Mark Reichman

Jody Gerut? We’re scared of Jody Gerut?  When the members of the Mets Billy-Wagner-less bullpen trade war stories about the Padres series, they’ll have plenty of notes to compare about Gerut, who connected for a home run three games in a row.  I guess Scott Schoeneweis felt it was unfair for Aaron Heilman to take heat for Gerut’s three run ninth inning shot Tuesday that nearly blew a 6-2 ninth inning lead in Heilman’s first attempt to seize the vacant closer job.  So Schoeneweis did what any good teammate would do.  He gave Gerut a big fat meatball right in the middle of the plate so everyone could see what a great slugger Gerut is when he hits another moonshot.  Hey, 2008 is the year of the comeback, so add Gerut (out since 2005 with injuries) to the list with Fernando Tatis, Josh Hamilton, etc.

David Wright’s walkoff homer today salvaged a 5-3 win over the Padres and a 2-1 series victory, and he did it off a fairly nasty slider with decent movement from ex-Met Heath Bell.  Good thing too, after the pen blew the lead in a Johan Santana start for an amazing sixth time this season.  Like many I believe Santana should have been given more of a chance to protect the lead that he had earned for the team in the 8th inning.  The two singles Santana allowed to open the eighth were lucky 27-hoppers.  And he had just cruised effortlessly through the seventh with no sign of tiring.  And yes he was over 100 pitches but 104? Come on, let the guy pitch. 

As I observed before, Santana’s Run Support Karma is obviously shot from his “I did my job” comments after one of the six bullpen meltdowns earlier in the season.  And I thought on the new Manuel Mets it was considered cool to remain on the mound to personally hand off the ball to the new pitcher, not storm off in a huff as Santana did.  I understand he’s frustrated but does he have to wear it on his sleeve?  Santana needs to have something positive happen so he can feel part of the team instead of the “hired gun” impression he has been giving off.

Wright on the other hand showed a good attitude in his post-walkoff interview with SNY’s Kevin Burkhardt. He shrugged off the invitation to throw the bullpen under the bus by taking responsibility, saying the offense can’t be putting the bullpen in these tight situations.  Any idiot could tell you the bullpen is struggling, so credit Wright for focusing on the things he can control.  Especially coming off a 4-2 loss Wednesday when his throwing error cost the Amazins a critical run.  Wright has shown flashes of leadership in this topsy turvy season, hopefully hitting the Mets first walkoff homer sine June 11 is a tone-setter.

I have to admit I may have been wrong about the Nick Evans/Daniel Murphy platoon, who suddenly look like the best Nick/Murphy combo since Nolte and Eddie in 48 Hours.  Murphy can hit, going an impressive 5-for-11 to open his career.  And Evans (who doesn’t even play first base but gamely subbed for Carlos Delgado today) sure looked like a pro stretching out on the dirt for an errant Jose Reyes toss in a game-saving double play in the eighth.  A few games into the experiment I think this two-headed monster from Binghamton probably is better than Raul Ibanez, and with a much bigger upside for the future of course.  Credit another rookie, second baseman Argenis Reyes, with a nice diving stab to start that 8th inning DP, this after another fine DP in the sixth on a tag-and-throw play where he had to quickly chase down an elusive Adrian Gonzalez for the barehanded tag.

One of the bullpen-by-commitee who has looked slightly less than terrible is Joe Smith.  His underhanded delivery is often difficult for hitters to pick up, and he had Kevin Kouzmanoff off-balance with the movement on his slider setting up that key double play in the eighth.  I’d like to see Smith have a chance to close, he certainly could not be worse than Heilman/Schoeneweis/Sanchez/Feliciano have been so far.  Or if he is worse, throw the rookie Kunz in there.  The “defined role” bullpen which Manuel tried to implement has gone out the window, so lets tinker, tinker, tinker until something works.

Now just two games out, the Mets will have their hands full with the Marlins coming to Shea, but then have 11 straight against teams at least 10 games under .500: Pittsburgh, Washington and Atlanta.  (Feels good to include the Braves in that category, I must admit).  The Mets have played down to the level of their subpar opponents all year and must look to break that trend.  I mean, if you can’t get out the Chase Headleys of the world (the Pads rookie left fielder had two dingers in the series) how do you expect to compete against the Chase Utleys?

Mark Reichman

More significantly for me personally, the Mets went 0-for my vacation to Cape Cod, in which my average daily lobster consumption exceeded the Mets average run production per game.  When you’re away from the game you want to come back to some nice Sports Center highlights, instead I got Aaron Heilman losing the game on a salami Friday, and concerns about Billy Wagner’s arm Saturday as he lacked velocity and gave up the winning hit in the tenth.  The most compelling baseball moment I experienced was being on the beach when the Manny Ramirez trade story broke; it reminded me of being in San Francisco when Jerry Garcia died.

Sunday the mighty WFAN signal gave me a torturous game to occupy the drive home.  Reviewing the ugliness of the 4-0 loss to the Astros, which featured an 0-for-10 performance with runners in scoring position, left me feeling that the Mets have lost their way from top to bottom.  The upcoming series against the doormat Padres at Shea could not come at a better time.

Take your pick if you want to assign blame.  I’ll start with backup catcher Robinson Cancel, who exhibited extremes of intelligence and idiocy in his one trip around the bases in the top of the third.  After reaching on a brilliantly sneaky and unexpected bunt toward third base, Robinson Cancelled the Mets rally with his attempt to steal third with two outs and David Wright at the plate.  Not only was this an atrocious decision but the execution was horrible, as Cancel had to slow himself down with a stutter step as he approached third in order to get his discombobulated attempt at a slide down before the bag.  Jerry Manuel was justified with his “brain dead” comment on Cancel.

