Thursday, May 25, 2006
Phillies 5, Mets 3
The Mets got some more unimpressive starting pitching and this time they were unable to overcome it. Jeremi Gonzalez lasted six innings, but he struggled in most of them. Like Alay Soler the night before, Gonzalez allowed three runs in the first and none afterwards. Unlike Soler, Gonzalez stranded numerous base runners during those five scoreless innings. He gave up seven hits and three walks and struck out just one. Two home runs in the first accounted for all three runs.
The Mets were able to come back and tie the game quickly, as Jose Reyes hit a three-run home run, his fifth of the season, in the second inning. Reyes had an excellent day, adding a double and a single to his long ball. Cliff Floyd and Xavier Nady each had two hits and a walk and one of Floyd's hits was a double. Carlos Delgado walked twice.
But the Mets were unable to score any more runs and the soft underbelly of their bullpen was unable to withstand the Phillies' offensive assault. Pedro Feliciano and Heath Bell combined to allow two runs in the seventh. Both were charged to Feliciano, who gave up a walk and a double while recording just one out. But Bell entered and gave up a walk and a run-scoring single before getting a double play to end the inning. Bell held the Phillies scoreless in the eighth and ninth, allowing two more walks while striking out two, but the Mets were unable to mount another comeback.
In the end, the Mets took two out of three from the Phillies without sending either of their ace pitchers to the mound. And at the same time, they did a bit to bolster their starting rotation. Yesterday they sent Jorge Julio to Arizona for Orlando Hernandez and today they acquired Dave Williams from the Reds for minor league pitcher Robert Manuel, who is twenty-two years old and has yet to reach AA. Last year across two levels he posted a 2.04 ERA with 54 strikeouts and four walks in 61.2 innings. Neither Julio nor Manuel represents much of a loss for the Mets, so the only question is whether or not the guys they acquired are of any use. Both have certainly struggled this season. Hernandez has an ERA of 6.11 in 45.2 IP and Williams has a 7.20 in 40.
But a closer look at Hernandez's stats is slightly encouraging. His 52:20 strikeout ratio is solid, it's just the eight home runs that are scary. But six of those eight were allowed in Arizona, where he's posted an ERA of 8.16, as opposed to just 2.65 on the road. He was pretty bad last year, too, with a 5.12 ERA in 128.1 IP for the White Sox. But the way he's pitching this year, relocation to Shea Stadium might go a long way toward rectifying his problems.
Williams is another matter. So far this year he has sixteen strikeouts, sixteen walks and nine home runs allowed, all of which is terrible. And he's been significantly worse on the road than at home, allowing seven home runs in nineteen innings with a 12.79 ERA away from the Great American Ballpark. The best thing that can be said about him is that last year he had a 4.41 ERA, which wouldn't be so bad for the Mets' fifth starter. But the Mets got him for basically nothing and he's only twenty-seven, so giving him a chance to remember how to pitch in AAA isn't a bad idea at all.
Neither of these deals is a huge upgrade for the Mets, but both have their strong points. At the very least they give the Mets some more options to plug into the back of the rotation in hopes that one might work out. But this weekend the Mets (28-28) don't have to worry too much about their pitching, as they'll send the best they've got to take out the lowly Marlins (14-31) in Florida. Game one will see Pedro Martinez (5-0, 2.82) try to end his string of four straight no decisions against Josh Johnson (3-2, 2.62). ¶ joe | 10:51 PM |
The Mets got some more unimpressive starting pitching and this time they were unable to overcome it. Jeremi Gonzalez lasted six innings, but he struggled in most of them. Like Alay Soler the night before, Gonzalez allowed three runs in the first and none afterwards. Unlike Soler, Gonzalez stranded numerous base runners during those five scoreless innings. He gave up seven hits and three walks and struck out just one. Two home runs in the first accounted for all three runs.
The Mets were able to come back and tie the game quickly, as Jose Reyes hit a three-run home run, his fifth of the season, in the second inning. Reyes had an excellent day, adding a double and a single to his long ball. Cliff Floyd and Xavier Nady each had two hits and a walk and one of Floyd's hits was a double. Carlos Delgado walked twice.
But the Mets were unable to score any more runs and the soft underbelly of their bullpen was unable to withstand the Phillies' offensive assault. Pedro Feliciano and Heath Bell combined to allow two runs in the seventh. Both were charged to Feliciano, who gave up a walk and a double while recording just one out. But Bell entered and gave up a walk and a run-scoring single before getting a double play to end the inning. Bell held the Phillies scoreless in the eighth and ninth, allowing two more walks while striking out two, but the Mets were unable to mount another comeback.
In the end, the Mets took two out of three from the Phillies without sending either of their ace pitchers to the mound. And at the same time, they did a bit to bolster their starting rotation. Yesterday they sent Jorge Julio to Arizona for Orlando Hernandez and today they acquired Dave Williams from the Reds for minor league pitcher Robert Manuel, who is twenty-two years old and has yet to reach AA. Last year across two levels he posted a 2.04 ERA with 54 strikeouts and four walks in 61.2 innings. Neither Julio nor Manuel represents much of a loss for the Mets, so the only question is whether or not the guys they acquired are of any use. Both have certainly struggled this season. Hernandez has an ERA of 6.11 in 45.2 IP and Williams has a 7.20 in 40.
But a closer look at Hernandez's stats is slightly encouraging. His 52:20 strikeout ratio is solid, it's just the eight home runs that are scary. But six of those eight were allowed in Arizona, where he's posted an ERA of 8.16, as opposed to just 2.65 on the road. He was pretty bad last year, too, with a 5.12 ERA in 128.1 IP for the White Sox. But the way he's pitching this year, relocation to Shea Stadium might go a long way toward rectifying his problems.
Williams is another matter. So far this year he has sixteen strikeouts, sixteen walks and nine home runs allowed, all of which is terrible. And he's been significantly worse on the road than at home, allowing seven home runs in nineteen innings with a 12.79 ERA away from the Great American Ballpark. The best thing that can be said about him is that last year he had a 4.41 ERA, which wouldn't be so bad for the Mets' fifth starter. But the Mets got him for basically nothing and he's only twenty-seven, so giving him a chance to remember how to pitch in AAA isn't a bad idea at all.
Neither of these deals is a huge upgrade for the Mets, but both have their strong points. At the very least they give the Mets some more options to plug into the back of the rotation in hopes that one might work out. But this weekend the Mets (28-28) don't have to worry too much about their pitching, as they'll send the best they've got to take out the lowly Marlins (14-31) in Florida. Game one will see Pedro Martinez (5-0, 2.82) try to end his string of four straight no decisions against Josh Johnson (3-2, 2.62). ¶ joe | 10:51 PM |
