Terry Collins
The Mets were humming along through five innings. Steven Matz was good through five innings. At that point, he allowed five hits, one earned, no walks and five strikeouts. Watching the game, he was out of gas. It was a tremendous effort.
In the bottom of the fifth, Michael Conforto would hit the second of his two homeruns. This one coming off a lefty. The Mets had a 3-1 lead. The Royals only run to that point was the result of Yoenis Cespedes not hustling for a ball hit by Salvador Perez. I’m not saying it should’ve been caught. I’m saying it could’ve been caught. To make matters worse, he kicks it making a possible out a double.
Things were humming along, and then Terry Collins let the gassed Matz hit for himself. No one in the ballpark, not even Matz’s grandfather knew what he was thinking.
In a surprise to no one, a double and a single to start the sixth and the Royals narrowed the gap to 3-2. Collins had to burn through Jon Niese and Bartolo Colon. Actually, he didn’t need to use Colon there, but Colon got the big strikeout to end the inning with the tying run at third. Seeing how Colon pitched, did he come on for the seventh? No, of course not. It’s the postseason, so you manage like its paint by numbers.
He used Addison Reed for the seventh. He got the Royals out 1-2-3 in quick fashion. Then Collins brings in Tyler Clippard. A man he had so much faith in in this pivotal inning that he started warming up Jeurys Familia immediately. By the way, you can’t have faith in Clippard. He’s been terrible lately. All postseason Collins has skipped him or quickly go to Familia.
Look if you have faith in Clippard, you don’t warm up Familia before he throws a pitch. You may ask why not Familia for six outs if you have him warming up so soon. The reason was Collins felt it important to have him close out a game with a six run lead last night. It compromised his ability to go six outs. It cost the Mets.
Clippard recorded the first out, but then he lost control. He then walked the next two batters. Familia came on and got a ground ball that Daniel Murphy booted. Tie game. A rejuvenated Royals team then starts hitting Familia. Two hits later and it’s a 5-3 game.
Now because Ned Yost didn’t waste his closer for useless innings last night, he could use Wade Davis for two innings. The Mets still had a chance. Murphy singled and then Cespedes singled. They’re in business. Tying runs on with Lucas Duda coming up. This is where Cespedes would put the capper on a lazy, baffling game.
Duda got one in his kitchen. He swung and hit a low bloop to Mike Moustakas. Everyone saw it was going to hold up for him, even the notoriously bad Baserunners Murphy. Not Cespedes. He’s almost on second when the ball is caught. Easy double play. Game over.
Another quick note on Cespedes that sums up his World Series perfectly: he constantly strikes out on balls in the dirt. Once he strikes out, he goes to the dugout. He doesn’t bother to look to run to first. He doesn’t adapt to how he’s being pitched. He won’t hustle after a strikeout.
Series isn’t over yet. The Mets still have their three best pitchers lined up. The three best starters in the series. Hopefully, Cespedes will actually hustle tomorrow. Hopefully, Collins will figure out how to become a good in game manager. Hopefully, the Mets can pull this off.
Honestly, I thought the one run was going to hold up. Lucas Duda had an RBI single in the fourth. Johnny Cueto was starting to get wild. Jacob deGrom was dealing. Then the fifth inning happened.
When the game started, I lived deGrom’s approach. He established the fastball and used his breaking pitches well. The Royals were making contact, but it wasn’t solid contact. I’m not sure what happened next, but there are some theories:
Ex-Met watching the game on TV texted me that he couldn't figure out what, but Royals clearly had something on deGrom tipping in stretch.
— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinMedia) October 29, 2015
Another ex-Met told me deGrom may speed up on fastball and slow on secondary pitches. Or, seriously, facial expression may change by pitch.
— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinMedia) October 29, 2015
Whatever it was, it was a slow death for deGrom. The Royals batted around. They had four runs on one leadoff walk and five hits. To put it in perspective, deGrom let up five hits in Game 1 of the NLDS, six hits in Game 5 of the NLDS, and four hits in Game 3 of the NLCS. He practically let up as many hits in that inning as any game this postseason. It certainly leads credence to Adam Rubin’s information when you consider:
Numbers worth repeating: deGrom threw 94 pitches, and of those, the Royals fouled off 23, and had only three missed swings. 3.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) October 29, 2015
Regardless, deGrom didn’t have it in the fifth. Maybe it was Game 5 of the NLDS. Maybe Collins just wanted to outdo yesterday’s ineptitude. In any event, he let the game slip away with Jon Niese ready I the pen.
