Seven in a Row and Counting?

(by Brett Kahn)

With the all-star break vastly approaching, the home-field advantage in the World Series has most likely caught the attention of game participants Billy Wagner and David Wright.

A current seven-game winning streak has catapulted the Mets into a second-place tie with the Florida Marlins, only 1.5 games out of first behind the Philadelphia Phillies. The winning streak started with three in a row at Philadelphia, three straight against San Francisco and one against Colorado.

Although the Jose Reyes', David Wrights, and Johan Santanas are mostly responsible for this sudden outburst, there is one player that has come out of nowhere to garner much attention. His name is Fernando Tatis.

Since the beginning of the streak, Tatis has recorded 10 hits in 23 AB's. (.435 BA) He has also exploded for three home runs and seven runs batted in. But is he the main cause for the Mets recent success?

Boomer and Carton in the morning on WFAN New York, recently discussed what Mets players were saying about their new manager Jerry Manuel. One of the positives mentioned was that Manuel is starting to get the guys to play Mets baseball and not Yankees baseball, which former manager Willie Randolph was notorious for.

The Mets will look to end the first-half of the season having won nine in a row. They will try to do that by finishing off the final two games against the Colorado Rockies today and tomorrow. Pedro Martinez is on the mound today looking for his second straight win.

Inconsistency is the Name of the Game

(by Brett Kahn)

At 40-41, the Mets have been one of the most inconsistent teams in baseball this season. There are a lot of reasons for this. I would like to analyze the recent subway series against the Yankees to give people an idea of how inconsistent the Mets really are...

GOOD

Carlos Delgado racked up 3 HR's and 10 RBI's in the four-game series.

BAD

He only managed four hits in 15 AB's. (.267) Those four hits also only came in two games.

GOOD

Jose Reyes went 6-for-16 in the series. (.375)

BAD

He didn't drive in any runs, only stole one base, and was picked off.

GOOD

Oliver Perez threw a gem in the finale going seven innings while only giving up one run and striking out eight.

BAD

His ERA dropped to 4.98 on the season.

GOOD

The Mets scored 20 runs in the four-game series. (five runs/game)

BAD

15 of those runs came in the first game and are now batting .211 with two outs and RISP.

Consistency is the key to success. The Mets have yet to figure that out.

Stories to Follow The Subway Series

(by Brett Kahn)

It has been a tough week for me to keep up with this blog, but I want to continue to report on as much as I can. If it becomes too hard for me, I will decide and let everyone know before hand...Thank you for your support and go Mets!

Reyes Steers the Ship

(by Brett Kahn)

It has been mentioned before that when Jose Reyes goes, so do the Mets. So, let's actually prove this is true using stats.

In the 36 wins so far this season, Reyes is batting .340, with six HR's, 21 RBI's, and has tallied 21 SB's. His on-base percentage at home is .401 and his slugging percentage is .604.

Now, here are some of his lead-off statistics. As the first batter of the game, Reyes is batting .324. When he leads off an inning, he is batting .354, with 4 HR's and a .608 slugging percentage.

Lets now look at how Reyes performs in the clutch. With two outs and RISP, one of the most telling statistics in baseball, Reyes is batting .318 with 2 HR's and 10 RBI's, in 27 games. In the eighth inning of games, Reyes is batting .367, with 6 RBI's. In the ninth, he is batting a whopping .421.

It is clear that Jose Reyes is the focal point of the Mets' offense. If he continues to be solid like we have seen in the past, the Mets will be a team to reckon with come the latter months of the season.

I Guess It Had to Happen, but Why Now?

(by Brett Kahn)

Willie Randolph's status as manager was indeed day-to-day. However, after two straight wins, why did Omar Minaya decide to pull the trigger now?

At 34-35, the Mets are far from where they want to be after 69 games. After two straight wins, however, Willie seemed to be safe for another day. That wasn't the case.

At 3:15 this morning, Randolph was given the official word that he was let go, along with pitching coach Rick Peterson and first-base coach Tom Nieto.

