Frenchy from Grease
Jeff “Frenchy” Francoeur and Rod “OurRod” ™ Barajas each hit 2 home runs for the New York Mets leading them to an 8-2 victory over the Washington Nationals, whose pitching staff has now allowed 32 runs in 4 games this season. For both the homers were their first and second of the young season. Garrett Mock started for the Nats and left after only 3 1/3 innings despite allowing only 2 runs on solo shots to Francoeur in the 2nd and Barajas in the 4th, but he had walked 5 batters and thrown 84 pitches. The Mets, who finished last in the major leagues in home runs hit as a team in 2009, never hit more than 3 home runs in any one game last season. Two Mets batters last hit multiple home runs in the same game in 2006.
Rod from The Simpsons
The Nats took the early lead. In the top of the 2nd, Adam Dunn walked and Ivan Rodriguez singled, then new Nats SS Ian Desmond tripled both of them in for a 2-0 lead. The Mets cut it to 2-1 in the bottom of the 2nd when Francoeur led off with a solo home run. In the bottom of the 4th the Mets tied the game at 2 when Barajas led off with a solo shot, then Mock hastened his own exit from the game by walking 2 of the next 3 batters, but Miguel Batista relieved him and prevented the Mets from scoring further that inning.
Inanimate Carbon Rod
The Mets took the lead in the bottom of the 6th when Barajas led off the inning with another solo shot, this one off Batista (0-1). In the 7th they blew it open. Jason Bergmann relieved Batista, and with one out David Wright hit what appeared to my eyes to be a mammoth home run off the facade of the second deck of the stadium, but umpires ruled that the ball hit off the top of the outfield fence and Wright had a double. One out later, pinch hitter Fernando Tatis singled off reliever Jesse English to drive in Wright. The next batter, Francoeur, then hit his second homer of the game, a 2-run blast giving the Mets a 6-3 lead.
Frenchy from South Park
In the bottom of the 8th the Mets tacked on some insurance runs. 20 year old rookie SS Ruben Tejada led off with a single for his first major league hit. One out later Angel Pagan singled him to second base. Alex Cora, who had played sparkling defense at second base throughout the game then singled driving in Tejada. Wright followed with an RBI single of his own producing the final score of 8-2.
Pitching rod, I mean staff
Mike Pelfrey (1-0) started for the Mets and mixed in his effective new splitter to keep the Nats off balance and throw 6 innings, allowing 2 runs on 4 hits and 4 walks, throwing 94 pitches. Hisanori Takahashi, Fernando Nieve and Jenrry Mejia each threw a scoreless inning to finish the game. The Mets starting pitching staff, much maligned by me and others over the last few months, has now put forth 3 quality starts in 4 games, and the also-maligned bullpen has thrown 6 consecutive scoreless innings over the last 2 games.
Gee it's good to see ya!
Next up, smilin’ Jose Reyes returns to active duty.
29 comments
metsfan4decades
4/9/2010-10:48pm at 10:48 pm (UTC -4)
I stick around just to catch these post games when the games end. Can’t wait to see the theme each night. Nice job and LOVE the last pic…
Nice game from Pelfrey. Had a few walks but in the same respect, did not have a meltdown when he put guys on base. I liked what I saw and hopefully this is preview of a very nice season for Mike.
Who said the Mets can’t hit HRs in Citi Field? Almost 5 HRs – sorry David….
Barajas is looking like the steal of this season. If he’s contributing to this young pitching staff getting off to a good start, he’ll be worth every penny. Oh, and his offense is a refreshing change.
Kevin Burhardt’s first comment to Jerry on post game: ‘So Jerry, was it CBP tonight’?
Great game tonight.
Let’s go Ollie, tomorrow. Hope he was taking notes.
And JOSE, Jose-Jose-Jose is back tomorrow!
metsfan4decades
4/9/2010-10:51pm at 10:51 pm (UTC -4)
Oh, Jerry announced tonight Rubin Tejada will be going back down tomorrow when Reyes is activated. Said he was impressed with his play, he’s a good young talent and said something about playing at second for the future here.
ceetar
4/9/2010-11:25pm at 11:25 pm (UTC -4)
Couldn’t remember his name at first thought. “Uhh, the Shortstop………..Tejada.”
