The John Delcos New York Mets Report Featuring Mets' commentary, analysis and news.

Game #132 at Braves

Once again, welcome to the expanded Mets Chat Room. I’ve linked up with Metsmerizedonline.com to bring you to the ground floor regarding chat rooms and blogs.

In addition to being hooked up to another successful Mets blog, we will eventually be linked to other blogs from around baseball.

To access, please click onto the Mets Chat Room icon to the left of this post. It will bring you to another page. At the bottom on the right is where you can click on to register. If you can use your same screen names that would be great. If not, do the best you can.

This is an experiment. It is a work in progress. I am greatly optimistic about the future of this type of chat room.

I thought last night went very well with a lot of engaging talk.

Thanks for your participation.

Tonight the Mets will give the ball to Jonathan Niese, who is coming off a terrible start in which he gave up seven runs in 5 2/3 innings against Florida.

Here’s a number that carries volumes. David Wright is batting .070 (3-43) in 12 games against the Braves this year. The Mets have scored three runs or less in 11 straight games against Atlanta.

Posted under New York Mets 2008-09

Game #114 vs. Rockies

Once again, it is up to Johan Santana to pick up the pieces following another Mets’ loss. This one a crushing defeat when the bullpen and offense conspired to take a win away from Jonathan Niese.

With a little run support, Santana could have 13, 14 wins by now, but the Mets simply don’t score for him. They don’t score for anybody these days. Maybe this afternoon against Colorado it will be different, but there were no such signs coming out of last night’s loss which featured seven straight Mets striking out.

David Wright is in the midst of a 2-for-33 slide and the strikeouts are mounting again. He could get the afternoon off. Jerry Manuel also hinted at giving Jose Reyes a day off, too. Reyes recently admitted his concentration wanders at time and he loses focus.

Reyes’ game, especially defensively, has been spotty lately.

NOTE: I have another work assignment today and won’t be in the chat room until later in the game.

Posted under New York Mets 2008-09

Game #104 vs. Diamondbacks.

Well, another trade deadline has come and gone without your Mets doing anything substantial. Wait, I meant, without doing anything at all. I have no problem with the organization wanting to protect its prospects. I can’t get on Omar Minaya for that.

As a general manager, his job is to protect the franchise, and that’s what he did when he said no to those vultures wanting Ike Davis, or Jonathan Niese, or Josh Thole, or Jenrry Mejia.

What I can find fault with is ownership not moving in the offseason to address its pitching needs. I didn’t like it at the time, and I’ll repeat: Their priority last winter was pitching and not Jason Bay.

With what Bay has given them, it isn’t out of line to wonder if his contract will fall in the same bin as that of Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo. It might be too early to jump to that conclusion, but I’ll bet I’m not the only one to wonder.

What the Mets have done today and for the last month as they floundered was choose their future over their present. They have told us they do not think they are good enough to win this season without a miracle finish.

They were further behind with less time remaining in 1969, but won. Mathematically, it is still possible. But, I’m not counting on any miracles this time around.

Hell, they haven’t been able to beat Arizona. How can we expect them to run the table?

Posted under New York Mets 2008-09

Game #85 vs. Reds

Jonathan Niese will be pitching tonight to push the Mets to 11 games over .500, which would tie their season high and pull them within a game of Atlanta with the Braves coming in this weekend for three games.

Once four games under .500 and floundering early this season, the Mets are relevant again and could be in first place by the All-Star break.

Niese is more than partly attributable to that relevancy, going 5-0 with a 2.43 ERA in six starts since his June 5 return from the disabled list. The Mets are 10-2 in his last 12 starts, including beating Washington last Friday when he struck out a season-high eight and didn’t issue a walk.

What makes him successful?

“I think if I’m able to throw all my pitches for strikes,’’ Niese said. “I think I have a good variety that keeps them off-balance.’’

Off-balance is what tonight’s Reds starter, Bronson Arroyo, has kept the Mets, going 6-2 in ten career starts against them.

Posted under New York Mets 2008-09

Game #80 at Nationals

This has not been a good roadtrip for the Mets, who have lost three of four so far to Florida and Washington, teams they should be feasting on.

The Mets have played well at home this year, but have been lackluster on the road, and so far have gone 8-14 against the Marlins and Nationals. After losing last night, they are 3-6 against Washington.

If they are going to stay in contention, they must beat up on those teams.

Read More…

Posted under New York Mets 2008-09

Jonathan Niese, stopper? After three straight losses, including an 11-3 bloodletting last night at Colorado, the Mets are depending on the raw lefthander to throw them a life preserver.

Really, after seven games they need saving?

Damn straight. This is a team that’s not too far away from heading into an April freefall.  They aren’t hitting, and let’s not even get into what they are doing with runners in scoring position.

Save two games, they’re starting pitching has been poor. Their bullpen had been good, but it is to the point where soon it will be taxed.

Their 2-5 record is very much deserved. They are off to the slow start they wanted to avoid.

Seasons aren’t won or lost after seven games, but trends can be recognized and what’s happening now isn’t good.

Manager Jerry Manuel said today John Maine will make his next start, but that’s not a question he should be answering this early in the season. He also shouldn’t be answering questions this soon about his job security.

There’s a lot we can talk about tonight.

Posted under Chat Rooms, Chat Rooms/2010, Mets Features

Losing two of three to the Florida Marlins, including 3-1 last night, isn’t the fast start manager Jerry Manuel envisioned. The upsetting thing is they could have swept this series with several more hits.

There was one positive to take out of the game, and that’s Jonathan Niese, who gave up three runs in six innings. Niese pitched with composure and efficiency for the most part, something they didn’t get the night before from John Maine. Something to look out for is the Marlins did some first-ball hitting because Niese often started out with fastballs.

Offensively, the Mets picked up where they left off the previous night, not to mention 2009. They left two runners on in the second and fourth innings when they could have made a dent into the game. Just three extra-base hits in their past two games.

When you’re not going to pitch consistently, you need to score. And, you can’t afford to waste good outings when you get them. The Mets were 0-for-4 with runners in scoring positions and left seven, and over the past two games have gone 0-for-10 while leaving 16. Not the ingredients of a fast start.

Tonight against Washington, it will be Mike Pelfrey vs. Garrett Mock.

Posted under Mets Commentary

Undeniably the Mets’ pitching is suspect, which Jerry Manuel has finally admitted. He didn’t say the team should have been more aggressive this winter, but reading between the lines you can bet he’d like some help.

After John Maine last night, and the fact he moved around Mike Pelfrey and Oliver Perez, there’s little doubt to anyone that their pitching is in trouble.

“I think an honest assessment is that we have to be somewhat concerned,” Manuel said. “We had some setbacks and some inconsistencies there last year, so we can’t just assume that that’s going to be lights out. We have some questions there, and hopefully tonight we’ll see where we are at least in part to that particular issue.”

Jonathan Niese gets the nod tonight against the Marlins. Interesting, but Manuel said if Niese gets into trouble he’ll get the chance to work out of it if his pitch count is around 50 or 60.

That’s good to see. Without the chance we’ll never know how good Niese could be.

By the way, I won’t be around for the start of the chat room. I’ve started taking classes on Tuesday and Thursday nights. I should be back around 9 for the last few innings.

Posted under Chat Rooms/2010, Mets Features