Mets Vs. Phillies Series Preview: The Battle For First

Cartoon courtesy of Metstoday.com

With a season filled with coaching changes, clutch players landing on the disabled list and still, someway some how the New York Mets have climbed their way from disappointing bottom dwellers to tasting the sweet delight of first place. As of right now, they are tied with the Phillies for first. That will all change when these two teams meet up in a three game series at Shea to determine, at least for now, who is the true beast of the East.

Johan Santana, who did not look like the two-time Cy Young winner the Mets had hoped for, will go against newly acquired right hander Joe Blanton from the A’s. Come Tuesday night, we will see which pitcher was worth getting. The rest of the series puts a shaky John Maine against Brett Myers, who has lost his last six decisions (0-3) and the inconsistent Oliver Perez going against the ageless Jamie Moyer. They dodge a bullet by not facing their ace, Cole Hamels in this series, who is 5-1 with a 3.27 ERA against them. But on the other hand, Pedro Martinez will not be making an appearance due to a groin injury.

The road was not easy for the Mets, they had to win 10 straight before anyone could consider them contenders within the division. They have found unlikely heroes in Fernando Tatis and Damian Easley as well as the revival of Carlos Delgado to lead the team. Who can forget Jose Reyes who has stepped up and has an average of .325 with 15 RBI’s since the firing of Willie. But this is not the only reason why the Mets are in this position.

The bullpen had been a bakery during this streak, constantly making them doughnuts for 22 innings until it was snapped on Friday. Sadly, the crown jewel of the pen, Billy Wagner, will most likely miss Tuesday’s opener. He will be getting an MRI on his shoulder.

If it wasn’t their suddenly high powered offense or the lights out pitching, there was another factor that has contributed to their rise…resistance. In the month of July alone, they have four come from behind wins, three of which came within the winning streak.

Here come the Phills with their thunder. A lineup that is packed with Ryan Howard, an athlete who no doubt is going to go down as one of the best home run hitter, but also is a strikeout artist, Chase Utley (the power hitting second baseman) and Pat Burrell (built his career off of being a “Met Killer” with 42 career home runs when facing them).

In order to complete their mission to completely dethrone them, the Mets have to hope that their team clicks at the right moment. They have their top pitcher on the mound tonight and should give the team some momentum to win the series. They are 7-3 against Philadelphia this year including taking three of four in the last meeting. There might be five more games left to take on their division rivals, but the time is now to act if they are serious about post-season play.

Mets Awaken From Their Slumber, Beat Down Rockies 9-2

Box Score - Courtesy of MLB.com

It’s about time! Finally, the Mets show signs of life after looking as if they were in a five game coma since their two game sweep against the Yankees last weekend. For those keeping count at home, they have lost 5 straight games, which includes a sweep from their NL East rivals, the Braves and a heartbreaking loss to the Rockies last night.

Saturday afternoon proved that they have just opened up their eyes. They scored five runs in the first inning, something that took them 13 innings to do the night before. The un-official spokesperson for the Mets, David Wright hit his 9^th home run in the second inning. With the media constantly obtaining quotes from the third baseman, he looks like he is the un-named captain of the team, something I believe that will change in the future.

The offense was led by an unusual suspect, a Double-A first baseman by the name of Nick Evans. He was brought up and was placed in an already thin outfield with the likes of Church and Alou out with their injuries. He went 3-for-4 with three doubles and knocked in two. Maybe Evans has talent…or…if you’re a baseball junkie and know that Coors Field is notorious for its thin air, then you probably suspect the same thing as yours truly. I wouldn’t doubt that could be the case.

Fans watching the game were probably expecting Jason Vargas to get completely obliterated by the Rockie offense and for another bad outing from another unstable pitcher. He delivered a much needed W, pitching seven innings, while giving up the only two runs of the game on a blast from slugger Matt Holiday. With a pitching staff that has only two consistent starters in Maine and Santana, this is considered patchwork. Remember, Nelson Figueroa came up shutting down hitters in his debut on that foggy night. After he had pitched a good number of games, he came down from cloud 9 and has fallen back down to the minors.

