Braves 3, Mets 1

Now, it's no secret that the "Win" statistic is a pretty inconsistent and inaccurate measure of pitching performance. And this game was a very good example of why. Jae Seo and the undead corpse of Greg Maddux both pitched very well today. Each pitched seven innings, giving up just three hits. Seo didn't give up his first until the fifth inning, but unfortunately it was an Andruw Jones home run that accounted for all of the scoring against him. He struck out two and, as usual, walked none. Maddux didn't give up any runs, and bested Seo by the margin of one strikeout. Both pitched well enough to deserve to see a W next to their name in the next morning's box score.

But in the top of the eighth inning, after Maddux had been lifted, Roberto Hernandez entered the game for the Braves and gave up Jeromy Burnitz's fifth home run of the season, tying the game. Art Howe pinch hit for Seo in attempt to extend the rally, but to no avail and both starters were officially decision-less. David Weathers pitched the bottom of the eighth for the Mets and gave up a pair of runs to put the Braves on top for good, giving Hernandez the dubious Blown Save/Win combination.

So the Mets are now at 3-3 on this important twelve game stretch, although still 5-3 against good teams since Mike Piazza's injury. And this game and series was not without its good signs. First of all, the Mets got solid pitching performances from Seo and Steve Trachsel, which is encouraging for the back of the rotation. Unfortunately, the bullpen continued to struggle and Tom Glavine got roughed up, but both of those are problems which can be corrected. If the back of the rotation continues to pitch well and the top two guys play up to expectations, the Mets can have a solid rotation. And Seo's effectiveness is also a good sign for the future of the Mets' rotation in the years to come. Hopefully he, Aaron Heilman and some of the other youngsters can provide good backup for Glavine in the next few years.

Also encouraging is the play of Burnitz, who seems to have picked up right where he left off offensively before getting injured. He hit a pair of home runs in this series and is now hitting .291/.364/.570. His play in center field seems a risky proposition, but not as much as the guy who was starting there in the beginning of the season. Cliff Floyd had a rough series this weekend, going hitless in the three games, but if he can play somewhere near how he did last week, the Mets should have some nice offensive contributions from two-thirds of their outfield, which would be very welcome. And in general, this Mets team seems more fun to watch than it was a couple of weeks ago. Of course, I'd love to have Piazza's bat in the lineup, but the team seems more solid defensively than it had been, and generally more energetic. Whether the next week brings renewed optimism about this year, or even further emphasis on youth due to trading away some costly veterans, the near future of Mets baseball looks to be a fun time to watch.

The Mets head to Philadelphia on Tuesday for three more with the Phillies.  ¶ joe | 1:29 AM |