Jeurys Familia

Terry Collins’ Decision of the Game – Rafael Montero

This one was obvious to everyone except Terry Collins. 

In Rafael Montero‘s last start, he only lasted 4.1 innings against the Reds allowing three runs while walking four. In the start before that it was a minor miracle he allowed no runs against the Marlins despite walking six over five innings. By any measure, Montero had no business starting against the Washington Nationals yesterday. 

This would be the Collins’ decision of the game except there is the possibility the choice to start Montero tonight was either a collaborative decision or a decision made by the front office. 

Giving Collins the benefit of the doubt here, the decision of the game was not pinch hitting for Montero in the top of the second inning. 

At that time, the Mets were only down 2-1. However, they were down 2-1 because Montero issued not one, but two . . . TWO! . . . bases loaded walks. Realistically, the Mets could’ve been trailing by a lot more than one run with the way Montero pitched in a 37 pitch first inning. 

Another factor was there was a runner in scoring position with two outs. You know Montero isn’t bringing that run home.  Sure, you normally wouldn’t want to go to your bench that early in the game, but there are expanded rosters. You’re not going to run out of pinch hitters with the following available:

  1. Michael Conforto
  2. Brandon Nimmo
  3. Alejandro De Aza
  4. T.J. Rivera
  5. Matt Reynolds
  6. Gavin Cecchini
  7. Ty Kelly
  8. Eric Campbell

That gives the Mets one pinch hitter for every inning for the rest of the game. Keep in mind, this list doesn’t include the backup catchers Rene Rivera and Kevin Plawecki. 

Collins might’ve said differently in the post game, but the bullpen shouldn’t have been a consideration. Gabriel Ynoa and Sean Gilmartin were fairly rested and capable of pitching multiple innings. Same goes for Hansel Robles. Also, it’s important to note the Mets only needed to find five innings because if it was close, the Mets were going Fernando Salas–Addison Reed–Jeurys Familia to close out the game anyway. 

With September call-ups, the Mets had the depth to handle Collins lifting Montero. More importantly, with the Mets amidst the Wild Card race, they can ill-afford to give Montero a second inning because it could cost you the game. 

Collins didn’t lift Montero, and he imploded in the second. It was not a result that was all that surprising. It was a result that helped cost the Mets the game. It was another poor managerial decision by Collins. 

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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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Lugo & Gsellman Are Pitching for the Postseason

Every time the Mets run Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellman to the mound, they’re out there trying to help the Mets return to the postseason. They’re also making their own case why the Mets should put them on the postseason roster.

Assuming the Mets make it back to the postseason, there is little guaranteed on who will and who won’t be on the postseason roster. In fact, as it stands today, Noah Syndergaard and Bartolo Colon are the only two starting pitchers who will be guaranteed a spot on the postseason roster. If, and it is becoming a bigger if with each passing day, Steven Matz and Jacob deGrom can return from their injuries, they will be guaranteed not only a spot on the roster, but also a start in the postseason.

Assuming deGrom and Matz can return for the postseason, there will still be room in the bullpen. Last season, the Mets went with 11 pitchers in the bullpen. The Mets were given that luxury, in part, because the team carried Colon and Jon Niese in the bullpen. This gave the Mets a number of pitchers who could go multiple innings out of the bullpen. Coupled with a starting rotation that could go deep into game, the Mets were able to add the extra bat on the bench. Looking at the Mets bullpen as constituted, there are few absolutely guaranteed spots:

  1. Jeurys Familia
  2. Addison Reed
  3. Hansel Robles
  4. Jerry Blevins
  5. Fernando Salas

With teams only needing four starters in the postseason, that leaves two open spots in the postseason bullpen.