Don’t worry, Niese warmed up again after an effective Hansel Robles appearance in the sixth. Collins would go an inning too long with Niese because why not? The game was within reach at 4-1 going into the bottom of the eighth. It would be out of reach at 7-1 after that. On top of that the Mets probably lost Niese for at least Game 3. I really don’t know what Collins was thinking.
To make matters worse, the Royals outpitched the Mets in this game. deGrom went five. Cueto pitched a two hit complete game.
Tonight, the only good news was Duda. He was 2-3 with an RBI. He got the only two hits on the night. I guess the other good news is that the Mets are getting out of town.
Pursuant to Rule 3.01, no player may put any substance on the ball. That includes pine tar. That includes catchers.
Was it pine tar on Salvador Perez‘s shinguard? With it being a wet night with the rain, it probably was. It wouldn’t surprise me. Elston Howard used to cut the balls off his shin guard for Whitey Ford. It’s what catchers do for their pitchers. I’m sure he was using it not only to help his pitchers, but also to help his throwing against would be base stealers.
It is widely assumed that it’s something everyone does. However, as we saw last year with Michael Pineda, you can’t make it obvious. While it wasn’t a giant glob on the neck, it was on the outside of Perez’s equipment. Now that the cameras caught it, it’s obvious. I can understand Terry Collins saying it’s no big deal, but it is. We should also note, it is a big deal. The common denominator here is the pitching coach Dave Eiland. It seems his players have a history of this now.
The reason is because it’s an opportunity. Perez is important to the Royals. If he’s caught, at a minimum, he had to change his gear. Without the pine tar, the Royals pitching from the starters to the bullpen suffers. More likely, he’s ejected and could face a possible suspension.
The goal here is to win the World Series. As long as things are on the up and up with Jacob deGrom and/or Travis d’Arnaud, you have to try. The only reason not to try is because you’re doing the same thing. If you don’t try, it’s not doing everything to win. I saw enough of that.
It’s time to do everything you can do to win.
In the 14th inning, there were two pivotal plays. The first was the David Wright error allowing Alcides Escobar to score. Here’s an image of the play:
The next was Escobar scoring the winning run on a sacrifice fly that inning. Here’s why it bothers me. Neither play was reviewed. We didn’t see Terry Collins ask for a review.
What I don’t know is if the reason was because the team’s agreed to go without replay after the blackout in the telecast:
https://twitter.com/ken_rosenthal/status/659179564585889792
However, we do know that eventually replay again became available during the game:
Replay now back in both clubhouses according to MLB.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) October 28, 2015
If it was, then the Mets missed an opportunity. We’ve already seen strange things happen with replay this postseason. Are we 100% sure Lucas Duda wasn’t on the bag. It’s possible he was. We may never know because there was no replay.
If Collins thought there was replay that call needed to be replayed. It’s the 14th inning. You need to use your challenge at some point. If Collins thought there was no replay, why isn’t he out there arguing. Maybe he forces an umpire huddle and an overturn of the call. It’s not likely, but we’ve seen it happen.
If there was replay, how do you not challenge the last play of the game? I’m 99.999% sure Escobar didn’t leave early, but if he did it’s no two outs and the Mets can get out of the inning. The replays may not have changed anything, but don’t you have to at least try?
Terry Collins strengths are in the clubhouse. He’s just not a good in game manager. For the second time this postseason, he’s made decisions that cost the Mets the game.
Not Starting Lagares in CF
The first pitch of the game was a flyball to left center. It was Yoenis Cespedes‘ ball. Since he’s come here, he’s run Michael Conforto off balls like that. Any CF would, it’s an easy play. He turned it into an inside the park homerun.
Cespedes said he looked at Conforto and lost ball. Did not call for it. Back-handed attempt was just to try to get it.
— Matt Ehalt (@MattEhalt) October 28, 2015
This does not happen if Juan Lagares is playing. A million times over, he’s a better CF than Cespedes. If someone suggests otherwise they know nothing about baseball. The Mets would recover from this, but it shouldn’t have come to that.
Michael Cuddyer Got Three ABs
I’ll admit when Michael Cuddyer pinch hit for Kelly Johnson, I was on board even if the Mets were removing their backup SS. The Royals brought in the left Danny Duffy. It was the right move even if Cuddyer watched a fastball go right down the middle of the plate for strike three.
