Tag Archives: Four Homers

Apr 10

April 10.10: About Last Night; Pelfrey makes stride.

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Pitching plus power have always been baseball’s greatest winning equation and the Mets finally got it last night with a solid start from Mike Pelfrey and four homers.

The Mets have questions with their rotation after Johan Santana, and the Mets have gotten three solid starts in their first four games.

Pelfrey had his rough spots, but with the exception of one inning he overcame them. Last night, working under cold and windy conditions, Pelfrey showed marked improvement. He continually threw first-pitch strikes.

Pelfrey gave up two runs in six innings, an effort he can build on. The bullpen pitched well for the second straight game. It looks as if Fernando Nieve appears to have gotten the first crack at being the eighth-inning set-up man.

Pelfrey was aided by his defense, especially Alex Cora, who made two scintillating plays, one of which saved a run. The offense was four homers – two each by Jeff Francoeur and Rod Barajas – and amazingly enough, a couple of hits with runners in scoring position.

Mar 23

March 23.10: Is it so bad to go with the kids?

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Fernando Martinez (shown here), Jenrry Mejia, Ike Davis, Ruben Tejada and Jon Niese. That is the future core of the Mets, along with David Wright, Jose Reyes and Jason Bay. That’s your team over the next few years.

But, should the future be now?

All spring I’ve been saying these guys aren’t ready and should open the season in the minor leagues where they’ll fine tune their games. That they for the most part have played well this spring makes me wonder if I should reconsider.

There have been players who played a minimum in the minor leagues and became stars in the major leagues. Maybe, if these guys are as special as the Mets are saying, they’ll adapt right away and become productive.

Afterall, it’s not written in stone anywhere that if they start out in the majors they’ll fizzle out. It’s also not written anywhere that going to the minor leagues now guarantees future success.

I just look at the team now, and despite all the bluster early, they are playing near a listless .500.

Why is that?

Ok, it’s spring, and results aren’t supposed to matter, but the following ERAs make me wonder about this year, and that if it’s a lost year, why not give the kids a chance?

* Johan Santana has a 9.00 ERA in three starts, but I’m not worried so much about him. However, he is coming off a surgery, and you just can’t throw out 20 wins for him.

* Mike Pelfrey has a 7.36 ERA in four starts, including four homers yesterday. Pelfrey said he wanted to start being a pitcher. Now is as good a time as any to start.

* Oliver Perez has a 5.73 ERA in three starts. He’s had good and bad moments, which is the way it always has been for him. The only thing given about him is the roller coaster.

* John Maine has an 11.37 ERA in three starts. He had a good first start, but three bad appearances (don’t forget that relief effort when he said he wasn’t in it). I just wonder about Maine, and it isn’t a good wonder.

So, if the starting pitching holds true to form from last year and this spring, and with Reyes and Beltran out for at least the first month, the Mets aren’t exactly poised to sprint out of the gate.

If another listless season is in the making, then seeing the young players should come sooner than later.

Jan 22

Jan. 22.10: Matthews to Mets.

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MATTHEWS: Brings baggage to Mets.

MATTHEWS: Brings baggage to Mets.

Gary Matthews Jr., to the Mets from the Los Angeles Angels looks like a done deal. Several media outlets have made the report, but the Mets have not confirmed the deal.

Uncertain, is who the Angels would get in return or if there is a third team involved.

I’m not a Matthews fan, and if the Angels are willing to spend $20 million of the remaining $24 million of his contract to get rid of him, what does that say about their regard for the player? Matthews hit .250 with four homers and 50 RBI, with an on-base percentage of .336 last season.

Since 1999, Matthews has played for seven teams, including two games with the Mets in 2002. There has to be a reason why he’s always been on the move.

His numbers averaged out over a 162-game schedule is a .258 average with 14 homers and 63 RBI. Not exactly earth-shattering stuff.

Matthews’ best season was 2006 when he hit .313 (his only .300 season) with 19 homers and 79 RBI (both career highs), for which he was rewarded with that ridiculous contract by the Angels.

Matthews’ name also surfaced in the Mitchell Report, which begs the question of what he might have hit if he were clean.

I know they need a center fielder, but I don’t like this deal.

I replaced the pitching poll with one on Matthews.