against left-handed pitchers. He went 0-for-3 in Friday’s game with a strikeout.

In his third appearance and second start since being activated from the disabled list, Shaun Marcum again failed to log five innings. He was charged with three runs on six hits and three walks in an 87-pitch no-decision. His ERA stands at 7.20.

The Mets and Major League Baseball announced Friday that they will host private screenings of the movie “42″ for New York City teenagers involved in YMCA programs. Screenings will take place May 6 at UA Kaufman Astoria Cinemas in Queens and May 13 at BAM Rose Cinemas in Brooklyn, with each showing accommodating 300 teens.

Game Preview

The Mets made it two in a row on Friday night as they beat the Braves in the series opener. Then, the rain came from the sky and washed out last night, which knocked Harvey out of today’s spot. For the Mets it was a night of homers and back and forth action as Marcum faltered as did parts of the bullpen.

However the captain, David Wright, tied the game on a solo shot (after the Braves took the lead from the Mets and Wright did it against one of the nastiest closers in the game) and that was followed by a great 10th inning. The Mets try to take the series today behind Jon Niese as he goes up against Tim Hudson.

Jon Niese is 2-2 on the season over 6 games  with a 3.31 ERA and 32.2 innings of work. In his last 9 innings he’s allowed 3 ER. Last year he faced the Braves 4 times with a 3-1 with a 2.00 ERA over 27.0 innings. The Braves have the following numbers against Jon Niese:

Uggla 8-29, 3 2B
Freeman 6-19, 2B, 2 HR
R Johnson 6-16
Justin Upton 5-11, 2B
Schafer 0-8
C Johnson 2-6, 2B

The Mets bats have scored 7 runs two games in a row and look to keep it going against Tim Hudson. Hudson is 3-1 over 6 games with a 3.86 ERA over 35 innings of work and he is coming off of one of his strongest starts of the season allowing only one earned run over 7 innings. Against the Mets last year he allowed 7 ER over 11.0 innings of work. The Mets have the following numbers against him:

Wright 15-68, 2 2B, 2 HR
Duda 6-20, 2B, HR
Davis 3-13, 2B
Tejada 8-17, 2B
Murphy 4-16, 2B
Buck 2-13

Let’s Go Mets!

When you live on the West Coast, sometimes you have to listen to the other team’s broadcast. It can be excruciating. When your team starts winning, especially in clutch fashion, there’s nothing better.

That’s what happened to me while listening to the Braves announcers last night. When the Braves made a move, the Mets had an answer. Clutch offense was the theme of the game.

Evan Gattis hit a home run off Brandon Lyon and Mets fans released a digital sigh throughout the Twittersphere. They had read this ending before.

Then David Wright summoned his inner Walt Whitman and had fans singing, “O Captain! My Captain!” Wright hit a clutch 464-foot home run off Craig Kimbrel that tied the game at five in the 9th. Bobby Parnell bailed out Lyon after Lyon gave up a leadoff double in the bottom half of the frame and the Mets went into extras unscathed. The Mets have played seven innings of extra-inning baseball in the last four games.

Lucas Duda and Marlon Byrd went down consecutively and the top of the 10th looked all but over. Then El Dramático stepped to the plate…

Jordany Valdespin worked a walk to get on with two outs in the 10th. Then he stole second and furiously clapped his hands before calling for time. The spark was created. He had attempted to steal third, which had some viewers scratching their heads. Michael Baron wasn’t too impressed with Valdespin’s enthusiasm over Twitter.

It’s a good thing JV1 wasn’t thrown out at third for the last out in the 10th inning before Tejada got a chance to swing the bat, btw #Mets

— Michael Baron (@michaelgbaron) May 4, 2013

I had assured him that El Dramático had the base stolen, but Mr. Baron still wasn’t having it.

@pacific_theme Look, its a bad play. And, if he gets a bad jump and gets nailed, you’re singing a different tune.

— Michael Baron (@michaelgbaron) May 4, 2013

You’re right, but he did get a good jump and that’s why he went for it. Leave my tune singing out of it!

While fielding more questions, Baron at least tried to be positive. So, whatever, I guess.