My problem arose when he got at bats after that. We all know Cuddyer hasn’t been good in the playoffs. He’s looked old and slow. He still got three ABs in Game 1. He ended a rally striking out again in the eighth. He struck out again in the 11th with Lagares in scoring position.
It wasn’t until the 13th that Collins figured out what we all knew: Cuddyer wasn’t getting a hit. By that time the damage was done as Cuddyer had already killed two rallies.
DHing Kelly Johnson
With the Mets roster construction, Johnson is the backup SS. This meant that once he was put in the lineup as DH, the Mets didn’t have their best defensive outfield, nor did they truly have Juan Uribe available.
Urbe was the only backup IF available. Uribe has to be held back just in case. At a minimum, it meant Uribe could not be the first bat off the bench. Collins was forced to pinch hit Cuddyer by his own lineup. I’m not saying Uribe comes through in any of the three situations. He’s had a longer layoff than Cuddyer. What I’m saying is why put him on the roster and not be in a position to use him?
Overall by DHing Johnson, you weaken your defense and limit your bench. It doesn’t make sense. Couple that with the inside the park homerun and Cuddyer killing two rallies, it might’ve cost the Mets the game.
Bunting Flores
Lost in the loss was a great game by Lagares. He set up a run in the eighth with a basehit and a stolen base. He would score when Eric Hosmer couldn’t field Wilmer Flores‘ hard hit bouncer. As we know, this rally would end with a Cuddyer strikeout.
In the eleventh, Lagares lays down a beautiful bunt to get aboard to leadoff the inning. Up comes Flores. It’s true Flores was hitless in the game, but he had good at bats. He was robbed of a extra base hit in the sixth that would’ve expanded the then 3-1 lead. Batting behind him was the 0-2 with two strikeouts lost at the plate Cuddyer. Naturally, he has Flores bunt Lagares over to second.
We know what happens next – Cuddyer strikes out. Effectively, the Mets handed the Royals two outs. Putting aside the statistical data saying sac bunts are a bad idea, it was just a bad move. If you were watching that game you had to say, there’s no way Cuddyer gets a hit here. So why bunt the runner over for him? It does the make sense.
Flores has pop in his bat. He didn’t have a hit, but he was hitting the ball hard and was taking good at bats. Bunting him in that spot showed no sense of the stats, and it showed Collins had no feel for the game.
Going Too Long with Colon
I’ll give Collins some credit. He managed the pitching staff well into the 14th inning. I had no problem with him replacing Jeurys Familia with Jon Niese. Niese was terrific for two innings. I would’ve gone the extra inning, but with him not pitching that much over the past month, I understood pulling him.
I also understood using Bartolo Colon next. However, it was either a bad matchup, or he didn’t have it. All three innings he pitched in, he was in trouble. He was bending, and he finally broke in the 14th.
At that time, the Mets still had not used Hansel Robles or Sean Gilmartin. If you check my Twitter feed, you will see I first guessed Colon pitching to Hosmer with the bases loaded and no outs.
First, Robles has a 10.2 regular season K/9. It was 12.1 in the second half. He’s a better bet to get the strikeout. Second, Robles pitches extremely well against lefties limiting them to .167/.214/.346 triple slash line. Third, Robles is capable of pitching multiple innings, if necessary.
Instead, Collins again showed a remarkable lack of feel for the game by sending Colon out for his third inning and/or letting him face Hosmer. You let Robles try to get out of the jam. Then you still have another well rested long man in Gilmartin to take over. Maybe the Mets still lose; maybe they don’t.
Overall, it was the players on the field who lost. They relinquished 3-1 and 4-3 leads. However, Collins never put them in a position to succeed. It’s why they lost Game 1. Collins can’t have another one of these games, nor can the Mets.
Even after last night debacle, the Mets were close to winning. They were in the exact position they wanted to be in, but it didn’t work out. Everyone needs to be better tonight, Collins especially. They can be.
Lets Go a Mets!
Coming into this game, neither the Mets nor the Royals had won the first game in the World Series. Last night into this morning, they turned it into an art form.
This is now the longest Game 1 (innings-wise) in #WorldSeries history. #NYMvsKC
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) October 28, 2015
Ultimately, the game came down to Chris Young and Bartolo Colon. One was as tall as the other one was wide. While Young was mowing down the Mets, Colon was on a tightrope. He finally fell through allowing a sac fly in the 14th. The winning runner was on base after a Wright error and no challenge. The game was just sheer torture. Prior to this, there was an actual baseball game.