If deGrom and Matz are able to pitch in the postseason, that means Lugo, Gsellman, and Montero will be competing for the last two spots in the bullpen most likely with Josh Smoker and Jim Henderson. If the Mets want to go with two lefties in the bullpen, Smoker could have the inside track. While he has been touched in three of his nine appearances, Smoker has shown he can strike people out. Currently, he strikes out 14.5 batters per nine innings, which is only slightly higher than his 12.8 strikeout per nine figure in AAA. If Smoker keeps striking people out, it is going to be hard to justify leaving him off the postseason roster.

Given his early season success, Henderson presumably has an excellent chance of being on the postseason roster. However, each and every time Henderson takes the mound, he makes a case why the Mets can’t trust him in a big spot. In his six appearances since coming off the disabled list, Henderson has a 7.20 ERA and has allowed opponents to hit .318 off of him.

If the Mets went with Smoker and Henderson, there may still be a spot for Lugo and Gsellman if the Mets decide to go with 12 pitchers this offseason. In that scenario, there would be one last bullpen available that would most likely go to Lugo or Gsellman. That means with every start, Lugo and Gsellman are not just pitching against the opponent, but also each other.

Overall, in order for Lugo and Gsellman to help their chances for a postseason roster spot, and for the Mets to even make the postseason, they are going to have to go out there and continue pitching as well as they have been.

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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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Matt Reynolds Awakens the Dreary Mets

Terry Collins and the Mets made the best out of an awful situation with the Mets playing a late Sunday night game followed by an early Monday afternoon game. 

Bartolo Colon flew ahead of the team to make sure he was well rested.  Jose Reyes, Asdrubal Cabrera, and Yoenis Cespedes, i.e. veterans with some nagging injuries, were given a day off. Curtis Granderson was also given a day meaning the Mets were without the top four hitters in they’d lineup. With that in mind, an extremely tired Mets team went to their bench to ask them to win one. They did. 

Matt Reynolds, who took the red eye from Las Vegas, and Kelly Johnson each hit solo homers to give the Mets a 2-0 lead. 

That was enough for Colon who navigated his way out of trouble for most of the day. He was aided by two double plays in the first few innings. Twice he stranded a runner on third with no outs. His best feat was in the sixth when he stranded Hernan Iribarren at third after a lead off triple. This was in part due to his unwillingness to test Jay Bruce‘s arm. Coincidentally, Bruce’s throw would go to the backstop. 

His final line was six innings, five hits, no runs, none earned, one walk, and two strikeouts. 

Fortunately, he gave the Mets some much needed depth with both Addison Reed and Jeurys Familia unavailable. 

On the bullpen front, Hansel Robles had another good outing, but Jerry Blevins struggled. Blevins would get bailed out by Fernando Salas in the eighth. Salas would finish out the game. 

Still, even with the win, it’s not like the Mets were crisp. Reds starter Robert Stephenson struck out nine in 5.1 innings. The only Mets player with a multiple hits off the Reds stater was Wilmer Flores, who no one was quite sure what he was doing on the bases:

In the first, he was thrown out trying to stretch a single into a double. In the fourth, he was thrown out trying to stretch a double into a triple. Finally, in the sixth, he had the good sense to stop at first bases much to the delight of Phoebe:

The Mets put the game on ice in the seventh. Reynolds hit an RBI single scoring Travis d’Arnaud, who walked to start the rally. Cabrera pinch hit for Colon, and hit an RBI single scoring James Loney. Alejandro De Aza capped off the rally with a sacrifice fly scoring Reynolds making the score 5-0. 

While it was Flores that was perfect at the plate, it was Reynolds who was the offensive star of the game. Reynolds would go 2-3 with two runs, two RBI, and a home run. With the insane scheduling and the veterans’ nagging injuries, the Mets needed someone to step up. It was an exhausted Reynolds who stepped up and powered the Mets offensively. 

With that Reynolds and the entire Mets team earned a well needed rest. 

Game Notes: This was Bruce’s first game back in Cincinnati since the trade, and the team had a pre-game ceremony honoring him. Bruce would go 0-3 with two strikeouts leaving two men on base. 

