The Mets win streak came to an end Saturday night as the Brewers trotted out their own version of the HR offense to emerge with a 5-1 win.
Matt Harvey was victimized by the gopher ball, as he allowed 2 HR in 5 IP. The first one was a wind-blown 3-run homer that shocked just about everyone that it went out. The second one came on a 2-0 meatball on a middle-middle offering that was easily his worst pitch of the night.
It seemed to be a struggle for Harvey, who was nibbling more than you’d like to see. But he finished with 6 Ks and 1 BB, which should be an indication that he can win with the stuff he has. We’ll see what he looks like when the weather warms up and there aren’t 20 mph gusts.
Paul Sewald got into a game and delivered three sparkling innings of relief. Hansel Robles came on in the ninth and surrendered the Brewers’ third homer of the night. Looks like he’ll be on the shuttle back to Las Vegas once either Anthony Swarzak or Jason Vargas returns from the DL.
The Mets didn’t get a hit until the fifth inning and finished with just three hits, all of them of the bleeder/bloop variety. There was a moment of hope when Craig Counsell removed his starter, who was just cruising and didn’t have a high pitch count, but the Mets could do little against the Brewers’ pen and absolutely nothing against Josh Hader, who struck out five of the six batters he faced.
Hader didn’t just strike them out, he made them wish they never walked up to the plate. Who is this guy? Wow! He has 9.2 innings this year and 22 strikeouts! That’s ridiculous!
As far as the loss was concerned, these things happen. Callaway promised in his pregame presser that there would be many days off tomorrow. Let’s see who gets to pull the splinters from their butt. However, there’s rain and cold forecasted for tomorrow. So, no promises…
After some thought, and not wanting to part with any prospects for other people’s (injured) problems, I would sign Carlos Ruiz. He could be the Mets’ version of David Ross, in that he will give leadership to the pitchers and guidance to the youth. He’ll only play twice a week anyway when Plawecki comes back, but he’s better than Lobaton with the stick, can hold his own defensively, and Nido needs seasoning. Ruiz is the perfect fit for a young staff, especially with his knowledge of the NL East.
Ruiz is a doper. Not interested.
The guy’s 39 years old and he had a .665 OPS last year. Not interested.
Matt keeps going to a “Challenge Fastball” in big spots…93-94 mph Center Cut fastballs. No Location, movement, or surprise.
I believe he will have a couple or more MPH in the tank, but I don’t believe it matters until he begins to master his mix– location and pitch selection need to be elevated in priority.
When he threw at higher velocity, he seemed to effective with his mix…he was a Pitcher. Strangley, the Velocity has waned …and He’s become a Thrower.
While I’m disappointed in the results, I don’t feel like the issue is too many center cut fastballs in big spots. Here’s a graph of his pitch locations.
https://www.fangraphs.com/zonegrid.aspx?playerid=11713&position=P&ss=2018-01-01&se=2018-12-01&type=0&hand=all&count=all&blur=1&grid=10&view=bat&pitch=&season=2018&data=pi
The key pitch in last night’s game was one low and away to Villar which, if memory serves, was more breaking ball than fastball. I tried to verify on Brooks Baseball but it wasn’t available yet.
The other HR was definitely what you were talking about, though. But that was a 2-0 pitch when already down three runs. Not sure if that’s a big spot. Seems like he tried to get away with a batting practice pitch, hoping/expecting the take sign was on.
Is that a Chart of every 2018 Matt Harvy Pitch???? —what is the statistical relevance of that when evaluating Harvey’s performance?
Yep, it’s real data instead of baseless speculation.
\What does it tell you about the pitches he’s getting beat on?…serious question.
Your reaction here is a sort of ad-hominem style attack—as if I dismiss date entirely…????
Showing every pitch thrown on a Location Map is a lot of Data—- again…how does it tie in to understanding how Matt Harvey’s Selection and or Execution of his repertoire is playing out?
I expect a better conversation, Frankly
There’s no way to enter a query that says – “Show me pitches that Matt Harvey gets beat on” – and get results. There are two options:
1. You can assume that his pitch distribution is similar in all respects and that a graph of all his pitch locations will give you an answer in the right ballpark.
2. You can comb through the box scores, find the situations where he’s getting beat and then look for a data base where you can track individual pitches.
You propose a theory and then expect me to do all of the work. And then when I get the ball rolling, you insult me saying you expect a better conversation. How about you provide something besides a theory and don’t criticize someone who provides real results?
His problem to my eyes is command and control. He has lost both to enough of a degree that he has no answers when he *needs* them. The late life he was known for is gone. He no longer has pinpoint control. So what do we have? What we are seeing.
Quite frankly, he’s a real pen candidate. Limited exposure, but enough of a menace to get it done. He’s no longer a genuine starter.