Mets Win, Lagares Wins, We All Win

Mets evened up their weekend series late Saturday evening against the Nationals with a 5-2 victory.

Bartolo Colon earned his third win of the season surrendering just two earned runs in eight innings of work. Colon now has 192 wins for his career.

Juan Lagares drove in three runs going 3-for-4 with a home run raising his batting average to .304. He also robbed Jayson Werth of a home run.

"Well, he'll play tomorrow," Terry Collins said of Lagares.

The decision to allow the Mets young centerfielder to ride the pine in favor of proven veterans has been a hot topic of conversation amongst Mets fans. Most Mets faithful are up in arms with the organization's idea to relegate one of their more productive hitters to the bench and have him merely waste away.

Here's a few links to keep you up-to-snuff on what's going on with the Mets:

NY Post...Lagares sends message with homer, 3 RBI as Mets win

Newsday...Jenrry Mejia nails down first big-league save

Mets.com...Mets aim to build on breakout against Zimmermann

Faith and Fear in Flushing....Lagares, Come Forth

NJ.com...Mets find production from Eric Campbell, minor leaguer given chance to play

ESPN NY...Farnsworth flops in Astros debut

The Daily Stache...Juan Lagares takes a home run away from Jayson Werth 

Wright on the DL, Six-Man Rotation On-Hold, and Wilmer Flores

Listening to Terry Collins' post-game last night, he was obviously distraught. Perhaps feeling guilty that he didn't address David Wright's ailment sooner. Or maybe the real reason for his abrupt comments after the game stemmed from the fact that his 6-man rotation experiment was thwarted once again. When asked, "Who's pitching tom'row?" (meaning Saturday), Collins snapped, "Hefner."

As for Wilmer Flores, he doesn't have an exact position on defense and as one tweeter suggested, the Mets may want to keep his trade value high by leaving him down on the farm where he has excelled offensively. Right now he's a solid prospect, exposing him too soon to the majors where he could falter in a short stint may move teams to write him off as a bonafide big leaguer much quicker.

Byrd Could Be Answer for Mets Outfield in 2013

At 35, Marlon Byrd has accepted his mistakes and can only hope that his next opportunity with the NY Mets will be one of redemption and not of folly. Byrd's career took a humiliating turn when it was found that he had dabbled in the not-so-glamorous world of Major League Baseball's banned substances which eventually landed him with a 50-game suspension. Byrd was caught taking Tomoxifen which is not a performance-enhancing drug but aids in the prevention of breast tissue growth in men and also stops post-cycle crashes that stem from steroid use.

"It was something stupid," Byrd said. "Whether I was trying to cheat or was not trying to cheat, it was a banned substance. It was not a steroid. But, again, you take something on the banned list you're going to get caught. As simple as that."

Byrd technically didn't miss any major league games last year because he had been released by the Boston Red Sox prior to his suspension. MLB decided to honor his absence from the game as compensation for the suspension. Byrd will be allowed to play at the start of the 2013 season granted he makes the opening day roster for the Mets.

If he's able to return to the All-Star form of 2010 which produced 170 hits leading to a .293 batting average for the Chicago Cubs, Byrd could be a very interesting story line for the Mets this season. Byrd also had 39 doubles, 12 home runs, and a .346 on-base percentage that year while playing in 152 games.

For a team like the Mets who are desperate for veteran help in their outfield, Byrd could be the perfect match as an everyday player in right field or even center field. Mets manager Terry Collins doesn't just see Byrd as a platoon player, he feels that the veteran outfielder could very well land a spot as an permanent fixture in his outfield.

"If you're talking about a guy who's in this camp who has a chance to make a huge difference, it might be Marlon Byrd," Collins said. "This guy was one of the best players in the National League not too long ago. If he's the same player he was in Chicago, we may have found ourselves a right fielder."

Lack of Focus Throughout the Season Crippled Mets

the Mets this season just didn't have the right makeup to play consistent baseball throughout, to win 90-95 games, you have to commit yourself to the long haul, the Mets gave you three good innings, five good at-bats, four good innings, there were too many mental lapses on defense, on the base paths, from their BP, plus their offense was over-matched against LHP, no power, not much speed, and Collins eventually seemed complacent with the overall performance of his team, I remember after the Mets lost to the Phils, 16-0, Collins finally woke up, unfortunately, it was too little too late

Just Another Loss That Could've Been Averted

On last night's 4-1 loss to the Giants....

