Curtis Granderson

Juan Lagares Begins the Wave of Reinforcements

The Mets have had a number of players serve as admirable replacements and stop gaps to help lead the Mets charge back to the postseason.

Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellman have replaced the injured Jacob deGrom and Steven Matz in the Mets rotation, and  they have combined to go 6-3 with a 2.64 ERA and a WHIP in nine starts and 10 relief appearances. James Loney had a terrific first half to help cushion the blow of the loss of Lucas Duda.  Wilmer Flores and Kelly Johnson have helped to replicate the offensive production of Neil Walker who is done for the season after having season ending back surgery.  After Flores went down with a neck injury, T.J. Rivera had the game of his life.  When Juan Lagares needed surgery to repair a torn ligament in this thumb and Yoenis Cespedes found himself unable to play center field with his injured quad, Curtis Granderson began playing center field and hitting again.  Same goes for Alejandro De Aza.  For the very few games Justin Ruggiano played, he mashed left-handed pitching.

However, while each of these players have done a better than expected job, there is no doubt the Mets would be better off with their regulars.  Fortunately, the reinforcements are on their way with Lagares being activated off the disabled list.

With the minor league seasons having been over for about a week, Lagares has not had the benefit of being able to face live pitching.  That shouldn’t matter much as Lagares’ true value has always been as a center fielder.  This season the 2014 Gold Glover has returned to form with a 4.5 UZR and a 7 DRS in 59 games this season.  This will allow the Mets to put out their best defensive alignment of Cespedes in left, Lagares in center, and Granderson in right late in games.

This was the alignment the Mets used effectively in the stretch run last season and in their run to the World Series.  Speaking of which, Lagares was a tremendous contributor to the Mets postseason run last year.  Lagares appeared in 13 postseason games last year playing a Gold Glove caliber center field while hitting .348/.375/.435 with two stolen bases.  If Lagares is again able to play and raise his game again, the Mets chances of returning to the World Series will greatly improved. 

And as if that wasn’t enough, Duda will be activated later today, and at a minimum, he will be available to pinch hit. On Sunday, deGrom will return to the rotation. He will start to work his way back as he’s limited to 75 pitches. Finally, Matz has been throwing off a mound. 

The reinforcements are coming, and with them the Mets chances of winning a World Series has vastly improved. 

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Terry Collins Decision of the Game – Defensive Replacements 

Before the game, the Mets activated Juan Lagares from the disabled list for the sole purpose of being a late inning defensive replacement. 

The reason for the decision is Lagares hasn’t had an opportunity to face live pitching with the minor league affiliates having completed their seasons before Lagares was ready to start a rehab assignment. So the Mets aren’t sure if Lagares can face live pitching, but they do know he’s the team’s best defensive center fielder. He may even be the best in the game especially with him getting back to his Gold Glove form this year. 

So naturally, with Terry Collins going to late inning defensive replacements, he turns to Alejandro De Aza?

To set the stage, De Aza was left in the game after pinch hitting for Bartolo Colon in the bottom of the seventh. After the inning, De Aza stayed in the game shifting Curtis Granderson to right field. As a result, Collins pulled his worst defensive outfielder, Jay Bruce, from the game. By the way, Bruce, the guy Collins has confidence in went 0-3 with a walk. It also helped that Bruce made the last out of the inning. 

While the defensive alignment Collins out out there was better than what he had to start the game, it wasn’t optimal. In limited action in CF, De Aza has a -2.1 UZR and a 0 DRS. While it’s a small sample size, it isn’t too far off his true talent level as he averages a 0 UZR and -1 DRS over his career. Whether you rely on this or the eye test, Lagares is undoubtedly a better center fielder. 

The argument Lagares could’ve hit the next inning doesn’t carry much weight. He was due up ninth. If he bats, it means the Mets blew the game open. At that point, you can instruct him to look at three strikes or you can remove him for Michael Conforto or Brandon Nimmo. 

Fortunately, it wouldn’t be a factor in this game. However, that doesn’t mean Collins had the correct thought process. 