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Mets August 2016 Report Card

The Mets entered August 6.5 games back in the NL East race behind both the Nationals and the Marlins.  They also trailed the Marlins by 1.5 games for the last Wild Card spot.  The Mets have also fallen behind the Cardinals in the Wild Card race as well.

By going 15-14, August turned out to be just the second winning month the Mets have had this season.  They now trail the Nationals by nine games in the NL East.  After what has been a crazy month, the Mets still remain 1.5 games back of the final Wild Card spot.  Only now, the Mets trail the the Cardinals after having helped put the Marlins away having won the first three against them in a four game series.  Given the Mets weak September schedule, it should be an interesting finish to the season.

Bear in mind, these grades are on a curve. If a bench player gets an A and a position player gets a B, it doesn’t mean the bench player is having a better year. Rather, it means the bench player is performing better in his role.

Position Players

Travis d’Arnaud (C).  After the Jonathon Lucroy rumors died down, d’Arnaud starting hitting again.  However, he has cooled off to hit at a rate slightly better than his 2016 totals.  Part of the reason may be Collins playing Rivera over him with the Mets needing to throw a lot of young pitchers out there.

Kevin Plawecki (Inc.)  Plawecki spent the entire month down in AAA where he has started hitting again.  He should be among the first group of players called up today.  It’ll be interesting to see what, if any, impact he has over the final month of the season.

Rene Rivera (C).  Rivera came crashing back to Earth offensively.  However, his value has always been as a receiver, and he has done that job fairly well helping usher some of these young pitchers into the big leagues.

Lucas Duda (Inc). Duda is most likely gone for the season, and the debate will soon begin about whether he will be a Met in 2017.

James Loney (F).  He didn’t hit for average or power, nor did he get on base much during the entire month.  Worse yet, he has not been good in the field.  The next ball he stretches for will be his first.

Neil Walker (A+).  What has happened to Walker is nothing short of heart breaking.  He had completely turned his season around, and he appeared to be headed for a massive payday this offseason with him standing out as one of the better options in a weak free agent class.  Instead, Walker is going to have season ending back surgery to end his season.

David Wright (Inc.).  It’s clear he’s done for the season, but it is nice seeing him around Citi Field and looking better.

Asdrubal Cabrera (A+).  Since his return from the disabled list, Cabrera has been a blonde bombshell.  He moved into the second spot in the order, and he he has combine with Reyes to form a dynamic and powerful 1-2 duo at the top of the lineup.  The only concern is how much he is going to actually be able to play with that lingering knee issue.

Wilmer Flores (B+).  Flores has continued to rake putting up numbers at an unprecedented.  This month he hit seven homers.  He has benefited greatly by mostly facing left-handed pitchers, and now he’s hitting righties better. The Mets will need his versatility all the more as injuries mounted during the month.

Eric Campbell (Inc.) Campbell did not play in a game during the month, and the Mets are not likely to call him up again until rosters expand in September.

Matt Reynolds (D).  Reynolds didn’t hit well during his 10 games with the Mets this month.  Worse yet for him, he has been passed over on the team’s depth chart by Rivera.

Ty Kelly (A).  During his limited August playing time, Collins was able to maximize Kelly’s abilities by making him a short-lived platoon left fielder with Cespedes dealing with his quad injury.  In his nine August games, Kelly hit .381/.500/.524 with a double and a triple.

Michael Conforto (D).  After a stretch in which the Mets bottomed out, Conforto was sent down as he was a young player unable to handle sporadic playing time.  Since being sent down to AAA, Conforto has hit everything including lefties.  He should be called up today, and most likely, never play as Collins is his manager.

Yoenis Cespedes (A).  It was admirable that Cespedes played until he could play no longer (even if his golfing might’ve been part of the reason why).  Since his return, Cespedes is hitting home runs again.  He has had another incredible month, and he had a walkoff with a legendary bat flip to help the Mets beat the Marlins.