The reality is, the Mets have to start shopping around for another starter. Possibly get some bargain bits in Barry Zito or possibly Roy Oswalt, who have been struggling to get anything going this season. Not to glorify Rick Peterson as so many have done in the past, but the guy knows how to mold damaged goods. Example? Maine.

In the dugout, after Carlos Delgado belted a shot to right center field in the ninth, I had seen something that I haven’t seen much of this week; a smile. The last few days, this team has been looking un-animated, unenthusiastic about their job, almost as if the trip to Atlanta absorbed their confidence and replaced it with depression. Finally, some sun is starting to shine on this ballclub but…hey, they still have a long way to go before they are once again considered to be contenders.

Photos courtesy of espn.com

Pedro Hanging Up His Cleats???

Picture courtesy of NYDailynews.com

In a story reported from the New York Daily News, Mets pitcher Pedro Martinez is contemplating retirement to spend more time with his ailing father.

This comes weeks before he is scheduled to come back and help the disappointing Mets back on their road to the top of the NL East. His team is in desperate need of pitching and he could be the solution to their rotation woes.

But should give it all up? Of course, it is not our decision to make. But if his career were to be in our hands, should we let him call it quits?

He has already established himself as one of the most dominating pitchers of the 90s and helped the 86 year old World Series drought with the Red Sox. With multiple Cy Young Awards and 3,000 strikeouts under his belt, there is no real reason for him to pitch anymore. Impressive, don't you think?

Over the last four years, he has accumulated a 27-17 record for the Mets, which isn't a lot of games in that long amount of time.

Still at the tender age of 36, which is pretty young for a player these days (even with injuries), I think he has plenty left in the tank. He could reach 250 career wins before his career is all said and done, even possibly get another 500 K's to his resume.

Martinez's blazing fastball is no more. It doesn't even go past 90. But he does have breaking pitches that leave hitters befuddled and confused. Its a shame that his father is in an ill condition but I wish he could give the Mets a bit more.

This is a reminder that before everything comes family and I for one say that he should spend more time with his family because those are things that as human beings cherish more than a ballgame.

Battle of NY

Well ladies and gents, its that time of the year again. The New York Mets will take on their cross-town rival the New York Yankees. Let the smack talk begin.

So far, the Mets are 26-39 against the Bombers, including the 2000 World Series (one to forget). Talk about an ugly record. Well, a large factor in this record included the fact that in 2003, they were swept in both series. If not, the record would even out a bit.

Both teams are sinking ships as neither are in first. This makes a good match-up, since they are hungry to become top dog of their division. They will both sport their aces, but on different days.

Here are the pitching match-ups for this weekend:

Friday: Johan Santana Vs. Darrell Rasner
Its the ace against the recently brought up youngster, who has discovered some kind of a groove. While most people would favor the team with the two time Cy Young winner, Rasner has won both of his starts since coming from the minors. He's stuck on cloud nine and I think its about time that the Metropolitans bring him back down to earth. Santana is 3-0 with a 2.66 ERA against the Yanks. I give this game Queens.


Saturday: Oliver Perez Vs. Andy Pettitte
Its number 46 against... number 46? Petttitte and Perez should be considered mirror images of each other. They both bear the same jersey and are both lefties that are in-the-middle starters. Heck, they are even sporting similar records (Pettitte 3-4, Perez 3-3) and even ERA's (4.60, 4.61). Creepy. This is too close to call as both of them are in a rut that they can't get out of. The only difference is one win by Perez last start against the Reds. But, going by the career numbers, Pettitte owns the Mets, going 7-3 in 16 appearances. I do not think the boss would be happy with two losses in a row. This one belongs to the Bronx.

Sunday: John Maine Vs. Ching Ming Wang
Well, if my assumptions are right, the rubber match-up should be one for the ages. Here we have the top dog of the Yankees, going against the second best pitcher in the rotation for the Mets. Wang has been near perfect, the only blemish has been a loss given up to Cleveland going against another undefeated hurler, Cliff Lee. Maine has won four straight decisions and is definitely the guy they want to have on the mound against the Yankee's Cy Young candidate. This is no doubt going to be a duel. Throwing away those career numbers against the teams (Maine has not faired well against the Pinstriped Posse), I think i'm going to go with the Mets because, as of late, it seems like there has been a fire that has been lit in that clubhouse.