Speaking of defensive replacements, Matt Reynolds replaced Asdrubal Cabrera in the ninth. It wasn’t a move to improve the shortstop defense; it was a move precipitated by Cabrera having leg cramps. While Cabrera’s knee was purportedly not an issue, it’s important to remember Collins hasn’t taken advantage of the opportunities to lift his ailing plsyers early in games. 

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Terry Collins Decision of the Game – Another Jay Bruce Start

To be fair to Terry Collins, he had a number of fine decisions yesterday. He went to Jerry Blevins to strike out Daniel Murphy to preserve the 4-3 extra inning win.

Collins also played a hunch starting T.J. Rivera at second. Rivera was the Mets offense last night, and he was the biggest reason the Mets won. Rivera made two nice defensive plays in the field, but it was his bat that was the difference. He was 3-4 with three RBI and a game winning homer against Mark Melancon.

These heroics were in part due to Collins’ insistence on playing Jay Bruce.

Since joining the Mets, Bruce is hitting .190/.271/.317 with four homers and 11 RBI. He’s gone from the major league RBI leader to just another Met not able to hit with runners in scoring position. He’s gone from an RBI machine in Cincinnati to a near automatic out.

Yesterday was more of the same from Bruce. He was 0-4 with a walk leaving three runners on base.

Since the rosters were expanded on September 1st, with .212/.297/.394 with two homers and five RBI. That coincidentally is the same time Michael Conforto and Brandon Nimmo were called-up to the majors.  When they were called up, Conforto was hitting .493/.541/.821 with six homers and 13 RBI, hitting both righties and lefties, in his most recent demotion to the minors.  Nimmo was hitting .407/.474/.651 with four homers and 14 RBI in the month of August before he was re-called.

Conforto and Nimmo were hot at the plate, and yet, Collins didn’t care.  He was going to play Bruce no matter what.  Conceptually, you understand it because Bruce was the big bat the Mets added at the deadline.  The cost of adding Bruce was Dilson Herrera.  You want to get him going to help your chances of going to the postseason, and hopefully, the World Series.  Collins is relying on his proven track record.  The only problem is that track record isn’t what people think it is.

For his career, Bruce is a .247/.318/.466 hitter averaging 26 homers and 81 RBI.  Over the prior three seasons, Bruce has been a .237/.303/.433 hitter with 25 homers and 87 RBI.  Keep in mind, Bruce has been hitting in the Great American Ballpark which is a hitter’s ballpark.  Bruce has been a low OBP hitter who has been a slightly better than average home run hitter.

Worse yet, he’s poor defensively.  In fact, he is the Mets worst defensive outfielder.  Playing Bruce moves Curtis Granderson to center field.  Granderson isn’t a center fielder anymore.  Playing Bruce keeps Alejandro De Aza on the bench, and De Aza is the Mets best defensive center fielder.  By the way, Conforto has acquitted himself well in center, and he has shown himself to be a player capable of being a much better offensive player than Bruce.

So overall, on a night were Collins made a number of decisions that helped the team win, his insistence on playing Bruce continues to hamper the team offensively and defensively.

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T.J. Rivera Had the Game of His Life

When perusing the lineup, it was surprising to see T.J. Rivera‘s name in the lineup instead of Kelly Johnson with the right hander starting. Rivera would justify Collins’ faith in him going 3-4 with his first major league homer and three RBI. He would also rob Daniel Murphy of a base hit with a nice play in the first. 

Things had started out well with Noah Syndergaard on the mound. Tonight, he continued to make his Cy Young case in striking out his 200th batter of the season and dominating the Nationals. 

Thor’a final line was seven innings, four hits, one run, one earned, one walk, and 10 strikeouts. He had his dominant stuff working throwing his hardest slider in the second half. 

The only run he allowed was off a Wilson Ramos opposite field double. Ramos only had a chance to hit it as Thor took a little off his fastball there. It was thrown at 98 MPH. 

Aside from that double, Thor had everything working. He wouldn’t get the win because the Mets couldn’t generate enough offense. 

