Mets Vs. Padres Game 3 Comments What's With These Crazy Padres Camoflauge Uniforms?

I'm happy for Mike Piazza that he got to hit a home run against his old club, but I'm even happier that it was only #399 instead of #400, because I would hate for Mike to have to look at himself in that awful camo uniform in his career highlight reel for the rest of his life.



















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Gary Cohen has made a nice transition to television, and as a Mets historian he asks great questions of Keith Hernandez, whom he also gushes over throughout the broadcasts. At some point Gary will get over the awe of sharing a booth with a New York Mets legend and he'll be an even better TV announcer.

Speaking of Keith Hernandez - expect some heat for Keith in tomorrow's papers and beyond. The Padres have a female trainer, Kelly McCord, and Keith said on-air that he feels very strongly that she doesn't belong in the dugout because baseball "is a man's game," I'm real curious to see how SNY handles this. Keith also made a comment that a woman belongs in the kitchen, but later asserted that he was only kidding about that part - I'll bet any amount of money that the "in the kitchen" line is the one that is reprinted everywhere tomorrow.

Last weekend Hernandez had the weekend off and the online boards were going crazy with the rumor that he had been suspended for some on-air comments. The rumors may turn out to have been just a week too early.
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Castro had a nice night at the plate, going 3 for 4 including a homerun and two RBI's. Gary Cohen talked about how Castro had fallen out of favor with the Marlins organization, and then had some "legal issues" before coming to New York. Cohen works for the Mets, so maybe that's why he put it so delicately, but I don't mind printing that Castro's "legal issue" was an allegation of rape , involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, sexual assault and unlawful restraint. Castro, who was married, met the woman at a bar in Pittsburgh and they went back to the hotel where he was staying during a Marlins road trip. Castro said the sex was consensual but still plead "no contest" to a misdemeanor indecent assault charge and served a year on probation.

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During the game the Mets finally announced that the results of Beltran's MRI indicated "no structural damge." The SNY team indicated that the club wants Beltran, for the time being, to "hit like Beltran but run like Castro." That's very amusing but unfortunately this isn't the American League and Beltran still has to play centerfield. Hey Omar, stop being foolish with this. Just put Beltran on the DL and call up Milledge for 15 days. I really see no downside to that. What is the worst that could happen?

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Carlos Delgado is nothing short of a hitting machine. Delgado hit his eighth homerun of the season, and also reached base with two walks and a hit-by-pitch. David Wright is the biggest favorite of the fans because he's the homegrown talent but honestly Delgado is the MVP of the team thus far in the early part of this season. The MVP of the game of course was Pedro Martinez. Pedro gave the Mets exactly what they needed tonight, pitching deep (7 innings) and dominantly (11 K's). He helped the bullpen which had been taxed while giving the club a boost after losing three of their past four games. He handed a 6-1 lead over to the bullpen.

The Mets had a five run lead heading to the bottom of the eighth, enough of a margin to give Valentin another pinch hit opportunity (who managed an infield hit) and entrust the eighth inning to Jorge Julio. Julio has made the most of his opportunities lately, although they have all come in situations with little pressure. Julio pitched a perfect eighth and was rewarded with a chance to pitch the ninth. The Mets scored two more runs in the meantime, and Julio headed to the mound in the ninth with an 8-1 lead. Julio struck out the leadoff hitter Barfield, but the ball got away from Castro and the runner reached first. The next hitter hit a double play ball to David Wright, who booted the ball and both runners were safe. Julio must've felt like he was being sabotaged.

Piazza stepped to the plate with two on and no out and lined a single to center, loading the bases with no out for Adrian Gonzalez. That got the bullpen stirring, with Duaner Sanchez starting to warm up. Gonzalez worked the count full, but Julio reared back and struck out Gonzalez swinging with a fastball down. Greene hit another easy double play ball to Wright, and this time Wright converted it easily, preserving the 8-1 lead, which was also Pedro's 100th road win of his career. Pedro improves to 4-0 on the season, and Jorge Julio improves the fans confidence in him with another good outing.