Whether it were the on-field pitching decisions that Randolph made, or the off-field racial comments, Minaya decided to step out of the dugout and make an iffy timing call to the bullpen for Jerry Manuel.

Manuel isn't that big of stranger to winning, however. In 2000, he won AL Manager of the year while guiding the Chicago White Sox to the best record in the American League at 95-67.

Although he might be the best man for the job at this juncture, the question will always be asked why now? Why fly Randolph out to the west coast to manage one game? Was it so that Minaya could hide the decision in the throws of the early morning? If so, Minaya might be joining Randolph on the unemployment line earlier than he thinks.

Payroll Disaster

(by Brett Kahn)

Everyone knows the Mets have an enormous payroll. How big is it? $137.4 million. Listed below are all of the contracted players for this season and how much they are making. Judge for yourself who is worth their money and who isn't...(All salaries are in millions of dollars---only players making guaranteed major league salaries are listed)

Carlos Beltran- $18.6
Johan Santana- $16.98
Carlos Delgado- $16
Pedro Martinez- $11.8
Billy Wagner- $10.5
Moises Alou- $7.5
Orlando Hernandez- $7
Oliver Perez- $6.5
Louis Castillo- $6.25
David Wright- $5.28
Brian Schneider- $4.9
Jose Reyes- $4.375
Scott Schoeneweis- $3.6
Ryan Church -$2
Mike Pelfrey- $.199
Ramon Castro- $1.98
Endy Chavez- $1.8
Matt Wise- $1.2
Aaron Heilman- $1.2
Marlon Anderson- $1.05
Pedro Feliciano- $1.025
Damion Easley- $0.95
Duaner Sanchez- $0.85
Fernando Tatis- $0.56
John Maine- $0.45
Ambiorix Burgos- $0.415
Angel Pagan- $0.4015
Joe Smith- $0.398
Jason Vargas- $0.394

SOURCE: ESPN New York Mets Salaries

1 Loss, 2 Loss, 3 Loss, 4

(by Brett Kahn)

It's always tough to lose a game 2-1. You have the satisfaction of knowing that your starting pitcher was solid but your offense was not. Imagine that feeling after three straight 2-1 losses. That is how the Mets feel right now.

Mike Pelfrey, Johan Santana, and Oliver Perez all pitched well enough for their team to win, giving up a combined three ER in 17 IP. (1.59 ERA) The only problem was the Mets' bats decided to take three games off.

The Mets offense tallied 30 hits in 134 AB's, a batting average of only .224. In the final game of the series, the Mets were able to bat .286, but a combination of Duaner Sanchez and Billy Wagner couldn't hold the Mets lead as they fell 8-6.

The Mets now find themselves 30-32, 7.5 games behind the division-leading Philadelphia Phillies. With Ryan Church heading to the DL, look for the blue and orange to use more of Endy Chavez and Fernando Tatis for the time being.

The Amazins' will start a six-game home stand tonight as they take on the Arizona Diamondbacks. John Maine will start for the Mets.

Perez Faulters While Martinez Shines

(by Brett Kahn)

The Mets knew if they wanted to compete this season, they needed both a healthy Pedro Martinez and an effective Oliver Perez. So far, neither has really come to fruition.

When Martinez went down with a shoulder injury on April 1st, the Mets knew their starting rotation was in some trouble. However, with the consistency of Johan Santana and the bullpen, (minus Aaron Heilman) the Mets felt they could get by. Yesterday, when Martinez returned, the Mets immediately started feeling the electricity that only he could add. Oh yeah, he also pitched pretty well too. He went six innings, allowing only three runs while striking out three. He threw 109 pitches, 63 for strikes.

Perez was the wild card factor. If he could show consistency like last season, the Mets rotation wouldn't be aching for Martinez to return. That hasn't been the case this season. Perez is 4-4 with a 5.70 ERA with 50 strikeouts. His most recent bad outing came yesterday as he went a season low 1/3 of an inning giving up six runs and two home runs. While he will stay in the rotation for now, look for the team to try and find added rotation help come the trade deadline.

