The Mets put on a show tonight at Citi Field and walloped the Phillies 12-1.
- Noah Syndergaard got the start in this one and was fantastic. He pitched seven innings while giving up just one earned run on a solo homer and striking out seven. It was a great follow-up to his last start against the Giants when he went eight innings. It’s encouraging to see him go deep in consecutive outings after watching him struggle to go more than six innings for over a month.
- The bullpen wasn’t needed all that much, but it was still good to see Jim Henderson and Josh Smoker pitch the final two innings with relative ease. The worn out bullpen is going to be a major factor heading into the stretch with a questionable starting rotation.
- The Mets offense went absolutely bonkers in this one, and every starter (including Syndergaard) but James Loney and Curtis Granderson got a hit. They hit for the homer cycle: Neil Walker with the solo shot, Asdrubal Cabrera with a two-run homer, Yoenis Cespedes with a three-run shot, and Kelly Johnson capped it with a pinch-hit grand slam. What a night, what a night.
- Cabrera and Jose Reyes have become quite the duo at the top of the Mets lineup. They went a combined 6-9 tonight. Reyes has become everything the Mets could have possibly hoped for as the spark at the top of the lineup they desperately needed.
- The Mets are now 66-63, 2.5 games back of the second wild card, and most definitely still in this thing. Hold on to your butts.
A dominant performance by Syndergaard , a go ahead homer by the hot Habanero Cabarera and the “distance” enhancing Cespedes home run has resulted in the Mets gaining ground and taking the series. Lets get greedy and sweep!
Kelly Johnson, with his 997 August OPS, should be in the lineup. Maybe in right field? Loney has a 474 OPS in August so sometimes starting Flores against a RHP would be an alternative. DeAza also has been playing alright and has earned CF time. August 31st is the waiver deadline. Is there a relief pitcher or starter that may help us? Lets get greedy and sweep!
We overlapped. I agree with all of it.
Still could use a true right-handed-hitting CF, come the 40-man, if only as a defensive replacement.
How expensive can it be to replace Ruggiano?
Loney looks particularly lost these days. I’ve grown tired of his approach.
As noted last night, the Mets won’t face a LHP for at least a week.
Metsense has been advocating Kelly Johnson for some time at 1B because of his “reverse splits” — an option vs. LHP — but that’s not what I found in the statistics. He’s been notably even throughout his career vs. LHP & RHP, but I see no advantage in his batting vs. LHP. In fact, his OBP is .055 below what he achieves vs. RHP, at an unsatisfactory .276 mark.
My point: Johnson does not have reverse splits, and is actually a decent alternative at 1B instead of Johnson. At least for a few starts, to see how it goes.
Though Flores has established that he’s weak vs. RHP, and a liability in the field, I think the combination of Loney’s loooooong slump (not technically a slump if it’s the norm) and Wilmer’s magic dust powder, makes a case that Wilmer should get a start or two at 1B. He can’t sit on his hands for a week waiting for a LHP.
In conclusion: Loney needs to play much less moving forward.
It’s possible that TC is deploying Kelly Johnson perfectly, which is why he’s been so productive. But as a fan, I want to see him get more PT, regardless of what position he’s at.
I’m in Jim Henderson’s corner and think if he’s used 2-3 times a week that he’d be a great option for us. But the Mets need more.
With the uncertainty with their bullpen, I’d almost be in favor of carrying an extra pitcher. But which position player would you remove to make that happen? A waiver move seems almost inevitable at this point.
Would still like to see Conforto called up before the end of the month. He would certainly be more dangerous off the bench than most who we have sitting there now and we would not need to carry as many pitchers into the playoffs if we get there. He should be working out at first base at AAA.
I didn’t get to see much of the game, but at its conclusion I checked the MLB scoreboard and saw that the Giants lost, the Cardinals lost, the Marlins lost and the Nationals lost (their bats have cooled at the wrong time!). The more the Mets keep winning, the more pressure some of these teams may feel. All the Mets can ask for is an opening.
The next three starters are Gsellman, Montero, and Lugo. These guys will be the difference down the stretch. There are no other reinforcements behind them. With the possibility of Ynoa being added due to Matz’ injury, these guys need to be a strong link in the chain. We know Colon is mostly decent to pretty good. We know Syndergaard is toughing it out. And we know deGrom is running on fumes. The rookies, especially on the road, need to be solid.