Asdrubal Cabrera continued his second half tear. He doubled in his first two at bats, and even on a hobbled knee, he would steal third after each double. It was heads up base running as he took advantage of the Nationals shifting with Curtis Granderson at the plate. 
In true Mets fashion, they would strand him there in the first.  However, in the third, T.J. Rivera took advantage of the RBI opportunity much in the same way he’s taken advantage of every opportunity he’s ever been given by this Mets organization. Rivera’s RBI single would tie the score at one. Rivera would be heard from again. 

In the fifth, Yoenis Cespedes would start the game winning rally with a single off Nationals starter A.J. Cole. Granderson brought him home with an RBI triple. Rivera then brought him home with a sacrifice fly. 

With the seven innings from Thor, and the two run lead, the game was effectively over. Addison Reed pitched a scoreless eighth, putting Jeurys Familia in position to recorded his 49th save of the season to tie Jose Valverde for the most saves in a single season by a Dominican born pitcher.

It didn’t happen as Familia was abandoned by his defense. 

Murphy just beat out an infield base hit bringing Bryce Harper to the plate. Familia did his job getting Harper to ground to Jose Reyes. With no play at second on Murphy, Reyes went to first throwing wide of the bag. James Loney, who never stretches, also apparently never comes off the bag. 

Instead of Murphy and second with one out, the Nationals had runners on second and third with no outs. Anthony Rendon hit a single past the diving Reyes. On the play, Reyes did not show much range. The Nationals then tied the game on a Ramos infield single. 

At this point, the wheels were unravelling, and it appeared to be a near certainty the Mets were going to lose. There were runners on first and second with no outs. Familia bore down. He first got Ryan Zimmerman to hit a weak liner to Loney. Clint Robinson then hit a sinking line drive to Rivera, who nabbed it just before it hit the dirt. Not taking chances, he flipped to Rivera for a 4-6-3 double play. 

The game was tied at three making it a brand new ballgame. Rivera would untie it in the 10th with his first career home run off Mark Melancon.

It put the capper on what was a terrific game for the undrafted Rivera. Tonight, he showed everyone the guile and talent that took him from non-prospect status to an important contributor for a playoff team. 

Fernando Salas then came on to close it out in the bottom of the 10th. One of the reasons why he the Mets got him was his closing experience. He got so close too by making quick work of the first two batters.  However, Jayson Werth would bloop one in, and Terry Collins wouldn’t take any chances. 

Collins went to the former National Jerry Blevins to get the former Met Murphy. For what it’s worth, Murphy has trouble with Blevins:

Blevins would then get a huge strikeout of Murphy recording his first save as a Met giving the Mets a 4-3 victory. 

With that, the Mets get back in the win column and have a chance to get some breathing room in the Wild Card race with the Cardinals currently losing. 

Game Notes: Wilmer Flores is still unable to go with a neck injury. 

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Terry Collins’ Decision of the Game – Leaving in Asdrubal Cabrera

For much of this season, it is fair to say that the Mets have underachieved which has put them in a fight for the Wild Card instead of a fight for the division.  Nothing speaks more to that than the Mets going 3-13 against the Diamondbacks, Rockies, and the White Sox.  Flip that, and you have the Mets a game up on the Nationals right now.

If you want to argue the Mets are in this position due to injuries, you have to admit the Mets have exacerbated those problems.  Jim Henderson‘s usage may not have caused the shoulder impingement, how he was used early in the season certainly didn’t help.  Yoenis Cespedes and Asdrubal Cabrera were thrown out there game after game despite dealing with leg injuries.  Neil Walker was playing everyday during the summer despite him not being able to feel his toes.  This doesn’t even address pitching Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, and Steven Matz with injuries of their own.  Overall, the decisions to play these players was either Terry Collins‘ call or was a decision made in conjunction with him.

It’s important thing to keep in mind with Collins now being lauded for his managing and some wanting to put him in the Manager of the Year discussion.  People want him in the discussion despite all that he has done to harm the Mets chances (and possibly players) to put them in position to return to the postseason.  People want him in the discussion despite Collins making a poor decision each and every game that is at a minimum puzzling, and at worst prevents the Mets chances to win the game.  Accordingly, after each game, I will have a separate entry highlighting Collins’ poor managerial decision making.