It seems as if the Mets defense falters at inopportune times and I have to say that it's right up there with their shaky BP...last night's lineup w/Turner at third and no DWright, VSpin leading off (keep Tejada in the top spot! stop shuffling around your lineup!)...this is why I'm still not sold on Collins (plus, not sure of inning, VSpin on first no outs, Mets down 2-1, have Tejada bunt him over, instead, let's him hit, DP)

Also, why does Collins choose last night's game to give Wright a day off, the Mets were gaining some momentum with the two wins, plus you have Harvey out there who's still green. I would think it would be beneficial to have your marquee guy in Wright out there...plenty of time to rest in the off-season

You Could Say Harvey's Debut Went Well

"At that moment, I really did believe that I was meant to pitch in the big leagues," Mets rookie starter Matt Harvey after last night's 3-1 victory over the Diamondbacks.

Harvey helped the Mets stave off their seventh consecutive loss by pitching 5.1 scoreless innings and striking out a franchise-record 11 Arizona batters in his MLB debut.

"You could tell he was juiced up," Terry Collins said after the game. "I haven't seen a 98-mph-pitch out of a starter in quite some time. He's lived up to exactly what everybody has talked about."

Harvey went 2-for-2 at the plate as well.

Mets Have Had Their Share of Losing, Now They Just Need to Win

"We're not a bad team, we're playing bad," Manager Terry Collins after the Mets dropped their 11th loss in their last 12 games. "We're not doing anything right right now."

Since the All-Star break, the Mets have managed just one measly win. Their record now stands at 47-50.

"Nobody wants to perform like this and have a record like this," last night's losing pitcher for the Mets, R.A. Dickey. "We've lost a lot of close games. But we have to win some of them, too. It's disappointing."

Mets May Be Down But Not Out

"It's time to reach down inside and pull out whatever we've got left and make something out of the remainder of this trip."

Terry Collins after last night's 5-4 loss in which he watched his bullpen meltdown for the second time in the last three games. The Mets came back and took the lead twice on the Nationals in the top of the ninth and tenth innings only to see it disappear from a bases-loaded wild pitch by right-hander Pedro Beato in the bottom of the tenth.

'A Little Frustrating' Sums Up Last Night's Loss for Mets

"The next month will determine a lot," Terry Collins professed prior to Friday night's 7-5 loss to the Braves. "We're going to know how we're standing when we get to August 1st. If we're still in the dogfight."

Listening to Collins' comments, one may suggest that the Mets skipper's confidence could be wavering just a bit. It's no help that his starting pitcher, Chris Young, allow five earned runs on six hits in just three innings of work. And that the Mets pitching staff as a whole walked eleven batters, four of them by Miguel Batista in just one-and-a-third innings of relief. Batista has been mentioned as a replacement for the injured Dillon Gee.

As for the Mets offense, they were able to put up a four-spot in the fourth inning to keep the game interesting. However, that effort was over-shadowed in the top of the fifth when they had the bases loaded and no one out and nothing to show for it thanks in part to two swinging strikeouts by Scott Hairston and Kirk Nieuwenhuis followed by a Josh Thole flyout.

Collins Patience Starting To Pay Off for Davis and Mets

"When you look up and you see a guy has 13 homers and 50 RBI and he's hitting .202, I'll take those homers and RBIs, especially with his defense," Terry Collins speaking about Ike Davis after today's 3-1 victory over the Cubs.

Davis actually hit his 12th home run earlier today and drove in runs number 48 and 49. His 1-for-4 day raised his batting average to .205.

If you recall, it was Collins who decided to keep Davis on the MLB roster to work out his differences at the big league level. Davis looks as if he is starting to come around.

Dickey Not Quite Right, Teammates Rally Around Him for Walk-Off Win

"There's a lot of games that everybody has to pick each other up. When you get an outing from your ace that  you're not expected to, and the other guys are rising to the occasion to pick him up, that's a huge win for the club," Terry Collins after last night's 6-5 walk-off win over the Phillies.

RA Dickey struggling last night by allowing 11 hits and surrendering 5 earned runs. Dickey did manage to last seven innings and avert his second loss of the season. The knuckleballer also recorded seven strikeouts and ended the night with a one-two-three seventh inning.

Oh No, Two More Lefties Against the Mets

On Sunday, two of the Mets hottest hitters were made to sit out the last game of the series due to a strong left-handed starter on the mound for the opposing team.


Daniel Murphy and Ike Davis have been hitting with confidence this past week for the Metsies. In the last seven days, Murphy has gone 9-for-22 (.409 BA) with 3 home runs and 10 RBI. Davis has been able to push his batting average above the .200 mark during that span by batting 7-for-21 (.333 BA) with 2 homers of his own and eight runs batted in.


