Struggling sluggers Jay Bruce and Yoenis Cespedes sprang to life with two clutch long balls that propelled the Mets to a 6-5 win over the Cardinals in 10 innings. The Mets were down 4-1 until Cespedes’ mammoth 3-run blast tied it up in the fifth inning. Bruce’s two-out solo shot in the 10th gave the Mets the lead and Jeurys Familia locked it down for his ninth save of the season.
Bruce went 3 for 5 on the night and also hit an RBI triple. The Mets didn’t muster much offense otherwise, but did manage to draw eight walks off some wild Cardinals pitching.
Zack Wheeler started the game was neither efficient nor effective, surrendering four runs in four innings. Tommy Pham was the big Met killer, getting on base all five times with three hits and a couple of walks, including a first inning two-run home run. Matt Harvey came on in relief and, despite allowing a run on back-to-back doubles in his first inning of work, he showed some promise. His fastball had extra life and he was able to blow 95 mph heat past a few batters. Paul Sewald added two scoreless innings to keep the Mets in it, but Robert Gsellman‘s scoreless ninth inning was really the big Mets’ pitching highlight and it deservedly earned him the win. With two runners on, no outs, and the heart of the order coming up, Gsellman fanned the red hot Jose Martinez on a nasty slider, before getting Marcel Ozuna to hit into a rally-ending double play.
Gut Reaction: Robert Gsellman has turned into an effective bullpen weapon. He’s fearless and his sinker/slider combo has resulted in some big strikeouts. Could he develop into a closer?
Time to take the chains off this lineup. Bruce to first and let Nimmo and Lagares contribute.
Great win, and everyone else in the NL East, except for the still playing Marlins, lost tonight! Nice!
Harvey not talking to the press and blew off Callaway in the runway after the game. Come on Matt…
I saw it two more times after I saw it live. Harvey didn’t totally blow off Callaway, as he acknowledged Callaway stopping to talk to him, but he looked passed Callaway to high-five his teammates as they were coming off the field despite Callaway not even finishing the couple of words he had to say. Hard to say for sure…
Gus, that boy is intense. Arrogance is perfectly acceptable when he’s performing well, but he’s a jerk when he’s not. Fair or not, that’s the perception. I get that he might not be the most likable player, but I’m still rooting for him. I always said he reminded me or Roger Clemens in that sense. One way or another I suspect his days in orange and blue are numbered. More on that in my Friday post.
I’m rooting for him too Matt. I would have liked to see another start, but this weekend we learned that he went to the bullpen earlier than needed (Saturday, before the rainout) because by telling the reporters he deserved another start, Eiland and Callaway felt he was undermining their decision making. And although that may be egotistical on their part too, it could be said that when managing 25 guys, they can’t give an opinion to the press. However, what about Bruce saying that doesn’t want to sit or play first base? What’s the difference? It seems Harvey isn’t endeared in the Mets organization and that’s a shame. He deserved the start.
Harvey has an opportunity to become a goid relief pitcher. His attitude is going to really hurt him in free agency.
John Smoltz embraced being a relief pitcher. He easily could have stamped his foot and whined like Harvey, but he didn’t. And Smoltz excelled as being a reliever. He took the ball in the 9th inning and did his job.
If Smoltz could embrace it, so can Harvey. Matt, you are not a starter anymore. Get over it. You are on a first place team. Hang out with your buddies in the bullpen and pick up the ball when called on and go get some batters out.
Ok… Smoltz Bullpen assignment was as The Closer—-a role that put Jim at the center of his team’s success
Harvey has been Banished::: he has No Role! There’s a difference
Stop the Player Hating
Bruce …
Small sample, but Harvey looked like he had some Zip and Movement on his pitches.
I’m not sure why Gsellman gets extra praise when he was the one who put himself into a jam with a leadoff walk… In fact one of the main criticisms of Familia is that “it’s never easy” with him because he frequently flirts with danger.
Let’s not pretend what Gsellman is doing is something extra special. Sewald has been just as effective as Lugo/Gsellman but because he’s not a converted starter, he doesn’t get the attention that the duo gets.
Agree. Sewald has been a huge factor in the bullpen thus far. Multiple innings, good crisp stuff and good control. What’s not to like?
He has provided some clutch innings the past two weeks. Let’s hope it continues.
Yesterday in the eighth inning, the Cardinals broadcasting were chirping about how they were picking up every pitch Sewald was throwing, but didn’t tell their audience how – I understand why…. If anyone hears a Mets response to this, please let me know. I’m curious.
I was wondering the same thing watching the Cards broadcast. Whatever it was Edmonds thinks he picked up, certainly no one on the bench did as Sewald was very effective.
BTW, could be Edmonds was just talking out his a**. He never stopped talking the entire game. Probably just needed something to say just to hear himself talking.
The replay system is a complete farce. Each team is supposed to get one challenge. The Cards blew theirs in the first inning last night, but yet they got to get the umps to look and see if Bruce touched first base on his home run.
I’ve never seen umps turn down one of these bogus “umpire” challenges based upon a teams’ insistence.
What is it MLB??? Do teams really have just one challenge, or is it as many as you can talk the umps into?
While I’m on the topic, why is the game held up just to let the dugout — or whoever it is that advises the dugout — look at various replays before deciding if they want to challenge? In the NFL, many times a team will run another play quickly before a challenge flag is thrown on close calls. I think a team should have, at the absolute most, 10 seconds to challenge after a play is complete. If the call was that bad, this should be plenty of time to decide.
Matheny was being petty and whiny. Everybody saw Bruce put his foot in the middle of the damn bag.
Gamesmanship is all it was.
On the subject of that bogus replay, I think Matheny should be fined and reprimanded. That was not in the spirit of the game. And as Gary Cohen pointed out, had the umps been paying attention they wouldn’t have allowed the replay. All it did was disrupt and delay the game for fans, which MLB is supposedly working hard to avoid.
Personally, i think the whole notion that you need to touch every base to count as a HR is quite silly. The guy hit it out of the park, the ball is dead, the outcome not in doubt. Rounding the bases is merely just for show.
Appealing on a HR is like when someone is clearly guilty but gets off on a legal technicality, like someone forgets to file a form or something that has nothing to do with what actually happened.