Yesterday, the Mets annihilated the Braves 10-3.  In the fifth inning, the Mets had a 10-1 lead.  The chances of blowing that game are next to nothing, and yet Collins kept his starters in virtually the entire game.

Asdrubal Cabrera has a balky knee.  With the expanded rosters, the Mets had both Gavin Cecchini and Matt Reynolds available to take over for him.  Behind them were Eric Campbell and Ty Kelly.  There was plenty of depth not just to get Cabrera out of the game, but also to have pinch hitters and infielders available.  Instead, Collins kept him in until the eighth inning.

Yoenis Cespedes has had an injured quad that has hampered him for most of the season.  Curtis Granderson has shown signs of fatigue with his playing center field.  The Mets had Jay Bruce, Brandon Nimmo, and Michael Conforto on the bench.  Instead of getting Cespedes and Granderson out of the game, Cespedes played the full game and Granderson only came out in the eighth.

So no, Collins didn’t prevent the Mets from winning yesterday’s game.  However, his decisions may have far-reaching implications for the Mets in the stretch run of the season.

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Goodbye Turner Field

In many ways, Turner Field was an absolute eye sore from the general design of the place to the players who wore the Braves uniforms to Kenny Rogers inability to throw one over the plate against Andruw Jones.  What was ugliest of all was the Mets record there as the Mets were 67-106 at Turner Field.  Keep in mind, that record was boosted by the Mets winning 11 of their last 14 there.

Just as the Mets luck would go, just as they were getting the hang of things there, the Braves decided to tear the place down.  At least the Mets would close out their book at Turner Field in style.

First, it was the pitching of Seth Lugo.  Again, he was economical with his pitches, and he was able to go deep into games.  What is also impressive was his ability to once again navigate his way out of trouble.  This is where there is a real debate between “traditionalist” and “stat-guys.”  The traditionalist say he has an innate ability to get himself out of trouble while stat-guys say he is going to regress to the mean.  Right now, with the Mets in fight for the Wild Card, the results are all that matter, and Lugo is getting the results.

After Freddie Freeman singled home Adonis Garcia, the Braves would then load the bases with no outs.  At this point, the game was quickly turning from an easy 6-1 lead to a typical Turner Field nightmare.  Lugo then induced Anthony Recker to pop out to first base.  To be fair, having seen his time with the Mets, that wasn’t exactly impressive.  What was impressive was him using his slider to induce a groundball from Dansby Swanson.  Despite his speed, the Mets were able to turn the 6-4-3 double play to keep it at 6-1.

It was another great game from Lugo whose final line was seven innings, six hits, two runs, two earned, one walk, and five strikeouts.  Overall, he is solidifying his spot on the postseason roster.  Lugo got the win not just because of his pitching, but also because the Mets offense exploded.

As usual, when discussing the Mets offense exploding, you need to start with Yoenis Cespedes.  In the first, his ground out scored Asdrubal Cabrera, who somehow legged out a triple on one leg, to give the Mets a 1-0 lead.  In the third, he then did this:

At this point, not even Lawrence Chipper Jones could have save the Braves.

A shocking James Loney home run in the fourth would make it a 6-0 game.  Credit is due to Loney here.  After a disturbingly bad August, he has turned things around in September.  So far this month, he is hitting .333/.391/.571 with two doubles, a homer, and three RBI.  At a time when the Mets need to ride the hot hand to get the Wild Card, Loney has to be playing right now.  No, I did not like saying that.

Add in another big rally in the fifth, featuring another Loney RBI base hit, and the Mets would go on to win 10-3.  It was such a beating that even Lugo got into the action hitting a sacrifice fly.  With that huge lead, it was beyond bizarre that Terry Collins would take his sweet time removing his injured players from the game.  He didn’t remove Cabrera until the eighth despite having Gavin Cecchini and Matt Reynolds on the bench.  At least, Cecchini would get a pinch hitting appearance in the game (striking out).  He waited until the ninth to remove Curtis Granderson for Michael Conforto even if it would behoove the Mets to give Granderson some extra rest where they can find it.  Naturally, Cespedes would play the entire game.