@sonufrock he backs it up with his play. So, whatever, I guess.

— Michael Baron (@michaelgbaron) May 4, 2013

The flair was in full effect.

Mike Baxter and Ruben Tejada followed up with a walk and a base hit to drive home Valdespin for a 6-5 lead. Valdespin, who leads the league in style points in the early part of the season, slid into home plate head first. I don’t know why. It was brought to my attention that on-deck hitter Daniel Murphy instructed him to, but it was fantastic nonetheless. Murphy followed things up with a much-needed insurance run and Jeurys Familia shut the door for his first career save.

It was a good game for the Mets and it sent a message that they haven’t given up yet even if the media and fans have. John Buck hit another home run and his stock is skyrocketing. He now has 10 home runs and 29 RBIs. Duda and Byrd also went yard and the Mets tallied four long balls in the 7-5 victory. I even have to give it up to Terry Collins for a couple savvy managerial decisions in this one. Even if it only happens twice a day, you still have to point out when I dead clock is right. As for the ubiquitous why-isn’t-Valdespin-starting-every-day question? I don’t know. We could be watching El Dramático start rallies like that in the 1st inning three or four times a week, but for whatever reason, we’re not. I’ve given up on coming up with a legitimate explanation because there really isn’t one anymore.

All I know is Jonathon Niese and Matt Harvey are back on the mound, which gives the Mets a good shot at taking the series on the road.

What are your thoughts on last night’s game?

Just call him Mr. Clutch or as our own Daniel Nelson likes to refer to him, “El Dramatico”. Yes, of course we’re talking about the incredible Jordany Valdespin who came off the bench once again and delivered another dramatic pinch-hit home run to help the Mets beat the Marlins 7-6 and salvage the final game of the series.

Valdespin continues to display an uncanny ability for rising to the occasion whenever the Mets need a big hit, and in the last two seasons, no player in baseball has delivered more pinch-hit home runs than El Dramatico.

His five pinch-hit homers last season set a franchise record, and only one month into the season he’s already launched his second big knock of the year.

The Mets were trailing by three when David Wright opened the sixth with a leadoff double. Marlon Byrd followed with an RBI single and after another Ike Davis single, Valdespin took reliever A.J. Ramos deep with three-run homer. It was incredible and even more so was watching Spin pumping his fist as he rounded the bases. It put the Mets up 5-4.

An inning later, the Mets would tack on two more runs thanks to a two-run double by John Buck who begins the month of May the much in the same way he ended April. Buck now leads the league with 27 RBI.

David Wright had a great game with a dazzling play at third base and he homered, singled, and doubled at the plate.

Dillon Gee started the game and delivered a very rocky performance in which he was tagged for four runs on nine hits and two walks. It could have been worse if not for some nifty plays in the field.

Things got dicey in the bottom of the seventh when Lucas Duda misplayed a fly ball by Justin Ruggiano off reliever Scott Atchison allowing two more Marlins run to score and make the score 7-6. But the bullpen held down the fort the rest of the way, and Bobby Parnell pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning to seal the victory and end the Mets’ six game losing streak. For Parnell it was his third save of the season.

This wasn’t a picture perfect win, but after a week of grim and disheartening losses, I’ll take it. After a day off on Thursday, the Mets will head to Atlanta to begin a weekend series with the Braves on Friday night at Turner Field. Shaun Marcum will make his second start of the season and will oppose the Braves’ Mike Minor at 7:05 pm.

Boy, I’ll tell ya… Karma? It’s a bitch…

The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Mets 5-1 this afternoon at Citi Field to complete the sweep and send the Mets reeling to their fourth loss in a row.

Jon Niese was the hard luck loser despite a solid performance from the Mets’ southpaw. He gave the the team more than they could have hoped for, but was let down by defensive miscues, a terrible decision by Terry Collins, and a forgettable outing by reliever Scott Atchison.

Niese was cruising through 6.2 innings and locked in a 1-1 pitching duel with Phillies starter Cole Hamels. After getting two quick outs in the seventh, Laynce Nix hit a foul popup that should have been the third out. But catcher John Buck dropped it for an error and Nix responded a single to ignite a rally.

