Duda rounds the bases after hitting his 2-run homer.
The Mets salvaged the final game of the 3-game series in Washington, D.C., beating the Nationals by a score of 3-1 (Box Score)
Dominant Dickey
R.A. Dickey (W, 9-1) continued to pitch the best baseball of his life, as he tossed 7.1 innings, allowing no runs on 4 hits, striking out 8 and walking 2. He ran his scoreless innings streak to 24.2 frames. It’s the longest by a Mets pitcher since Mike Pelfrey tossed 27 scoreless in 2010. In his last 4 games, R.A. has allowed 1 run, 19 hits, walked 3, and struck out 38.
Dickey used his evolved knuckleball with mastery, throwing his standard 75-80 MPH wobbler, his 60 MPH eephus, and the new one – the riser that appears to skip off the air, as one would skip a stone off a pond. He also mixed in several mid-80s fastballs to keep Nationals’ hitters even more off balance.
Mets Eventually get to Wang
The Mets loaded the bases against Chien-Ming Wang (L, 1-2) in both the second and third innings, but failed to capitalize. With 2 outs in the second, Dickey struck out, then, with 1 out in the third, Daniel Murphy grounded into a 1-2-3 double play to end the inning. Wang struggled with his control, but the Mets had trouble taking advantage.
But they finally broke through in the fifth. Kirk Nieuwenhuis led off the inning with a single. Two outs later, Lucas Duda hit a two-run homer, his 10th of the year, over the tall fence in right-center field. Duda hit 10 HRs in 301 at-bats last year. Today, he hit his 10th homer in his 189th at-bat of the 2012 season.
The Mets added another run in the seventh, when Daniel Murphy singled home David Wright to make it 3-0. Murphy broke an 0 for 19 skid with a 2 for 4 game, including the RBI.
Parnell Gets Out of a Jam
Dickey exited the game in the eighth with 1 man on and 1 out. Bobby Parnell came in and walked the first batter he saw. Then, he induced 2 straight ground balls, the last one to Wunderkind Bryce Harper, to get out of the inning.
Incidentally, Mets radio man Josh Lewin quipped, “If the hype surrounding Harper was a landmass, it would be Greenland.”
Frank Francisco allowed a lead-off home run to Ryan Zimmerman, but retired the rest of the side 1-2-3, to earn his 15th save.
Up Next
The Mets begin a three-game series against the Yankees in the Bronx starting tomorrow at 7:05 PM. Johan Santana will make his first start since the no-hitter. Hiroki Kuroda is scheduled to go for the Yanks.
29 comments
srt
6/7/2012-4:06pm at 4:06 pm (UTC -4)
RA and another solid start.
We now have a 1 and a 1a on our staff.
Kudos to Duda with the big bat and Q’s bat and defense out there at SS. If they had scratched him, we’re looking at Spin and a totally different outcome.
Now on to the Yankees.
Stick
6/7/2012-4:11pm at 4:11 pm (UTC -4)
I want 2 of 3 against the Yanks. Well, I actually want a sweep, but I will live with 2 of 3! That could be a huge statement series. And hopefully the rest of the division will get beat up by the AL!
gategem
6/7/2012-5:34pm at 5:34 pm (UTC -4)
The Yankees are hot right now and I would be happy with winning one game in the Bronx.
Stick
6/7/2012-4:10pm at 4:10 pm (UTC -4)
Duda has quietly gotten up to a solid projected 30/100 pace. If he just stays in the 4 hole, as I expect he will no matter what happens with anyone else (Bay or Ike), given his track record of slow starts but big finishes, he should easily hit those totals.
I have no clue why Terry yanked dickey when he did (he, an unintentiional pun!), so for anyone watching the game (not on gameday) was it just Terry being Terry? At least he got away with it this time.
big big win. I said last night that this was pretty much a must win game to keep the team afloat, and glad they listened.
even better, the Phils are in the process of losing their 6th straight after blowing another lead by one of the “aces”. I know they are not the immediate threat, I just can’t stand them.
back to 1.5 out, and back into 2nd place. Just remains to be seen which team they will be tied with.
and looking at the standings, i did not realize the Mets would now have the same # of wins as the Nats. Somehow the Mets have played 3 more games, so that will catch up to Washington at some point.
srt
6/7/2012-4:28pm at 4:28 pm (UTC -4)
According to both Terry and RA on the post game show…
Terry said RA looked a little fatigued, which apparently manifests itself when his balls are getting up in the zone. Said Parnell has good numbers against Ankiel so he decided to make the switch.
