SUNDAY NIGHT
Livan
First up is Livan Hernandez. Livan did not start off very well by allowing 3 runs in the first inning. Given the way the Mets won the night before, it seemed it was a bad omen but turns out that was all Livan was going to give up as he turned in a 7 inning performance with 7 punch outs. Livan’s performance gave the Mets the best shot to win this game and has been more consistent since his “hick up” earlier in the month. He threw 107 pitches in seven innings and won his second straight start after losing the previous four. Good Job Gordo!
Castillo
Next up is Castillo. Castillo is officially on fire. For the year, Castillo is batting .301 on the year and really got the party started. Castillo hit the first of three Met triples and went 2-4 with 2 RBI and accounting for 2 runs. What a year can do for someone I guess. Jerry Manuel a few games ago was begging for someone to get hot…I guess Castillo was ready for the challenge. Good game Luis!
Wright
Last up is David Wright. David looks like he is picking up steam since his HR the previous game by turning in 2-5 with 2 RBI and accounting for 2 runs. David is still hitting above .300(.321 to be exact) and coming up with the “big hit”. David is hitting .342 with runners on and .339 with RISP, which has been a big issue for this club. The Mets sorely need David to have a repeat of May when he hit .379 with 22 RBI. Good game David
Honorable Mentions
Jeff Francoeur for driving in 2 RBI’s in this game. Francoeur has 14 RBIs since joining the Mets on July 10 in a trade from Atlanta. He has multiple RBIs in four of 12 starts in New York and said his transition from the Braves has gone better than he expected it would.
Alex Cora for going 2-4 and accounting for 2 runs
Sean Green for his 1.1IP of scoreless ball for his first save of the year
Monday Night
Tatis
First up is Fernando Tatis. Fernando did his best Manny Ramirez impression tonight. With the bases loaded, Jerry PH Cory Sullivan(who earlier in the game hit a sac fly to tie it up) for Fernando Tatis in the bottom of the 8th inning with one out. Fernando Tatis has hit into 13 Double plays which is good for the second highest percentage in the NL. Tatis got into an early 0-2 hole. Morales throws a change up that Tatis golfs over the left field “black monster” for a pinch hit game winning grand slam. Needless to say, im sure there are alot of Met fans that are enjoying the taste of their hats. Great Job Tatis… what a way to get your first MUA. The pinch-hit slam was the first for the Mets since May 30, 2000.
Castillo
Next up is Luis Castillo. Luis with a back to back Man Up performance went 2-3, accounting for 2 runs. Castillo is now hitting .305 and is well on his way to erasing his 08 season in the memories of Met fans. Over the last four games, Castillo is 9-15 with 4 RBI and accounting for 7 runs of Met offense. It seems like there’s nobody that can get Luis out these days and has been a big part of the Mets 3 game winning streak. Great game Luis
Wright
Next up is David Wright. David did his best Luis Castillo impression by also going 2-3 and accounting for 2 runs. David is also heating up as he is 5-11 with 3 RBI, 1 HR and accounting for 6 runs of Mets offense. With Gary Sheffield on the DL, it will be more important than ever for Wright to make something out of everything. Something tells me that David is game. Good game David
Frenchy
Next up is Jeff “Frenchy” Francoeur. We should be calling Jeff “The Muscle” of the Mets but i think we can settle on “F-Core” as our buddy Baseball Mercenaries calls him. Jeff put the Mets on the board with a solo shot in the 4th and had a long fly out that allowed David Wright to tag up and move to third and eventually score to tie the game. David Wright better watch himself as that was his 3rd HR as a Met and is quickly catching up to Davids season total. Jeff undeniably has made an impact on the Mets and is well on his way on erasing the red and dark blue colors he used to represent as a member of the Braves. Good game Frenchy
Jerry
Last up is Jerry Manuel. If anything for having the “cojones”(or dumb luck) to PH Fernando Tatis in a situation where his stats do not support that move. He also called for a bunt with Daniel Murphy to set up a situation to get at least one run for the lead. Lastly for allowing Pedro Feliciano to pitch the 8th against the odds with two RH mixed in. This is his second MUA.