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Another Mets Injury
The Mets injury bug has extended to the support staff. Mets bullpen catcher Dave Racaniello left the club today because he's going to have to have surgery to repair a herniated disk in his back.

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Victor Zambrano pitches tomorrow afternoon in the final game of the four game set against RHP Clay Hensley, making his first start of the season. Hensley has been inserted into the Padres starting rotation, with Dewon Brazelton being recently demoted to the bullpen. Mike Cameron should also play in the game, his first appearance of the season, and Mike Piazza will go for homerun #400 (sans camoflauge).

Mets vs. Padres Game 2 Notes - Couldn't Stay Awake

Bannister was very shaky in the first inning, having to work his way out of trouble yet again. He allowed a single to Barfield and walks to Piazza and Gonzalez, but managed to strike out Greene to end the inning. Keith Hernandez said Bannister was very lucky because Greene swung through a very hittable pitch that was right down the middle. No score after one inning.

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I managed to sit through Bannister's outing - allowing four hits and six walks over 5 innings but remarkably only one run - and then decided to record the rest of the game on TiVo and watch it this morning.

I turned on the TV this morning and had my button on the "TiVo Button" to start watching the game, when I heard the phrase "and the Padres win it in 14 innings, 2-1." SNY was replaying last nights SportsNite and I turned on the TV at the exact moment they were playing the highlights of the game.

Part of me was annoyed that they lost, but I was also relived that I didn't stay up all night to see another nine innings of offensive futilty by the Mets. It's kinda like how in Fever Pitch Jimmy Fallon didn't mind missing the Red Sox game when he thought they got beat.

But how about that bullpen! Oliver, Sanchez, Heilman, Wagner (2 innings), Feliciano and Bradford don't allow a run for eight innings, before Bradford allows a run on two hits before retiring a batter in his third inning of work to take the loss.

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So, when all the rumors were flying around about the Mets possibly acquiring Alfonso Soriano, many of us cried that we didn't want him and didn't need him. We said that his offensive numbers were inflated by playing in a bandbox and if he came to Shea he wouldn't homer as much. Boy, were we wrong! Soriano hit three home runs at RFK yesterday to beat the Braves, 7-3. With Hernandez out for who knows how long, who would we rather have at second? Matsui or Soriano? I admit, I was very much against acquiring Soriano, and I can admit I was wrong. My apologies, Tubby! Meanwhile, the Mets maintain their 3.5 game lead over the Braves, which is the largest lead in baseball right now.

I still am not sold on Matsui - I know it was very cool how hhe got that inside-the-park homer, but honestly the rightfielder Giles misplayed that ball, and Matsui has looked pretty pathetic at the plate otherwise. I still would prefer to see Keppinger up here.

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So, what's up with Beltran? The Mets still won't reveal the results of his MRI, but Willie still sent him up to pinch hit in the seventh inning last night. Does that mean the DL is not in his future? Beltran and Randolph said, after the game, that they themselves still haven't heard what the results of the MRI were. Boy, talk about tight-kept secrets!

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Transplanted Ex-Mets Of The Week:
Kris Benson allowed four runs (three earned) over 5 1/3 innings to earn a victory against the Yankees last night, while on Wednesday, Doug Mientkiewicz's slow roller off a checked swing in the seventh inning was enough to end Javier Vazquez's no-hit bid against the Royals. I'm happy about this because I was hoping the Mets would have acquired Vazquez in the off season and if he had thrown a no hitter I'd have been very upset. Thanks, Minky!

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Pedro goes for win #201 against the Padres tonight at 10:05. Lets Go Mets!

