In his first start with his former team, Jon Niese appeared to be the antidote missing from the Mets pitching rotation, until the 4^th inning reared it’s ugly head.

Sailing through the first three innings, Niese stifled the D’backs with cutters in the 80’s until Rickie Weeks, Jr. and Yasmany Tomas took him back-to-back deep, resulting in a 13-5 crushing defeat in the desert.

In the bottom of the 5^th, opposing pitcher, Zack Godley, who was godlike, (7.1 innings, 5 hits, 2 runs) slapped a single up the middle, ending Niese’s unfortunate outing with 4 runs on 4 hits in 4.2 innings.

So what does that mean for Niese’s future in the rotation? It doesn’t appear to be in any jeopardy.

“I told him, even on the mound, for a guy who hadn’t pitched in six weeks, I thought he threw the ball great,” manager Terry Collins said after the game. “I was very happy with the way he pitched.”

With the day off on Monday, it’s likely they’ll just skip the fifth starter’s spot unless they opt to give one of the young arms extra rest. “We don’t make those decisions this far in advance,” Collins continued. “We’ve got to wait to see what happens in the next couple of days.”

Looking for some heat in relief after an early shower for Niese, Collins brought in Erik Goeddel, who had trouble with the curve, and more issues finding the plate.  After a series of balls landed in the dirt, far from d’Arnaud’s glove, Paul Goldschmidt drew a walk, then Weeks unloaded his second HR, a three run blast, to extend Arizona’s lead 6-1.

Seth Lugo held the Diamondback’s in check for an inning and a third, then 3 additional runs rained on rookie Gabriel Ynoa in the bottom of the 7^th.

Josh Edgin was brought in to stop the bleeding in the 8th, but there was no tourniquet tight enough to tame the Diamondback’s bats.  Jean Segura singled to center, Mitch Haniger and Goldschmidt both got free passes on four pitches, and Segura scored a run courtesy of a wild pitch.   Then Tomas cranked a 2-0 pitch to center for a 3 run HR, his second of the game, and just like that, Arizona had themselves a baker’s dozen.

The Mets, cramming for exams in the top of the 9^th, tried to stage an improbable comeback against Dominic Leone, scoring 3 runs off of a Curtis Granderson solo shot, and a pitch hit 2 run HR by Rene Rivera.  With one out, a Ty Kelly double and Kelly Johnson single was titillating, but too little too late, as the door was slammed shut by Randall Delgago, who left them out to dry.

Another night of the same old same old with men in scoring position.  The Mets were 2-15, with 8 men LOB.  Their hunt for October still has some life, but with the Pirates and Cardinals pulling away from the pack, they’re making a tough case for fans to believe.

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The New York Mets were defeated by the Arizona Diamondbacks by a score of 13-5 on Wednesday night. The D-Backs win the series and have taken 5 out of 6 games against the Mets this year. With the loss, the Mets now drop to four games behind the St. Louis Cardinals for the second Wild Card spot.

Pitching:

It was deja vu all over again with Jon Niese on the mound for the Mets tonight. The first three innings were stellar, striking out the side in the third, however he unraveled in the fourth allowing back to back home runs to Rickie Weeks Jr (2-run) and Yasmany Tomas (solo). Must’ve been the defense. He was eventually removed with two outs in the 5th inning after 82 pitches. So, in those 4.2 innings, Niese allowed 4 earned runs on 4 hits and 2 walks while striking out 6.

With a runner on first, Erik Goeddel was brought in to face Goldschmidt, who he walked on four pitches. Rickie Weeks then unloaded on a fastball for his second home run of the game, a three-run shot giving the Diamondbacks a 6-1 lead. He then walked Yasmany Tomas before Chris Owings slapped a single to left.

Seth Lugo came in with Goeddel’s runners on first and second with two outs, and got out of the jam via the strikeout. He then pitched the next inning and worked around two hits for a scoreless inning.

Gabriel Ynoa came in for the 7th and allowed another three runs to cross the plate, followed by Josh Edgin in the 8th who got clobbered for four more runs including a second home run for Yasmany Tomas  who had six RBIs in the game. Brutal. 

