Blogging Mets

Matt Harvey got his second big league start Tuesday night against the Giants. He pitched well again, but still came away with his first loss.

Matt Harvey suffers 1st major league loss

The Mets got on the board in the second against Tim Lincecum. Scott Hairston singled and Justin Turner hit a double to left to score Hairston and take a 1-0 lead.

Harvey learned in the bottom of the inning all about how the Mets defense can cost you games. A single, double and walk loaded the bases with no outs. Justin Christian hit a comebacker and Harvey flipped to Josh Thole for the first out. Bases still loaded, Brandon Crawford hit a certain double play ball to second that should have gotten Harvey out of the inning unscathed. However after getting the out at second, Ruben Tejada launched a wild throw over Ike Davis’s head. Two runs came around to score to give the Giants a 2-1 lead.

Ryan Theriot led off the sixth with a double. Melky Cabrera bunted for a hit, putting runners on first and third with no outs. Harvey walked Buster Posey to load the bases. Marco Scutaro then grounded into a double play, but a run scored to make it 3-1.

In the seventh the Mets loaded the bases with one out, but Thole lined out and David Wright, pinch hitting for Harvey after getting the night off, struck out.

Harvey went six innings, allowing three runs (two earned), on just four hits. He did walk three batters to go along with seven strikeouts. He twice pitched himself into bases loaded trouble, but both times he was able to recover and get the ground balls he needed to help him out.  Of course, the defense let him down the first time. But Harvey deserves credit for keeping his poise while his back was up against the wall.

Ramon Ramirez allowed a run in the eighth as the Mets went on to lose 4-1 to end a rotten July on a down note.

In a shocking trade, the Marlins traded Mets-killer Gaby Sanchez to the Pirates for a player and a competitive balance draft pick.

This is just a puzzling move by the Marlins. Granted, Sanchez is not having a good year. He is batting just .202 with three homers and 17 RBIs in nearly 200 at bats. He has spent about half the season in the minors. But he hit 19 home runs each in 2010 and 2011 (most of them, it seemed, against the Mets) and was an All-Star last season.

In return they get Gorkys Hernandez, a once-top prospect who hasn’t show much over the past few years.

The draft pick could be the key. This is a draft for low-revenue clubs that was agreed upon in the last CBA. Unlike the regular draft, these picks can be traded.

As usual, the Marlins are making ridiculous moves, which is why I picked them to finish last this season despite their new stadium and the off-season spending spree. Those poor fans in Miami.

By the way, Sanchez is batting .342 with eight home runs and 31 RBIS against the Mets. So it is good news that he is out of the division.

The Mets won’t be conducting any business on this trading deadline day, but that doesn’t mean the rest of the NL East is standing pat. The Phillies, for one, appear to be holding a fire sale.

They traded Shane Victorino to the Dodgers for two pitchers and they sent Hunter Pence to the Giants for three players.

These are interesting moves for the Phillies. Victorino is a free agent after the season, so apparently the Phillies decided they didn’t want to resign him. Trading Pence is another story; he has one year left before free agency and he is leading the team in home runs and RBIs. He would likely cost the Phillies upwards of $15 million in 2013, so maybe they don’t think he’s worth that much.

It’s just odd for a team to trade away two of its leading hitters while at the same time spend $144 million to resign a pitcher (Cole Hamels). But Ruben Amaro, Jr. has proven in the past that he knows what he’s doing, so I’m sure he has a plan.

There is also talk that the Phillies are shopping Cliff Lee. I would be stunned if he were moved. The Phillies are not rebuilding; they are reloading for next season, and Lee will play a crucial role in 2013. It looks like Amaro is just clearing some salary now in order to make more moves later.

In any case this is good news for the Mets. Two very good hitters are now out of the division, and hopefully it means the Mets can stay ahead of the Phils in the standings this season.

The Mets opened a four-game series in San Francisco Monday night, and if they hope to have any success there, they have to match the Giants stellar rotation with excellent starts of their own. Well, Jeremy Hefner got things started on a positive note, however some sloppy fielding did him in. The Mets offense kicked into gear to take the lead, only to be undermined by the bullpen in the ninth inning. They would win in extras, thanks to Scott Hairston’s second home run on the night.

Scott Hairston rounds bases after 1 of his 2 homers on Monday

The Giants got on the board first — a Marco Scutaro sacrifice fly in the third made it 1-0.

The Mets answered back in the top of the fourth, but the damage could have been far more had it not been for an awful call by the umpires. David Wright led off the inning with a single. Scott Hairston hit a grounder to third that could have been a double play, except second baseman Ryan Theriot dropped the toss. Wright quickly scampered to third. However, the umpire called Wright out at second, saying Theriot dropped the ball on the transfer. He clearly did not; he never had control. In any case, Hairston stole second, Ike Davis struck out and Jason Bay walked. With two outs Ronny Cedeno doubled to left, scoring both runners to give the Mets a 2-1 lead.

