Monday, August 31, 2009
Beltran Cleared For Rehab Assignment
Carlos BeltranThe New York Mets’ All-Star center fielder, sidelined since June 22 with a bone bruise on his right knee, was examined Monday by team medical director Dr. David Altchek and cleared to play without his knee brace.
Beltran is slated to be in the lineup Wednesday night for Class-A Brooklyn against visiting Hudson Valley.
In other news, Mets pitchers Johan Santana and Oliver Perez are scheduled for surgery Tuesday. Santana will have bone chips removed from his left elbow. Perez is to have scar tissue extracted from the patella tendon of his right knee.
The injury-depleted Mets say both pitchers should be ready for spring training.
New York also recalled catcher Josh Thole from Double-A Binghamton.
Beltran was batting .336 with eight homers and 40 RBIs when he was placed on the disabled list.
Santana, a two-time Cy Young Award winner, went 13-9 with a 3.13 ERA in 25 starts this year. Perez, slowed by his sore knee, was a bust in the first season of a $36 million, three-year contract. He finished 3-4 with a 6.82 ERA in 14 starts.
Both operations will be performed by Altchek and Mets physician Dr. Struan Coleman.
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Parnell Stinks, Cubs over Mets 11-4
Jake Fox hit his first career grand slam and finished with a career-high five RBIs—all in his final two at-bats—to lead the Cubs to an 11-4 win over the New York Mets.
His bases-loaded homer finished Mets starter Bobby Parnell (3-7) during a six-run fifth inning, and Fox added an RBI double off Lance Broadway in the seventh.
Milton Bradley, who was 3 for 3 on Friday, got hits in his first three at-bats Saturday and finished 3 for 4 with a walk. Booed earlier in the week, Bradley is 11 for 20 with four walks during the first five games of the Cubs’ homestand.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Surgery An Option For Reyes
The Mets say Reyes is still getting physical therapy for the torn tendon behind his knee and that surgery is an option. The speedy infielder has been on the disabled list since May.
Reyes went on the DL May 26, retroactive to May 21. Earlier this month he returned to New York from rehab in Port St. Lucie, Fla., to be examined by team doctors.
Reyes has played in only 36 games this season with a .279 batting average, one of several key players the Mets have missed to injuries, along with Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado, and Johan Santana.
Star third baseman David Wright, who had a concussion, could be activated Tuesday.
Stokes Chokes
Brian Stokes' career-high scoreless-inning streak came to an end Friday. Pat Misch's winless streak in the majors continued as a result.
Stokes, who had tossed 12 2/3 straight scoreless innings, took the mound with a one-run lead in the eighth. He gave up an RBI single to Aramis Ramirez, then a three-run homer to Alfonso Soriano on a two-strike slider as the Cubs rallied to beat the Mets, 5-2, at Wrigley Field.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Keep Losing For A Better Draft Pick
Florida’s Ronny Paulino broke a 2-2 tie with a two-run homer off RHP Mike Pelfrey in the fifth inning as the Marlins won 5-3.
Cory Sullivan had a sixth-inning sacrifice fly that scored Daniel Murphy and pulled the Mets within a run against Florida RHP Josh Johnson, but New York ultimately lost its fifth consecutive game.
Catcher Brian Schneider needs to be in another uniform next season.
Mike Pelfrey got bunting tips from Daniel Murphy or Howard Johnson.
$88,908,821 - That's the combined salaries of the 13 players on the DL for the Mets. That would rank 13th in MLB salary rankings ahead of St. Louis at $87,703,409.
Two outs and no body on base. Fernando Tatis finally gets on with a base hit.
Oliver Is Done For Season
Oliver PerezWill Ollie's surgery add a soul and brain? No news on that.
"I think he'll be fine," manager Jerry Manuel said. "There's no doubt in my mind. I think the one thing is that we've identified the things. And once we've identified those things, we have to correct those things. Once we correct them, we have to let the chips fall where they may."
