Happy Recap: Mets 5 Diamondbacks 3
Boy did they need that one.
The Mets were verging on the brink of nuclear winter when that home run by Reynolds went over the wall.
But luckily they got some good relief pitching (after Wagner) from Heilman, Feliciano and Vargas.
And Beltran came through in the clutch. I know he is a popular target for many Mets fans and even I've begun to sour on him but he has hit some huge home runs during his career with the Mets including two in the last 2 weeks.
But I feel bad for Mike Pelfrey, he pitched the game of his life and had nothing to show for it.
In his last 3 starts his ERA is 1.71 (4 earned runs in 21 innings) but he has 3 no decisions. He started the game against the Dodgers, where Beltran's homer put the Mets ahead, he started the game Schoeneweis lost with a walkoff HBP and now this one.
And if you go all the way back to his second start in May, he is 0-4 with a 3.59 ERA. Now that's a decent ERA for a 5th starter (so is 4.24 which is his new season total) but he's been a victim of bad bullpen and bad hitting several times.
Let me repeat. In his last 7 starts, he's allowed 2 runs or fewer 5 times (all in at least 6 innings) and has zero wins to show for it. That's pitching to tough luck. But if he keeps pitching this way, he's going to fulfill his promise. He's shown better mental toughness as well as better command and an increase in his strikeout rate.
But I don't have a problem with the way Willie managed him in this game. I was actually shocked he left Pelfrey in to hit for himself in the 8th inning. Shocked but pleasantly surprised. And I don't have a problem with him taking Pelfrey out after one hit. Even though he seems to blow every big save you can't manage scared of your closer. You can manage scared of your other relievers, but if you're afraid to bring your closer in with a 3-run lead it's going to hurt you more times than it helps.
Thankfully Wagner's blowup didn't cost the Mets, and hopefully this comeback galvanized them to finally get their heads out of their collective asses and start playing winning baseball.
But we should point out that this whole thing might not have happened if not for a bad call that allowed Reyes to reach base in the 4th which led to the Mets 3-run inning. So they did catch a huge break in this one.
The Mets were verging on the brink of nuclear winter when that home run by Reynolds went over the wall.
But luckily they got some good relief pitching (after Wagner) from Heilman, Feliciano and Vargas.
And Beltran came through in the clutch. I know he is a popular target for many Mets fans and even I've begun to sour on him but he has hit some huge home runs during his career with the Mets including two in the last 2 weeks.
But I feel bad for Mike Pelfrey, he pitched the game of his life and had nothing to show for it.
In his last 3 starts his ERA is 1.71 (4 earned runs in 21 innings) but he has 3 no decisions. He started the game against the Dodgers, where Beltran's homer put the Mets ahead, he started the game Schoeneweis lost with a walkoff HBP and now this one.
And if you go all the way back to his second start in May, he is 0-4 with a 3.59 ERA. Now that's a decent ERA for a 5th starter (so is 4.24 which is his new season total) but he's been a victim of bad bullpen and bad hitting several times.
Let me repeat. In his last 7 starts, he's allowed 2 runs or fewer 5 times (all in at least 6 innings) and has zero wins to show for it. That's pitching to tough luck. But if he keeps pitching this way, he's going to fulfill his promise. He's shown better mental toughness as well as better command and an increase in his strikeout rate.
But I don't have a problem with the way Willie managed him in this game. I was actually shocked he left Pelfrey in to hit for himself in the 8th inning. Shocked but pleasantly surprised. And I don't have a problem with him taking Pelfrey out after one hit. Even though he seems to blow every big save you can't manage scared of your closer. You can manage scared of your other relievers, but if you're afraid to bring your closer in with a 3-run lead it's going to hurt you more times than it helps.
Thankfully Wagner's blowup didn't cost the Mets, and hopefully this comeback galvanized them to finally get their heads out of their collective asses and start playing winning baseball.
But we should point out that this whole thing might not have happened if not for a bad call that allowed Reyes to reach base in the 4th which led to the Mets 3-run inning. So they did catch a huge break in this one.
Labels: diamondbacks, happy recap, pelfrey
posted by Paul at 5:28 AM
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