Curtis Granderson (D).  It hasn’t been fun seeing last year’s team MVP struggle the way he has this month.  He lost his job in right, moved to center, and now has become a part time player.  The hope is that with the time off, he rests up, and he returns to the Granderson of old.  Those hopes don’t seem that far fetched after he came off the bench the other night to hit two home runs.

Juan Lagares (Inc).  Lagares didn’t play in August due to the thumb surgery.  It remains questionable if he can return in September as he will most likely not be ready for rehab games until after the minor league affiliates have ended their seasons.

Alejandro De Aza (C-).  De Aza followed a great July with another poor August.  Mixed in there were a couple of terrific games that helped the Mets win a pivotal game against the Cardinals.  Right now, what he brings more than anything is the ability to play center field.

Kelly Johnson (A+).  Johnson continues to be the Mets top pinch hitter as well as a platoon option in the infield.  Over the past month, he has hit for more power including a surprising five homers.  His bases loaded double last night might’ve buried the Marlins.

Brandon Nimmo (Inc).  He only played two games before being sent down to AAA.  Given the fact that he’s one of the few healthy center fielders in the organization, he may see some real time when he gets called up with the expanded rosters.

Jose Reyes (A).  You could say we’re seeing the Reyes of old, but Reyes has never been this good in his career.  He has adapted extremely well to third base while playing a steady shortstop when the Mets have needed him to play over there when Cabrera has been injured or needing a day off.  The one caution is he still isn’t hitting right-handed pitching that well.  Still, his numbers were terrific.

T.J. Rivera (B).  After all this time, Rivera finally got his chance.  He made the most of it hitting .289 in 13 games while playing decently at second and third base.

Justin Ruggiano (Inc).  When he plays, he hits, but he is now on his second disabled list stint already with the Mets. With him being put on the 60 day disabled list, he’s now done for the season.   Seeing what we have seen with the team, there may be something in the water.

Jay Bruce (F).  Since coming to the Mets for Dilson Herrera, he has just been bad.  But hey, it’s not like the Mets need another second baseman, right?

Pitchers

Matt Harvey (Inc).  Harvey is done for the season after having had successful surgery to remove a rib.  For a player who has been criticized in the past for attending Yankee games while being gone for the season, Harvey has been a fixture in the Mets dugout during games.

Jacob deGrom (D).  deGrom had been pitching great until August rolled around.  In back-to-back big games against the Giants and the Cardinals, he couldn’t deliver pitching two of the worst games in his career.  Hopefully, the Mets skipping his last start will help get him back on track.

Noah Syndergaard (B). Syndergaard has had an uneven month, but after his last start, it appears he is dealing better with the bone spurs, and he is getting back to the pitcher who was dominant over the first half of the season.

Steven Matz (C).  Just as you thought he turned things around with his flirting with a no-hitter in his last start, he goes down with a shoulder injury.  At this time, it is unknown as to when or if he can return.

Bartolo Colon (A).  Colon stopped his good start-bad start streak in August, and he started pitching much better during the month of August at a time when the Mets needed him the most.

Logan Verrett (F).  Look, he shouldn’t have been tapped as the Mets fifth starter after Harvey went down, but with that said, he did everything he could to lose the job pitching to a 13.50 ERA in August.  He eventually lost the job to Niese of all people

Jeurys Familia (A).  That’s the Familia we all know and love.  He not only had a sub 1.00 ERA, but he also broke the single season Mets save record he shared with Armando Benitez.

Addison Reed (B+).  You knew he wasn’t going to keep up what he has been doing, but even with him coming back to Earth slightly, he has still be incredible.

Jim Henderson (F).  After being on the disabled list for so long with yet another shoulder injury, Henderson has made his way back to the majors.  Unfortunately, he’s not the same pitcher.  Collins owes him an apology.