Mets at Padres Game 2 Beltran Not In Tonight's Lineup

Here's the lineup that takes on San Diego's pitcher Woody Williams tonight at 10:05:

Reyes SS
LoDuca C
Delgado 1B
Wright 3B
Floyd LF
Nady RF
Matsui 2B
Chavez CF
Bannister P

Mike Piazza bats cleanup again for San Diego - after last night's 0 for 3 he's hitting .214 on the season. But apart from seeing Piazza, Mets fans should be most interested in seeing how Bannister, a "finesse pitcher" does in his first warm weather start of the season. He's 2-0 after 3 starts, but has been most impressive thus far for his ability to get out of tough jams. Perhaps tonight, with weather on his side, he can be more even, and even more impressive.

Mets #2 In ESPN's Power Rankings

Last week the Mets ranked first in ESPN's weekly list, but they place #2 in this week's ranking, behind the White Sox. ESPN also suggests that now might be the time to call up Lastings Milledge.

Is Pedro Martinez The Greatest Pitcher Ever?

If you are not an ESPN Insider subscriber, you might be curious to how Jason Stark answers the question "How Great Is Pedro?" in his Insider column. Well, I can't reprint his column here, but I can help you in your arguments with Yankees fans over the greatness of Pedro by telling you that...

Jason Stark points out that of all pitchers who've won 150 games or more, Pedro Martinez is the career leader in the categories of Career ERA, Career WInning Percentage, Fewest Baserunners Per 9 Innings, and Greatest Differential Between Pitcher's ERA Against The Average. He also is in second place all time in categories of "Strikeouts to Walk Ratio" and "Strikeouts per 9 Innings".

So there.

Still Sleepy

After three hotel rooms in three cities and six flights in four days, I'm finally back in North Carolina. I'm so tired! How in the world will I manage to stay awake for the duration of tonight's game? At some point this weekend I have to catch up on 24 and Lost too...

I came to the rash conclusion while waiting for my luggage at the carousel in Greensboro that if one is going to be a transplanted Mets fan, and if one can't live in a city where actual National League games are played, it would be best to live in the Mountain Time Zone. That way, east coast games would start at 5PM, and one could listen to radio broadcasts on XM Radio in the car during the commute home, and west coast games would start at 8PM and be over at a reasonable 11PM.

Also, LCS and World Series games would start at 6:20 and be over by 10PM. Anyone out there live in Denver who can tell me what it's like to live there?

Mets vs. Padres Summary - Beltran Leaves Game In The Fifth Keep An Eye On Delgado, Too

I listened to tonight's game from a hotel room in Kansas City, MO, from my laptop on MLB Audio. It's a good thing the Royals are out of town tonight, or else I would have been too tempted to blow off my work duties to check out the ballpark. Oh, well... another time. I don't have to be up too early tomorrow morning to catch my flight home, so it's a good night to stay up late and listen to the Mets game.

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The Padres got an early lead against Steve Trachsel. Brian Giles drove in Dave Roberts with a single to take a 1-0 lead in the first. Then, in Mike Piazza's first at bat against his old club, he grounded into a double play to end the inning.

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Kaz Metsui Does It Again!!
In the third inning, in his first at bat of the season for the Mets, Kaz Matsui hit an inside the park homerun. The homerun tied the game at 1-1, and continued Kaz's three year streak of homering in his first at-bat of the season. This HAS to be a record.

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In the bottom of the third, the Padres regained the lead with a Dave Roberts single, scoring Ben Johnson. 2-1 Padres after three innings.

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Howie and Tom were critical of how Kaz Matsui looked attempting a double play in the bottom of the fourth. They compared him unfavorably to Anderson Hernandez, who had looked very tenacious when hanging in there against charging runners at second. Poor Metsui. The guy has scored the only Mets run of the game so far, and the radio announcers are still criticizing his defense. It's still 2-1 Padres heading to the top of the fifth.

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Between innings I am hearing commercials for Allstate car insurance voiced over by President David Palmer. They're advertising a special safe drivers discount, a program called Your Choice that's not available where I live. I'd be mad except my car insurance is still about a third of what I was paying when I lived in New York. There are some good things about being a transplant...