The Giants tied it in the fifth when Melky Cabrera drove home Scutaro, who led off the inning with a double.

San Francisco regained the lead in the sixth. With one out, consecutive singles put runners on first and third. Pinch hitter Aubrey Huff hit a certain double play ball to second baseman Ronny Cedeno that should have ended the inning. However Cedeno could not handle the easy grounder, recovering in time to only get the out at second and allowing the run to score from third to make it 3-2. Scutaro singled to send Matt Cain (who was pinch running for Huff after he hurt himself running down to first) to third. Theriot singled to right to score Cain and make it 4-2. Hefner was lifted in favor of Ramon Ramirez with two outs and runners on first and third. He was able to close out the inning.

Hefner pitched better than his line indicated — 5.2 innings, four runs allowed on 10 hits, with five strikeouts and three walks. That Cedeno bobble, while not an error, was the killer.

But Hairston bailed out Cedeno and saved Hefner from a loss. Jordany Valdespin led off the eighth inning with a pinch hit single, and with one out Hairston sent a pitch over the wall in left to tie the score at four. But the Mets weren’t through. Ike Davis was hit by a pitch and was erased from the basepaths when Jason Bay grounded into a fielder’s choice. Pinch hitter Justin Turner then hit a two-out double to deep center to score Bay from first and take a 5-4 lead. Rob Johnson then hit a ball that Scutaro could not handle. It hit off his glove, allowing Turner to score to extend the Mets lead to 6-4.

Jon Rauch pitched a perfect eighth, and then came Bobby Parnell and the ninth inning. Melky Cabrera led off with a single to left. Buster Posey followed with a long double to score Cabrera to cut it the Mets lead to 6-5. Eli Whiteside came in to pinch run for Posey. Gregor Blanco hit a chopper to second for the first out, moving Whiteside to third. Terry Collins removed Parnell from the game, bringing in Josh Edgin to close things out. Nate Schierholtz hit a slow roller down to first that Davis somehow missed. It looked like Davis was trying to get in position for the eventual throw home, causing him to whiff on the ball. Whiteside scored to tie the game at six. Schierholtz ended up at second. Edgin struck out Bradon Belt and walked Justin Christian. Joaquin Arias was next, hitting a ball up the middle that Daniel Murphy fielded, but he could not get a grip on the ball to throw anywhere, so the bases were load. Edgin then struck out Scutaro on a full count to end the inning.

So it was onto extra innings. And in the tenth it was Hairston again, with a solo shot to give the Mets a 7-6 lead. He now has 14 home runs on the season. With one out Bay walked and Mike Baxter, fresh off the disabled list, picked up where he left off with a pinch hit single that moved Bay to third. Johnson then bunted for what was supposed to be a safety squeeze. However Bay took off from third when nobody bothered to look him back. He scored a huge insurance run to make it 8-6.

Every Mets fan held their breath as Manny Acosta was called on to get the save (Guillermo Mota was apparently not available). He predictably walked Theriot to start the 10th. Cabrera hit a long, scary fly to the warning track in center for the first out. Acosta walked Whiteside to put runners in first and second. Collins then came out and all he did was talk to Acosta instead of removing him (only Elvin Ramirez was left in the bullpen, and he wasn’t even warming up). Blanco popped up to Wright in foul territory for the second out. Schierholtz singled to score Theriot to make it an 8-7 game. Belt came to the plate with runners on first and third with two outs. He hit an even scarier drive to dead center that Valdespin was able to track down for the final out.

In spite of the poor effort by the bullpen, the Mets win a wild one, 8-7.

The non-waiver trade deadline is set for 4pm on Tuesday, July 31, and don’t expect to hear the Mets name being called out — they will likely not be either buyers nor sellers. It should be a quiet day for our favorite team, and that’s just the way Sandy Alderson wants it.

Before the All-Star break there was speculation that Alderson would strengthen the bullpen or even add a catcher. A 3-13 record since then has quelled that talk. I’m sure Alderson is not happy with the record, but I suspect he is pleased that he does not have to deviate from his plans, which did not include contending this season and having to make any big trades at the deadline.

There have been reports that teams have inquired about Scott Hairston and Tim Byrdak. They will likely stay put because the Mets still have two more months to play and they are relatively important members of the team. Plus they would not bring back anything substantial in return.

The search for a catcher, a new bullpen, and a right handed power hitting outfielder will have to wait until the off-season as the Mets limp towards the finish of the 2012 schedule.