Hansel Robles (F).  Robles showed how much he has been overworked this season by Collins this month.  Hopefully, with some rest, he should finally be able to rebound and contribute in September and beyond like he had done for most of the season.

Jerry Blevins (B+).  His 2.16 ERA was terrific, but his 1.560 WHIP gives some reason for pause.  Both righties and lefties are starting to hit him, and he has been allowing inherited runners to score.

Antonio Bastardo (Inc.)  Thankfully, he is gone, and it was worth it even if it meant the Mets had to take back Niese.

Rafael Montero (Inc.) He got an unexpected start due to injuries, and he fought his way through five scoreless innings.  Good for him.

Sean Gilmartin (Inc.)  Gilmartin has only made three appearances since being recalled, and he hasn’t pitched particularly well.  Whether it was the shoulder injury or teams figuring him out, he’s not the same guy he was last season.

Erik Goeddel (F).  There used to be two factions of the Mets fan base: those who thought Goeddel was a good major league pitcher, and those that didn’t.  Seemingly, everyone is now in the latter camp now.

Seth Lugo (A).  Lugo has been nothing short of a revelation this year.  Due to injuries, he has had to go from the bullpen to the rotation.  He has not only shown his stuff translates as a starter, but he also shown he could actually be more effective as a starter.  He has gotten his 2014 deGrom moment, and he has taken advantage of it.

Jon Niese (F).  Somehow, he was worse with the Mets than he was with the Pirates.  He has failed in the bullpen and the rotation.  Hopefully, for him, the reason is because of his knee injury that has required surgery.

Robert Gsellman (Inc.) It’s been a mixed bag for Gsellman.  In his one relief apperance and his one start, he has given the Mets a chance to win.   However, he’s a powder keg out there as it seems as if he is in trouble each and every inning.  To his credit, he has gotten out of most of the jams.  It’ll be interesting to see where he goes from here.

Gabriel Ynoa (Inc.) Ynao was surprisingly called up to pitch out of the bullpen.  In three rough appearances, the only thing you can fairly conclude is he isn’t comfortable yet pitching out of the bullpen.

Josh Edgin (D) Edgin has gone through the long Tommy John rehab process, but he’s not quite back yet.  His velocity isn’t quite there.  With that in mind, he has struggles getting major league batters out.

Josh Smoker (B) After a rough start to his major league career, he has gone out there and gotten better each and every time out.  He is getting his fastball in the upper 90s, and he is a strikeout machine.  He could be a real factor over the next month and in the postseason

Terry Collins (D)  He iced Conforto.  He continues to overwork the bullpen.  He makes baffling lineup decision after baffling lineup decision.  He is even worse with in-game management.  However, with the Mets on a stretch against some bad teams, and the Wild Card frontrunners not having run away with it, he may once again be in position to ride some good luck into the postseason.

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Mets Wouldn’t Be Denied a Third Time

With the way the Mets season has gone, you knew they were going to regret not scoring with bases loaded and no outs. The issue was whether they would be able to rebound. 

At the time, the Mets were up 2-1 after a Wilmer Flores two run homer in the second scoring the clean up hitter Curtis Granderson. The home run was off the right-handed Jake Esch, who was making his major league debut. It was an important homer for Wilmer as he needs to hit righties more with the uncertainty surrounding Neil Walker and his back. 

As in the first two games of this series, the Mets scored the half inning immediately after the Marlins too the lead. 

The Mets had their chance to blow things open but failed. Jay Bruce started the rally with a single. Travis d’Arnaud singled himself leading to the Mets loading the bases. The rally was killed and the Mets scored no runs as Bartolo Colon hit into a double play. Which inning was this? 

It was the second and the fourth. 

In the second, Colon came up with one out, and he hit into the 3-6-3 inning ending double play. In the fourth, there were no outs as Colon hit into the rare 5-2-3 double play. Colon had two at bats leading to four outs. 

