Thank you, Daniel Murphy.
Pitching Performance
Oliver Perez struggled again. He lasted six innings, when I thought he wouldn't make it through three, allowing four runs (three earned). He let up six hits, walked three, and struck out six. His control wasn't really there last night, and it showed. He needed 109 pitches to make it through the six.
Not great, but not terrible. Again, the bats came about to bail him out. He was handed a lead on a few occasions and surrendered it just as many. The defense wasn't behind him tonight, but he was able to work out of some jams.
Cue the bullpen. Nelson Figueroa entered in the seventh, and was unlucky enough to have an error committed behind him, allowing an unearned run to score. Ryan Church overran a groundball in the outfield, and it skipped by, allowing the runner to come around from first to score.
Ricardo Rincon, Aaron Heilman, and Pedro Feliciano combined to each get one out in the seventh to shut the Braves out with only one run.
Patchwork, but it worked. Feliciano earned the win as the Mets rallied for four run in the eigth inning.
Brian Stokes pitched two innings of shut out baseball, allowing one hit and striking out two.
Maybe Stokes still has some magic in the tank. Overall, a good night from the bullpen, and a "decent" night from Perez. Again, the defense was lacking tonight but the pitching was somewhat able to work around it.
Offensive Output
Cue the first inning run!
Jose Reyes got the Mets on the board as early as possible, cracking a leadoff home run to left field.
I like it. The beginning of a big night for Reyes. He's starting to spark.
David Wright got off the schneid, ripping a double down the first base line in the third, driving in Reyes to start a three run inning for the Mets. Carlos Betlran then ripped a double of his own, driving in Wright. Carlos Delgado followed that up with a single, plating Beltran.
3-4-5 is getting hot. Last series they were pretty miserable, this series may be a whole new story.
In the top of the fourth, Nick Evans hit his second home run of the season, and his career, a solo home run over the center field wall.
The rookies are contributing in big, big ways.
In the eighth, with the score tied at five, Daniel Murphy came to the plate as a pinch-hitter. Seconds lated, he ripped a double to deep left, allowing Delgado and Argenis Reyes to score. Reyes added to his RBI total with a single, brining in Murphy. Wright capped it off with a RBI single of his own, driving in Reyes.
Excellent. Mets were in a tough spot and the bats came out and took the game into their own hands. That's what I like to see.
The Rest of the Story
Reyes: 3-4, BB, 3 R, 2 RBI.
Wright: 2-5, 2 RBI
Six extra base hits for the Mets, out of 12 total. Four doubles and two home runs.
Three errors for the Mets. (Reyes, Wright, Church.)
Game Ball: Jose Reyes.