The Mets announced on Twitter Sunday evening that Mike Baxter will be activated before Monday’s game against the Giants and that Kirk Nieuwenhuis will be sent down to Buffalo to make room for him.

Mike Baxter returns from injury on catch that saved Johan Santana's no-hitter

Baxter hurt his shoulder June 1 making the catch that saved Johan Santana’s no-hitter. He will return to Citi Field a conquering hero. Prior to the injury Baxter was one of the most effective pinch hitters in baseball, batting .444 with a .542 on-base percentage. He had six RBIs in 18 pinch at bats, with five of his eight hits doubles. Overall he had 11 doubles in just 65 at bats.

Nieuwenhuis started out red hot but he has cooled considerably — he is batting just .105 in the month of July. Overall he is hitting .252 with seven home runs and 28 RBIs. His defense in center field has been excellent.

I have mixed feelings about this. On one hand, the league has obviously made the adjustment towards Nieuwenhuis, and he doesn’t appear to have the answer for it. Perhaps he needs to go down to Triple-A to work things out.

On the other hand, Nieuwenhuis could be a vital part of the Mets future and played so well early in the season that he seemed to earn his place. I just feel badly for the guy.

Also working against Nieuwenhuis is the fact that he and Baxter are both left handed. The Mets have far too many lefty batters on the roster.

Either way, Baxter certainly deserves to be back on the team. He sacrificed two months of his season for the team with his catch that has already entered Mets lore. I just wish there were another way to make room for him. Dumping Andres Torres or (dare I say) Jason Bay seems more justified than sending Nieuwenhuis down.

R.A. Dickey is the first National League pitcher to 14 wins, going seven solid innings as the Mets gain a split of the four-game series with the Diamondbacks.

R.A. Dickey picks up 14th win

The Mets seem to do better when they jump out to an early lead, so the Mets decided to jump out to an early lead. Daniel Murphy singled with one out in the first. David Wright doubled off the wall in right to score Murphy. Scott Hairston followed with a double of his own to plate Wright and give the Mets a 2-0 lead.

Dickey’s knuckleball was unpredictable in the first couple of innings. In the second a single, a hit batter and a walk loaded the bases, but Dickey was able to pitch his way out of trouble and keep the Diamondbacks off the board.

The Mets made it 3-0 in the fifth when Wright walked, stole second and scored on a Hairston single.

Torres walked to lead off the sixth, advanced to second on a ground out and then onto third on an infield single by Ruben Tejada. Murphy doubled to score Torres to make it 4-0.

The Diamondbacks finally broke through against Dickey in the sixth, but it wasn’t really Dickey’s fault. With one out Aaron Hill hit a ball to deep short. Tejada let fly a wild throw that landed in the dugout, also landing Hill on second. It was ruled a hit and a throwing error. With two outs he moved to third on a passed ball — a strike that Josh Thole simply missed. Paul Goldschmidt then singled home Hill to make it 4-1. Goldschmidt advanced to second on another passed ball and Miguel Montero walked to put runners on first and second. Dickey struck out Chris Young to limit the damage to one run.

Dickey ending up going seven innings, allowing one unearned run on four hits, striking out eight and walking three. He’s now 14-2 with a 2.83 ERA.

Knowing the game was going to the bullpen, the Mets wanted to score as many runs as possible. Andres Torres led off the eighth with a single, and he came all the way around to score on a double by Thole to make it 5-1.

That was the final score, as the Mets get just their third win since the All-Star break against 13 loses.

Ike Davis hit three home runs Saturday night, providing all of the offense for the Mets, but it wasn’t enough as another starter dug an early hole out of which the team could not dig itself out.

Ike Davis rounds bases after 1st of 3 homers Saturday in Arizona

It was trouble from the start for Chris Young. Gerardo Parra led off the bottom of the first with a single and Aaron Hill followed with a double off the wall to score Parra. Young briefly settled down and stranded Hill at third.

Davis got the run back with one mighty swing leading off the second inning, an absolute bomb to dead center field just below the scoreboard to tie the score at one.

Young walked Miguel Montero to lead off the second. He came around to score on a Ryan Wheeler double to give the Diamondbacks a 2-1 lead. Parra singled to plate Wheeler to make it 3-1.

In a case of deja vu, Davis hit another solo home run in the fourth, also to dead center field in almost the same spot as the first one to cut the lead to 3-2.

With a man on in the fourth Montero homered to right to make it 5-2. Young walked Wheeler, who scored when Parra singled again to extend the lead to 6-2.

Young was lifted for a pinch hitter after four crummy innings in which he allowed six runs on seven hits. His ERA now stands at 4.58.