The second failure with the bases loaded was especially notable as there are no outs and Bruce’s decided not to test Ichiro Suzuki‘s arm despite Tim Teufel waving him in. Kelly Johnson didn’t get the RBI, and after a Jose Reyes groundout, no one scored. 

The Mets would regret missing out on these chances after Christian Yelich hit a game tying solo homer in the sixth. 

The homer was a blip for Colon who was great on the night. His final line was seven innings, seven hits, two runs, one earned, no walks, and three strikeouts. However, he wouldn’t get the win, in part, due to his offense. Addison Reed  would after pitching a scoreless eighth. 

In the bottom of the eighth, the Mets would not be denied again. The bases were loaded with two outs as Johnson stepped to the plate. He would hit a 3-2 pitch for a bases clearing double giving the Mets a 5-2 lead. 

Jeurys Familia came on and closed it out recording his 44th save of the season. With the save, he broke the tie he shared with Armando Benitez for saves in a single season. He is assured to only add to that. 
With that, the Mets have taken three of the first four from the Marlins. They also finish the month over .500 for the first time since April. 

Game Notes: Old friend Kirk Nieuwenhuis did his part to help the Mets hitting a three run home run against the Cardinals. 

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Jeurys Familia Is Becoming the Mets Best Closer Ever

For an organization known for its pitching, it should come as no surprise that the Mets have had their fair share of good closers.  What may come as a surprise is that Jeurys Familia might just become better than them all.

The Mets first notable closer was Tug McGraw.  His contributions extend well past his coining the phrase “Ya Gotta Believe!”  Up until the 80’s, in a time when managers began to pitch to the save rule, McGraw was the Mets all-time leader with 86 saves.  He is also the only Mets to be a closer to for a team that won a World Series and a Pennant.  In 1969, he shared closing duties with Ron Taylor.  In 1973, he was not only the man, but in many ways, the vocal leader of the team.  The only record McGraw has remaining in the record books is most innings pitched by a Mets reliever  with 792.2 innings over his nine year Mets career.

The next Mets closer to appear in multiple postseasons was Jesse Orosco.  When discussing Orosco, there are always three things you need to mention: (1) he was part of the return the Mets received when they traded Jerry Koosman to the Twins; (2) Keith Hernandez warned him not to throw a fastball to Kevin Bass (he didn’t); and (3) his glove has still not landed.  After his eight year career was over, Orosco was both the Mets all-time leader in saves (107) and the Mets single season saves leader (31 in 1984).  To this day, he remains the only Mets closer to save a World series clinching game.

Orosco would eventually be surpassed by John Franco on both the saves list and the Mets all-time saves list.  Somewhat ironically, Franco’s entrance song was Johnny B. Goode as his ninth inning appearances were always a high wire act.  Still, throughout all of it, Franco has more saves by any left-handed closer in history with 424, and when he retired he was third on the all-time list trailing only Lee Smith and Trevor Hoffman.  Franco recorded 276 of those saves with the Mets.  His 276 saves are the Mets record by a fairly wide margin.

In fact, Franco leads Armando Benitez by 116 saves on the Mets all-time list.  Coincidentally, Benitez is the man who replaced Franco as the Mets closer in 1999.  With the Mets having made consecutive postseason appearances in 1999 and 2000, Benitez remains the only Mets closer to pitch in consecutive postseasons.  While Mets fans loved to hate him, Benitez did show flashes of complete and utter dominance.  As of right now, his 43 saves in 2001 still remains the Mets single season record.

However, that record is in jeopardy.  Last year, Jeurys Familia, in his first season as the Mets closer, tied Benitez’s single season record.  This year, he has tied it again en route to him most likely breaking the tie with Benitez.  With Familia having saved 43 games for consecutive seasons, he has already set the mark for most saves by a Mets closer in consecutive seasons.  Even with Familia only having been the Mets closer for one plus seasons, he now ranks fifth all-time with 92 saves as a Met.  With 16 more saves, he will jump both Orosco and Billy Wagner to put him third all-time.

