Manuel’s Musing for June 1

“The good thing is he threw strikes.”

-Jerry Manuel on J.J. Putz’s five-batter, four-run, no-out outing.

Game Recap: Pirates 8 – Mets 5

Handed away on a silver platter.

The Pittsburgh Pirates (23-28) beat the New York Mets (28-22) by a score of 8-5.

Livan Hernandez was good, not great.  He surrendered three runs in 5 2-3 innings, walking two and striking out five.  Hernandez gave up a two-run triple and an RBI groundout in the bottom of the fourth inning.

With the Mets clinging to a 5-3 lead (they were up 5-0 at one point) the 8th inning came along and everything came crashing down.  Pedro Feliciano started the inning, his second of work, and allowed a leadoff double. J.J. Putz came in with one out and allowed four straight hits, allowing three runs to score.

Something is obviously very wrong with Putz.  He tried to tinker with his arm in a bullpen session earlier in the day.  We all know the old adage about Rome, but his struggles have been grand and well chronicled.  Don’t be surprised if he’s on the DL tomorrow.

With the bases loaded, Brian Stokes came on after Putz failed to get an out after facing five batters and induced a ground ball to shortstop Wilson Valdez.  Instead of getting out of the inning with a double play, Valdez bobbled and dropped the ball, allowing a run to score and the bases to remain loaded.  A sacrifice fly to center field scored the Pirated 8th and final run.

Valdez picked up three RBIs on a run-scoring triple and two-run double. 

The offense didn’t get a hit from the 4th inning until the 9th inning.  They had an early 5-0 lead and watched it shrink, then slip away.  But the problem, more so, was the bullpen and the sieve that Putz has become.

Mets Game Chat: NYM @ PIT [Game 1]

Join in for another Mets game chat to talk baseball with some fellow fans.

(Chat removed, as usual.)

Pagan to DL tomorrow; Lineup for first Pitt stop [Updated]

With Angel Pagan out of the lineup after aggravating his right groin in yesterday’s win, Luis Castillo will take over the leadoff spot for the first game in Pittsburgh.

Update – 5:45 p.m.: Adam Rubin relays that Pagan has already been placed on the DL and the Mets will play with 24 on the roster tonight.

Bart Hubbuch of the NY Post is reporting that Pagan will go to the disabled list tomorrow and Alex Cora, who is in Pittsburgh, will take his place on the roster.  Steve Popper writes that Pagan, smartly, did not make the trip to Pitt.

So the Mets will be playing short on the bench – again – but only for one game.

One has to feel for Pagan.  It seems every time he gets a chance to play and perform, he does very well until he gets injured.  Poor guy.

** *** **

Here’s the lineup…

Update – 6:15 p.m.: Carlos Beltran is still feeling the affects of the stomach virus that went through the team.  He’s been scratched and replaced with Jeremy Reed.  Murphy will slide up to the third spot in the order, with Reed filling in the sixth hole.

Update – 7:02 p.m.: Sheffield moves to RF and Martinez flips to LF, via Bart Hubbuch.

1. Luis Castillo – 2B
2. Fernando Martinez – RF LF
3. Carlos Beltran – CF Daniel Murphy - 1B
4. Gary Sheffield – LF RF
5. David Wright – 3B
6. Daniel Murphy – 1B Jeremy Reed - CF
7. Wilson Valdez – SS
8. Brian Schneider – C
9. Livan Hernandez – RHP

Hernandez is 4-4 in 13 starts against the Pirates with a 5.77 ERA.  In six starts at PNC Park, he is 1-3 with a 5.15 ERA.

Tip of the (large) baseball cap to PR guy Jay Horowitz

If you watch any SNY broadcasts of the New York Mets you’ve probably heard his name mentioned.  If you’re a keen listener, you’ve also probably heard the legend of his large melon.  But for 30 years as of today, Jay Horowitz has been making the Mets who they are.

Filip Bondy has a wonderful profile in the Daily News today, and it’s a must read for Mets fans.

There was one part that stuck out to me and actually made me laugh out loud.

And that time Anna [Benson] dressed up in a low-cut Santa Claus suit, handing out goodies to kids at a club function?