Then leading off the six, Davis hit his third solo home run on the night, this one into the right field bullpen, to make it a 6-3 game. Davis has hit four homers in two games back in his hometown and now has 20 for the season. He’s tied for sixth most in the National League.

In the eighth inning, going for a would-be record tying fourth home run, Davis singled to right. The four-for-four night raised Davis’s batting average to .216. But more importantly, it put runners on first and second with no outs. Daniel Murphy gave it a ride but flew out to the warning track in center. David Wright, who had walked to lead off the inning, advanced to third. Jason Bay struck out on consecutive vicious breaking balls from David Hernandez. Kirk Nieuwenhuis also struck out to end the threat.

With one out in the ninth Andres Torres struck out,  but the ball got past the catcher and Torres was safe at first. Ruben Tejada singled to put runners in first and second. Pinch hitter Scott Hairston, the potential tying run at the plate, struck out on a 3-2 pitch that was out of the strike zone. It was up to Wright — and he struck out, too, to end the game, with Davis standing on deck.

The bullpen (Ramon Ramirez, Manny Acosta and Josh Edgin) deserves credit for throwing four scoreless innings to keep the game within reach, but this time the offense (except for Davis) couldn’t get the job done.

Mets lose again, 6-3, but let’s concentrate on Davis’s three home runs. Yeah, let’s do that.

The Mets are back to their losing ways, the memory of Matt Harvey’s brilliant debut now just a distant memory, as yet another extremely ugly inning led to a Mets loss in Arizona Friday night.

David Wright rounds bases after 3rd inning homer

Ike Davis got the Mets started in the second with a solo bomb into the seats in right, much to the delight of Davis’s delirious high school pals who were sitting behind home plate. His 17 home runs lead the team. Red hot Daniel Murphy followed with his team leading 31st double. He would score when Andres Torres singled with two outs and the Mets had a 2-0 lead.

But in the bottom of the inning the Diamondbacks loaded the bases with three singles, and Jonathon Niese walked Henry Blanco to force in a run. Opposing pitcher Josh Collementer singled to right to tie the game at two. The bases still loaded, Willie Bloomquist hit a slow roller towards third which Niese fielded. He had no play at first but he threw anyway. He was off balanced, and of course it was a wild throw that got past Ike Davis. Three runs somehow came around to score on the play to give the Diamondbacks a 5-2 lead. Bloomquist landed on third and would score on a sacrifice fly to make it 6-2.

But the Mets did not lay down. Ruben Tejada and Jordany Valdespin both singled to lead off the third. Then David Wright hit a shot to left that got out of Chase Field in a hurry. The three-run homer brought the Mets to within 6-5. It was Wright’s 16th home run of the season to go along with 70 RBIs, tied for third in the league.

Niese, however, seemed intent on not keeping the game close, giving up a run in each the fourth and fifth innings to make it an 8-5 game.

Niese was done after aix disappointing innings, allowing eight runs (six earned) on nine hits.

Elvin Ramirez allowed three more runs as the Mets went down 11-5.

With the Olympic Opening Ceremony being held today in London, it is a good time to point out that the ceremony could have been held in Citi Field, with the Mets playing this season at Yankee Stadium.

Apparently the only image of what Citi Field would have looked like as Olympic stadium

Let’s go back in time to 2005, when New York City was feverishly bidding for the 2012 games. The centerpiece was an Olympic stadium over the rail yards at 34th street on the West Side. The Jets would later play there.

The stadium was always a contentious issue, as opponents and supporters argued for years over whether such a structure should be built in the area. Fat, incompetent James Dolan led the charge against the stadium, saying what was truly needed there was housing for the city’s unfortunate tupoor people, and pledged millions to make that happen. Of course, Dolan was more concerned about Madison Square Garden losing business to the new stadium.

On June 6, 2005, a month before the International Olympic Committee was going to make its choice, the state denied its portion of the funding, killing the project (shockingly, Dolan’s and MSG’s interest in housing suddenly disappeared).

The city was left scrambling, so it devised a scheme to use the new Mets stadium, which was already in the planning phase. The idea called for the stadium to be built in time for the 2009 season, except part of the outfield stands would be temporary. Then after the 2011 season the stadium would be expanded to handle the Olympics. The Mets would take up residence in Yankee Stadium for the year. After the Olympics the structure would be rebuilt to what we see today.

Of course, the IOC rejected the plan and awarded the games to London.

Most people in the city breathed a sigh of relief, fearing the traffic and security nightmares that are currently London’s problems. As for Mets fans, it probably worked out for the best. We got our stadium anyway in 2009, and we didn’t have to undergo the trauma of going to The Bronx this season to watch our team as tenants of the hated Yankees.