Offense:

Jose Reyes made his presence felt early tonight. He led off the game with a base hit to right. Kelly Johnson then lined one at first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, but he was unable to snag it. Reyes advanced to second base, which wouldn’t have been possible if Goldy had made the grab. Jay Bruce then grounded out into the shift, and with James Loney at the plate, a wild pitch allowed Reyes to score, giving the Mets an early 1-0 lead.

The Mets came alive late in the game. Jay Bruce got things started with an RBI double in the 8th. but then in the 9th, Curtis Granderson blasted a solo homer and then Rene Rivera hit a pinch-hit two-run shot to make the score 13-5. But it was a classic case of too little, too late.

Notes:

Verizon Trivia Question: Who is the only starting pitcher to win a game for the Mets after beating them earlier in the same season?

Outfielder Michael Conforto is 12-18 (.667) since going back to Triple-A Las Vegas where he is doing most of his damage against left-handed pitching.

The New York Mets ended up going 3-6 in the nine games against the D’Backs and Padres when the team was hoping to fatten up against two of the NL’s worst teams.

Verizon Trivia Answer: Kris Benson (2004)

On Deck:

The Mets now head to San Francisco for the start of a four-game series against the Giants. RHP Jacob deGrom (7-5, 2.30) gets the start in the series opener and will be opposed by LHP Madison Bumgarner (11-7, 2.11) for the Giants. Late tonight, reporters learned that Sandy Alderson is making the trip to San Fran. First pitch is scheduled for 10:15 PM.

The post MMO Game Recap: D’Backs Crush the Mets 13-5 to Take Series appeared first on Metsmerized.

While the Mets have lost three straight games, their starting pitchers shouldn’t receive any blame. Matt Harvey, Steven Matz and Jacob deGrom all pitched well enough to win, but their offense failed to provide them any run support.

Over the past three games, the Mets have only scored two runs. They have recorded just 13 hits and have struck out 32 times during this stretch.

On Sunday, Harvey lost 1-0 to the Marlins despite tossing seven strong innings and allowing only four hits.

In game one of yesterday’s double header, Matz struck out eight and gave up two runs in five innings, but still suffered the loss.

And while deGrom punched out nine and walked none in six innings last night, the three runs he surrendered proved costly as the Mets managed to score only once.

It’s disappointing the Mets wasted these solid efforts, especially since Harvey and deGrom are pitching the best they have all year. Harvey has allowed only one run and six hits during his last two starts, and deGrom has struck out 33 in his last 25 innings.

While it’s hard to fault the Mets’ offense for getting shutdown by Marlins’ ace Jose Fernandez, scoring just one run against Jon Niese and Juan Nicasio is cause for growing concern.

Heading into yesterday’s games, the Mets ranked 13th in the National League in runs scored ahead of only the Braves and Phillies They also ranked 10th in OPS and 14th in average despite having the most homeruns.

The offense is no doubt hampered by injuries to David Wright, Travis d’Arnaud and Lucas Duda, but many of the team’s key players are mired in slumps. Hitters such as Michael Conforto, Asdrubal Cabrera and Curtis Granderson are all batting under .200 for the past week.

While the team’s pitching is outstanding, they can’t be perfect every night. They have the 2nd best ERA in the league, as well as the best strikeout to walk ratio.

But if the Mets want to make another postseason surge, they will once again need their offense to step up.

The post Pitching Isn’t To Blame Despite 3rd Straight Loss appeared first on Metsmerized.

There is an interesting issue that arises with fans. There is an obvious notion that often goes overlooked. It’s easy to say that the Mets should expunge the current dead weight of their rotation.

It’s easy to point fingers at Dillon Gee and Jon Niese at this point, both of whom have not been pitching well recently. Niese and Gee don’t necessarily have high upsides at this point and have experienced highs and lows throughout the years. It’s unrealistic to think any of them are anything more than a fourth or fifth starter at this point. I would imagine that Sandy Alderson doesn’t want to trade either for a bag of balls at this point, which is probably what they would return. Their values could not be lower.

