Gameday Live 80: Yankees at Mets
Good afternoon everyone! Adam Ronis here to take you through this game. The Mets showed what they are about in yesterdays day-night doubleheader. They are either very good or very bad. The biggest problem with this team is the offense. You can point to Pedro Martinez's poor performance, but the Mets had the opportunity to break the game open with two bases-loaded situations early in the game and came away with nothing against Sidney Ponson. This team doesn't hit with runners in scoring position. Look at the Twins, who have won 10 straight. They don't have an imposing lineup, but they hit in clutch situations with an average over .300 with runners in scoring position. That's the way to get it done.
Today's pitching matchup: Johan Santana (7-6 2.93 ERA) vs. Andy Pettitte (8-5, 4.04 ERA)
On Santana: The ERA looks good, but Santana has drawn some criticism for not being the dominant pitcher like he is being paid for. He is 0-3 in his last four starts and hasn't won since June 1. How many runs have the Mets scored in those four starts? Just eight. He has allowed 14 homers in 107 2/3 innings and because Felix Hernandez took him deep for a grand slam, people magnify his performance. Santana usually gets better in June and in the second half. Santana needs to come through with a big performance or he will here about it. The Mets have bigger problems than Santana.
On Pettitte: He has been excellent in his last three starts and has stepped it up with Chien-Ming Wang out for a long time. He allowed 10 runs to the Royals on June 7, but in his last three starts he has gone 21 innings, allowed 14 hits, one earned run, walked four and struck out 19. He is 7-4 with a 3.48 ERA in 17 starts against the Mets.
Yankees win, 3-2.
Bottom 9: Rivera is in. He has saved 21 of 21. Delgado strikes out swinging. Tatis flies out to right. Nixon strikes out looking. Rivera could have done that with his eyes closed and his left arm tied behind his back. Here comes the criticism for Santana, but he cannot win when he gets 10 runs of offense in five starts. People don't see it, but the Mets offense is a huge problem.
Top 9: Cano flies to center. Cabrera hits a hard line drive right at Easley for out No. 2. Molina singles to right. Damon walked. Jeter grounds out to third and fails to extend his hitting streak. The Mets offense against Mariano Rivera. What a mismatch.
Yankees 3, Mets 2
Bottom 8: Jose Molina in at catcher, Posada moves to first and Giambi is out. Kyle Farnsworth is in. Easley flies to center on the first pitch. Wright lines out to deep left. Damon was playing deep and got a great jump. Beltran strikes out for the fourth time. Yankees 3, Mets 2
Top 8: Duaner Sanchez is in to pitch. Abreu pops up to left. A-Rod reaches on a Wright throwing error and steals second. Giambi strikes out. Posada pops up to short. Yankees 3, Mets 2
Bottom 7: Jose Veras in for Pettitte. Castillo pinch hits for Phillips and pops up to Jeter. Castro grounds out and Marlon Anderson, pinch hitting for Feliciano, singles to center. Reyes pops up to Jeter on the first pitch. Haven't we seen that before? Another bad inning for the Mets offense. I'm sure I have written that many times this season. Yankees 3, Mets 2
Top 7: Pedro Feliciano comes in for Santana. Betemit and Damon strikes out. Jeter grounds out to second. Good inning for the Mets. Yankees 3, Mets 2
Bottom 6: Pettitte returns after the 53-minute rain delay. Wright hits a line drive homer down the leftfield line to bring the Mets within 3-2. It's the 15th homer for Wright. Beltran strikes out looking. Delgado grounds out to first. Tatis grounds to short. Yankees 3, Mets 2
RAIN DELAY
Top 6: Abreu strikes out looking for Santana's seventh of the game. A-Rod walks. Santana balks him to second. Giambi strikes out. Posada is walked intentionally with a 2-0 count. Cano hits an RBI single to extend the lead to 3-1. Cabrera flies out to left to end the inning. Yankees 3, Mets 1
Bottom 5: Castro lines out to right. Santana grounds out to short. Reyes singles to left. Easley walks. Reyes gets picked off to end the inning. An awful play with Wright at the plate. Where is he going? He scores easily on almost any hit. Welcome to 2008 Mets baseball. Yankees 2, Mets 1
Top 5: Pettitte grounds out to first. Damon grounds out. Jeter strikes out. Santana has six strikeouts. The rain is falling. The Mets bats are silent. Yankees 2, Mets 1
Bottom 4: Delgado grounds out to first. Tatis reaches on a single (should be changed to a Jeter error). Then Phillips hits into a double play. What a terrible offense. Yankees 2, Mets 1
Top 4: Jeter walks to start the inning. Abreu walks on four pitches. Some close calls and the umpire appears to be squeezing Santana. I thought we were at Shea? A-Rod singles to load the bases. Giambi grounds out to Reyes and a run scores to tie it at 1. Second and third with one out. Posada hits a sac fly to deep center to score Abreu. Yankees lead, 2-1. Cano hits a slow roller down the third-base line that stays fair. Cabrera grounds out to end it and Santana is yelling at the ump about the missed calls. He has a right to be upset. Lets see if the Mets offense can help him. Yankees 2, Mets 1
Bottom 3:Reyes pops up to second. He does that way too much. Easley singles to center. Wright flies out to deep center. Nice play by Cabrera to run it down. Beltran strikes out on a check swing. Mets 1, Yankees 0
Top 3: Cabrera grounds out to third. Pettitte strikes out. Santana has five strikeouts. Damon grounds out. This is the Santana the Mets hoped for. Mets 1, Yankees 0
Bottom 2: Tatis grounds out to start it. Phillips flies out to right. Castro hits a bomb to center. He needs to platoon with Schneider. Santana strikes out to end it. Mets 1, Yankees 0
Top 2: Giambi strikes out to lead off. Posada strikes out for the second out. Cano strikes out. Great start by Santana. So far he is stepping up in a big spot.
Bottom 1: Reyes grounds out to short to start the inning. Easley walked with one out after being down 0-and-2 in the count. Wright follows with a walk. Beltran strikes out on three pitches. Delgado flies out to right. Typical Mets inning. Still no score.
Top 1: Damon strikes out to start the game and Jeter flies to center. Abreu reaches on an infield single. A-Rod fouls out to first. Great start for Santana, who has been throwing too many pitches at times. Very economical in the first. Which Mets offense shows up today?
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Comments (3)
Still rain delay?
Thank you for pointing out what should be obvious to every Met fan. This team doesn't have enough offense to sustain more than a .500 record. Every mistake on the mound, in the field and on the basepaths is magnify because the Mets can't generate enough offense. A team like the Cubs can outslug their mistakes. The Mets can't. The rest of the season hinges on getting Alou and Church back into the lineup in the next week and keeping them there. A big if I grant you but it is there best hope. Those two can upgrade your offense and make it more consistent and productive 1-8.
Adam the "wonder typer" on the live blog would not post my responses b/c I proved him wrong on every arguement....And to the wee one that called me an idiot over calling Santana a NON ACE.....Facts are Facts:
Fast ball has lost 3 mph.
Last half of last year and first half of this year he has been a HR dispenser.
He simply CANNOT beat other teams top pitchers....Smoltz, Pettite, Hudson, etc. have all out pitched him.
I am not saying he is not a VERY VERY GOOD pitcher...He is !!! HE just has NOT been a shut down ace when the Mets have needed him in big games and when we have needed him to stop losing streaks.
As for the MEts....It was not Willy's fault...All on OMAR....This team is OLD, NON CLUTCH, NO HEART.........FIRE OMAR TODAY!