Also, what a terrible play for Carlos Beltran to get picked off on a pitchout in the first.  Beltran had been moved into the 2-hole in the order in an attempt to inject some energy into his lifeless bat, but it seemed like the change gave Beltran a preconceived notion to steal.  Beltran, who actually has the second highest career stolen base percentange in MLB history, was clearly outside his comfort zone trying to read Randy Wolf’s delivery and looked like a rookie getting burned by the pitchout.

Add in some outfield adventures for Nick Evans and the stinkbomb has been lit.  This rookie also looked like a rookie, tripping over his own feet in the fourth attempting to catch Darrin Erstad’s fly ball.  And Evans wasn’t much better at the plate, striking out with the bases loaded and one out in the 3rd.  Wolf set up Evans perfectly with a couple of exaggerated swooping curveballs, then finished him off with the cheese, just textbook stuff when facing an inexperienced hitter.  What makes his immature failures especially troubling is that Evans was actually celebrating his promotion him to a left field platoon along with fellow call-up Daniel Murphy.  Manuel and VP of Player Mismanagement Tony Bernazard both insist these guys are major league ready, but Evans certainly didn’t look it Sunday.  You can’t tell me that we’re not better off with Endy Chavez in left, at least for this season, and don’t tell me we’re rebuilding or that we’re looking to next year when the Amazins are only 3 games out of first.  Sadly, I don’t think the cloudy-headed Ryan Church even belongs in the conversation at this point.  Worst of all, it feels like the Evans/Murphy promotion was an after-the-fact justification for the Mets inactivity at the trade deadline.

Calling up reliever Eddie Kunz, however, is a move I liked.  The big former Oregon State Beaver features a heavy sinker and was a dominant closer at AA Binghamton.  Kunz can help the Mets a lot with some effective 7th and 8th inning work, but with Wagner’s stiff forearm, which did not go away despite three days rest, I have to think the Mets are breaking in a new closer for this season, which rasies all kinds of concerns.  Between Sanchez, Heilman, Feliciano and Smith you’d hope someone could step into the closer role if Wagner is sidelined, but they’ve all had so many struggles I wonder if Kunz won’t end up the man sooner rather than later.  Wagner has another MRI Tuesday, but I’m expecting no structural damage and no clear answers to come out of it, which means more waiting and more head-scratching.

Mark Reichman

Johan Santana’s complete game Sunday was the Mets first since the 2006 season and could not have come at a better time.  Following a 14 inning war Saturday night, the bullpen truly appreciated the night off, and the Shea faithful appreciated a rare lopsided victory, and being able to relax and enjoy the replays of the Catch of the Year by Carlos Beltran with the big lead in place.  Beltran’s over-the-wall extension and snow cone grab of a Ryan Ludwick would-be homer probably didn’t change the game, since there was an 8 run lead and the next hitter Albert Pujols hit a homer anyway, but it sure made for some great Sports Center watching, and was nice visual symbol of the Mets hotness and luck of late.

The re-emergence of Carlos Delgado as a feared slugger is the biggest story of the last month, and his two homers in Saturday’s game were an announcement to the world that he is on fire and should likely be pitched around.  Delgado has taken over the cleanup spot from the slumping Beltran. (Great move for now to motivate both players). And if Beltran starts heating up, there really will be no place for opposing pitchers to hide against the Mets lineup.  A 2-for-5 day plus the catch could be the start of something but take it with a grain of salt, Beltran is hitting around .500 on his career against the Cardinals “ace” Kyle Lohse.

David Wright continues to be clutch, on a pace to get 120 RBIs for the season.  Wright does not miss those “cheap” opportunities to drive in runs when there is a guy on third and a fly ball or appropriately placed ground out does the trick, and he also steps up with hits in big spots.  With apologies to Reggie, Wright is the straw that stirs the Mets drink and is their most consistent offensive force.

I’ll continue my love fest with praise for Endy Chavez, the best drag bunter I have ever seen.  Chavez in the #2 hole in the lineup has been brilliant, his speed and ability to move runners makes everyone around him more effective. 

And Fernando Tatis who has homered in two straight games, what more can be said? 2008 may be “the year of the comeback” with all the great stories on Josh Hamilton and Rick Ankiel (and even ex-Met Mike Hampton who returned after 3 years of injuries) but don’t forget Tatis.  SNY reported that Tatis, who only played 28 games in the bigs from 2003 on before this season, was motivated to return to baseball this year to get more money to put towards a church he and his wife want to build in the Dominican Republic.  Not even Disney could write something like that.

My favorite moment of the weekend was hearing the Shea crowd chant “Jerry, Jerry” when manager Jerry Manuel went out to argue a call Saturday.  And I liked his hand clapping style of arguing by the way. 

As the red hot Mets prepare for their stretch drive, (starting with a three game set against the division rival Marlins, who are only two games behind them) it appears that they will pass the trading deadline Thursday without a deal being made, with an acquisition of Raul Ibanez as a potential exception.  Ibanez I think is a good fit, a veteran bat who can get a hit in a pressure spot.  Either way, the clubhouse will remain essentially the same, and the Mets must rely on continued production from Tatis and Chavez.  Ryan Church is still a question mark, but the decision of whether to acquire Ibanez should not be based on yet another hackneyed assessment by the team of when Church’s concussion woes will clear up.  In other words, they haven’t had a clear answer on Church all this time, so why expect one to emerge this week?  Just get Ibanez, and keep Fernando Martinez in Binghamton where he belongs.  (If the Mets were pursuing a Jason Bay for example it now looks like they would have to trade Martinez, to which I say “don’t do it.”)