Tag Archives: Mets

Jul 16

Mets Need This Day Off

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Players do all kinds of things on a day off in a city. Some work out, others shop. Some take in movies or simply sleep in another strange hotel room.

Whatever the Mets’ players do, hopefully they won’t dwell on what was the disaster in Atlanta. Every aspect of their game went south, from the starters to the bullpen, to the defense to the clutch hitting.

If it wasn’t the worst series of the season, it was close.

At one time the Mets were eight games over .500 and enjoying lofty thoughts of contention. This morning, they are three over, losers of four straight and seven of their last ten. They have six games against first-place Washington within the next two weeks. Yes, it is conceivable the Mets could lose all six and still make the playoffs.

Anything is possible, I suppose.

Despite numerous injuries and deficiencies, the Mets have played over their heads this season. However, things are starting to catch up to them. The last month hasn’t been kind to Johan Santana and R.A. Dickey. David Wright’s average is diving while his strikeouts are steadily increasing.

In many aspects, the Mets are playing to the expectations many have had of them.

General manager Sandy Alderson said ownership has the resources to add at the trade deadline, but he was talking salary. He’s not inclined to dip into the farm system to deal for that salary.

Help could be on the way in the persons of Matt Harvey and Jason Bay. Harvey will pitch tonight at Triple-A Buffalo; Bay could be activated from the disabled list tomorrow. Neither are considered locks that will spark this struggling team.

The Mets overachieved by playing alert, aggressive baseball and with strong starting pitching. Whatever they accomplish this season – one many had written off – it must be by playing that way again, and with the talent they have on hand.

The Mets must be their own calvary.

On second thought, whatever the Mets’ players do today, thinking long and hard of how they played this weekend and before the break might be the best thing they could do.

 

 

Jul 15

Braves Complete Sweep Of Mets; Santana Routed Again

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The Mets have never liked Atlanta, moreso now after being swept by the Braves coming out of the break. Johan Santana was rocked this afternoon, losing 6-1. They’ve now lost seven of their last 11 games.

SANTANA: Ripped again. (AP)

Since his June 1 no-hitter, Santana is 3-4 with a 5.67 ERA in seven starts. Both he and R.A. Dickey have been hit hard lately with no signs of regaining the form that made them an strong one-two punch in the first half. Santana has given up 13 runs in his last two starts.

The Mets’ next nine games feature six with first-place Washington, a stretch that could determine their second half in terms of whether they believe they can continue to compete and whether they should be active at the trade deadline.

Things aren’t looking good now and this is a very tenuous time for the Mets.

Jul 14

Mets Matters: Rough Start To Second Half

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The Mets limped into the break and continued that luck into the second half.

It began with Dillon Gee undergoing shoulder surgery and continued with Frank Francisco aggravating his strained left oblique. He’ll be out indefinitely.

Then there was last night’s game, which began with a 36-pitch first inning from Chris Young, who gave up five runs in three innings.

Let’s take a look at them individually:

1. GEE:  Underwent surgery Friday to repair an artery in his right shoulder in St. Louis and will be discharged from Barnes-Jewish Hospital on Tuesday or Wednesday. In all probability Gee is done for the year. Miguel Batista could take his spot in the rotation for a few starts and the Mets could dip in the minors for another starter. The odds are slim the Mets will make a trade, but if they do they won’t give up any of their highly touted pitching prospects such as Matt Harvey and Zach Wheeler.

2. FRANCISCO: Oblique injuries, as the Mets learned with Jose Reyes, have a tendency to linger. While there doesn’t appear to be a drop off with Bobby Parnell assuming the closer duties, losing Francisco weakens an already thin bullpen. If the Mets do something prior to the trade deadline, it will be adding a reliever.

3. YOUNG: Last night was a serious red flag. Having already lost Gee, the Mets can’t afford  a problem with one of their starters. They know Young is a five, six-inning starter tops. Last night he wasn’t even that good.

 

Jul 13

Mets’ First Half Disappointments; Don’t Forget Pelfrey

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No evaluation of the Mets is complete without a list of disappointments. While 46-40 at the break, the Mets have more to be happy about than not.  However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t laments.

PELFREY: Gone?

Had everything broken right in the first half, the Mets could be sitting on top of the NL East.

Here’s what went wrong:

The struggling bullpen: Most of Sandy Alderson’s off-season tinkering was made with improving the bullpen in mind. Frank Francisco has pitched well enough, but is a house of cards. He’s coming off a strained oblique, so there are no guarantees in the second half.  Set-up man Jon Rauch has also been hurt an ineffective.

Mike Pelfrey’s injury: Considering how well the Mets’ rotation has performed, is this a disappointment?  You’d have to say yes, because a well-functioning Pelfrey should be worth at least five victories. Compounding the disappointment is the injury to Dillon Gee, which could keep him out the remainder of the season.

Dillon Gee’s injury: Gee will have surgery to repair an artery in his shoulder Friday and could miss the rest of the year. The Mets have little depth in the farm system and are reluctant to part with their premier prospects.  The Mets, who will temporarily patch things with Miguel Batista, have two weeks before the trade deadline.

Jason Bay’s slump and injury: Is it really a disappointment when the expectations were so low to begin with? Probably not, but the team severely lacks right-handed pop. Bay should be activated from the disabled list within the next two weeks. GM Sandy Alderson said the need for right-handed power must be supplied from Bay. On a positive note, Bay’s injury should keep him from getting the at-bats needed for an option to kick in.

Ike Davis’ slump: Davis is starting to hit, but struggled most of the first half, almost to the point of the Mets considering sending him down to work on his swing. Their thinking in not doing so was the belief he already knows how to hit minor league pitching.

Andres Torres’ slump and injury: The Jose Reyes and Angel Pagan gone, Torres represents what little speed the Mets possess. Kirk Nieuwenhuis filled in well, but struggled the past three weeks.

Jul 12

More Bad News For Gee; Could Be Done For Year

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Dillon Gee will undergo surgery Friday in St. Louis to repair artery damage in his right shoulder that could cost him the rest of the season. Gee has a clot dissolved in his shoulder Monday and during the procedure artery damage was discovered.

Dr. Robert Thompson at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis will perform the surgery.

Gee is expected to not resume throwing for eight weeks, which would effectively end his season.

The Mets will bring up left-handed reliever Josh Edgin to take Gee’s spot on the roster, which Miguel Batista expected to take his spot in the rotation.

At this time, the Mets have no plans to bring up prospects Matt Harvey or Zach Wheeler.

ON DECK: First half disappointments.