Kingman 26
4/9/2010-11:00pm at 11:00 pm (UTC -4)
2011 Opening Day lineup:
Reyes SS
FMart RF
Wright 3B
Beltran CF
Bay LF
Davis 1B
Thole C
Tejada 2B
Santana P
A powerhouse team is in its embryonic state.
njstuckintx
4/9/2010-11:23pm at 11:23 pm (UTC -4)
Tom Petty.
The Future is wiiiiiiiiide open. cha cha ching ching ching….
njstuckintx
4/9/2010-11:24pm at 11:24 pm (UTC -4)
I always hit the submit comment too soon.
What about Frenchy in RF, FMart in CF and Beltran traded for some pitching?
Hazmet
4/9/2010-11:29pm at 11:29 pm (UTC -4)
Beltran no trade clause / limited no trade clause. Also don’t be too quick to trade the best CF in the game, IMO. Of course he’s gotta get back on the field first.
njstuckintx
4/9/2010-11:35pm at 11:35 pm (UTC -4)
I hear you. just putting it out there for conversation, but the fact he is the “best” CF out there, he may still bring some prospects and just maybe he would waive that NTC(?) for some extension or something… I dunno, just floating it. I like Beltran, but if he could bring something back and save $$$…
And living in Houston and the whole NTC killing the Astros in almost every aspect, I know all too well on the inability to entertain trades.
Would he be traded? possibly. Will he be traded? not likely.
stickguy
4/9/2010-11:40pm at 11:40 pm (UTC -4)
problem is, after all the missed time and knee issues, no one is trading for him until he proves he is healthy, can stay on the field, and still perform like he was before the bruise last year.
And if that happens, the mets are probably still in the race, and no way they trade him. besides, based on the latest reports, he may not be back until June at this pace (someone tweeted that they are scrapping his running test tomorrow for some reason).
njstuckintx
4/9/2010-11:43pm at 11:43 pm (UTC -4)
Not good news. In a perfect world, we have way too many players, so we’re figuring out who to put where cause we have no space for them. In our world, we’re worrying who can fit what hole that is currently leaking. Just one season of health, please!!!
stickguy
4/9/2010-11:30pm at 11:30 pm (UTC -4)
that ain’t happening. Unless, of course, the team falls completely out of the running,and Beltran wants another shot at the PS and requests it. he does have a no trade clause.
stickguy
4/9/2010-11:29pm at 11:29 pm (UTC -4)
not likely, but certainly plausible (since you can make a case for any of them individually). And Davis is not the only one without a ML hit. SO, they are getting broken in.
Davis is close to a lock. And if Tejada plays well, they might be willing to cut ties with Castillo (although I think it may be an easy decision, since I think the barking calves is the first in a string of maladies for him this year. Just a hunch).
RF might be the problem, if frenchy keeps hitting like a real ML hitter.
Maybe we get lucky, and frenchy hits enough to attract interest, and F Mart hits so much they can’t keep him down.
Although there is always the danger they trade F Mart and keep frenchy, with disastrous results!
and maybe our new BFF hot rod will come back to help break in Thole!
Kingman 26
4/9/2010-11:01pm at 11:01 pm (UTC -4)
Oh–and beautiful, hilarious work as always Grave!
Your postgames are becoming a wonderful tradition.
gipperpdx
4/9/2010-11:02pm at 11:02 pm (UTC -4)
Good game all around. Great post-game, as always!
stickguy
4/9/2010-11:34pm at 11:34 pm (UTC -4)
another reason to be afraid of this FO. While Omar did a nice job hoarding the prospects, there are going to be some major decisions coming soon. 1st, who can be traded for any needed help mid year (most likely a SP), and 2nd, which rookies to go with next season (ditching frenchy for F Mart being the most likely dilemma).
It would also be nice if Davis could come up mid-year, and get settled in, so he could be more of an established almost-veteran next year, not a virtual rookie (ala Murphy last year).
stickguy
4/9/2010-11:37pm at 11:37 pm (UTC -4)
I commented in the dugout that with Neise and Pelfrey actually looking like legit pitchers (and the 3 of 4 QS stat lends some credence), that the mets seem to have at least 3/5s of a rotation, with Ollie yet to audition. And I actually think he will settle in and be OK, and get stronger as the season unfolds. So I have tentative hope that after tomorrow, we can see the team as having 4/5 of a good enough rotation to get the job done.