Sure, they have the worst record of the two, but they have a potent offense that is packed with home run hitters (Church, Betran, Delgado...[this one is a stretch]) hitters that pack a punch (Alou, you are going to love Yankee Stadium.) The Yankees do not have much going for them as A-Rod and Jorge Posada are out and without them, the lineup does not feel the same. Jeter, Abreu and Matsui cannot do everything themselves. Their homegrown talent, Robinson Cano and Shelly Duncan have not lived up to expectations. The only man the Mets should fear this series is the man they simply call Joba. He is a stopper. But that is a story for another time.

In general, this should be an amazing series that will bring the city to life, Bringing out those fans who come out to see the two home teams battle it out for Big Apple Supremacy.

pictures courtesy of sportslogos.net

Revamed Metiverse

Well, I know I have not posted since last week. Hopefully, I will continue to give you my comments as well as news that I hear.

I am also planning a re-launch of the blog. It's going to be more bigger and better than before. This is coming soon, there is no set date. Stay tuned!

FEATURE: The Real Stars of Shea

One of the most interesting and eeriest experiences I have had in my life. That is one way to describe being in an empty Shea Stadium.

Why was I there? Well, I was thinking us fans always get to hear about the players and coaches who go in and out, playing a grueling 162 game schedule. But what about the people who help run the Stadium? People like the beer man, the security all work for the Mets, making sure that everything runs smoothly.

Outside, there are many workers waiting until they get to work. Its amazing how many people work there. The numbers has to be at least in the hundreds. Talk about strength in numbers. As I went through the halls, I see people standing on a line to check in. Everyone looked kind of exhausted.

These people run around constantly for three-plus hours, serving fans, sometimes from great heights. Its not fun running around, carrying a big cooler full of beer from the upper deck, trying to avoid looking down at all costs.

As I walked through the halls of the pre-game version of Shea, it felt really quiet…too quiet. Maybe this is what it’s going to feel like when they open Citi Field for the first time.

A couple of employees took time out of their day to stop and talk about what they do and other good stuff.

When asked about what was their favorite moment, most of the employees instantly remember Endy Chavez’s Superman catch in the 2006 National League Championship Series against the Cardinals…And what a spectacle it was.

Video: Endy Chavez's leaping catch

At first there weren’t many people who wanted to talk to me as they looked busy getting ready for the game that night but I managed to find Frank, a bartender for 10 years at the stadium, Alicia, a lotto ticket vendor and Elias, a vendor who has been a part of the Shea experience for two seasons already. All these individuals seem to enjoy what they do to make a living.

ALICIA

Lotto Vendor

Mike, a alcohol inspector, is supposed to make sure that the employees selling alcohol are doing their job. This is his third season.


Just to give u a preview of what they do. Lets look at opening day where security was working even the rooftops of Shea to make sure everything is ok (WARNING:UNCENSORED Language)



At that game, I remember security guards taking out people left and right for bad behavior. Here is a soft version of what security can do.

Finally, don’t ask how I got in, it’s best not to say anything. Let’s put it this way, yours truly almost was going to be mince meat if I was caught. Just enjoy!

Endy Chavez footage courtesy of MSN.com

This Week in Baseball History: Strawberry's Debut

May 6, 1983 The debut of a superstar... Darryl Strawberry. This is the debut of one of the Mets many great legends.

Sure, he was troubled throughout his career, but when he was playing , he was simply amazing. When the Mets were on the road, the fans tried to annoy the slugger with the chant....Darrrrylllll.....Darryyllll. Very funny stuff.

There was an article on him marking his 25th anniversary of his debut. I figure, why not show his career numbers and see if he is Hall of Fame bound.


335 HR
1000 RBI's
221 SB
898 R

Keep in mind, this is over a 17 year career. This is what he has to offer and I believe they should give him a shot in the future eventhough he has struck out over 1000 times and has a career average of .259.

In Conclusion, I say Darryl has had his share of troubles, but he deserve this honor and go into Cooperstown as a Met.

picture of courtesy of mets.com