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Carlos Beltran has left the game, replaced by Endy Chavez, in the fifth inning. Howie and Tom say he didn't appear to be laboring while running the bases or playing the field...

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Heading to the bottom of the sixth, Tom McCarthy says Beltran left the game because he felt "tightness in his hamstring."

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In the bottom of the sixth we got an update about Beltran from Jay Horowitz, as relayed to Howie Rose. It seems there was no specific incident in tonights game that led to him leaving the game, but that Beltran didn't feel comfortable since the beginning of the game, and apparently is just being cautious based on what happened last year, when he tried to play through the pain and his performance suffered.

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Piazza hit a weak pop up off an inside "fastball" by Steve Trachsel to go 0 for 3 on the the night, and Howie Rose talked about how the Piazza of old would never have gotten jammed on such a slow pitch before. He says Piazza's lost so much bat speed at this point and in the past he would have been able to muscle that pitch into a base hit. After six innings, Mike is out of the game, replaced by Mirabelli.

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Cliff Floyd flies out with Delgado on base to end the top of the seventh. Headed to the seventh inning stretch it's still 2-1 Padres. Oh, I am getting tired. Not just of the weak offensive output, but actually tired. It's nearing midnight on the east coast. I've turned out the lights in the room because my eyes are starting to get heavy and sensitive to the light, but I will try and stay awake...

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After the Mets bullpen escapes a bases-loaded with no-out situation in the bottom of the seventh, Julio Franco hits a two run, pinch-hit homer in the eighth to make it 3-2 Mets. Franco is the oldest player in major league history to hit a homerun. Okay guys, let's close the door on the Padres so I can go to sleep!

The Mets don't want me to sleep. Reyes followed up Franco's homer with a single, and promptly stole second. LoDuca flew out to center, allowing Reyes to move to third, and Alan Embree came into the game to pitch to Chavez. Bob Murphy might call Chavez "a dangerous hitter" in this situation. Well, Chavez managed a b unt single that drove in Jose Reyes. 4-2 Mets. Delgado then hit a two run homer to make it 6-2 Mets. Finally, we see the offense we saw in the first 10 games!

Tom McCarthy said that after hitting the homer, Delgado promptly went to the dugout and started writing notes down in a notebook. The announcers presumed that Delgado is tracking all his at bats against particular pitchers, a la Rusty Staub.

David Wright walks, and Cliff Floyd drives him in with a single. 7-2 Mets.

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UPS is running radio ads making fun of baseball players for wearing goatees, and say that UPS employees are all clean-shaven. Interesting advertising strategy. I use UPS and FedEx most of the time, but only because the last time someone from Raliegh, NC sent me a package (to Greensboro, NC) using DHL, the package wound up in Texas.

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Nady strikes out against new pitcher Scott Cassidy to end the top of the eighth. So sleeeepy...

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I must haved dozed off, because I thought I heard Jose Valentin managed a base hit, in his sixteenth at-bat of the season. That had to be a dream...

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Jorge Julio gets in some garbage work in the ninth. Julio gets first batter Gonzalez to ground out. The announcers say Delgado appeared to be wincing after tagging the runner. He may have aggravated his wrist while making the tag, but stays in the game. Julio strikes out the final two batters of the game, and the Mets win, 7-2. Julio doesn't allow a baserunner in the ninth. Uh oh. Another inning like this and Willie might trust him in an important spot.

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Okay, I'm going to sleep. It's after 1AM on the east coast. Screw it. We'll check on Delgado in the morning. Lets Go Mets!

Transplanted Ex Met Alert - Kazmir Beats Red Sox; Leaves Game With Injury

Scott Kazmir struck out seven in 5 and 2/3 innings, allowing one run on four hits, including a solo shot by Dustan Mohr, but left the game in the sixth inning with muscle cramps in his left thumb.

The Devil Rays won the game 5-1, aided by two home runs by Jonny Gomes and a double by Ty Wigginton.

Beltran and Floyd Back Tonight vs. Padres (Matsui, Too!)