The Mets will host the Phillies tonight with right-hander Vance Worley getting the start for Philadelphia. However, left-handers Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels will be on the mound for the Phils on Wednesday and Thursday. 


What is Met manager Terry Collins going to do? Sit Davis and Murphy for two games. I hope not.

Mets Give Their Fans Another Stinker

"We didn't play good tonight," Terry Collins said after the Mets dropped Sunday's night game to the Dodgers, 8-3. "We didn't run the bases well early, we didn't catch the ball. Later, some base on balls got in the way, along with some bad fielding."

Santana Makes A Case to Relinquish His Role As Mets Ace

"After the second inning, he got better, better, and better," Terry Collins said after last night's pitching performance from his left-hander.

Johan Santana upped his record to 6-4 after throwing eight scoreless innings against the Dodgers.

Mets Need To Change Their Ugly Ways

"We've played two bad baseball games here," Collins said. "We've got to get it stopped. We've got to turn it around now."

Terry's Tinkering Backfires On Him

"I'm responsible for the way he pitched tonight. He's rusty. So it's my doing, not his."

I'll admit I applaud the way Terry Collins assumed responsibility for Johan Santana's performance last night against the Yankees. He really doesn't have to. Mets fans know that throughout Santana's career as a Met, he's given up his fair share of bombs.

Another way of looking at it though is that Collins may have disrupted the Mets starting rotation. I don't mind. I'm a patient Mets fan. It really doesn't bother me at all. It just puts more pressure on Chris Young. If he's able to come back from major shoulder surgery and pitch effective I'm all for it.

RA Dickey Lifted After 87 Pitches

Why was RA Dickey pinch hit for with Andres Torres of all people starting off the top of the eighth inning? Dickey was pitching one-run, five-hit ball with 11 strikeouts, a career high. I don't understand what the reasoning was for this decision by Terry Collins. Please let me know why!

Is it me or doesn't your bullpen need an outing like this from your starter to give some of these guys the night off?

The good news though is that Dickey earned his 6th win of the season. But, c'mon Collins, let the guy finish what he started.

Should Ike Davis Be Sent Down?

After reading about the Marlins' first baseman Gaby Sanchez being sent down to the minors yesterday for carrying a .197 batting average, Mets fans should heed this warning and consider the possibility of their first baseman, Ike Davis, following suit. Davis currently is bating .160 with an on-base percentage of .220 and owns the worst home batting average in the majors at .065 (5-for-62)

In an ESPN NY report by Adam Rubin, Mets skipper Terry Collins is not adverse to the idea of his young first baseman taking a demotion to Triple-A with the hopes that Davis is able to sort things out.

"There is nothing etched in stone," Collins said. "We will never say something is not going to happen. What we are trying to do is to make sure we wring the rag dry."

As for Davis' thoughts on his situation, "I don't know what to tell you...I'm going to play here until something happens."

Check out the latest version of Mets Public Record where I felt that if the Mets are winning, perhaps they can absorb the recent shortcomings of Davis' ineffectiveness at the plate. In defense of Davis, he is a very good fielder.

Let me know what you think.

Mets Bullpen Is Currently Undefined

Paul Festa of Mets Today suggests in his post entitled, Frankie Goes to Setup Role? that perhaps the Mets current bullpen is not so clear cut.

Here's what I had to say.

Let’s face it, Francisco sits towards the bottom half of current MLB closers – his ERA, WHIP are high for late-inning relievers…his best years were w/TEX – he was able to stabilize himself last year w/TOR as a closer w/17 saves (50.2 IP, 49 H, 18 BB, 53 SO) with every SO there most def. was either a walk or a hit in there as well 

as a Mets fan, I could care less if it’s Frankie or Rauch or Parnell, the only thing that I’m worried about is if Collins and Co. drag their feet in making their decision we could be made to witness Francisco flounder before he’s officially demoted, it is still early though so I don’t want it to sound like I’m jumping the gun but I am concerned 

Collins echoes his predecessor in one regard, he seems to avoid definitive roles with his BP, we’ve seen it before and closers by committee just don’t work

Be sure to check out Mets Public Record on BlogTalkRadio tom'row night at 11 PM EST.

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Let's Go Mets !!

Spring Is In the Air! Mets 2012 Spring Training Begins

On our last podcast, I'm joined by Rich Rivera of The Baseball Analyst as we touch on the Ryan Braun situation, raise the question, are the Mets a little too excited about the new dimensions of Citi Field, and our thoughts on the latest news surrounding the upcoming trial against the Mets owners.

I also ask Rich if he felt peeved with Terry Collins' decision to whine to the media about not having Ruben Tejada down in Florida early.

Listen to the whole show, RIGHT HERE!.