Classless Nats

I'm usually not one to put a whole lot of stock into quotes as they are usually that same darn thing every time. "We just didn't hit." "Great pitching performance beat us." "I really felt it tonight." And so on and so forth.

Once in a while though, someone comes out and really says how then feel.

I present to you, Nelson Figueroa on the Nationals dugout antics, via Kevin Devaney:

“They were cheerleading in the dugout like a bunch softball girls. I’m a professional just like anybody else, so I take huge offense to that. If that’s what a last-place team needs to do to fire themself up, so be it. I think they need to show a little more class and professionalism. They won tonight but, in the long run, they are still who they are.

“Even for the manager and the coaching staff to let that stuff carry on, it’s truly unprofessional. That’s why they are who they are.”

Amazing. Not only calling out the players, but the coaches too. It might have been a bit of frustration on Figueroa's part, as he got tagged for six runs (four earned) in only five innings, but it's good to see some emotion!

Pay attention, Willie Randolph. There are faults with you, and I usually don't think they're glaring, but the lack of emotion, even to the press, is getting boring. Show some fire, just once, so I'll know you have it in you.

Round of applause to Figueroa for this quote and for calling out an entire team and it's staff. I like it. I smell a brawl tomorrow.

Game Recap: Nationals 10 -- Mets 4

I had tickets tonight, pretty glad I didn't go.

The Mets got trounced by the Nationals in the first game of a four game series, taking game one by a score of 10-4. Notch this up as another frustrating loss for the New York Mets. And cue the Willie Randolph haters..now!

Nelson Figueroa made the start for the Mets, and tallied only one scoreless inning out of five. Figueroa allowed one run in the second, third, and fourth. He then let up three in the fifth inning. Of the six runs he allowed, four were earned.

He struggled with the control, allowing five hits and walking five. Figueroa struck out four while on the bump. Figueroa walked in a run in the third.

He was just not very effective, at all. Usually he feeds off the energy at Shea, but it seemed pretty dead tonight. He needs a big crowd behind him. I hate to say it, but Figueroa's magic may be running out.

Jorge Sosa stunk, again. Sosa's line: 1 IP, 4 hits, 4 earned runs, 2 BB, 1 K.

Cut him. Now.

Duaner Sanchez pitched a scoreless and hitless inning, striking out one. Joe Smith and Billy Wagner both looked excellent as they both struck out the side in their respective innings.

Beautiful. I love Joe Smith. Let me make it easy, Mets. Cut Sosa, keep Smith. It's not too hard.

The Mets pounded out 12 hits, but only managed four runs. Odalis Perez threw 6 1-3 innings, scattering 11 hits and only allowing four runs.

The team got on the board early, scoring one in each of the first three innings. Carlos Beltran picked up an RBI single in the first, driving in David Wright. In the second, Damion Easley crushed a solo home run to deep center field to lead off the inning. Easley picked up another RBI, driving in Moises Alou from second with a single to right. Alou, who doubled earlier in the inning, had a nice headfirst slide to beat the tag at home.

And from there, they were held in check until the seventh inning. I thought this was going to be one of those crazy blowouts where they can't help but score, but I couldn't have been more wrong. They looked flat. Perez wasn't excellent, there was no need for them to shut down like that. And for the love of everything holy, don't blame Willie.

Wright went yard with no one on base in the seventh.

Yay.

Game Ball: Easley.

Figures

I had tickets tonight. I thought it was going to rain. I didn't go. And now it looks like they're going to play.

As Alanis Morisette would say, "It figures."

Castillo diagnosed with strained quad

Just as he was getting hot...

Luis Castillo will likely spend some time on the disabled list after pulling up while running into third with a triple in Sunday's game.

And MRI showed a strain in the muscle, which will likely put Castillo on the DL, possibly making some other moves easier for the Mets. If they game is still played tonight, which it looks like it will be, the Mets will need a spot starter for Wednesday's game.

If they put Castillo on the DL, and bring up Adam Bostick, as I mentioned before, and then activate Matt Wise after the game, everything seems to work out, though they will run without a bench player for some time.

This stinks. Just as the Mets got their starting lineup back and looked like they were starting to click as a team, one cog goes down. Here's to a speedy recovery and being able to pick up where you left off.