Manuel said left-hander Pat Misch is likely to replace Perez in the rotation, beginning Friday against the Cubs at Wrigley Field.
Lance Broadway, who was acquired from the White Sox in a May 29 trade for C Ramon Castro, was promoted from Class AAA Buffalo on Wednesday to replace Perez. Broadway, 26, went 5-7 with a 6.27 ERA in 16 appearances (14 starts) for Buffalo.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
The Amazin' Mess
Nelson Figueroa, subbing for Johan Santana, limited the Marlins to two runs in five innings, but the Mets lost their fourth consecutive game, 2-1.
Jeff Francoeur emerged in the New York Mets locker room with a thick wad of bandage wrapped around his left hand, an aching thumb underneath ready to be iced. And he was one of the few New York starters healthy enough to play.
Gary Sheffield left the game in the seventh inning with lower back discomfort. Sheffield walked and called time out while at first base between pitches before he was replaced. He said he should be fine and could play Wednesday.
Santana Would Of Played Hurt
New York Mets ace Johan Santana is done for the season with a hurt left elbow and he has likely taken any whiff of a chance for the massively injured team with him. But if the team had been close to contention, Santana is saying that he would have gone right on and pitched hurt, according to the New York Daily News.
Santana will now undergo arthroscopic surgery to remove bone chips from the elbow. He's saying there is no doubt he'll be ready for 2010.
Perhaps it's for the best that the Mets aren't in contention right now. If Santana had kept pitching with all those bone chips floating around in his elbow, maybe he would have injured himself further and not been ready for next year.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Santana Out For Year
Johan Santana needs surgery for bone chips in his left elbow and the star pitcher is out for the season, the latest blow to a New York Mets team battered by injuries.
The team said their 30-year-old ace is expected to be OK for spring training next year. He was examined Tuesday by Mets medical director Dr. David Altchek in New York.
“It’s not the worst,” Santana said on a conference call. “Believe me, I’m going to be ready.”
The Mets also announced Tuesday that reliever J.J. Putz had a setback in his recovery from elbow surgery and will miss the rest of the season after an MRI revealed “some new fraying and a slight tear” in his right forearm. He will not need surgery and it is merely a preventative measure, the team said.
Santana said he had the same operation after the 2003 season, and came back with a career-high 20 wins and the first of his two Cy Young Awards for Minnesota.
Now Wagner Is Moving To Red Sox
Billy Wagner was traded to Boston on Tuesday for two minor league players to be named. Wagner, who made two appearances with the Mets after returning from Tommy John elbow surgery, had been claimed off waivers by the Red Sox last week.
His departure will save the Mets $3.2 million, including a buyout of his 2010 contract.
Wagner Not Moving To Red Sox
It's looking like New York Mets reliever Billy Wagner is going to invoke his no-trade clause and not move to the Boston Red Sox, according to FOXSports.
Wagner wanted Boston to agree to not pick up the 38-year-old's $8 million club option for next season and not offer him arbitration for next season. Red Sox GM Theo Epstein just wasn't ready to make that kind of deal. You can bet Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon is heaving a sigh of relief. He had suggested to the media that it might be good to stick with the current chemistry in the bullpen.
So now Wagner has got a month to perform like crazy so some team will offer him a decent deal for next season because you can bet that the Mets aren't going to shell out $8 million for a guy who is just coming off Tommy John surgery. Not with the injury-filled season they've had this year.
Johan May Be Done For Year
Johan SantanaSantana’s setback is particularly alarming for the fourth-place Mets, who are counting on the two-time Cy Young Award winner to lead their rotation for years to come.
Santana had been slated to pitch Tuesday night in Florida. Instead, the left-hander will be examined by Mets medical director Dr. David Altchek, and right-hander Nelson Figueroa will start against the Marlins.
Help From Minors
Josh TholeThole has emerged as the organization’s top catching prospect despite his limited experience behind the plate. Drafted in the 13th round in 2005, Thole had caught only 28 games during his first three seasons as a professional. He relocated to the position full time a month into last season. The 22-year-old Thole was hitting .332 through 364 at-bats with Class AA Binghamton.
