Hello again my friends! A Happy Mother’s Day too all of the mothers out there, and of course a Happy Stir-Up Sunday to all my fellow Mets fans! Well as I’m sure you know by now, in the opening 2 games to not only this series with the formidable San Francisco Giants, but to this 6 game homestand as well, the Mets have collected 2 walk-off victories, both via the long ball! These 2 games marked the first time the Mets have won a game at Citi Field on a walk-off dinger, which isn’t terribly shocking when you consider the fact that the majority of games that have taken place there were in 2009, a season where the Mets weren’t winning much of anything at all.
The donors of these game winners? Starting catcher Rod Barajas on Friday night, backup catcher Henry Blanco on Saturday afternoon. The days of Saint Michael Piazza are long behind us, so any time a catcher comes up with giant hits for us like these I am especially grateful. Blanco is a strict defense-first backstop (.229/.293/.367 career line) so to have him hit a game-winning dinger is a specially welcomed bonus, especially after last year’s home run deficient season. And how about Rod Barajas? The man has been hitting home runs by the truckload as of late, just as if he were St. Michael. He’s got 9 long balls in 82 AB’s this year, 1 home run shy of tying for the NL lead. Since April 30th, he’s slugged out 6 home runs and has hit an even .400 in that span to go along with 3 game winning homers, so kudos for his white hot hitting as of late. He along with Blanco will likely cool down in the coming weeks, but so far you’ve got to be real pleased with not only the work they’ve done with the starting five, but also for their solid contributions at the plate. Omar deserves credit, he really does.
But with the good comes the bad, and lately the bullpen which was such a strong point for the Mets in the opening month of the season, has been rather poor lately. They’re still 2nd in the National League in bullpen ERA (2.67), behind only Colorado, so there’s definitely enough good in the bank to cancel out the recent bad, but I’m worried this could become a trend. I mean, just in the past 2 games the bullpen has coughed up a two 3 run lead’s after the starter – props by the way to both Pelfrey and Santana for rebounding after their ugly starts last weekend in Philly – pitched into the 8th inning. It is unsettling. Fernando Nieve leads the majors in games pitched at 19, Pedro Feliciano has 17 appearances, and the youngster Jenrry Mejia has 14 outings. It’s no secret; Jerry Manuel utilizes his bullpen very, very often. Is this OK? Bullpen trips are like bathroom trips, gotta go when you gotta go (or for the World of Warcraft fans, Gotta Go When The Volcano Blows). If this is the case, why are some members of the pen in the game every other night? You’ve got to put your best pitchers out on the field, so is it even possible that Jerry Manuel can maybe ease up on using these guys so often? If the Mets are still playing well and are in the playoff hunt come September, I don’t want our reliever’s arms to be blown out and always out of gas. The way they’ve pitched lately makes me feel like they are already wiped out. Is there anything that can be done?
And as for today’s ballgame, let’s just thank the baseball Gods it’s not a rubber game. As we’re all very well aware of, the Mets are winless in all 5 rubber matches this year, and with Tim Lincecum on the bump for San Francisco and Oliver Perez on the mound for us, I’d say the odds are in the Giants’ favor this afternoon. However the Mets may have some advantage today. They may be disastrous in rubber games, but so far 2-0 in games that will sweep a series. Can the Mets gather their 3rd sweep of the season today? It may be a long shot, and I may be grasping for straws here in order to find a silver lining, but let’s just watch and see!
How about it Mets fans? Pleased with the job the Mets catching duo has done so far in 2010? Is there anything realistic that Jerry Manuel can do to maybe limit the number of appearances his relievers will have in 2010? Comment below! Once again, a very Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers in Queens and beyond and of course thanks my friends for stopping by to read my blog. I am eternally indebted!