It was a good day for the Mets as is everyday they beat the Braves.  With the Cardinals losing, the Mets found themselves back a half-game ahead of them in the Wild Card standings and tied with them in the loss column.  The only real problem with the game was the fact that once again the Mets failed to wear the First Responders caps to honor the fallen.

Game Notes: Logan Verrett is pretty much done for the season.  He got mop-up work in the ninth, and he couldn’t complete the task.  After allowing a run, he then loaded the bases, and he needed to be bailed out by Josh Edgin.  Edgin would get out of the inning without allowing another run.

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Mets Should Kick Themselves for This Loss 

While the Mets should go out and beat this Braves team each time they face them, it’s unrealistic to expect them to go 19-0 against them. It’s the nature of baseball that a bad team can beat a good team on any given day. With that said, this is not a game the Mets should’ve lost. 

The Mets jumped on former farmhand John Gant immediately scoring two runs in the first. It was all the more impressive when you consider the Mets didn’t get a hit in the inning. Jose Reyes reached on a leadoff walk, and he would come around to score on consecutive Braves errors. One of those errors allowed Yoenis Cespedes to reach, and he would score the second run of the inning on a Jay Bruce groundout.  Yet another example of how Bruce is an RBI machine. 

Bartolo Colon would give the lead back on a night there was no lead he could hold. In the first, Matt Kemp hit a sacrifice fly scoring Ender Inciarte. If it was Cespedes or a healthy Juan Lagares in center, Inciarte still most likely scores, but it would’ve been more interesting than it was with Curtis Granderson, who really had no choice than to throw it back to second base. 

In the fourth, Nick Markakis would tie the score with a solo home run. 

The Mets would regain the lead on a Cespedes home run to dead center in the fifth. It should’ve been the game winner. Instead, Colon gave up a game tying home run to Kemp, who has been a pain in the neck at the plate (even if he’s been a blessing in the field). 

Right then and there, the Mets blew a game they should’ve won. 

The Mets did have a chance to win the game, but Terry Collins and Tim Teufel would make decisions that would help cost the Mets the game. 

In the eighth, Wilmer Flores hit a two out double. At the time, the Mets still had a pretty full bench, and a Gavin Cecchini who has still yet to appear in a game despite the Mets feeling completed to call him up. Perhaps, for all Collins knew Flores was faster than Cecchini or Brandon Nimmo for that matter. 

Still, the Mets decided to keep the lead footed Flores in the game, even with capable and arguably defenders in James Loney and Eric Campbell available. There was no reason to keep Flores in the game, and yet, there he was. 

T.J. Rivera would hit a pinch hit single to right field. Teufel would send Flores, who inexplicable slid head first into home plate. To add insult that was Markakis nailing Flores at the plate, Flores suffered an injury on the play and had to leave the game. 
With the game tied and heading into extras, Collins went through his bullpen piece by piece bringing in everyone but Jeurys Familia.  That’s what happens overworks his two best relievers AND when the manager manages to the save rule. 

That led to Collins going to Erik Goeddel in the tenth. Keep in mind, the Mets are fighting for a postseason berth, and Collins went to the worst reliever in his pen who has been idle for a whole. 

Of course, Goeddel would get into trouble and take the loss. Before he could blink, there were runners on first and third with one out. He’s strike out Tyler Flowers, and Collins would bring on Josh Smoker. Smoker would get Inciarte to fly out on a ball not deep enough to score the run, especially with it going to Cespedes. 

However, Smoker couldn’t get out of Goeddel’s jam. Adonis Garcia would single home Dansby Swanson to give the Braves the walk off 4-3 win. 

It was a game the Braves never should’ve won. It was a game the Mets decision making allowed them to win. With the Giants and Cardinals winning, it’s a game that pushed the Mets out of a Wild Card position. They should be kicking themselves for that. 

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Where There’s Smoker, Grandy’s on Fire

Given the pitching matchup and the location of today’s game, tonight’s game wasn’t a guarantee. That went double when you consider the game was at the Mets own House of Horrors in Turner Field that is thankfully closing at the end of the season. Before it closes, the Mets have some demons to exercise. They did just that tonight despite a slow start. 