The game did not start the way Matt Harvey and the Mets wanted. Yoenis Cespedes misplayed a fly ball out into an Alcides Escobar inside the park homerun. The first in the World Series since a player named Mule Haas in the 1929 World Series.
This would kill most teams, but these Mets have shown themselves to be resilient. Travis d’Arnaud singled in Daniel Murphy in the fourth. Curtis Granderson homered in the fifth. Conforto hit a sac fly scoring Cespedes in the sixth.
Harvey was good tonight. Not great. Not bad. Just good. He pitched six innings allowing five hits, three earned, two walks, and two strikeouts. He was handed a two run lead in the sixth and couldn’t hold it.
After one run scored, he had a chance to get out of it with Mike Moustakas at the plate. Harvey stuck with the offspeed pitches and was seemingly pitching around him to get to Salvador Perez with first base open. A changeup caught too much of the plate, and Moustakas got the RBI single an inning after he made a diving stop to prevent a possible RBI double. From the seventh inning on, it was a battle of the bullpens.
Remember, the biggest advantage the Royals had this series was the bullpen and team defense. Kelvin Herrera was lighting up the radar gun. He had two outs in the eight when Juan Lagares came to the plate. He was in the game as a defensive replacement for Michael Conforto. Mets fans collectively groaned.
Lagares had a terrific at bat fighting off everything Herrera had. He got a single. He then barely stole second, and then this happened:
Actually, no, but it was close.
Wilmer Flores hit a chopper towards Eric Hosmer, who tried to backhand it. It went through him, and the Mets grabbed a 4-3 lead. In a shock to everyone, Jeurys Familia blew the save on a Alex Gordon to homer in the ninth. It was a rare blown save:
Jeurys Familia had converted 21 straight save chances entering day
Last one came day before Mets trade for Cespedes (July 30 vs Padres)
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) October 28, 2015
Jon Niese came on to pitch in the game he was born to pitch in. Niese was born the day the Mets won the World Series. Well, he pitched like he was born for the moment. He went three innings holding the Royals at bay.
As we know it wasn’t enough. After watching it part of me wishes the TV stayed off.
However, the Mets hung in there. They’re resilient, and they have Jacob deGrom tonight. All they need is a split. It’s still on the table. I just hope Collins is better. The Mets generally need to be better.
They will. They just need to show the same resiliency they’ve shown in this game and all year.
Everything that happened in August was leading up to tonight. Matt Harvey is starting Game 1 of the World Series. It shouldn’t be any other way.
After last season, Harvey promised Terry Collins the Mets would be here:
Terry Collins said after the game @MattHarvey33 came up to him & said "We're going to do it next year." Terry added "Matt doesn't lie to me"
— New York Mets (@Mets) September 28, 2014
He delivered in that promise. He pitched deep in the NL East clincher. He gutted through a pivotal Game 3 of the NLDS. He threw down the gauntlet in Game 1 of the NLCS setting the tone for a sweep of the Cubs. I honestly don’t think anyone else should be on the mound tonight.
This is what Harvey was talking about when he promised he would pitch in the playoffs. This is why it was the smart move to sacrifice a meaningless game to get Harvey ready. This is the reward for Harvey has working so hard in his Tommy John rehab to get to this point. However, it’s more than a reward. He’s earned this. He’s been terrific this year.
He will be terrific tonight. He’s got the stuff to beat the Royals. He’s got the determination. You think he will be good tonight?
Mets’ Matt Harvey will start on 9 days’ rest. He has not allowed a run in 3 previous starts on 9+ days’ rest (excluding season debuts).
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) October 27, 2015
There’s only one thing to say now:
Happy Harvey World Series Day!
With the Mets playing in Kansas City to begin the World Series, they will have to choose a player to DH. There are a number of options.
Best Defensive Lineup
Late in games this postseason, the Mets have inserted Juan Lagares into the game for defensive purposes. This has moved Yoenis Cespedes to left and Michael Conforto to the bench.
With a spacious Kaufman Stadium outfield, the Mets could start the game with this defensive alignment and move Conforto to DH. This becomes more of an option because Lagares is having a good postseason. It’s a way to maximize the defense while getting Conforto’s bat into the game.
Left-handed Bats
The Royals have all right handed starters. If past history is any indication, Terry Collins will try to get as many lefties in the lineup as possible.