Honorable Mentions
Daniel Murphy for his EXCELLENT bunt in the bottom of the 8th inning
Cory Sullivan who hit a sac fly to tie the game
Pedro Feliciano for pitching a scoreless top 8th which included RH batters
12 comments
GravediggerHebner
7/28/2009-12:07pm at 12:07 pm (UTC -4)
Is it irony that Luis Castillo is reborn amidst a season of such overall poor performance by the organization?
dirtysanchez
7/28/2009-12:35pm at 12:35 pm (UTC -4)
lol tell me about it….who would have thought luis castillo would be the bright spot of the 2009 season
fongy2
7/28/2009-12:38pm at 12:38 pm (UTC -4)
Yes it is. Maybe the last 2yrs
of his contract will now be movable.With all these other
things going on,funny no one
talks about how since almost
to the day since Castillo walked in the door,Reyes has
regressed as a player during
a period in which he should
be coming into his prime.
I really think we should
lower expectations for next
yr even.I think theres little
chance we’re major FA players
and we should(and hopefully Omar will)focus on players who
can be acquired w/o giving up
the farm and whos contracts
aren’t insane.
A few names who come to mind
include,Overbay,Snyder&Jackson
of Arizona,Fred Sanchez and
DeJesus.You’d think our lineup
next season will already include Reyes,Wright,Belran&
Frenchy and Johan,Pelf,Ollie
&KRod Pitching.Maybe FMart gets atleast a platoon LF spot
,Niese gets a rotation spot
and maybe Parnell.Everything
else is up in the air!
CaseStreet
7/28/2009-12:48pm at 12:48 pm (UTC -4)
I agree w/ you about this winter not being a big year for us on the FA market.
I could see us coming back w/ Niese replacing Livan, F-Mart full time in LF, and Murph at 1B.
I’d really like for Omar to get Bengie Molina for one year, and then throw the bank at Joe Mauer the following year.
dirtysanchez
7/28/2009-12:51pm at 12:51 pm (UTC -4)
agreed up to the fmart thing. I think your right in that there may be a reasonable chance fmart will be starting in LF but i dont want him to. He needs WAY more conditioning(a full year in AAA) and we need to bring in power. I would agree that he should shoot for molina on a one year deal.
fongy2
7/28/2009-12:56pm at 12:56 pm (UTC -4)
I’d like it too!Just dont
think its gonna
happen.Molina
will get more than 1 yr from
someone,I just
hope its not
us! As almost
all non-steroid
taking Catchers
in the history
of this game
have proven…
Around 32/33,
its off the cliff,career wise.
As for Murph,
I like the kid,I root for
him.Hes one of those who I saw
quite a bit in the minors and
therefore am a
little partial BUT I’m not so sure hes an everyday player.
Unless ofcourse
he plays for the Pirates or
Padres
CaseStreet
7/28/2009-1:59pm at 1:59 pm (UTC -4)
Nick Johnson and Carl Crawford would be nice replacements over Daniel Murphy and Fernando Martinez.
CaseStreet
7/28/2009-12:39pm at 12:39 pm (UTC -4)
It’s great to see Luis get his 2nd MUA.
More importantly though, it’s great to see the role players playing well.
Mad Props to Castillo, Pagan, Frenchy and to a lesser extent Murph.
Give me a healthy core and role players that don’t suck, and we’ll be in a good place for a final push to capture the WC or dare I say, the division.
metsfan4decades
7/28/2009-12:41pm at 12:41 pm (UTC -4)
Love these MUAs.
When Beltran went on the DL, I said that’s it, any predictions we had for this season, just throw out the window. Al bets were off now. I was just going to watch the games and expect the unexpected. Like the Mets winning a series in Houston and the only game they DIDN’T win was Johan’s.
Last night, when Murph was called on to bunt, I’m thinking: forget it. The only two guys on this team that can bunt is Castillo and Livan. And what does he do? Gets down a picture perfect bunt called for in that situation.
Tatis comes up with bases loaded and admit it, we were ALL thinking the same thing. Please just don’t hit into a double play. And what does he do? One swing of the bat, puts 4 runs on the board.
Just expect the unexpected…
dirtysanchez
7/28/2009-12:52pm at 12:52 pm (UTC -4)
I dont know about you 4d but my hat was pretty tasty!
metsfan4decades
7/28/2009-1:11pm at 1:11 pm (UTC -4)
Ha! Forget who, but one of you offered me hot sauce for those words I had to eat when I kept saying: ‘just let Murph swing away. He can’t bunt’…..
metsgirl31
7/28/2009-1:22pm at 1:22 pm (UTC -4)
Awesome game and win last nite! I watched that ball Tatis hit and didn’t breathe while it kept travelling…when I realized it was out I literally screamed. Total shock and relief! They did a great job battling back and winning last nite.
Do we dare to hope….?