RA said Terry was concerned about him getting fatigued so he totally understood him pulling him.
Nothing was mentioned about any ‘tweak’ as speculated with that discussion in the dugout by Gary/Keith after he was pulled.
srt
6/7/2012-4:30pm at 4:30 pm (UTC -4)
Oh yeah, Phills swept by the Dodgers in a 4 game series. Hasn’t been done since like 1940.
Hamels has a 5.23 ERA in his last three starts, allowing 12 earned runs in 20 2/3 innings.
Halladay on the DL.
Lee can’t get any run support.
Their offense is poor and their defense starting to show wear and tear with all their injuries – which includes Galvis on the DL now.
As I said a little while ago – don’t care when Howard and/or Utley return. I believe they’re done this year. Stick a fork in them. And I’m loving it – hahahaha.
NJstuckinTX
6/7/2012-4:34pm at 4:34 pm (UTC -4)
I’m surprised this game wasn’t reffed by a guy named Hung Well. Anyway…
RA is redefining this whole Ace thing. I like the whole 1 and 1A thing we have going, though I will wait to see if Johan’s arm stays attached in his next start.
Stick
6/7/2012-4:40pm at 4:40 pm (UTC -4)
I am amazed at how he is reinventing himself, and taking the knuckleball to a whole new dimension.
NJstuckinTX
6/7/2012-4:43pm at 4:43 pm (UTC -4)
Was Niekro this dominant?
srt
6/7/2012-5:01pm at 5:01 pm (UTC -4)
I don’t think that Niekro threw his knuckle ball as hard as Dickey does. Think his average was somewhere around 76-78. He obviously didn’t have all the different speeds RA does.
Not to say that he wasn’t a good pitcher, because he was.
srt
6/7/2012-5:03pm at 5:03 pm (UTC -4)
That and Dickey’s low walks is something most knuckle ball pitchers didn’t accomplish that well.
Paul Festa
6/7/2012-5:33pm at 5:33 pm (UTC -4)
Niekro threw a million innings, so that boosted his strikeout and win totals. But Dickey’s K/BB ratio is much better. As you said, there’s never been a knuckleballer who has as much control as Dickey has now, or who throws the pitch as hard. Niekro led the league in walks 3 times.
gategem
6/7/2012-5:42pm at 5:42 pm (UTC -4)
I saw Phil Niekro pitch and over a 24 year career he won 318 games and is in the HOF. Over the 62 odd years I’ve followed baseball I saw some of the truly great knuckleball pitchers and right now Dickey has the best assortment of knuckleballs I’ve ever seen.
Mr North Jersey
6/7/2012-4:27pm at 4:27 pm (UTC -4)
Hat tip to Mr. R.A. Dickey on another solid outing as he gets win number 9 on the season.
Quintanilla should get a Man Up award for going out there and playing today with his wrapped finger. I’m sure he knew how badly the team could ill afford to have to go somewhere else for a replacement.
Duda’s bat is really heating up just in time for Yankee stadium. It should to be fun. I can only hope that a trip to Yankee stadium turns Ike’s season around as it did for former Met Carlos Delgado back in 2008 with his huge 9 rbi game.
Positives for me is none other than R.A. Dickey He has been just “Amazin” this 2012 season.
Back to NY bring on the Yankees.
LGM!
SaltyGary
6/7/2012-4:35pm at 4:35 pm (UTC -4)
I predict that Murph will get his first HR in the BandBox this weekend.
wannard
6/7/2012-4:37pm at 4:37 pm (UTC -4)
Maybe Thole, as well. If he bats second again, that’s a good spot to see fastballs.
oleosmirf
6/7/2012-4:38pm at 4:38 pm (UTC -4)
I pose this thought.
