The Dodgers were fans of the long ball tonight, knocking three off of Mets starter Oliver Perez, and coasted to a 5-1 win in the series opener.
Perez struggled through another start, this time lasting much longer. He threw six innings, giving up six hits and two walks, which allowed five earned runs to score. Perez kept the walks down, only giving away two free passes while striking out three batters.
Perez gave up his first dinger to the first batter of the game, as Rafael Furcal homered an 0-2 pitch to center field. Juan Pierre followed this up with a single and a steal, and was driven in by a Russel Martin two out single to center to field.
Perez then got the side in order for two straight innings in the third and fourth. He did not have the same luck in the fifth, as Blake DeWitt crushed his first home run of his career to straight away center field. After getting the first two outs of the inning, Perez allowed a two out walk to light hitting Pierre, and paid for it as Matt Kemp hit a two-run home run to right field.
This is actually a better start for Perez. Kept his walks low, which was big, but he wasn't hitting the glove where Brian Schneider wanted it. He kept it over the plate too much, and it showed as the Dodgers took him deep three times. A step in the right direction, but he needs a few more of these before Mets fans will trust him again.
The Mets got on the board in the sixth inning as Carlos Beltran smoked a ball down the right field line. The ball rattled around in the corner and Kemp booted it once or twice. Beltran coasted into third with a triple, but was being waved around by third base coach Sandy Alomar Sr. It was a moot point as Moises Alou followed it up with a single up the middle, easily scoring Beltran.
Beltran didn't pick up Alomar until it was too late. They have to get the basics down, or they're not going to win anything. Nice to see Alou contributing while he still adjusts to major league pitchers.
Where the heck does the offense go? One day they're there and smacking the ball left and right, the next day they're nonexistent. So far, through these 30 games, this team has been extremely inconsistent. One day they play great, another day they stink up the joint. They need to get into a rhythm somehow and I thought they sort of did that in Arizona. Guess not.
Scott Schoeneweis and Jorge Sosa each pitched a scoreless inning of relief for the Mets. Sosa allowed one base runner, as Kemp singled during his stint on the mound.
Nice to see these guys turning in scoreless innings. Wish they meant more, like if the Mets had a lead, but alas.
Game Ball: Beltran