The Mets had a chance to score off Julio Teheran in the first, but they couldn’t cash in. A Curtis Granderson walk loaded the bases with one out. However, the Mets wouldn’t score as Wilmer Flores hit into the inning ending 6-4-3 double play. It was a giant missed opportunity. 

Instead if having a lead, the Mets would soon trail in the game. Matt Kemp lead off the second with a solo home run off Robert Gsellman. 

The Braves would then expand on their 1-0 lead with a big fifth. Gsellman had almost navigated through a Dansby Swanson leadoff single.  He stood on third with two outs when Adonis Garcia singled him home. The Braves then proceeded to load the bases. Nick Markakis hit a two run single to right to give the Braves a 4-0 lead. Once again the tales of Jay Bruce‘s arm were greatly exaggerated. 

In reality, the main difference between this Gsellman start and his others was the Braves took advantage of their opportunities. In Gsellman’s short career, he has consistently played with fire. Tonight, he got burned. 

The Mets would begin the comeback in the sixth. Yoenis Cespedes hit a comebacker off Tehran which seemingly broke the spell. The insanely hot Granderson followed the Cespedes single with a two run homer to make it 4-2. It was the Mets first runs off Teheran in 29 innings. 

The Braves wouldn’t expand on this lead due to a truly great Josh Smoker appearance. 

Smoker inherited a mess in the sixth. Jose Reyes made a nice play to ball Swanson hit down the third base line off Jim Henderson. However, Reyes’ arm wasn’t strong enough to get the speedy Swanson. Worse yet, James Loney‘s arm wasn’t strong enough to get Jace Peterson who went from first to third on the play. Ultimately, it didn’t matter as Smoker was terrific. 

Smoker first struck out A.J. Pierzynski. Then he got Ender Inciarte to hit into the inning ending 3-6-3 double play.  The appearance might’ve been Smoker’s best in his short career. It did give the Mets a chance to win. 

While it wasn’t as impressive as Smoker’s effort, Hansel Robles got out of a jam in the seventh to keep the Braves from tacking on to their 4-2 lead. At the time, it seemed like nothing more than a nice recovery for Robles. As it turns out, Robles would get the win. 

The Mets loaded the bases with no outs in the eighth off Mauricio Cabrera. The bases shouldn’t have been loaded as Reyes hit what could’ve been a double play ball that Swanson booted. It would’ve been a tough turn with Reyes’ speed, but at a minimum, the lead runner should’ve been out. 

In any event, Cespedes came up with the bases loaded, and he put together a terrific at bat hitting a deep sacrifice fly to right scoring Alejandro De Aza. The ball was deep enough to permit Reyes to go to third. Granderson followed with a bloop that seemingly stayed up forever, and still Kemp could not get to it. Just like that tie game. 

The Mets took the lead on a Kelly Johnson pinch hit RBI double.  

Bruce was then intentionally walked by Cabrera before he departed in favor of Jose Ramirez. Ramirez then plunked the pinch hitting Michael Conforto to make it a 6-4 game. In the inning the Mets batted around with only two hits, but it was enough to score four runs. 

This set up the formula the Mets wanted. No, not Eric Campbell at first base due to all the lineup machinations, even if he did make two great plays at first in the eighth. The Mets were able to fog with Addison Reed and Jeurys Familia to close out the 6-4 win. 

The Mets had this chance because Granderson is playing like the Granderson of old. With him contributing like this each and every night, the Mets are certainly capable of repeating performances like tonight. 

Game Notes: Gavin Cecchini was the sole non-catcher bench player who didn’t get into the game. 

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Mets Won Despite Terry Collins Trying to Make Things Interesting

The bad news was that Noah Syndergaard struggled.  It was to be expected from the scheduled times the Mets have had the past four games.  The good news is that the aforementioned issues didn’t matter because the Mets were playing the Reds yet again.

Syndergaard needed 95 pitches just to get through five innings.  He didn’t have one 1-2-3 inning.  He tied a career high by issuing four walks.  Still, he was able to keep the Reds at bay because he struck out seven batters, and because, well, you’ll never believe it – there were three base runners nailed on the basepaths.

Rene Rivera would nail two base runners alone in the second inning.  First, it was Brandon Phillips who was thrown out trying to steal second after leading off the inning with a single.  Scott Schebler would then walk, and Rivera would throw him out when he tried to steal second.