Let’s suppose Tejada comes back 2-3 weeks from now and Murphy is still Castillo and Q is still batting around .280+ and playing good defense.
Do you go with Q at 2B and move Murphy to the bench? I think I would…
Stick
6/7/2012-4:48pm at 4:48 pm (UTC -4)
well, I have long been a proponent of Murphy as a jack of all trades type. Will get a lot of ABs but not be a starter at any position. Off the bench he could be very handy, but I was looking for more of a hitter (and yes, once again I am pissed at Haven’s ribs…) and overall LT solution to take the job.
and for mr. NJ, I actually went back to check Delgado in 2008. His start (though much of April) was horrid. Not Ike bad, but in the neighborhood. But he actually rebounded quite a bit in May (.771 OPS and 5 HRs). That game in June really spiked his #s, but he had come back to life before that.
9-10 weeks into the season though, that is way too long to be buried deep in “lost”
SaltyGary
6/7/2012-6:16pm at 6:16 pm (UTC -4)
He is basically the second best hitter, why would you do that? I’m fine with trading him to the AL but you can’t take his bat out of the lineup.
oleosmirf
6/7/2012-6:59pm at 6:59 pm (UTC -4)
He might have a high batting average, but like Castillo, it’s almost all singles and overall his bat is among the worst at his position.
After factoring his defense and his power outage, Murphy is the least productive 2B in baseball so that’s why…
SaltyGary
6/7/2012-7:48pm at 7:48 pm (UTC -4)
He does have the second most hits and the third most doubles of all second basemen, he just doesn’t have power. That is OK if you have players that you are expecting to have power like Ike and Duda performing that way but they aren’t (Duda is picking up not my intention to pick on him).
He is best suited as a DH due to his defense. But unless you make a move to improve the offense, there will be nothing on this offense that can be a upgrade and if there was then you move him to first and get Ike out of the way.
Murph is really the last guy to focus on unless you a outside move is going to be made.
oleosmirf
6/7/2012-8:32pm at 8:32 pm (UTC -4)
my point is that the difference in defense between Q and Murphy is extreme, while the difference between their bats, so far, is fairly similar.
Now Q might tail off and/or Murphy might pick it back up, but right now Murphy’s overall game is not helping them win games.
Obviously nothing can be done to rectify that now, but if it is like this when Tejada/Cedeno return then it’s something you look at..
A .250 singles hitter with some doubles and plus defense is better than a .300 hitter with some doubles and a terrible fielder…
wannard
6/7/2012-6:40pm at 6:40 pm (UTC -4)
Q’s career MLB line: 215 .274 .288
don’t let 30 or so plate appearances fool you.
oleosmirf
6/7/2012-7:01pm at 7:01 pm (UTC -4)
oh of course I’m not expecting him to keep this up, nor do I think he will, but he’s a plus defender and if Murphy is still Castillo, it might be time to relegate him to the bench…
kingman 26
6/7/2012-7:24pm at 7:24 pm (UTC -4)
Omar Minaya’s very best and most economical move.
Thanks for RA Omar.
srt
6/7/2012-8:48pm at 8:48 pm (UTC -4)
Have to give credit where credit is due. I don’t think for one NY minute Omar had a clue how good RA could become. He was impressed with him when he was with the Brewers and had been looking to sign him. So thanks Omar. We’re all so glad the knuckle ball pitcher intrigued you enough to take a chance.
Stick
6/7/2012-9:13pm at 9:13 pm (UTC -4)
a tag team effort. Good job by Sandy believing he would keep it up and signing him to a nice reasonable 2 year extension.
srt
6/7/2012-9:36pm at 9:36 pm (UTC -4)
But, but Sandy-lord had a horrible off season – did absolutely nothing for this team. They’re winning in spite of his awful deals.
Did I get that right?
Stick
6/7/2012-10:21pm at 10:21 pm (UTC -4)
you forgot to mention 5 times that he is the worst GM that the team has ever had, and he actively trying to avoid winning, since his only goal is to have a lower payroll.