That would eliminate the Lagares option but keep Conforto in the lineup. The lefties on the bench now are Kelly Johnson and Kirk Nieuwenhuis. Given the choice for a first choice off the bench, Collins has consistently gone for Johnson over Nieuwenhuis. Neither has much experience against presumptive Game One starter Johnny Cueto (Johnson 1-6; Nieuwenhuis 1-3).
In this circumstance, Collins would go with Johnson, who is his only backup infielder with major league experience. If something happens, Matt Reynolds will be playing his first career game in the World Series.
Michael Cuddyer
Unlike most of the Mets roster, Michael Cuddyer has played extensively in the AL. However, despite playing 10 years in the AL, he’s only played 37 games at DH.
As a DH, he has hit .265/.344/.402. This is similar to his career numbers of .277/.344/.461. At Kaufman Stadium, he’s hitting .281/.371/.531. One note of caution there is that was against some terrible Royals teams. The Mets are not facing a terrible Royals team in the World Series.
Overall, he’s waited the longest of all the Mets position players to play in his first World Series. I’m sure he wants to contribute and may have a big hit in him. Sometimes that makes a dangerous player.
My Pick
At the end of the day, I want the best team out there. In my opinion, that is Lagares in CF and Conforto at DH. The Royals put a lot of balls in play, so the Mets will need an OF that covers a lot ground.
I really thought Matt Harvey was going to pitch a no-hitter. He had the Cubs batters off balance. It seemed he already got his tremendous defensive play with Wilmer Flores leaping to snare a sure to be line drive base hit. He had all the run support he needed from a Daniel Murphy first inning homerun (of course) off of Jon Lester.
Then the fifth inning happened. By the way, the fifth inning is the reason why I think the Mets are going to win the World Series this year.
Harvey started the inning by plunking Anthony Rizzo. He then let up a line drive to Starlin Castro. Immediately off the bat I thought right to Juan Lagares, easy out. Lagares misplayed it into an RBI double. The score was tied 1-1. Then the Javier Baez got the Cubs first true hit off of Harvey:
It was Yoenis Cespedes with the “Throwing Out of Baserunners.” The Cubs rally was over.
The Mets responded in the fifth. Flores and Lagares got basehits. Harvey botched a sac bunt attempt leaving runners on first and second. The Mets were lucky Kris Bryant dropped the ball on what could’ve been an inning ending double play. Curtis Granderson then hit an RBI single to reclaim the lead.
The Mets responded to the Cubs run. They would score in three consecutive innings. In the sixth, Travis d’Arnaud hit a homerun into the homerun apple. In the seventh, Lagares would single, and this time, Harvey would bunt him over. Lagares was gradually expanding his lead, and then he took off and stole third. This allowed him to score on a shallow fly ball to left.
It was a tremendous slide by Lagares to just beat the tag. Tim Teufel was smart to send Lagares because he was taking advantage of Kyle Schwarber‘s inexperience in LF (he was a catcher in the minors). It was a good throw, but it took him a while to throw it. Schwarber would be heard from again in the eighth when he hit a homerun to CF, London, or Vancouver. I can’t tell because he hit it so far I think it crashed through a window on a flight out of Laguardia.
The Schwarber homerun knocked Harvey out of the game. It took that long homerun to do it. The Cubs couldn’t even knock him out of the game when a comeback line drive hit Harvey in his pitching arm. His final line was 7.2 innings, four hits, two earned, two walks (one intentional), and non strikeouts. He walked off the mound to a well earned standing ovation. Terry Collins brought in Jeurys Familia, who recorded the four out save.
The save was punctuated by a Murphy sliding stop and throw to first. He looks like he can do everything right now. So do the Mets. They beat the Cubs 4-2, and they’re up 1-0 in the series. They looked like a pennant winner. They looked like a champion.
Tonight, Matt Harvey takes the rubber in Game One of the NLCS. It’s fitting since, he promised Terry Collins that this would happen.
He delivered on his promise. He was 13-8 with a 2.71 ERA and a 1.019 WHIP this year. His first after Tommy John. He pitched 189.1 innings in the regular season. He pitched the clincher in the regular season. He won Game Three of the NLDS without his best stuff. Tonight, he should go over the 200 inning threshold. He certainly will do in this series as he will pitch more than once this series.
People may not like him off the field, but when he goes that rubber he gives the Mets a chance to win. He’s a special pitcher pitching in a special time of the year. He’s been the Mets best pitcher against the Cubs. He will have to be again this series.
None of this is possible without Harvey. Whether anyone will admit it or not, he pushed himself to help the Mets win it all this year. He gives the Mets the best chance to win.
Thank you.