As if that wasn’t good enough, something more impressive happened.  There were runners on first and third after consecutive singles from Jose Peraza and Eugenio Suarez.  Mayhem would ensure, probably as the result of the Reds not knowing how to respond to Syndergaard trying to hold on a base runner.  Syndergaard caught Suarez napping on a throw over to first.  Suarez broke to second to get caught in a run down.  As this happened, Peraza broke for home.  Asdrubal Cabrera noticed, and he threw home to nail him to get Syndergaard out of another jam.

Due in part to that, Syndergaard’s strikeouts, and the Reds suddenly morphing into the Mets with runners in scoring position, Syndergaard pitched five scoreless and got the win because of the home run.

Right out of the gate, Jose Reyes took the first pitch of the game from Anthony DeSclafani, and he deposited it into the right field stands:

Reyes would account for the next run in the third when he scored a proverbial “Reyes Run.”  After Syndergaard led off the inning with a single, Reyes busted it out of the box to avoid the double play.  It seemed as if the Reds were going to get out of the inning as DeSclafani got Yoenis Cespedes to hit a grounder to short.  However, Peraza missed it allowing Reyes from first to third.  With Curtis Granderson at the plate, DeSclafani unleashed a wild pitch allowing Reyes to score.

It was part of a terrific game from Reyes who was 2-5 with two runs, an RBI, and a homer.  It was the rare terrific game for Reyes this year from the left-hand side of the plate.  Before today, Reyes was hitting .244/.283/.353 as a left-handed batter.  While it is a small sample size, it should be pointed out Reyes hit .275/.309/.374 as a left-handed batter last year, and .289/.328/.404 the year before that.  While he gets reviled, we could be seeing the positive effects of Reyes working with Kevin Long.

The other run was the result of the resurgent Curtis Granderson:

Granderson is suddenly scorching at the plate after having a poor July and a dreadful August.  Over Granderson’s last four games, he has three homers and seven RBI.  Given Terry Collins propensity to play him and bench Michael Conforto at all costs, the Mets are going to need more of the same from him.

Wilmer Flores would blow the game open in the eighth hitting a two run pinch hit home run off Reds reliever Wandy Peralta.  For some reason or other, Reds manager Bryan Price let the left-hander actually face Flores with the game still in doubt.  It was yet another sign we have seen from a Reds team that has seemingly quit on the season.

Flores’ pinch hit home run was the Mets 12th of the season, which ties the Mets single season mark set in 1983.

In addition to the Mets hitting a bunch of homers, a couple of struggling Mets relievers got some redemption.  Hansel Robles would pitch a scoreless 1.2 innings.  Robles went into the second inning of work because Collins emptied his bullpen yesterday, and because Robles clearly hasn’t gotten enough work all season.  Jerry Blevins then relieved Robles with a runner on and two out in the seventh to face Joey Votto.  Blevins snapped out of a recent funk a bit in striking out Votto.

Of course, no game would be complete without a completely baffling Collins’ managerial decision.  Yesterday, after Rafael Montero couldn’t make it through five, Collins had tabbed Gabriel Ynoa to get the last out of the fifth inning after Votto’s sacrifice fly off Josh Edgin.  As insane as it was to bring a minor league starter and use him for a third of an inning in a game the Mets needed a long reliever, it was even crazier to use that guy for the second game in a row.

With the Mets not knowing when Jacob deGrom and Steven Matz will be able to pitch next, and Montero showing he shouldn’t start another game, Ynoa was most likely the guy you would tab for the next start.  Instead, Collins chose him to pitch today even with Sean Gilmartin and Logan Verrett fully rested.  It should come as a surprise to no one what ensued.

Ynoa would immediately load the bases with no outs forcing Collins to go to Addison Reed, who is not good with inherited base runners.  Reed would strike out Tyler Holt, and then things would get interesting.  Tucker Barnhart would hit an RBI single, and the bases would remain loaded.  After a Ramon Cabrera ground-out, with Reyes getting the force out at home, Peraza would hit a two run double over Cespedes’ head.  Reed would strike out Eugenio Suarez to get out of the jam.  The Mets would keep the lead even if it was shaved down to 5-3.