Mets batting stances, past and present

Hilarious video. Enjoy.

Is a win Willie's fault too?

After every Mets loss, without fail, I hear people clamoring for Willie Randolph to be handed a pink slip.

If these people subscribe to that theory, shouldn't every Mets win solidify his place in the dugout?

After pegging the Reds for 12 runs in the early game of the doubleheader on Saturday, Bronson Arroyo came out and pitched his best game in years. Is that the Mets, and specifically Willie's fault? No. It happens. Good teams will be shut down by good pitching from time to time.

I know it's easy to argue against that while looking at Arroyo's numbers this year, but he had everything working for him Saturday night and, as Gary Cohen says, good teams sometimes just have to tip their hat to a great pitching performance.

So after the Mets saw Oliver Perez pitch five great innings and one crappy one, a significant improvement from his last few starts, and the Mets take 2 out of 3, with the one loss coming during Arroyo's brilliance on the mound, where are people praising Willie?

What about Rick Peterson? Oliver looked a lot more in control, though he still walked four, as he struck out eight batters, and only allowed three hits. Shouldn't Peterson be getting a bit of praise for this performance?

I think some fans are inherently negative, and have learned to be negative through the bad years of the early 90's, and don't want to change. It's easy to have a sourpuss attitude and blast every little fallacy or flaw rather than praise the good (I know, because whenever I write papers, I always argue against the point, it's just easier that way).

So as the Mets just to 19-16, three games over .500, and move into a tie for second place behind the playing-over-their-heads Florida Marlins, maybe, just maybe, you can cut Willie Randolph and Rick Peterson some slack, as the team has looked pretty darn good over this past week, and it's only looking up from here.

Mets Lounge: Heated discussion

We have a heated discussion going on over at Mets Lounge.

Drop by and get your two cents in!

Game Recap: Mets 8 -- Reds 3

I caught bits and pieces of this game, sneaking away from the family and the chilly weather, and dashing inside to catch a few pitches every now and then, so here's a brief recap.

Oliver Perez pitched a much better game today. The first five innings of the game showed the classic Perez that Mets fans fell in love with. In control, getting his pitches across, and getting really quick outs. I really loved when he got the first out on the first pitch in two consecutive innings. The sixth was a bit of a different story, but he's working back up to what he's capable of if he just keeps his head in the game.

Carlos Beltran had another big day with the pink bat. Beltran went 2-4, scoring twice and driving in three runs with an RBI double and a two run home run. Ryan Church followed up Beltran's blast with one of his own.

Jose Reyes made things happen, getting three hits and scoring twice. Luis Castillo drove in one and scored twice while picking up two hits before leaving the game with a quad injury. Damion Easley, his replacement, added an RBI as well. David Wright and Moises Alou each added an RBI and had one hit.

Scott Schoeneweis put together a nice appearance, stretching out to 1 2-3 of an inning, allowing three hits but no runs. He struck out three while on the bump. I'd like to see this more out of him, but only in the right situation. We need more Schoeneweis, especially after his great start to the year so far.

Out today

It's Mother's Day, so I'll be spending time with my family. I'll be back later tonight with a quick recap and the days news. Enjoy the game and Happy Mother's Day!

The hubbub over Willie Randolph and his possible replacement

Every time the Mets lose a game, I hear the same things:

"It's Willies fault." "Fire Willie!" "Randolph stinks!" "Where's Frank Robinson?"

Yes, that last one is true. I still like Willie Randolph. It's not entirely his fault the players are inconsistent. It's not his fault his pitchers get into the 120's with their pitch count in the 5th inning.

When people call for Randolph's head, I always seem to ask the question "Well if not Randolph, then who?" Mostly people don't care who comes in, as long as Willie is gone. The loudest name I've heard come out of these discussions is Frank Robinson.

I always hear the complaints that Willie doesn't have emotion, that he doesn't have "fire," that he's as boring as tofu. To solve this, you want to put a 73 year old man at the helm?

Robinson was a great manager, but not anymore. He's too old, too frail. He falls asleep during games in the dugout. He's done with managing! When he managed his last game with the Nationals, he said he was done. He wanted a front office job, not to take over another team.

If you think this team doesn't have heart and Willie should be fired (which I don't), Frank Robinson is not your answer.