If the Mets current charge continues, he could join Benitez as the only Mets closer to appear in back-to-back postseasons.  If the Mets get into the postseason, anything is possible including seeing Familia join Orosco as the only Mets pitcher to earn a save to close out the World Series.

That’s just the thing with Familia.  He’s already a great closer, and he’s already writing his name all over the Mets record books.  As long as he is the Mets closer, anything is possible.  It’s also possible that we could be watching the best closer in Mets history.

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Reyes & Cabrera Spark the Offense Again

Much like last night, the Marlins would not have a lead against the Mets for very long. 

In the top of the first, Christian Yelich hit a two run homer off Seth Lugo giving the Marlins an early 2-0 lead. After that, Lugo would shut the Marlins down including robbing Ichiro Suzuki of a base hit to get out of the first. Lugo grabbed the ball dribbling down the line and threw a dart over Ichiro’s head. 

His final line was six innings, five hits, two runs, two earned, one walk, and four strikeouts. 

Jose Reyes and Asdrubal Cabrera would set out to make sure Lugo got the win. With Cabrera playing after missing a game with a knee issue, the two once again served as sparks at the top of the lineup. They started immediately. 
After Reyes leadoff the bottom of the first with an infield single, Cabrera brought him home on a game tying two run homer. 

On the night, Reyes would go 4-5 with two runs and a double. Cabrera was 2-3 with a run, two RBI, a walk, and a homer. With them going like this, you can believe the Mets have what it takes to get back to the postseason.

The first inning rally would continue on a Jay Bruce double. Yes, that actually happened. He would then score on a Wilmer Flores RBI single. It was part of a big night for Flores who was 2-4 with a double and an RBI. 

Just like that, a Marlins lead became a 3-2 deficit. The Mets wouldn’t look back. 

After the first, the Mets kept threatening against Tom Koehler, but they couldn’t quite plate another run. Shocking, I know. The Mets not getting hits with runners in scoring position. 

Things changed in the sixth with Curtis Granderson hitting a pinch hit leadoff home run. It sparked a rally with the Mets loading the bases. Alejandro De Aza singled scoring Reyes making it 5-2, but that’s all the Mets would get that inning. 

On the De Aza single, Cabrera took a wide turn around third, but he did not appear as if he was really trying to score. Rather, it looked as if he was positioning himself in case there was a bobble or something. In any event, he tried to get back to third but he couldn’t because Bruce was standing there. 

Granderson would stay in the game and go to right. He would come back up in the seventh, and he would hit another home run. This was a two run shot scoring Rene Rivera making it a 7-2 game. 

With the Mets now having a big lead, Terry Collins decided to let Hansel Robles stay out there for a second inning because Collins is the only one who hasn’t figured out that Robles is overworked.Fortunately, Robles was able to pitch two scoreless helping to preserve the Mets win. 

The Mets had to turn to Jeurys Familia for the save as Jim Henderson just couldn’t lock down the 7-2 win. Henderson allowed a starting a J.T. Realmuto solo home run, a Jeff Francouer triple, and a Dee Gordon RBI single. Just like that it was a 7-4 game. Familia came in and put an end to the nonsense striking out Marcell Ozuna to record his 43rd save of the year tying the club record he shares with Armando Benitez. 

With the Mets second straight win against the Marlins, they are now a game ahead of them in the standings.  Things are starting to get interesting. 
Game Notes: Neil Walker missed the game with his lingering back injury. It’s now serious enough that Collins no longer believes Walker can play everyday. James Loney stayed consistent by going 0-3. Before the game, it was announced Steven Matz will not be ready to pitch when his disabled list stint is over because he is still having shoulder issues. 

Pennant Race: The Pirates are losing to the Cubs 3-0 in the seventh. The Cardinals are tied with the Brewers 1-1 in the eighth. The Nationals beat the Phillies 3-2. 

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