Here's the lineup for tonight's game against the Padres:

Reyes SS
LoDuca C
Beltran CF
Delgado 1B
Wright 3B
Floyd LF
Nady RF
Matsui 2B
Trachsel P

San Diego's RHP Jake Peavy faces the lineup at 10:05. Mike Piazza bats cleanup for San Diego.

Free Cerrone!

Matt Cerrone, creator and chief writer on Metsblog.com is quitting his job so he can write for Metsblog.com full time!

Starting next Thursday, MetsBlog.com will become my only job... I will cut ties with my current employer and dedicate myself 100 percent to MetsBlog.com, which will be financially supported mostly by advertising revenue and donations from readers…

Metsblog is an awesome resource for Mets fans, and I don't know a better way to stay up to date on Mets news. Plus, it's FREE! If we can spread the word about advertising on this site maybe we can keep it around. Matt's gotta eat, right? I am surprised there aren't more advertisers on this site. For a company who wantsto sell something to Mets fans, it seems like a must-buy. This week he mentioned something that appeared on my site, and I got over 1,000 hits in one day. I'm betting that's just a fraction of his readership. So I'm posting this to say -

I'm 30, male, and have some disposable income. If any company is trying to reach people like me, I suggest advertising on Metsblog.com.

Tales Of A Transplanted Ex-Mets Fan

Andy Clayton, media editor for the New York Daily News, grew up a Mets fan in Denver, Colorado. But when the Rockies became a franchise back in 1993 he switched allegiance to his new local ballclub. He moved to New York three years ago, and is now a Transplanted Rockies Fan.

The other day he went to his very first game in Shea Stadium... and loved it. Read about his first impressions of Shea and his five other most memorable sports experiences since moving to New York, here.

Derek Bell Arrested For Possession Of A Crack Pipe

Derek Bell was pulled over by Tampa police for a traffic violation today, and wound up getting arrested when police found a still-warm crack pipe in the back seat.

Back when he was with the Mets, he was famous for riding his bicycle to the games. I guess he's given up his healthy lifestyle. Derek Bell was instrumental in helping the Mets get to the World Series in 2000 by going down with an injury and allowing Timo Perez to play full time.

Bell is now being held in a Tampa jail on $2,500 bail.

The Return Of Metsui

According to Metsblog, Anderson Hernandez is DL-bound, and Kaz Matsui will be recalled to start against San Diego tomorrow. AHern has a bulging disc.

What is a bulging disc? Well, according to spine-health.com, a bulging disc is just one term of many that is used to describe the general condition of spinal disc abnormality, and the same injury might also be called a herniated disc, slipped disc, or even pinched nerve by a different doctor. From what I can gather, the term 'bulging disc' just describes what is seen on the MRI, and does not tell us what is the root cause of the problem. Spine Inc. says that a bulging disc can be treatable by exercise, anti-inflammatories, and simply learning how to not over stress the bulging discs. How one does that while playing second base I'm not sure...

Speaking of second basemen, Jose Valentin went hitless today and is now 0 for 14 on the season. Did Jeff Keppinger bang Omar Minaya's wife or something?

The B-Mets vs. The Braves

The lineup trotted out on Opening Day that looked so impressive has been riddled by injuries, so that the starting 9 this afternoon looked like this:

Reyes SS
Woodward 2B
Delgado 1B
Wright 3B
Nady RF
Valentin LF
Castro C
Chavez CF
Glavine P

This lineup was like lunchmeat for Braves starter Tim Hudson. Over 8 innings he allowed just one walk and one hit with six strikeouts. Meanwhile, Glavine pitched great, but not as great, allowing a solo homer by Andruw Jones and an unearned run which scored on a David Wright error. After eight and a half innings, it was 2-0 Braves.

Finally in the ninth Reyes hit a double with one out, and was driven in with a single by Woodward to make it 2-1 Braves. Delgado flied out to left for the second out, and David Wright came up with a chance to redeem himself. He had three errors on the afternoon. Unfortunately it was not his days, as he grounded out for the last out of the game.