Kunz was the organization’s top draft pick in 2007. He previously served as the closer at Oregon State, where he won two College World Series championships. Kunz made four relief appearances for the Mets in August 2008, allowing four runs in 2 2/3 innings.
Monday, August 25, 2009
What Else Can Go Wrong?
Phillies' second baseman Eric Bruntlett, right, completes an unassisted triple play to end the game by catching the line drive from New York Mets' Jeff Francoeur, stepping on second base and tagging out the New York Mets' Daniel Murphy, center, while Phillies' Jimmy Rollins looks on in the bottom of the ninth inning at Citi Field.Bruntlett became the second player in major league history to get the final three outs on one play without any help, preserving Philadelphia’s 9-7 win over the Mets and making Martinez a winner in his return to New York on Sunday.
The Phillies scored six times in the first inning off Oliver Perez on three-run homers by Jayson Werth and Carlos Ruiz. Perez didn’t get his first out until he threw his 29th pitch.
The Citi Field crowd of 39,038 stood and cheered as Martinez walked to the plate in the Phillies’ road gray-and-red uniform, a jarring sight for sure after he spent the previous four years with the Mets.
Martinez worked the count to 3-0 and Mets manager Jerry Manuel came out to remove Perez, bothered recently by a tender right knee that sidelined him earlier this season. The move got a loud ovation, and Perez (3-4) was soundly booed as he walked off the field having thrown 47 pitches—20 strikes—and getting just two outs.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Braves Beat Johan, Wagner Throws Gas
Billy WagnerThe 38-year-old former closer hit 96 mph on a radar gun. Wagner had tossed seven scoreless innings during a minor league rehab assignment and appears fully recovered from Sept. 10, 2008 Tommy John elbow surgery. He last appeared in a major league game on Aug. 8, 2008.
Livian Released
Livan Hernandez was released by the Mets. The Mets had won only two of Hernandez’s final 12 starts. He had a 6.55 ERA since the All-Star break. Tim Redding instead will make Saturday’s start against the Phillies. Hernandez's season totals were a 7-8 record and a 5.47 ERA with losses in his last three starts.
Sheffield Causing Drama
The Mets, who have endured their share of off-the-field drama this season, again were dealing with a controversy Thursday. Gary Sheffield was scratched from the starting lineup against the Braves at his request after becoming upset with the front office, the New York Daily News reported.
According to the newspaper, Sheffield was upset the Mets pulled the veteran back when he was claimed by another team off waivers, potentially preventing him from relocating to a contender. Sheffield then reportedly approached Mets officials about a contract for 2010 and was rebuffed.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Braves Stick It To Mets
Brian McCann hit a three-run homer and the Braves took advantage of another gaffe by Luis Castillo to put together their second-biggest inning of the season in a 15-2 victory over the sluggish New York Mets on Wednesday.
The Braves’ eight-run second came one night after they lost the series opener when New York had a season-high eight runs and a franchise-record 10 hits in the fourth inning of a 9-4 win.
Five runs scored after Castillo failed to cover second on Garret Anderson’s two-out grounder to shortstop Anderson Hernandez with runners on the corners.
Castillo collected two more hits for New York and is batting .391 (45 for 115) since July 5, but is likely headed for more scrutiny after his latest mental lapse. The normally sure-handed second baseman cost the Mets a win when he dropped a ninth-inning popup in a 9-8 loss at the Yankees on June 12, allowing two runs to score.
Atlanta and New York became the first teams to exchange innings of eight or more runs on consecutive days of the same series since the Indians and Yankees did it on July 4-5, 2006, according to STATS LLC.
Adam LaRoche’s drive was the 100th homer in 61 games at Citi Field. The new Yankee Stadium reached 100 homers in 28 games, back on June 7.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Mets Keep Losing Games and Players
Aaron Rowand and the San Francisco Giants looked a lot more comfortable on the road after a timely pep talk from their manager.
