Cardinals 9, Mets 6
(NLCS tied 1-1)

The Mets bullpen was pretty bad in the NLDS, but the offense and starting pitching were good enough to overcome it. In the first and third games of the series, the relievers pitched more than half the game and did not acquit themselves well. Game two of the NLCS saw them tasked with the majority of the innings again, and again it did not go well.

In the first round, the Mets non-Glavine starters did not go deep into games, but they weren't awful. While Willie Randolph's removal of John Maine in the fifth inning made sense at the time, he had only allowed one run. Maine was not so adequate this time, allowing four runs in four innings, giving Randolph little choice. He gave up just two hits, but walked five. One of the runs was unearned as a result of an error by Carlos Delgado, but Maine was clearly not sharp.

The offense seemed up to the challenge for most of the game as Cardinals' starter Chris Carpenter fared no better than Maine. He allowed five runs in five innings, four of them scoring on a pair of Delgado home runs. Jose Reyes also had a big game, with three hits, including a double, one walk, one RBI and two runs scored. Paul Lo Duca had an RBI double. Carlos Beltran walked twice and scored once.

As in NLDS game one, things started off well enough for the Mets' bullpen. The tag team of Chad Bradford and Pedro Feliciano got through two-thirds of a perfect inning there. This time they pitched two full scoreless frames, with Bradford recording five of the outs and allowing just one hit. But Guillermo Mota was once again there to screw everything up.

Mota got the first two batters he faced in the seventh, but then he allowed a single and a walk. Scott Spiezio then hit a ball that cleared the right field fence, only to bounce off of Shawn Green's glove and back into play for a game-tying triple. It would have been great if Green could have oriented his glove in such a direction that the ball would land in it rather than bounce off it, but I have to give him credit for at least preventing the home run. Aaron Heilman then relieved Mota and ended the inning. Mota has now allowed eight hits and two walks in five and two-thirds postseason innings, striking out six with a 7.94 ERA. The Mets may not have much choice but to use him given that the alternatives are Darren Oliver and Roberto Hernandez, but perhaps he could enter the game before Bradford and Feliciano rather than after.

Mota's meltdown only tied the game, however, and after Heilman pitched a scoreless eighth, the game was left in Billy Wagner's hands. So he gave up a leadoff home run to So Taguchi, a man with sixteen career home runs in 960 at bats. Wagner wasn't done, as he gave up two more runs on three hits, including two doubles, before being removed from the game with two outs and a runner on second. Hernandez retired the next batter. Wagner's numbers for the playoffs are no better than Mota's, as he's allowed seven hits and one walk in four and two-thirds innings with four strikeouts and a 7.71 ERA. The Mets aren't going to stop using Wagner in tight games, so he simply has to pitch a lot better than he has.

The scene now shifts to St. Louis for tonight's game three. Steve Trachsel (15-8, 4.97 regular season, 0-0, 5.40 playoffs) is going to have to pitch better than he did last time out if he's going to turn things around for the Mets. Getting out of the fourth inning would be a good start. For the Cardinals, it'll be Jeff Suppan (12-7, 4.12 regular season, 0-1, 6.23), who didn't fare much better than Trachsel in the first round. I think some runs may be scored in this game, strike zone permitting.  ¶ joe | 2:17 PM |