The Mets added an insurance run in the eighth as Cabrera and Cespedes hit back-to-back doubles of Reds reliever Tony Cingrani.  Again, you have to question what the Reds were thinking with them pitching to Cespedes with an open base.

With the 6-3 lead, it was a save situation leading Collins to bring in Jeurys Familia, and he would record his 47th save of the season.  It would also be the 60th game he finished this season.  Reed and Familia have now pitched four times in the last five games.  But hey, it was a good idea to bring in a non-reliever in Ynoa for the second straight day.

Fortunately, the Mets pulled out the win, and they are now eight games over .500, and they are a half game out of a Wild Card spot (two in the loss column).  Pending what happens tonight, the Mets could find themselves in a virtual tie with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Game Notes: Gavin Cecchini didn’t play again today.  Alejandro De Aza started in center with Jay Bruce and Conforto sitting.  James Loney continues to hit better of late going 2-3 on the day.

Pennant Race: Everyone who matters plays later.

 

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Yoenis Cespedes Wouldn’t Let the Mets Lose

The Mets just about blew this game in every way, shape, and form.  And yet, Yoenis Cespedes wouldn’t let them lose. 

Rafael Montero was handed a 2-0 lead as a result of Curtis Granderson and Jose Reyes solo home runs off Brandon Finnegan. However, Montero would give it back as his high wire act came crashing down to Earth. 
In the third, Montero issued a one out walk to Zack Cozart. Montero then paid no attention to him, so Cozart stole second. It was your classic Travis d’Arnaud didn’t throw out the runner who got a massive jump situation. After that, Montero would break an 0-27 streak opposing batters had against Mets pitching with runners in scoring position when Adam Duvall crushed a game tying two run homer. 

The Reds would then go ahead in the fifth with Montero still struggling. He allowed a lead off triple to Hernan Irabarren. He would then issue a one out walk to Cozart. At that point, through 4.1 innings where Montero allowed three hits and four walks, Terry Collins had seen enough. He went to the bullpen to get a left-handed to pitch to Joey Votto to get the biggest out in the game. 

Collins could’ve gone with Jerry Blevins, who has been the Mets best lefty out if the pen. He could’ve gone with Josh Smoker who is a strikeout machine. No, Collins went with his worst possible option with Josh Edgin, who still has not regained his velocity. 

Votto would lift a fly ball to right. Jay Bruce, the man with the highly touted throwing arm, made a weak and offline throw to home plate allowing Irabarren to score giving the Reds a 3-2 lead. 

It seemed it would stay that way after a brutal top of the sixth. Bruce led off with a single, and he moved to second on a brutal Duvall fielding error. First, d’Arnaud couldn’t get him home as he flinched on a pitch that was clearly a strike. After a Granderson hit by pitch, Kelly Johnson, pinch hitting for Matt Reynolds, just beat out the relay throw to avoid the 3-6-3 double play. Michael Conforto, pinch hitting for Ynoa, struck out looking on a ball that looked off the plate. Apparently, it was too close to take. 

In the seventh, Cespedes would start to take over. Asdrubal Cabrera summoned all he could with his injured knee to leg out an infield single to get on in front of Cespedes. Cespedes then did his thing:

  

The ball just cleared the center field wall to give the Mets a 4-3 lead. 

In the eighth, Cespedes wouldn’t let the Reds get something going. Mets killer Brandon Phillips lined a ball to the left field wall off Addison Reed. Cespedes fielded the ball cleanly as it ricocheted off the wall, turned, and delivered a perfect strike to Johnson. 

From there, Alejandro De Aza hit a pinch hit homer, the Mets 11th of the season, to give the Mets a 5-3 lead. That two run cushion was more than enough for Jeurys Familia who recorded his 46th save of the year. 

This game was another example of how important Cespedes is to the Mets, and how much they need him healthy down the stretch. 

Game Notes: Collins made six pitching changes with the expanded rosters. Gavin Cecchini, T.J. Rivera, Eric Campbell, and Brandon Nimmo joined the team today, but would not enter the game. 

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