Rowand homered and had four hits, Joe Martinez won close to home and San Francisco routed a makeshift New York Mets team 10-1 on Monday night to split their four-game series.
Third baseman David Wright, on the disabled list with a concussion, returned to Citi Field on Monday and said he felt better—two days after he was hit flush on the helmet by a 94 mph fastball from Giants pitcher Matt Cain.
The Mets announced more bad news late in the game. Alex Cora, who had been filling in for injured Jose Reyes at shortstop, will have separate operations to repair both ailing thumbs. Cora is expected to miss the rest of the season.
Monday, August 17, 2009
3 Minor Leaguers Suspended After Failing Tests
Pedro De Los Santos and Luis Hernandez, a pair of New York Mets prospects in the Dominican Summer League, have been suspended for 50 games each following positive tests under baseball’s minor league drug program.
Noel De Leon, a free agent pitcher formerly with Tampa Bay’s Dominican Summer League team, also received a 50-game suspension.
All three tested positive for metabolites of Stanozolol, Major League Baseball said Monday. The suspensions for the Mets pitchers started immediately, and De Leon’s penalty will begin when he signs with another team.
There have been 55 suspensions this year under the minor league drug program and four under the major league program.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Wright Drilled In The Head
David Wright is assisted on the field by the Mets witch doctors.Wright was batting with an 0-2 count and Luis Castillo on first when Cain threw a 93 mile-per-hour fastball that slammed into Wright's helmet above the earflap. Wright's helmet flew off and he sank face-first to the dirt. Two trainers came sprinting out of the Met dugout, as did Met manager Jerry Manuel, to attend to Wright.
Cain, a hard-throwing All-Star, came in halfway from the mound and sat on his haunches, peering into the plate as the trainers checked Wright. At one point, a trainer shined a flashlight in Wright's eyes.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Mets To Wear New York Throwback Uniforms
The New York Mets today announced they will honor their National League heritage by wearing throwback uniforms inspired by the turn of the century New York Giants uniforms when they play the San Francisco Giants August 14-16 at Citi Field.
The cream-colored jerseys feature an oversized blue "NY" on the front, blue and orange piping on the sleeves and a Mr. Met patch on the right sleeve.
Click to see 1904-05 Giants jerseys. >>Mets Amazin' Memorabilia will auction off the jerseys to benefit the Mets Foundation on www.mets.com/gameused.
In addition, the Mets have begun installation of photographic imagery of famous players and historic moments in team history on the Field and Promenade Levels as well as the display of team championship banners on the left field wall.
The Mets were created after the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants left for California following the 1957 season. Major League Baseball granted New York a National League franchise in 1960, and the Mets played their first two seasons in 1962 and 1963 at the Polo Grounds - the former home of the Giants.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Dead Team Walking
Trent Oeltjen had four more hits, falling a homer shy of the cycle and helping make Scherzer a winner as the Arizona Diamondbacks beat the reeling New York Mets 6-2.
Oeltjen has 12 hits in his first 24 at-bats since his contract was purchased from Triple-A Reno to replace the injured Justin Upton on Aug. 6. He has hit safely in all five of his major league games. Oeltjen also made a stellar catch in center field.
Arizona (52-62) has won nine of 13, and five of six against the Mets this season after taking three of four at Citi Field from July 31-Aug. 3. In taking the first two games of the three-game series, Arizona has won three of its last four series.
New York has lost 10 of 13 after a five-game winning streak. Following a 27-20 start, the Mets have gone 25-41 since May 29 and fallen nine games under .500 for the first time since ending the 2004 season at 71-91.
Mets right-hander Livan Hernandez lasted only four innings, giving up six hits and five runs. Hernandez (7-7) has given up 34 earned runs in his last 36 innings, raising his ERA to 5.28.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Mets Keep Losing, Season Looks Lost
Trent Oeltjen, the outfielder from Down Under hit his third home run in four major league games, helping the Arizona Diamondbacks send the New York Mets to their ninth loss in 12 games, 7-4 on Monday night.
