Thursday, August 11, 2005
Mets 9, Padres 1
Padres 2, Mets 1
The most important story of the day was the collision that occurred in the bottom of the seventh inning of Thursday afternoon's game. Mike Cameron and Carlos Beltran both dove in an attempt to catch a sinking line drive hit by David Ross. Their heads collided and Cameron had to be taken off the field on a stretcher. The latest news indicates that Cameron wound up with a broken nose, multiple fractures of both of his cheekbones and a slight concussion. As a result, he will spend at least one night in the hospital and at least fifteen days on the disabled list. Beltran seems to have escaped without any major injury, though he apparently will be examined further before rejoining the team. You can find video of the collision on MLB.com, though I don't really recommend it. I don't think I've ever seen such a scary moment on a baseball field, though I didn't actually see it live or even hear about it on the radio, as it apparently occurred just as I was walking from my car to my apartment after returning home from work. Losing Cameron will be a serious blow to the Mets offensively and defensively, though they won't be entirely lost, being able to replace him with Victor Diaz. Hopefully Beltran is able to return quickly and suffers no lingering effects.
Wednesday was a happier day for the Mets, as just about everything went right. The offense, sparked by David Wright, scored nine runs on twelve hits and five walks. Wright had four of those hits, including a double and his seventeenth home run of the season, as he drove in six of the Mets' nine runs. He also stole his twelfth base. Miguel Cairo had a two hit game, as did Cameron. Cairo and Beltran each had doubles and Beltran also had a walk and a stolen base on his way to scoring three runs. The only Met starter who didn't reach base in one way or another was Jose Reyes, who had a fruitless four at bats for the second consecutive night on the heels of his twenty-game hitting streak.
Also having an excellent night was Kris Benson, who very nearly got away with allowing as few hits and he himself hit in the game. He entered the ninth inning with a one-hit shutout intact having gone one for four at the plate. But he was only able to record one out in the ninth and allowed two hits in the frame before exiting with runners on second and third. He struck out six batters in the game and walked just one. The Padres were still scoreless when he was relieved, but he was relieved by Danny Graves, so of course that didn't last. Graves allowed a single to the first batter he faced, but then got a game-ending double play to lower his season ERA to 7.02.
On Thursday afternoon the Mets got similarly good pitching, but they couldn't score enough runs to make it hold up. Tom Glavine lasted seven innings and allowed just two runs on nine hits. He struck out three batters and didn't walk any. And the second run was just a side effect of the aforementioned collision, as Ross wound up with a triple before Kazuo Matsui was able to play the ball that Cameron and Beltran dove for back into the infield. He would later score on a single by Met nemesis Joe Randa.
The Mets' offense put together just six hits and two walks, with a Cliff Floyd double driving in Beltran in the fourth for the only run. Floyd also had a single and his double was the only extra base hit for the Mets. Glavine had a terrific game with the bat, going three for three, but it was all for naught. Wright had a rough day, going hitless and grounding into a back-breaking double play in the eight inning after coming to the plate with runners on first and second and just one out. Reyes had walked in a pinch hitting role and subsequently stolen second before Jose Offerman struck out and Floyd was hit with a pitch. But Wright was unable to capitalize and the Mets' hopes were pretty well dashed.
Tomorrow, what's left of the Mets (58-56) will head into Los Angeles to take on the Dodgers (50-63). The day's events have left the Mets four games behind the Astros for the Wild Card lead. Victor Zambrano (6-9, 4.00) will go in game one for the Mets. Another man who knows what it's like to be traded for a highly regarded pitching prospect, Jeff Weaver (10-8, 4.34), will start for the Dodgers. ¶ joe | 11:45 PM |
Padres 2, Mets 1
The most important story of the day was the collision that occurred in the bottom of the seventh inning of Thursday afternoon's game. Mike Cameron and Carlos Beltran both dove in an attempt to catch a sinking line drive hit by David Ross. Their heads collided and Cameron had to be taken off the field on a stretcher. The latest news indicates that Cameron wound up with a broken nose, multiple fractures of both of his cheekbones and a slight concussion. As a result, he will spend at least one night in the hospital and at least fifteen days on the disabled list. Beltran seems to have escaped without any major injury, though he apparently will be examined further before rejoining the team. You can find video of the collision on MLB.com, though I don't really recommend it. I don't think I've ever seen such a scary moment on a baseball field, though I didn't actually see it live or even hear about it on the radio, as it apparently occurred just as I was walking from my car to my apartment after returning home from work. Losing Cameron will be a serious blow to the Mets offensively and defensively, though they won't be entirely lost, being able to replace him with Victor Diaz. Hopefully Beltran is able to return quickly and suffers no lingering effects.
Wednesday was a happier day for the Mets, as just about everything went right. The offense, sparked by David Wright, scored nine runs on twelve hits and five walks. Wright had four of those hits, including a double and his seventeenth home run of the season, as he drove in six of the Mets' nine runs. He also stole his twelfth base. Miguel Cairo had a two hit game, as did Cameron. Cairo and Beltran each had doubles and Beltran also had a walk and a stolen base on his way to scoring three runs. The only Met starter who didn't reach base in one way or another was Jose Reyes, who had a fruitless four at bats for the second consecutive night on the heels of his twenty-game hitting streak.
Also having an excellent night was Kris Benson, who very nearly got away with allowing as few hits and he himself hit in the game. He entered the ninth inning with a one-hit shutout intact having gone one for four at the plate. But he was only able to record one out in the ninth and allowed two hits in the frame before exiting with runners on second and third. He struck out six batters in the game and walked just one. The Padres were still scoreless when he was relieved, but he was relieved by Danny Graves, so of course that didn't last. Graves allowed a single to the first batter he faced, but then got a game-ending double play to lower his season ERA to 7.02.
On Thursday afternoon the Mets got similarly good pitching, but they couldn't score enough runs to make it hold up. Tom Glavine lasted seven innings and allowed just two runs on nine hits. He struck out three batters and didn't walk any. And the second run was just a side effect of the aforementioned collision, as Ross wound up with a triple before Kazuo Matsui was able to play the ball that Cameron and Beltran dove for back into the infield. He would later score on a single by Met nemesis Joe Randa.
The Mets' offense put together just six hits and two walks, with a Cliff Floyd double driving in Beltran in the fourth for the only run. Floyd also had a single and his double was the only extra base hit for the Mets. Glavine had a terrific game with the bat, going three for three, but it was all for naught. Wright had a rough day, going hitless and grounding into a back-breaking double play in the eight inning after coming to the plate with runners on first and second and just one out. Reyes had walked in a pinch hitting role and subsequently stolen second before Jose Offerman struck out and Floyd was hit with a pitch. But Wright was unable to capitalize and the Mets' hopes were pretty well dashed.
Tomorrow, what's left of the Mets (58-56) will head into Los Angeles to take on the Dodgers (50-63). The day's events have left the Mets four games behind the Astros for the Wild Card lead. Victor Zambrano (6-9, 4.00) will go in game one for the Mets. Another man who knows what it's like to be traded for a highly regarded pitching prospect, Jeff Weaver (10-8, 4.34), will start for the Dodgers. ¶ joe | 11:45 PM |