Mets Starting to Rev Up Their Engines

(by Brett Kahn)

Having now won five of their last six games and are now only 3.5 games back of the division lead, the Mets are now ready for a road trip that will take them through two less than stellar teams.

After taking two-of-three against the then division-leading Florida Marlins, the players started banning together and collectively showed their talent. Jose Reyes has now hit in 17 consecutive games and has reached base in 32 consecutive. Whether the rumors of him not getting along with Willie Randolph or true, he is showing the team and fans that he is trying very hard to do all he can.

Carlos Beltran looks like he has finally woken up offensively, having homered in two straight, raising his home run total to six.

Ryan Church started his first game after suffering his second concussion of the season two weeks ago and blasted his 10th home run of the season. This is the earliest in a season Church has reached 10 home runs.

Fernando Tatis has also been one of the key factors in the Mets' new found success. Tatis drove in yet another game-winning run against the Dodgers on Sunday in a 3-2 win. It was the second time he had done so in four games.

Johan Santana pitched very effectively, allowing only one run through 7 2/3 innings. This is the first time since May 4th that Santana has allowed only one run.

The Mets now head west to play the San Francisco Giants and the San Diego Padres. The two teams have a combined record of 47-58. Oliver Perez will start tonight for the Mets while Pedro Martinez will make his second start of the season tomorrow, having not made a start since April 1st. Look for Martinez to go no longer than five innings.

Baby Steps

(by Brett Kahn)

At this point, all the Mets need to do is keep winning games to build momentum. Willie is clearly shaking up the lineup to see what mix of players he likes at different times. If Reyes continues on his torrid hitting pace as of late, the Mets will most likely continue to be successful offensively.

If any baseball analyst or fan said to anyone that the Florida Marlins would be in first place after 45 games, that one person deserves a nice prize. Regardless of how people predicted the Marlins to end up, the Mets needed to prove themselves in this series. They did so with help from Jose Reyes, Endy Chavez, and Fernando Tatis. Chavez's game-tying home run in the ninth last night was his first of the year. We all knew that Chavez could field but to hit a bomb in that spot was extremely clutch. Tatis, on the other hand, has been hot since being called up to the team. He is now batting .368 with a HR and six RBI's in eight games.

The Mets will start a four game series starting tonight against the L.A. Dodgers. The Mets dropped two-of-three the last time they faced the Dodgers, in L.A. Claudio Vargas will throw tonight for the Mets and try to prolong this temporary sense of accomplishment for a team that has underachieved thus far.

Mets Coming Back Home After a Rude Awakening

(by Brett Kahn)

After the Mets were swept by the Atlanta Braves, they dropped to fourth place in the NL East with speculation that Willie Randolph could be fired. Now, after loosing two-of-three to the injury-plagued Colorado Rockies, the Mets now find themselves in a slump that's going to take a lot to "swing" out of.

After the first 48 games of the season, the Mets find themselves 5.5 games out of first place. But, who's fault is this really? Much has been blamed on Randolph and the pitching staff when, in fact, it's the offense that's been lackluster all season. The Mets are currently 22nd in the entire league in batting average at .253, 16th in the league with 228 runs scored, 21st with 41 HR's, 18th with 214 RBI's, and 16th with a .329 OBP. Simply put, this team needs to hit to have any chance to be competitive.

The fans and the media want to blame the pitching staff because the Mets, by adding Johan Santana in the off season, put a lot more emphasis on starting pitching because of the debacle at the end of last year with less than stellar pitching performances coming from Tom Glavine, John Maine, and Oliver Perez. However, it always seems to get swept under the rug how the Mets simply could not hit down the stretch last season.

Until Carlos Delgado boosts his batting average higher than Johan Santana's, David Wright becomes the Wright of old, Jose Reyes stops getting picked off two times per game, and Ryan Church stops colliding with other players, this team will continue to struggle. The question is: will Omar Minaya wait that long to seriously do something about it?

Swept Into the Cellar

(by Brett Kahn)

With a four-game sweep coming at the hands of the Atlanta Braves, the Mets must feel like that pile of dust that someone desperately wants to get rid of.