Oeltjen, who homered in his major league debut Thursday in Pittsburgh after his contract was purchased from Triple-A Reno and connected again Sunday, also had one of Arizona’s five doubles.
Catcher Miguel Montero had three doubles while winning pitcher Doug Davis had perhaps the biggest hit, a soft liner that got past diving Mets center fielder Angel Pagan to drive in the final two runs of a three-run second inning for a 3-0 Arizona lead.
“I hit it just soft enough to get it under his glove,” Davis said.
Davis (7-10) gave up two runs and four hits in seven innings to win his third straight decision. He won his first back-to-back starts since having surgery to remove a cancerous thyroid in April 2008. He beat the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 8, two days before the surgery, and beat Atlanta on his return May 23.
Davis improved to 3-1 in his career against the Mets.
Mike Pelfrey (8-8) dropped to 0-4 in five starts against Arizona while losing his second straight meeting of the season. Pelfrey had not pitched since a 5-2 loss to the Diamondbacks on Aug. 2, being pushed back to be with his wife, Angela, for the birth of their first child—a boy, Chase—on Thursday.
John Ricco could be next Mets general manager
Daily News Mets Beat writer has found a replacement for Omar Minaya.
Billy Wagner tossed a scoreless, 14-pitch inning for Class A St. Lucie at Jupiter on Monday. Wagner, who underwent Tommy John elbow surgery last September, has pitched five scoreless innings since beginning a minor league rehab assignment.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Rookie Pitcher Beats Mets Again
Rookie pitcher Mat Latos pitched six solid innings as he won his fourth straight start to help the San Diego Padres to a 3-1 win over the New York Mets on Saturday night.
Latos (4-1) gave up one run and four hits in his fifth major-league start since being called up from Double-A San Antonio on July 18. The right-hander lowered his ERA to 2.43.
Following a 27-20 start, the Mets have gone 24-39 since May 29 and fallen eight games under .500 for the first time since ending the 2004 season at 71-91.
Mets rookie Bobby Parnell (2-4) made his first major league start after appearing in 54 games this season and lasted just 2 1-3 innings.
Parnell, who was on a pitch count of 60-75 pitches, left in the third inning with the bases loaded and one out after having thrown 68 pitches. Nelson Figueroa came in and struck out Eliezer Alfonso before he walked Cabrera to force in the run that gave San Diego a 2-1 lead.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
K-Rod Blows 5th Game of Season
Everth Cabrera hit a ninth-inning grand slam off closer Francisco Rodriguez to lift the Padres to a 6-2 victory over the New York Mets on Friday night.
The win was San Diego’s 11th over the Mets in 14 games overall, including seven straight at home. New York has lost seven of nine overall.
The Padres tied the game in the ninth at 2-all after Kyle Blanks led off with a walk and scored on fellow rookie Will Venable’s double into the right-field corner.
Blanks was ruled safe by umpire Marvin Hudson on the throw to the plate. TV replays seemed to indicate that catcher Brian Schneider took the relay from second baseman Anderson Hernandez and tagged Blanks’ hand before he touched home.
Rodriguez, who has five blown saves, walked Henry Blanco and intentionally walked pinch-hitter Oscar Salazar to load the bases. The Mets then moved in center fielder Angel Pagan to become a fifth infielder playing near second base as the entire infield played in, before Cabrera connected.
Friday, August 7, 2009
Padres Bomb Mets
Adrian Gonzalez has been vocal about wanting to play for a winner in San Diego, and the All-Star first baseman likes the direction the team is taking. Gonzalez hit a two-run homer in a four-run third inning and drove in three runs to lead the Padres to an 8-3 win over the New York Mets on Thursday night.
Mets Trading Billy Wagner?