"Say what you want, but the next day we were on the back page of the Daily News, Newsday and the Post," Horwitz says.

Take a few minutes and go read Bondy’s “In 30th year as P.R. man for Mets, Jay Horwitz shares Amazin' memories.”  It’s a great tribute to a man who’s been through the very good and the very bad with the team we all love.

Mets leading NL East pitching

I know ERA isn’t the best way to evaluate pitchers, but it’s the most widely understood.  Here are three charts, breaking down the NL East pitching staffs by starters, relievers and combined using the ERA stat.

First, the starters… Surprisingly, and despite their 25-25 record, the Braves are leading the NL East in starters ERA.  The Mets are sitting pretty in second, obviously inflated by the ERAs of Tim Redding and Oliver Perez.

Now the relievers… The Mets are leading this category by a fairly wide margin.  For the Nationals, none of this is good news.  They’re 28th overall for starting pitching and 29th for relievers, easily placing them in dead last for total stats.

And now combined…So far, so good for the Mets pitching staff.  Lately, with the position players decimated by various injuries, the rotation and bullpen has really carried the team to wins.  Going 19-9 in May must be mostly attributed to the hard word out of the guys on the mound.

Me on Seven Train To Shea

Last night I appeared on the Seven Train To Shea radio show with Matt Pignataro and Greg Tortora.

We discussed a plethora of Mets topics, from possible trades, internal pitching options, Gary Sheffield, Omir Santos and more.  Click above to take a listen, I’m around for the first 25 or so minutes.

Thanks to Matt and Greg for a great show.

It’s time for Parnell to take over the 8th

J.J. Putz is struggling.

In 27 games this season, Putz has already walked 18 batters.  In 2006 and 2007, he walked only 13 batters the entire year.

In 28 1-3 innings, Putz has struck out 19 batters.  In 78.1 innings in 2006, Putz struck out 104 batters that faced him.

He also may be pitching injured.  We know Putz has a bone spur in his arm, which you are able to play through if the pain isn’t bad.  Putz got a cortisone shot in his arm to help the pain, and he came back and looked excellent.  Now that the shot is further and further in his past, he may be pitching in pain again and it’s affecting his performance.

Putz is sporting a 3.81 ERA, not bad by any means.  But as the Mets 8th inning guy, I think they can do better.  Bobby Parnell, the young rookie, has posted a 2.11 ERA.  Though he’s walked nine, he’s also struck out 19 in 21 1-3 innings.

As it stands now, I’d be more confident seeing Parnell enter for the 8th inning, in the higher pressure situations.  I don’t know if Putz is pitching in pain or not, but something just isn’t right with him, and it shows.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: If there’s a market for Putz, the Mets should consider trading him away. 

They were unsure of what they had in Parnell, but he has quickly blossomed into an integral part of the bullpen.  Putz could net the Mets a player that they may be missing right now and I think they could live without him.

Putz has a team option for $10.5 million for next year, way too much to pay a set-up guy.  It’s highly unlikely he’s with the Mets beyond the year. 

Keep Putz pitching in the seventh inning, then entertain offers for him once the deadline approaches.  If he can stay healthy, he might be the key to getting the player the Mets may need down the stretch.

Poll Results: Fans like Murphy at 1B

In the latest poll, I asked fans if they liked the move of Daniel Murphy to first base.

Here are the results:

1. First baseman of the future – 62%
2. Trade bait – 34%
3. Put him back in LF – 3%

Murphy has looked decent at first so far, with somewhat of an expected learning curve.  Unfortunately, outside of his five RBI game this past week, Murphy hasn’t been hitting much.

Since taking over at first base, Murphy has four hits in his last 24 at bats with three walks and five RBIs.  That’s a .167 batting average.  Three of those hits and all of those RBIs came on May 27 against Washington.

If the Mets are liking what the see out of Murphy, they may be inclined to stick with him at first base next year and beyond.  Hopefully his bat comes back sometime soon.

Next poll: What to do with Tim Redding?

Manuel’s Musing for May 31

“Between innings, he was laying on the floor someplace trying to get comfort and relief.”

-Jerry Manuel on John Maine’s struggles through Sunday’s game