After a triumphant two-game sweep over the Yankees, the Mets seemed to have their swagger back. That couldn't be further from the truth as the Mets were outscored 27-9 in the Braves series. The only good thing that might have come out of this series was the fact that Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran both hit safely in every game.

The same positive notions can't be said about the pitching. John Maine, Claudio Vargas, Mike Pelfrey, and Johan Santana gave up a combined 17 ER in 20 IP. (7.65 ERA) Starting pitching has been one of the Achilles heels for a team that now finds itself in fourth place in the NL East.

With Moises Alou now on the 15-day DL and all of the recent clubhouse issues that have arose, the depleted Mets head west to face the Colorado Rockies for a three game series starting tonight. Oliver Perez will go for the Mets.

Mets vs. Braves Notes

(by Doug Kahn)

Winless in this last five starts, Mike Pelfrey has a "brave" task ahead. In the past two games, the Mets' starters have been unable to compete with their opposing Atlanta starters, losing both games decidedly. Pelfrey has the daunting task of breaking this slump against the division rival Braves.

During his last start, Pelfrey showed his capabilities against the Nationals, allowing only one run into the eighth inning.

In his last five starts, the Mets have only been able to fork up a maximum of four runs, with a combined total of five in his last three starts. Pelfrey's last outing against the Braves was a loss having lasted only 5 1/3 innings, while giving up nine hits hits and five runs.

In other team news, Ryan Church, arguably the pioneer in Mets hitting as of now, was knocked out cold after an accidental collision occurred when sliding into Braves' second basemen Yunel Escobar.

Church leads the team in average, home runs and falls just two short to David Wright in RBIs.

After the accident, Church was taken to Piedmont Hospital for further observation.

Mets vs. Yankees Recap

(by Brett Kahn)

Not many people in baseball think of rain as a positive force. Rain usually means a double-header somewhere down the line for both teams. However, the rain provided a much needed day off for a Mets team that desperately needed to work out some issues.

Willie Randolph called a team meeting on Friday to discuss the morale of the team. After Billy Wagner's statements to the media earlier that week, it was clear that the team needed to get certain things off their chests. Well, it seemed work.

The Mets pounded the Yankees by a combined score of 18-6 in the two-game series. Both Johan Santana and Oliver Perez pitched very effectively and were awarded with wins.

A player that needed to step up in this series did so in the biggest way. Jose Reyes homered in both games to fire up a team that desperately needed it. After being criticized for being too flamboyant in celebration, Reyes calmed his antics for a while only to be criticized by Mets fans as being stoned-faced and too quiet. There is no doubt that Mets fans are fickle to say the least, but it's clear that when Reyes goes, so do the Mets.

The Mets also got added offensive sparks from Ryan Church, David Wright, Carlos Delgado, and Carlos Beltran as each of them provided clutch hits when the opportunities arose.

The Mets will go into a critical series starting today against the Atlanta Braves. John Maine will go in the early game of the double-header, while Claudio Vargas will go in the night cap.

Mets @ Yankees Preview

(by Brett Kahn)

With the way the Mets have been playing lately, it's no wonder that Billy Wagner flipped at the media after last night's 1-0 loss to the Washington Nationals. However, if Johan Santana went over to Wagner and said "Relax kid. I'm pitching tomorrow," maybe Wagner wouldn't have gotten so mad.

Santana has been the go to guy for the Mets pitching staff this season. He is 4-2 with a 3.10 ERA tallying 52 strikeouts. He also beat the Yankees in his only start against them last season, going seven strong innings and allowing only two runs.

There's no question that both teams desperately need this series. The Mets (20-19) are coming off of series in which they lost two of three to the last place Washington Nationals. The Yankees (20-22) are also coming off a series in which they loss two of three. Except they loss to the first place Tampa Bay Rays. (No people, it's not a typo)

Which team will rise to occasion and which team will fall further into their division's standings? Here are some notes regarding the series.