After another single, Collins decides to bring the right-hander Atchison in. That prompted the dangerous Ryan Howard to come out as pinch-hitter and he immediately drove a two-run double to the wall to put the Phillies up 3-1. Chase Utley followed with another single to score Howard and that pretty much sealed the deal for a Philadelphia win.

It was an awful decision by Collins who should have known that Charlie Manuel would send up Ryan Howard to pinch-hit with a right-hander on the mound. Niese deserved a better fate and should have been allowed to get out of the inning himself after a hard-fought, well-pitched game to that point. Brandon Lyon allowed the fifth Phillies run to score in the eighth.

Offensively, the Mets fired blanks aside from Ruben Tejada who doubled twice and had two of the Mets’ three hits on the day. Ike Davis went 0-for-3 and is now batting .169. Lucas Duda continues to slump and after another hitless game his average is now down to .250. Marlon Byrd also took the collar and saw his average fall to .235 for the season.

In addition to the Buck error, the Mets committed two other errors in the first inning, including one by David Wright who saw his record errorless streak for third baseman come to an end at 77 games.

The Mets hit the road and open a three-game series with the Miami Marlins tomorrow night at 7:10 PM. Matt Harvey will face off against rookie phenom Jose Fernandez. It should be a good one. Maybe not. Oh hell, I don’t know… Harvey’s pitching, just watch!

Most baseball pundits cast off the Mets’ outfield as being the worst in the league heading into the season.

On paper, maybe that is correct, but based on performance, the Mets outfield hasn’t been all that bad.

Lucas Duda has looked good offensively, Marlon Byrd has had some big hits, Mike Baxter gives all-out effort every time he’s on the field, and Jordany Valdespin proved last night what a great asset he is to the ball club.

Of the group, Collin Cowgill has struggled since his Opening Day grand slam, and Kirk Nieuwenhuis really didn’t have a place on this roster.

So Juan Lagares was called up to replace Kirk. But the timing of it all is somewhat strange.

Lagares was hitting .346 in Las Vegas so a call-up was certainly warranted. But where does he fit on the big league roster at this point?

Duda is entrenched in left field. That’s a given. In right, Byrd hasn’t exactly played himself out of the batting order, and again Baxter – as exhibited by his key hustle double last night – produces when given the chance.

Center field has been the revolving door, but Valdespin has shown that he could be productive if given the chance. Cowgill might be in a cold spell, but he could very well regain his hot form from spring training.

The thing that confuses me is that Lagares should not be in the Majors unless he’s playing every day. He’s said to be a great defensive center fielder – which is of course important – but he needs to consistently be put up against top-notch pitching.

If Terry Collins is insistent on trying to get Cowgill regular at-bats, then Lagares should still be in Vegas. And throw Valdespin in the mix, and who knows what’s going on in center?

Even a platoon situation with Lagares and Valdespin would not do the kid much good. If he ever plans on being a regular, he’ll need to face both righties and lefties.

Here’s a potential scenario, that I hope does not play, out but could be an option. If Ike Davis continues his abysmal stretch, the Mets may consider sending him down to Vegas to find himself. Duda then moves to first, and Valdespin can play left with Lagares in center.

We learned last season that even after a slow start, Davis can turn it on in a big way. His second half last year has basically earned him a free pass to struggle early on this year. But if he doesn’t find his stroke like he did last season, maybe a change would do him good.

Again though, let’s hope Davis finds his stroke.

Right now, let Valdespin play; he’s an electric talent. Everyone keeps saying that he’s so raw, but the only way to get more refined is to constantly be in the lineup.

Not many players can say they are not in the starting lineup the day after hitting a walk-off grand slam. Sure, the Mets are facing a lefty, but again, you have to give Valdespin the exposure.

Same goes for Lagares. If Collins can find him regular at-bats, that’s one thing. But if Cowgill is getting the start over him, then he should be playing every day in Vegas.

Maybe I haven’t given this enough time to properly play out, but there’s no point in having a prospect sit on the bench in the Majors when he could be refining his game every day in the minors.