Maine still worries me. If he pulls his shat together, and they don’t get hit by debilitating injuries again, this team can hang in the race. As long as the offense has more days like this, and Jerry doesn’t kill the entire pen by memorial day!
Hazmet
4/9/2010-11:45pm at 11:45 pm (UTC -4)
He’s gotta good jump on killing Nieve, 4 days in a row? Well an off day in there, but still. We may need him to slide into Maine’s spot if Johnny doesn’t pull it together. Anyway, should be a happy recap, I shall seek negativity on a very good night.
Good game by Cora too. Walk, Hit, RBI, good D @2B.
Hazmet
4/9/2010-11:46pm at 11:46 pm (UTC -4)
** not seek negativity…
asod75
4/9/2010-11:47pm at 11:47 pm (UTC -4)
Also has used Takahashi three nights in a row. But that basically tells you all you need to know about Sean Green. Why he is still on the team, I’ll never know. Kiko Calero got the win at AAA tonight by the way and Parnell tossed two scoreless innings yesterday, so at least the Mets have some options….
stickguy
4/10/2010-12:04am at 12:04 am (UTC -4)
I say get calero up here ASAP to replace Green (well, should really replace mejia, but that ship sailed).
maybe with another solid option he will give Neive a day off.
Hazmet
4/10/2010-12:15am at 12:15 am (UTC -4)
After Maine’s first performance I’d certainly feel better if I knew Mejia was continuing his path to be a Starter down on the farm. How nice would the upside of that be if he showed readiness by July as a Starter. Maine’s lack of velocity really has me worried.
asod75
4/9/2010-11:45pm at 11:45 pm (UTC -4)
Nice win tonight. Pelf looked good, and the bats woke up big-time. I really like the energy Francoeur brings to the squad. And I refuse to call him Frenchy. Yes, I know it’s his nickname, but whenever I see it, I think of Bobby Cox mic’ed up on those TBS broadcasts saying “C’Mon Frenchy.” Used to annoy the hell out of me…
ceetar
4/9/2010-11:52pm at 11:52 pm (UTC -4)
It says frenchy on his helmet.
Hazmet
4/9/2010-11:54pm at 11:54 pm (UTC -4)
Wow,great factoid. Well if he’s gonna go that way I think we need to petition for him to spell it Fren-Shea, for obvious reasons.
Hazmet
4/9/2010-11:48pm at 11:48 pm (UTC -4)
Just saw Bobby Cox get run on highlights, that never get’s old to me. He still get’s his money’s worth.
ceetar
4/9/2010-11:57pm at 11:57 pm (UTC -4)
Some highlights.
I’ve now been at every Mets win this year.
It was freaking cold. I’ve got a quick video that I’ll upload later of my beer in the cupholder doing it’s best ocean impression.
They’ve decided it’s the 90s again and were playing Eiffel 65′s Blue for the “Sear’s Blue Crew” groundscrew..very lame.
switched from “everybody clap your hands” to “everybody…scream!”
it’s a BAD idea to take route 3 through the tunnel to Manhattan and then through the other tunnel to 495 to get to Citi. BAD idea. don’t do it. ever. even if root beer float cupcakes are involved.
There were a ton of people watching the Rangers game in the Verizon studio.
Apparently I scooped SNY with announcing Takahashi warming in the pen.
“[19:16] Ceetar is the guy that has very little tan”
nah, I’m quite tan from Opening Day.
stickguy
4/10/2010-12:09am at 12:09 am (UTC -4)
I would have told you about that route if you had asked.
and please, buy more tickets. Lots more. and follow them on the road if you can manage the time off.
Whereabouts in Jersey do you go in from anyway? I am somewhat fond now of the train. Pretty convenient. and way less likely to get stopped by the cops after too many $7 beverages.
metsfan4decades
4/10/2010-12:14am at 12:14 am (UTC -4)
That’s it – Ceetar is now the official mojo for Met wins.
The collection to send him to every game will begin tomorrow….
It certainly looked cold there to me, watching on TV. Brandy would have done more to keep you warm – LOL.
It’s Ollie time tomorrow.
Hazmet
4/10/2010-12:18am at 12:18 am (UTC -4)
Ollie tomorrow, hopefully I won’t need a morphine drip to kill the pain instead of Brandy. Man if the Good Ollie show’s up tomorrow this would be one real postive first pass through the rotation. Must channel positive vibes…and send Ceetar to the game.