PITCHING MATCH UPS
5/16- Johan Santana (4-2, 3.10 ERA) vs. Darrell Rasner (2-0, 3.00 ERA)
5/17- Oliver Perez (3-3, 4.61 ERA) vs. Andy Pettitte (3-4, 4.40 ERA)
5/18- John Maine (5-2, 2.81 ERA) vs. Chien-Ming Wang (6-1, 2.90 ERA)

-Both teams met in 2000 World Series

-Mets are 25-35 all-time vs. Yankees, 3-3 in 2007

-Mets are 10-20 all-time at Yankee Stadium

-Moises Alou will be playing his first games ever at Yankee Stadium

Roster Moves

(by Brett Kahn)

The Mets made some drastic changes this week due to the fact that reliever Matt Wise was ready to return from the DL. Here are the most recent changes.

Nelson Figueroa- designated for assignment
Jorge Sosa- designated for assignment
Matt Wise- added to roster
Claudio Vargas- added to roster and will start 5/14 vs. Nationals
Angel Pagan- 15-day DL
Fernando Tatis- added to roster

Figueroa Lashes Out at Nats

(by Brett Kahn)

Figueroa had a right to be angry after a less than stellar performance last night in a 10-4 loss against the last place Washington Nationals. However, the worst of his performance might have come after the game during the post game interview when Figueroa took offense to Washington's post-game celebration.

"They were cheering in the dugout like a bunch of softball girls," he said. "I am a professional, I take great offense to that. ... They won tonight, but in the long run, look who they are, a last-place team. ... They should show a little more class and act a little more professional." And then the kicker: "That's why they are who they are." (NEWYORKMETS.COM)

Catcher Brian Schneider also took slight offense. "It sounded like the College World Series," the former Nationals catcher said. "I guess they're trying anything now." (NEWYORKMETS.COM)

John Maine goes tonight in the second game of the three-game series. If Maine can duplicate his last performance, I'm sure the Mets won't have to worry about the Nationals celebrating.

Notable Notes

(by Brett Kahn)

As I was uncorking a bottle of wine that I bought, I instantly had a thought. Was this the reason the Mets were hitting so well lately? It worked for Sammy. Ok so maybe the Cincinnati Reds pitching staff isn't stellar, but the Mets haven't been hitting anyone all season so pardon me for being a little suspicious. Regardless, the Mets took two of three in two days against the Reds, and they did so with the bats.

-Carlos Beltran may have found his stroke having batted .455 (5/11) with 8 RBI's in the series. His batting averaged raised from .218 to .240.

-I mentioned a little while ago about the direct correlation between the top of the order and the offense. Today, Jose Reyes and Luis Castillo went 5-for-8 at the top of the order as the Mets piled on eight runs.

-Brian Schneider's home run yesterday was his first extra-base hit of the season. (21 1B and 1 HR)

-Carlos Delgado also batted .455 (5/11) in the series raising his batting average from .216 to .236.

-Scott Schoeneweis pitched 1 2/3 innings in relief today lowering his stellar ERA to 1.50

Will Heilman Start?

(by Brett Kahn)

On WFAN this morning, Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts discussed the idea of Aaron Heilman joining the starting rotation.

Since reliever Matt Wise is on his way back to the bullpen, there needs to be an open roster spot for him. If the Mets send Heilman to the minors for a little while to work on his pitches so he can start, Wise can return to the Mets bullpen in place of Heilman.

Since the Mets don't know how effective Pedro Martinez will ever be again or when Orlando Hernandez will return, having Heilman as an ace up the sleeve might help solidify the starting rotation.

Notable Notes

(by Brett Kahn)

Last night, the Mets rebounded from a disastrous first game against the LA Dodgers with help from starter John Maine. Maine went 8.1 innings, giving up one earned run while striking out four. Maine showed complete control against a very young and dangerous Dodgers' lineup. The final score of the game was 12-1.

-Ryan Church went 3-for-5 raising his batting average to .328. He also added a home run, his sixth of the season.

-Marlon Anderson and Raul Casanova each had two hits replacing Carlos Delgado and Brian Schneider respectively. Casanova drove in two runs while Anderson drove in one.

-John Maine also drove in two runs at the plate.

-Mets scored six runs in the sixth inning.