After last night’s invigorating 2-0 shutout victory over the Nationals. Terry Collins said  he would not move Lucas Duda from the No. 6 slot to the cleanup spot in the batting order.

Despite Ike Davis’ Feats of Strength (I thought Festivus was in December) on Friday night when he and Duda each slugged a pair of home runs, the first baseman has gone 0-for-8 with four more strikeouts since, and continues to kill the team batting cleanup and posting a .167/.214/.323 slash in 60 at-bats. To put that into perspective, Marlon Byrd, Collin Cowgill and Jon Niese all have better slugging percentages. Get the picture? He’s even worse against lefthanded pitching which begs the question, when will the Mets realize he’s just a platoon player at best?

Back to Duda, remember all through spring and even just last week I spoke about what a huge role confidence is playing in the left fielder’s metamorphosis?

Here is what I wrote on Saturday:

Duda has been a revelation so far even though it’s still early. Knowing that Duda is so sensitive and shies away from any interview requests, I believe that he’s too tough on himself. He lacks the confidence that a big guy like himself should have. Once he starts to taste a little of that confidence, it takes a hold of him and his play improves dramatically.

We got to see him and spoke to Wally Backman about him last season after he was demoted. Duda was isolated from his teammates and would sit and sulk before and after games. He took the demotion hard and for a guy who had little confidence in himself to begin with, the fact that the team lost confidence him too sent him reeling.

However something happened this winter. When he hurt himself lifting furniture, it led to him reporting to St. Lucie a month early to work exclusively with Dave Hudgens. 30 days of exclusive one-on-one training and confidence boosting. When camp officially broke, Duda was transformed and bursting with confidence again. Duda was doing interviews, laughing, and having fun. He has reinvented himself and I credit the Mets hitting coach for what we are seeing so far.

Here is what Terry Collins had to say about Duda after the game:

“This game is all about confidence,” Collins said. “Lucas Duda is feeling pretty good. I don’t want to change that. One thing I don’t want to do right now is put him in a situation where he thinks he’s got to do more than he’s doing at this particular moment.

Collins gets it. Yes, Duda is leading the league with a .475 on-base percentage. And yes, his .659 slugging percentage is second only to John Buck. And yes, his 1.135 OPS leads the Mets. If it were anyone else, but Duda I’d say put him in the cleanup spot. But it is Duda, and we should leave well enough alone – at least for the time being. Let him keep building up that confidence, and let’s check back at the end of May.

I thought about the first three spots in the Mets lineup. While the two and three holes seem locked by Daniel Murphy and David Wright respectively, the leadoff spot has been somewhat of a revolving door. Here is the list of starts in the leadoff spot with Murphy and Wright at No. 2 and 3:

• Collin Cowgill – 6
• Jordany Valdespin – 6
• Mike Baxter – 1
• Kirk Nieuwenhuis – 1
• Justin Turner – 1

*One of Cowgill’s starts had Justin Turner subbing into the two hole for Murphy

Statistics tell us that Cowgill and El Dramático are the frontrunners to bat at the top of lineup. Here are their lines this season:

• Cowgill: .205/.205/.385 – 6 Runs – 8  RBI – 2 HR – 0 SB – 0  BB – 10 K
• Valdespin: .306/.359/.389  - 8 Runs – 2 RBI – 0 HR – 2 SB – 2 BB – 6 K

These are the combined stats of the first three batters when each player bats leadoff with Murphy and Wright behind them:

• Cowgill: .243/.300/.378 – 14 Runs – 10 RBI – 2 HR – 6 BB – 11 K
• Valdespin: .375/.444/.597 – 19 Runs – 17 RBI – 3 HR – 9 BB – 9 K

Conventional wisdom suggests that the Mets should start Valdespin more at the top of the lineup. The Mets’ record with each player would suggest otherwise:

• Cowgill – 4-3
• Valdespin – 2-4

It’s worth noting that the one game Baxter batted leadoff in, which resulted in a 7-3 win against Miami, Cowgill hit his second home run of the season. He also went 3-6 in the last game he started, which was an 8-9, extra-inning loss to Colorado.