Mets lose, 2-1, and lose the series to the Braves 2-1 as they head out on a road trip. The Braves, with their dreadful bullpen, won teh series by getting two complete games from their starters on consecutive days.

Add Anderson Hernandez's back to the List of Injuries

Anderson Hernandez was scratched from last night's game after suffering from back spasms during batting practice. His injury could signal the return of Metsui, who went 1-for-3 with a double, RBI and sacrifice bunt last night in his third game for the Tides last night. Jeff Keppinger is hitting .323 with a .436 on base percentage for the AAA club as well. On the major league club, Valentin still has no hits; he's now 0 for 12 on the season.

Transplanted Ex-Mets Around Baseball

Some transplanted ex-Mets did well last night in losing causes...

Ty Wigginton hit his 6th homerun of the season for Tampa Bay, but Boston still beat the Devil Rays, 7-4. Wiggy's hitting .289 with 14 RBI's on the season.

After taking a day off, Mike Piazza was back in the lineup tonight for San Diego, and had two doubles and an RBI in a 3-2, extra ining loss to Colorado... Mike Cameron may be back with the Padres this weekend, according to Yahoo Sports. He's been on the DL with a strained oblique, an injury that seems to be going around this spring...

Finally, Doug Mientkiewicz went 1 for 4 for the Royals (he's hitting .225 on the season), in a 4-1 loss to the White Sox.

Mets Vs. Braves Game Two (In Game Notes)

So, when do we finally call it quits on The Zambrano Project? After two and a half innings, it's 5-0 Braves, with Zambrano giving up homers to Andruw Jones and Adam LaRoche. How much better would life be, even with Floyd and Beltran out of the lineup, with Kris Benson in the rotation instead of Zambrano?

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Chris Woodward hits a solo homer to lead off the Mets' half of the third to make it 5-1 Braves.

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Another homer for Andruw Jones (with Betemit on first) and it's 7-1 Braves. Anna Benson, you can bang the whole team for all I care...

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To be fair... Kris Benson was less than mediocre yesterday as well, givng up four runs and nine hits in five innings against the California Angels. The Orioles lost 9-3 to the Angels at home, in front of 19,000 fans including Anna Benson. After three starts, Benson is 1-2, with a 3.32 ERA. Hitters are batting .257 against Benson this season...

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Final Score: Braves 7, Mets 1. With Beltran and Floyd out of the lineup, and Zambrano on the mound, the Braves were just too much for the Mets. Glavine goes after the Braves tomorrow in the rubber game at 7:05.

Victor Zambrano Goes for 46th Career Victory

Fresh off Pedro's 200th win, The Zambrano Project, as Kranepool calls him, goes for win #46 tonight against the Braves. Beltran and Floyd are still out of the lineup, with the lineup being as follows:

Reyes SS
LoDuca C
Delgado 1B
Wright 3B
Nady RF
Valentin LF
Woodward 2B
Chavez CF
Zambrano P

As you can see, my nemesis Jose Valentin gets his first start of the season. He hasn't gotten a hit all season. And if he doesn't tonight, against Kyle Davies, he of the 8.38 ERA, maybe Valentin should hang 'em up before the Mets do it for him.

Lets Go Mets!

Mets Minor Leaguer Suspended For Steroids

New York Mets minor-league pitcher Jorge Reyes was suspended for 50 games for testing positive for a steroids test today.

According to Scout.com, right-handed pitcher Jorge Reyes is a Dominican who is one of the hardest throwers among the Mets' starting pitching prospects and ranks #32 among the Top 50 Mets' prospects (for the website). According to MetsGeek, just last week on April 13th Reyes pitched a solid six innings of one run ball for the low A-ball Mets affiliate Hagerstown Suns.

No word on any 'roid rage when Jorge Reyes gave up that one run...

An Extra Challenge...