If you’re not drooling over the possibilities of the 2016 Mets pitching rotation, then something is off in your brain. Assuming Sandy Alderson doesn’t make a move (i.e. the Wilpon’s give him the financial flexibility to make a move) that involves him moving one of the young-guns, here is what it could look like one through five:

1) Matt Harvey

2) Jacob deGrom

3) Zack Wheeler

4) Noah Syndergaard

5) Steven Matz

If this doesn’t excite you, then your a fan of the wrong sport.

My point on this is that for that rotation to be implemented, Gee, Niese and Bartolo Colon need to be removed from the equation. Colon is a free agent after this year so that isn’t an issue. Niese has a team-friendly contract that ends with $10 million team options for 2017 and 2018. Gee will hit free agency in 2017.

The most obvious yet hardest thing to do is to trade players that are contributing. Hence the root of my argument in this article: Trade Bartolo Colon.

This move would come with the assumption that one of Gee or Niese will bounce back and start contributing this season. Gee wasn’t awful earlier in the year and Niese has been better in recent years, years in which he has been hurt.

It’s not out of the question to think that one or both of them are just in a funk and the added pressure of knowing they could be dealt probably doesn’t help. Colon is obviously living up to his contract and helping the Mets stay in contention. He leads the National League in wins. His value, at this point in his career, probably wouldn’t be higher than right now.

Colon amazes me every game he pitches. I can’t fathom sometimes how he works through lineups with his repertoire. I underestimate time and time again his skills on the mound. However, trading him would clear around $5 million in salary (this doesn’t matter to us, but I know of some owners who might take well to this) as well as possibly bring some sort of return to the Mets, possibly a B-level prospect or a high-upside guy in the lower minors.

With this move, Niese and Gee might be able to shake the trade-talks from their minds and concentrate on contributing on the mound. It’s definitely something to think about.

The post Mets Should Consider Trading Bartolo Colon appeared first on Metsmerized.

The Mets (23-17) were defeated by the Cardinals (26-13) by a score of 10-2 Tuesday evening at Citi Field.

Pitching:

Jon Niese started for the Mets, going 5 innings while allowing 8 earned runs on 11 hits, walking one and striking out one. All season he has been allowing a lot of base runners (1.49 WHIP after this game), and it finally caught up to him. The Cardinals took advantage of every opportunity they were given.

Erik Goeddel pitched two innings and allowed his first earned runs of the season, giving up two runs on 3 hits while striking out 2. His ERA increased to 1.29 on the season. Sean Gilmartin and Jack Leathersich each recorded scoreless innings.

Offense:

While the Cardinals had 15 hits, the Mets could only muster 5. Michael Cuddyer, Wilmer Flores, and Juan Lagares each recorded base hits. Newly called-up Darrell Ceciliani recorded an infield single, the first of his career. Congratulations to him!

Daniel Murphy provided all the runs this evening, spanking a 2-run home run over the right field wall in the 4th inning scoring Cuddyer. He continues to hit the ball well while nobody else does.

Notes:

Not much happened for the Mets at the plate… Again. After they scored so many runs in the last few games including that 14-run outburst, I thought they would get off the schnide, however it seems I may be mistaken. I would knock on wood, but the Mets wouldn’t recognize the sound.

Juan Lagares… Missed a ball?? In the top of the 3rd inning, Randal Grichuk hit a long line drive to the center field wall and, as per usual, Lagares was there to greet it. However, as he jumped towards the wall and snared the ball, bracing for impact against the wall, the ball slipped out of his glove. This would have been another unbelievable yet routine catch for our Gold Glover out there, but I guess he’s allowed to miss one every once in a while, as long as Yadier Molina wasn’t the one to hit it.

Juan Lagares batted 9th for the third straight game while the pitcher batted 8th and Eric Campbell batted 2nd. That should really help his confidence level.

Sorry for that knock on wood joke, that was harsh.

Congratulations again to Darrell Ceciliani for recording his first major league hit!

On Deck:

Bartolo Colon (6-2, 3.86 ERA) will start for the Mets while the Cardinals will counter with Carlos Martinez (3-2, 4.73 ERA) tomorrow evening at 7:10 pm at Citi Field. LET’S GO METS!

The post MMO Game Recap: Cardinals 10, Mets 2 appeared first on Metsmerized.