What do all these stats mean? It’s hard to tell since they’re so counterintuitive. Valdespin has obviously been the better player so far, but the Mets win more often when Cowgill is in the lineup. This could just be coincidence, but it adds credence to my theory that these two should be starting together every day.

I’ve been a Valdespin guy since the first intrasquad game. I don’t think there’s any surprise there, but I’m willing to admit that the Mets have played better so far overall with Cowgill. I still think Valdespin is a better leadoff candidate because of his speed, but there should be a way to get Cowgill into the lineup too.

Valdespin would make a better centerfielder with his superior speed and improved defensive skills, but I’m convinced he can play any of the outfield positions given enough reps. Cowgill is more of a centerfielder so I would put him there for a majority of games. Valdespin can shift to center when Cowgill has the day off if need be. Marlon Byrd can be the backup rightfielder, Nieuwenhuis can be the backup centerfielder and either Lucas Duda or Baxter can start in left field with the other as backup.

What do you think about the outfield so far?

Its always interesting when you hear the opposing press rave about a player. Patrick Reusse, legendary Twin Cities sportswriter, and a few others peppered me with questions about Harvey as I was one of the first members of the Mets press to arrive last Saturday before Harvey’s start.

“How hard does he throw?” “How’s his command?  “How’s his breaking ball?” “Is he as good as he was last year?”

They were clearly intrigued by our phenomenal young starter.

“He reminds me of Tom Seaver,” I said, “Big righthander, late life up in the zone with his fastball. His strikeout rates are actually comparable, maybe a little better.”

Funny thing, don’t mention Tom Seaver to Patrick Reusse. While Tom Terrific is revered in Met circles like no one else, I quickly realized following a remarkably colorful string of expletives (that all but made me spit my coffee out laughing), this isn’t necessarily the case in other circles.

“Harvey seems like a nice kid,” I interjected. “Soft spoken, low key.”

Reusse raised his eyebrows and laughed, “He sure isn’t like that on the mound.”

I had to concur there, Mr. Harvey is all business when he takes the hill.

“I think he’s actually been better than he was last year, his command is better.” I said, as Mr. Reusse did a double take.

Harvey’s biggest goal in the off-season and during the spring, by his own admission, was to improve his command so that he could work deeper into games. So far so good.

His changeup and slider have been working well, he’s been able to mix his pitches and change speeds both with his fastball and his changeup  He’s worked his slider inside to left-handed batters, using it almost like a cut fastball with marvelous effectiveness (one notable exception), while spotting his fastball with pinpoint accuracy.

Harvey’s also been able to dial up his velocity in key spots late in games, causing you to overhear things like “reminds me of Justin Verlander that way.”

Harvey mentioned during the press briefing that his curveball needs some work, that it’s been up at times. Difficult to imagine what he’ll be like if he can get his breaking pitch working right.

Below are a collection of quotes by his teammates from the post game press conference following his last start:

Kevin Burkhardt: Asks Marlon Byrd, “After 13 starts does he wow you a little bit with the way he pitched tonight?”

Marlon Byrd: “He looks like he’s pitched 1,300. He’s one of those guys, certain guys, you know he’s bringing it to the table, that bulldog mentality.”

“To be young and throw 97 and be able to use his other pitches like he does. He hits his spots. You know he’s going to work hard and we’re going to work hard for him. It”s nice, it’s nice when he’s out there, you try to get a run or two and you know you have a chance to win.”

Burkhardt: Asks John Buck, “What has it been like catching his first 3 starts?”

Buck: “Yeah it”s a lot of fun, gives you a lot of weapons to work with. The most exciting part about it is right after, he wants to evaluate his starts, to say, ‘hey, what could we have done better here and here,’ he’s not satisfied. He knows there’s room to improve. He also liked to go over some of the good sequences as well , he’ definitely looking to get better.”

Burkhardt: ”When he asks you what can he do to get better, what do you tell him?”

Buck: “Usually it’s like a sequence I know, like a certain particular sequence, or a hitter, or when he’s had a long inning, being ready for the first hitter, little things like that, he pays attention to detail, those are the little things he wants to get better at and repeat better. That’s exciting for me.”