For the next three nights, I am travelling around the country for work, heading to three cities in three days, without access to a radio or TV during game time. I'll have access to the internet though, and though I won't be able to listen, I'll still be able to follow the GameCast on MLB.com.

It's especially tough for me tonight, since I'm oh-so-close to Shea Stadium, in Paramus New Jersey, where it should be easy for me to see the game on television, but my work requires me to instead, pay close attention to thirty women talk about fingernails. (Don't ask).

Lets Go Mets!

My Fandom Only Goes So Far...

I'm sitting here typing and because I'm not that good a typer I am watching my fingers and can see my Mets watch on the wrist of my right hand. My cell phone rings with the 1962 "Meet The Mets" theme song. I forced myself to drink Rheingold beer during it's resurgence a few years back, even though I can now admit that the beer was dreadful. I have a decal of the Mets circular logo on the back window of my car about the size of a basketball. I even have a tatoo of the interlocking NY on my left shoulder. I am proud of my fandom.

Last night I saw on Mets.com that the club has introduced a new theme song, "Our Team, Our Time." Great! I have been craving a new theme song since the critically acclaimed Lets Go Mets Go in 1986.

I just listened to it. I am embarrassed. I will say no more. Listen for yourself, if you dare.

The lyrics for Our Team, Our Time, the New York Mets song:

New York Mets! Our Team, Our Time.

New York Mets! Our Team, Our Time.

Our Team, Our Time.

We Get the Hits (Hits!)
We Score The Runs (Runs!)
We Shut You Down (Down!)
We're Number One (One, One, One)

New York Mets! Our Team Our Time

New York Mets! Our Team Our Time

New York Mets! Our Team, Our Time

New York Mets! Our Team Our Time

Our Team Our Time!

Pedro Martinez Will Strike. You. Out. Billy Wagner, Coming Through. He's Throwing Heat Heat, No Doubt.

David Wright, Jose Reyes making sure you're not safe. Just in case - Carlos Delgado. He's At First Base.

Cliff Floyd, Carlos Beltran playing the outfield. Come To Shea Stadium. Our Team's The Real Deal.

New York Mets Our Team Our Time

New York Mets Our Team Our Time

Our Team Our Time.


On second thought, I DO still have "Who Let The Mets Out" on my iPod...

Now Cliff Floyd's Hurt, Too

Cliff Floyd hurt himself while hitting a double in the fourth inning, apparently straining his rib cage on the swing. He stayed in the game long enough to score on Xavier Nady's single, making it a 4-2 Mets lead. Jose Valentin came in the game to replace him in the next inning and flied out with two runners on, making him 0 for 8 on the season.

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Valentin's failure to drive in the run became more significant the next inning when Andruw Jones homered, making it a 4-3 game in the sixth. Willie wasn't worried about the narrow deficit, however, allowing Pedro Martinez to bat for himself in the bottom of the sixth with Nady on base (again) even though Pedro had thrown 100 pitches to that point. Pedro struck out, and headed to the mound to start the 7th inning.

Pedro retired the first two batters in the seventh, but after Pete Orr hit a rocket up teh middle that had Martinez diving out of the way, Duaner Sanchez came on to strike out Marcus Giles to retire the side. Headed to the Seventh Inning Stretch and 'Lazy Mary,' Pedro was still poised to win his 200th win.

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Sanchez pitched a perfect 8th, and Valentin led off the bottom of the inning doing what he does best: grounding out so that he became 0 for 9 on the season. Nady and Chavez couldn't do any better against Lance Cormeir, so it was 'Sandman' time in the ninth.

After Franceour fliedout, Wagner hit Matt Diaz in the shin, but Wagner recovered to strike out Betimet and old buddy Todd Pratt to preserve the victory.

Pedro gets win #200, Wagner gets a save, and the Mets improve to 10-2 on the season.

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Beltran Still Ailing

Carlos Beltran is not in the lineup tonight, still recovering from his hamstring stiffness. This is bad news for Pedro, based on how well Beltran seems to hit when Pedro's on the mound.