The Mets snapped their three game losing streak and defeated the Chicago Cubs by a score of 3-2 tonight at Citi Field.  All of the Mets offense came from a three run blast by outfielder Eric Campbell, his second home run of the season.

Zack Wheeler started and tossed 6.2 innings, allowing just two runs while striking out 10 ti improve to 8-8 on the season. He scattered four walks and four hits. Wheeler continues to deliver some strong outings and now sports a 3.49 ERA.

Jenrry Mejia was able to shut down the Cubs with a perfect ninth to record his 18th save of the season, as he continues to fight through his sports hernia.

Campbell’s home run was the only bright spot offensively for the Mets who continue to struggle at the plate, collecting only four hits on the night. Only one of the Mets four hits came from the top four spots of their lineup who went 1-for-13.

The Mets continue their series with the Cubs on Saturday with a 7:10 PM matchup pitting Jon Niese (6-8, 3.46) against spot starter Dan Straily (0-0, 0.00) for Chicago.

The post MMO Game Recap: Mets 3, Cubs 2 appeared first on Metsmerized.

Last nights game between the Mets and the Cleveland  Indians was stomach churning bad. That first inning pitched by Jon Niese made me wish that Shaun Marcum was still with the team (well not really). All I know is that after viewing last night’s game, I have finally come to terms with the fact that this Mets team, the way it is currently structured, has pretty much no shot to finish the season remotely close to a respectable .500 record. In order for them to finish .500 they would have to go 19-3 the rest of the way which we all know would need a miracle to happen.

So hear area few songs that I think pretty much fittingly describes last night’s game.

1. “Welcome to My Nightmare” by Alice Cooper

2. “Indians” by Anthrax

3. “Run to The Hills” by Iron Maiden

4. “One Bourbon, One Scotch and One Beer” by George Thorogood (because I sure needed it !)

5. ” No More Mr. Niese Guy” also by Alice Cooper

6. “Sleepwalk” by Santo and Johnny (because essentially that’s what this team did last night).

7. “Shot Down In Flames” by AC/DC

8. “Sounds of Silence“ by Simon and Garfunkel

9. “If” by ’70’s Top 40 friendly band, Bread (I have dubbed this the official post game song for Terry Collins)

And lastly at number 10:

“Cleveland Rocks!” by Ian Hunter – well because last night they did !

So do you agree/disagree ? Any songs that you think that I am wrong about or that you think describe last night’s lesson in futility any better ? If so please leave your suggestions in the comments section below.

And with that said….. HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!!

Mets alumni celebrating a birthday today includes:

Mets coach from ’64-’67 and briefly in  ’74, Sheriff Robinson would have been 82 (1921). Robinson also managed the Mets minor league teams, The Quincy Jets in 1963 and the Buffalo Bisons in ’65.

Middle reliever from the ’89 season, Don Aase is 59 (1954). Aase didn’t fare well in his lone season as a Met. He went 1-5 with a 3.94 ERA in 49 appearances that season – But he had one of the best last  names in baseball history.

Current Mets closer, Bobby Parnell  turns 29 (1984). Hopefully he will be back in prime health next season so that he can anchor a hopefully revamped bullpen.

Mo Vaughn‘s favorite Rap group is The Fat Boys !!!

The post This Day In Mets Infamy With Rusty: A Soundtrack For Last Night’s Mets Loss Edition appeared first on Metsmerized.

So here I am happy to revive an old feature I used to do at another blog called …….

METS PLAYERS SEPARATED AT BIRTH…

First off is current Mets outfielder, Marlon Byrd

And R & B legend, Jermaine Jackson

Up next is Met manager, Terry Collins

And actor turned accused murderer Robert Blake (Uncanny !)

Next up is Ace Pitcher, Matt Harvey

And “Everyone Loves Raymond” co-star, Brad Garrett.

Then there is the case of  utility infielder, Justin Turner

And a Leprechaun

There is also the curious case of Josh Satin

And Bert from “Sesame Street

And lastly I present to you Mets pitching coach, Dan Warthern

And Hank Hill.

So what do you think ? Do you agree/disagree ? Is there any other Mets player that bears a striking resemblance to a celebrity that is currently living or dead ?

Please feel free to post in the comments section below.