Closer Billy Wagner hasn't been a huge help to the New York Mets in the last year as he has been recovering from Tommy John surgery. Now it's looking like he could be a help to the team's future if GM Omar Minaya can find a way to trade him before the Aug. 31 deadline to have postseason rosters in place, according to the New York Daily News.
Wagner is supposedly almost ready to return to the majors. Even if he doesn't get traded, Wagner is very unlikely to return to the Mets next season since the team could buy him out for $1 million or exercise a club-option $8 million contract for next year.
Wagner used to say that 2009 would be his last year pitching but the word on the street is that he doesn't want to finish out his career this way and will likely try to find a team next year. If he gets traded to a contender, that would be a great place to showcase himself so you gotta think Wagner is into the idea of being moved since it seems clear that the Mets aren't going anywhere this year.
Mets Acquire More Dead Weight
Infielder Anderson Hernandez, who was traded to the Nationals last August for RHP Luis Ayala, was reacquired Thursday for Class A infielder Greg Veloz.
The Mets are depleted in the middle infield, with SS Jose Reyes getting treatment in New York for significant scar tissue and swelling in his right hamstring and 2B Luis Castillo having sprained his left ankle falling down the dugout steps at Citi Field on Tuesday. Hernandez is expected to join the Mets on Friday.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
More Injuries Hit Mets
Rookie Jonathon Niese became the New York Mets’ latest injury victim Wednesday, his season ending in frightening fashion when he tore his right hamstring while covering first base against the St. Louis Cardinals and then collapsed during a practice pitch.
Jonathon NieseNiese was hurt in the second inning when Joe Thurston hit a one-out grounder to Daniel Murphy with runners at the corners. The first baseman threw to shortstop Angel Berroa, who made a return throw to first. Niese stretched and wound up doing the splits as Thurston beat the throw.
When Niese tried to throw a warmup pitch from the stretch, he grimaced at the end of his follow-through, fell and held the back of his right leg. He needed assistance to leave the field, putting his arms around two trainers.
“An MRI this afternoon revealed a complete tear of the right upper hamstring tendon from the bone,” the Mets said in a statement after their 9-0 win. “He will undergo surgery for its repair. Niese is out for the remainder of the season and is expected to be ready for spring training.”
On another day when MRI was in the team’s vocabulary as much as RBI, shortstop Jose Reyes was re-examined. While the Mets were not specific, it appears his chance to play again this season is dwindling. Reyes has not been in a game since May 20.
“The MRI showed significant scar tissue and inflammation behind the right knee, related to the hamstring tendon injury, which has caused continued pain,” the Mets said in a statement. “Reyes will remain in New York for manual physical therapy in an effort to break up the scar tissue and reduce the inflammation. “
Second baseman Luis Castillo was out of the starting lineup, a day after spraining his left ankle when he slipped and fell in the dugout.
Castillo grounded out leading off the seventh in New York’s 12-7, 10-inning loss to St. Louis on Tuesday night. He was on his way back to the bench when he tumbled down the dugout steps and needed to be helped up the tunnel to the clubhouse by some teammates.
Manager Jerry Manuel said Castillo is day to day.
Left fielder Gary Sheffield, just off the disabled list last weekend, aggravated a hamstring injury while rounding first base after a sixth-inning hit and came out of the game to avoid a setback.
“Not bad at all,” Sheffield said. “Now we have to get to a point where we have to check my electrolytes and find out really why I’m cramping up like this.”
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Mets Bullpen Blow The Old Ball Game
The Cardinals scored eight times in the last three innings to hand New York its fifth loss in six games. With two out and the bases loaded in the 10th, Sean Green replaced Pedro Feliciano (4-4) and hit Mark DeRosa on the left elbow with his first pitch to give St. Louis an 8-7 lead.
“That’s not how I had it planned out but just been erratic with my location,” said Green, whose wild pitch plated the deciding run in New York’s 3-2 loss to Arizona on Friday night, “and it’s cost us the last couple outings.”