On whether Buck was worried about how the home run would affect his mindset:

Buck: “Yeah, no, that’s one of his pluses. To be able to stay focused. I don’t think we’ll ever see Harv back off. If anything I have to ask him to, especially in that situation. I think David went out there to see but he quickly turned away. I think he saw he (Harvey) was pretty locked in.”

* * * * * * * * * * * *

For Met fans, the excitement in the air every time Harvey starts is palpable. We find ourselves throwing out “not since … ” comments with every batter he blows away, with every overpowering high fastball.

You don’t want to miss a pitch, you hurry and grab a sandwich before his next inning. But what continues to impresses me like nothing else after these first three starts of his season is his demeanor, his understated intensity and his desire to improve.

This kid is the definition of “special.”

We’ve got a good one on our hands Mets fans.

Car-Go was a one-man wrecking crew on Tuesday.

After losing the first game of their doubleheader with the Colorado Rockies 8-4, it looked as though the Mets might pull out a win in the finale after taking a commanding 8-1 lead through the top of the fifth. But it all fell apart as the blunders, errors and shoddy pitching saw the Rockies mount a shocking 10th inning 9-8 comeback victory to send the Mets reeling and gingerly walking back to the comfort of their warm and quiet clubhouse.

Mets reliever Greg Burke was called upon to pitch to the dangerous Carlos Gonzalez with two outs in the 10th and ended up walking the slugger to set the stage. Then Michael Cuddyer hits a sharp grounder that deflected off of the outstretched glove of David Wright at third base and into left field as Cargo hustled his way to third, to set up Jordan Pacheco‘s game-winning single. Originally scored an error on Wright, it was later changed to a hit after the game ended.

The Rockies tied the game in the eighth inning courtesy of two huge Mets errors. With two outs and nobody on, reliever Brandon Lyon booted a grounder back to him for an error, and then Ruben Tejada committed his sixth error of the season in 13 games played. In what should have been the third out, Tejada threw high and wide to first base, allowing two runs to score.

“I was freezing to death. It’s tough, tough to play in that weather but you have to play,” Tejada said. “It was a bad throw, a really bad throw. With that situation with the game on the line, it’s a really bad error.”

There weren’t many shining moments for the Mets in their twinbill sweep. Well maybe just one – and it came in the middle of the eighth inning of the second game, when Coors Field started playing Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline”, the Boston Red Sox anthem, in recognition of the tragedy at the Boston Marathon. It was a nice touch to an otherwise lackluster evening for the Amazins.

Manager Terry Collins refused to blame their disappointing sweep on the wintry conditions.

“I know our guys were freezing at the end of the game,” Terry Collins said late Tuesday, after the sweep. “Freezing. But they had to play. And they did the best they could. We lost two games. We had a chance to win the second game. It would have been a little easier to take. But I’m not going to use weather as an excuse.”

Post Game Notes

The Mets used seven relievers in the nightcap after Aaron Laffey lasted just four innings. Laffey has already been assured that he will start Saturday’s game against the Nationals in the next homestand.

The Mets took an 8-2 in the second game thanks to a five-run fifth in which they sent eleven batters to the plate. Marlon Byrd drove in two with a single, while Justin Turner, Tejada and pinch-hitter Jordany Valdespin also added RBI hits.

David Wright homered twice for the Mets in the first game while walking twice in the nightcap. He scored a combined four runs and drove in three on the day. Collin Cowgill had a three hit game in the nightcap  to raise his average to .199.

Justin Turner continues to make the most of his opportunities and with two more hits his average now stands at .450 for the season. he also drove in a pair.

Lucas Duda’s back tightened up on him again and he was pulled from the second game in the fifth inning. He later minimized the issue and vowed to be back in the lineup today. We’ll see.

Mets pitching allowed 17 runs on 25 hits and walked 11 batters. The backend of the rotation and the bullpen is starting to become a huge concern.

The Mets will likely makes some roster moves before their homestand which begins on Friday. Expect to see Omar Quintanilla get called up and Kirk Nieuwenhuis demoted, and possibly a couple of pitching moves as Shaun Marcum and Pedro Feliciano are about ready to return.