And with that said….. HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!!!!

Mets alumni celebrating a birthday today includes:

Mets third base coach from ’97-’99, Bruce Benedict is 58. Benedict also piloted for the Norfolk Tides in 1996.

Reserve outfielder from the ’85 season, Terry Blocker is 54. Blocker was the Mets first round pick from the ’81 amateur draft. His career never did pan out, and he was out of the majors by 1990 after a short stint with the Atlanta Braves.

Spot starter/middle reliever from ’09-’11, Pat Misch  is 32. He is currently pitching for the Detroit Tigers’ Triple-A affiliate, the Toledo Mud Hens.

The New York Mets purchased the contract of middle reliever, Dave Eilers from the Milwaukee Braves on August 18, 1965. Eilers would spend two seasons with the Mets, compiling a record of 2-2 with an ERA of 4.44 in 34 appearances.

The New York Mets traded centerfielder Brett Butler  to the Los Angeles Dodgers for minor league outfield prospects, Scott Hunter and Dwight Maness on August 18, 1995. Butler was one of the very few reasons to watch the Mets in ’95. He would later manager the Gulf Coast Mets during their ’04 season

Mo Vaughn bears a striking resemblance to the Wrestler Mo from Men On A Mission !!!!

SEE!!!!!

The post This Day In Mets Infamy With Rusty: The Separated At Birth Edition appeared first on Metsmerized.

In his weekly interview with WFAN Terry Collins relayed the information that Jonathon Niese is unlikely to require surgery on his partially torn rotator cuff.

Collins, claiming to have spoken to Niese on the phone, said that the pitcher was feeling “tremendous.”

“He is not going to need any surgery” Collins said.

“Next week he is going to get another MRI to reassess how its doing and how he’s feeling, and hopefully after the other MRI he can start throwing.”

Niese was recently placed on the 15-day disabled list after an initial MRI determined that his rotator cuff had a partial tear.

Lets not forget that Collins originally came out and said the damage was “nothing severe,” only to be contradicted when assistant GM John Ricco revealed the true extent of the injury.

While this news allegedly came from Niese himself, we’ll have to take Collins word for it.

The post According To Collins, Niese Will Not Require Surgery appeared first on Metsmerized.

Looks like Harvey-Wheeler Day is still on… Thanks Mother Nature…

Matt Musico from MetsMinors.net just posted the following:

Zack Wheeler will be making his final minor league start tonight before getting promoted to the major leagues. He’s set to debut on Tuesday at Turner Field against the Atlanta Braves, about 45 minutes away from his childhood home.

He takes the mound tonight against the Tacoma Rainiers at Cashman Field in Las Vegas, and Adam Rubin reported that he’ll be on an 85-pitch limit. Terry Collins doesn’t want his top pitching prospect to be overworked for his next turn in the rotation during his big league debut. He wants Wheeler to get just enough work to feel sharp.

Wheeler is throwing on an extra day of rest tonight, which is what the coaching staff preferred to him having an extra day before next week’s start. Collins wants to ensure he can make as many things normal as he possibly can, especially since Wheeler’s debut will be anything but ordinary.

Original Post 6/12

Terry Collins just spoke to reporters and said when Zack Wheeler is promoted for his first start on Tuesday in Atlanta, the Mets will go with a six-man rotation for at least one turn.

Here is what it looks like:

• Thursday vs Cardinals: Matt Harvey
• Friday vs Cubs: Shaun Marcum
• Saturday vs Cubs: Jon Niese
• Sunday vs Cubs: Jeremy Hefner
• Monday at Braves: Dillon Gee
• Tuesday at Braves: Zack Wheeler and Matt Harvey (Doubleheader)

Considering where this season is heading, I wouldn’t mind going with a six-man rotation for the rest of the entire season. Why not?

It would put less wear and tear on Wheeler, Jon Niese and Matt Harvey. Plus once we move Shaun Marcum at the deadline (at least I hope they do), we can make room for possibly Rafael Montero to join the rotation. On Monday, Sandy Alderson said he’d have no reservations promoting Montero from Double-A to the majors later this season when they feel he’s ready.

Hey, you know it was Gil Hodges who ushered in the five-man rotation…

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