Is Omar Minaya a Reader of TransplantedMetsFan.com?

I've been calling for the demotion of Victor Diaz for the past two days, and today it happened. The Mets have called up Pedro Feliciano to take his roster spot. Hopefully this gives Willie another reliable arm to go to when he needs his 'pen. Hey Omar! If you're reading this, Valentin and his pornstar mustache have to be the next to go.

Easter (or Passover) With The Mets

Brian Bannister showed off his magician skills today, working himself out of several jams, including a bases loaded with no outs situation. X-Man drove in three, with a homer and sacrifice fly, and LoDuca drove in one as well.

Jose Valentin struck out in a pinch-hit opportunity, and Howie Rose speculated that he's the odd-man out when Metsui returns from the DL. Finally, a reason to root for Matsui... Anyway, after five innings, it was 4-1 Mets and a fatigued Bannister handed the game over to the bullpen to try and preserve the lead.

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Against Darren Oliver, Corey Hart led off the sixth with a pinch hit. Oliver should have gotten out of the inning unscathed, because he had Hart picked off. Corey "never surrendered" though, and lasted in a rundown long enough for Delgado to make a throwing error, allowing Hart to get all the way to third. Jenkins then hit a two-out homer to narrow the lead to 4-3. Chad Bradford came in and induced a groundout by Carlos Lee to end the half-inning.

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Heilman did a nice job in relief, allowing 1 hit and 2 walks over two innings in a tight game. But in the bottom of the eighth, Carlos Delgado hit a three run homer to extend the Mets lead and make it a 7-3 game. Howie Rose said Delgado's shot, a line drive, reminded him of Darryl Strawberry's homer off Nolan Ryan in Game 5 of the 1986 LCS.

Earlier I said Victor Diaz should be sent to Norfolk to get him regular at-bats and preserve his trade value. Well, Diaz got into the game on a double switch, and in his second at-bat he put the game out of reach with a two-run double, making it a 9-3 game. Perhaps he is valuable off the bench after all?

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Billy Wagner was all set to come into the game even when Delgado's homer made it a four run lead. But then, after Diaz broke open the game, Willie decided to bring in Jorge Julio. I've decided to stop comparing Julio to Armando Benitez. That's too much of an insult to Benitez. After all, like my buddy Tubby and I were discussing, Benitez only seemed to fail in big spots, and against the Yankees and Braves. Julio stinks pretty much all the time. Even though he resembles Benitez in pitching style, he's much more like Mel Rojas in his ineffectiveness.

As Julio began pitching, broadcaster Tom McCarthy talked about how "flat" Julio's fastball was. Julio retired the leadoff batter Koskie, but Bill Hall teed off on a fastball for a long double. Julio's heater comes in at around 95 mph, but McCarthy and Rose noted that any major league hitter can hit a fastball, no matter how fast, if it has no movement to it. Julio did get Prince Fielder to strikeout on a fastball for the second out.

Julio threw a slider (or splitter?) in the dirt that got away from LoDuca, allowing Hall to reach third, but Damien Miller eventually flied out to center to end the game. Mets win 9-3, and are now 9-2 on the season, their best start in franchise history.

Maybe Julio gains some confidence after this outing and starts to be more successful? I'm not betting on it.

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Meanwhile. the Mets have won all four series they've played so far this season, and are set to take on the Braves tomorrow. Pedro Martinez goes for win #200 against Jorge Sosa. Lets Go Mets!

Carlos Beltran injury

Beltran isn't in the lineup today because of "tightness in his right hamstring." He might be available as a pinch hitter, but Endy Chavez is playing center in his absence. Oofah.

Is Alan Thicke a Mets Fan?

Just logged onto MLB.com to listen to the Mets broadcast, and Howie Rose is talking about Growing Pains. Why, you ask? Well, apparently on that show, the "Seaver" family had neighbors named "The Koosmans". Weird.