With the Citi Field crowd still jeering Green, Pujols hit an 0-2 pitch into the seats in left to tie Ernie Banks’ NL record of five slams in a season set in 1955. The All-Star slugger is 7 for 9 with 24 RBIs with the bases loaded this year and leads the majors with 36 homers. He is one slam behind the major league record for a season held by Travis Hafner and Don Mattingly.
Johan Santana hit a two-run double and pitched a season-high eight innings for New York, which fell nine games behind NL wild card-leading Colorado and lost another player to an injury. Second baseman Luis Castillo slipped trying to avoid a glove on the dugout steps and sprained his left ankle after he grounded out leading off the seventh. X-rays were negative.
St. Louis scored two runs in the ninth to tie it at 7 and hand Francisco Rodriguez his fourth blown save in 28 opportunities this season. Rick Ankiel and Julio Lugo opened the inning with consecutive doubles, and Skip Schumaker had an RBI single with one out.
Reyes May Be Done For Year
Jose Reyes should just go home for the year.Reyes, who has been out since May with a couple of leg injuries, was rehabbing in Florida.
Mets officials continue to list Reyes' injury as tendinitis behind his right calf, but that's a months-old proclamation that doesn't adequately explain the shortstop's trouble.
Later, team officials amended the diagnosis to a right hamstring tendon strain while privately questioning their shortstop's toughness. Leible confirmed that the issue is with the hamstring tendon, behind Reyes' right knee.
Castillo Leaves After Falling In Dugout
Luis CastilloCastillo grounded out leading off the seventh and was on his way back to the bench when he tumbled down the dugout steps and had to be helped up the tunnel by some teammates.
Angel Berroa came in to play shortstop in the top of the eighth and Alex Cora moved to second to replace Castillo, who went 1 for 3 and scored a run.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Figueroa Tosses Batting Practice
Mark Reynolds heard all about the dimensions at Citi Field from fellow third basemen David Wright of the Mets and Ryan Zimmerman of the Nationals. Reynolds’ brother, Kyle, even wished him luck before the trip to the Big Apple.
Nelson Figueroa should have never come out of the bullpen.It turns out New York’s spacious new ballpark was no match for Arizona’s surging slugger.
Reynolds hit two more home runs at Citi Field on his 26th birthday, powering Dan Haren and the Diamondbacks to a 6-5 victory over the scuffling Mets on Monday night.
Reynolds and Miguel Montero capped the Diamondbacks’ three-run first with only the second set of back-to-back homers at New York’s plush new field. Reynolds added a 420-foot, two-run shot off Nelson Figueroa in the second.
Gerardo Parra had three hits and drove in a run for the Diamondbacks, who nearly blew a six-run lead. Haren (11-6) allowed five runs and eight hits over seven innings, and is 7-2 with a 2.44 ERA in his last 10 starts.
Reynolds has seven long balls in his last seven games to give him 32 on the year and is batting .387 (24 for 62) with eight homers since the All-Star break. He is tied with Wright with four homers at Citi Field this season.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Pelfrey Doesn't Get Job Done
For a second straight game, the Mets’ starting pitcher lasted only five innings while exceeding 100 pitches.
This time, Mike Pelfrey was charged with three runs on five hits while walking three (one intentional), striking out six and hitting two batters.
The Mets dropped 7-1/2 games back of Colorado and San Francisco in the wild-card standings.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Green's Wild Pitch Is Difference
Sean Green and the New York Mets were on their way to escaping a mess in the eighth inning Friday night when the reliever’s control failed him again.
Justin Upton scored the go-ahead run on Green’s wild pitch and the Arizona Diamondbacks beat New York 3-2 in the opener of a four-game series.
Mark Reynolds and Miguel Montero homered for Arizona, which has won four of its last six games. Doug Davis , thought to be an option for some contenders before Friday’s non-waiver trade deadline, pitched six effective innings.
David Wright and Daniel Murphy homered for New York, which has lost its last two after winning five straight. Livan Hernandez gave up two runs and four hits in six innings.