Die Hard Sports Fan

The New York Mets (10-8) are playing Game 19 of the 2008 Regular Season against the Chicago Cubs (13-6) at Wrigley Field.  It’s the second game of the two-game series, and the final game of 2008 at Wrigley Field.  The game began at 2:20 p.m., and it was aired on SNY.

Mets Lineup: Reyes, Pagan, Wright, Beltran, Delgado, Easley, Clark, Casanova, Figueroa.

Cubs Lineup: Johnson, Pie, Lee, Ramirez, Fukudome, DeRosa, Cedeno, Blanco, Lilly.

At the Plate

Ted Lilly (0-3) was the starting pitcher for the Cubs.  In the Top of the 1st, Lilly sent the top of the lineup down in order.  Lilly gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 1st Inning.  In the Top of the 2nd, Lilly retired the middle of the lineup in order.  Lilly gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 2nd Inning.  In the Top of the 3rd, Lilly now pitched perfectly the first time through the lineup.  Lilly gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 3rd Inning.  In the Top of the 4th, Lilly got Reyes swinging at strike three.  Pagan drove a one-out double into the gap in right center.  Wright drew a two-out walk.  Beltran also drew a two-out walk to load the bases.  Delgado popped up in shallow left, and Cedeno made the out.  Easley popped up to shallow right, and DeRosa made the catch to leave the bases juiced.  Lilly gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 2 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 4th Inning.  In the Top of the 5th, Clark led off by lining a single into right.  Casanova grounded slowly to third, and Ramirez made the out at first as Clark moved over to second.  Figueroa grounded out to short.  Reyes drew a two-out walk.  Pagan popped up to second base to leave two Mets on.  Lilly gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 5th Inning.  In the Top of the 6th,  Beltran drew a one-out walk on four pitches.  Delgado lined a one-out single into right.  Easley dropped a one-out single into shallow right.  Brady Clark grounded to second, but DeRosa only got the out at second so Carlos Delgado came home to score.  Casanova grounded to short, and Cedeno made the force out at second to leave two Mets on.  Lilly gave up 3 Hits, 1 Run, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.  Lilly left the game after pitching 6.0 Innings allowing 4 Hits, 1 Run, 1 ER, 4 BBs, and he had 4 SOs.

Piniella replaced Lilly with Bob Howry to begin the Top of the 7th.  Howry sent the Mets down in order.  Howry gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 7th Inning.

Piniella replaced Howry with Carlos Marmol to begin the Top of the 8th.  Marmol breezed right through the Mets.  Marmol gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 8th Inning.

Piniella replaced Marmol with Kevin Hart to begin the Top of the 9th.  Anderson is pinch hitting for Sosa, and Anderson drew a one-out walk.  Casanova grounded a one-out single up the middle, and Anderson advanced to second.  Chavez grounded to first, and Lee made the force out at second as Anderson moved over to third.  Reyes grounded out to first to end the game.  Hart gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 9th Inning.

On the Mound

Nelson Figueroa Jr. (1-0) was the starting pitcher for the Mets.  In the Bottom of the 1st, Figueroa pitched a 1-2-3 inning.  Figueroa gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 1st Inning.  In the Bottom of the 2nd, Ramirez drew a leadoff walk.  Fukudome grounded the ball to first under the glove of Delgado and into right field so Fukudome arrived safely at first as Ramirez went first to third.  DeRosa drew a no-out walk to load the bases.  Figueroa fanned Cedeno on three straight pitches.  Blanco grounded to short, and the Mets turned the double play to get Figueroa out of a jam.  Figueroa gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 2 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 2nd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 3rd, Pie grounded a hard two-out single to first which hit Delgado and went into right field.  Lee lined out to left to end the inning.  Figueroa gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 3rd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 4th, Fukudome grounded a one-out single through the hole on the right side.  DeRosa flied out to center.  Ronny Cedeno lined a two-out double into the right field corner, and Kosuke Fukudome came around to score.  Figueroa intentionally walked Blanco.  Lilly grounded to second, but nobody covered first so Lilly beat out the play to load the bases.  Reed Johnson lined a two-out 2-run single into left scoring Mark DeRosa and Ronny Cedeno.  Pie grounded out to first to end the inning.  Figueroa gave up 4 Hits, 3 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 4th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 5th, Lee drew a leadoff walk.  Ramirez flied out to right.  Fukudome drew a one-out walk on four pitches.  DeRosa flied out to right, and Lee tagged up and went to third.  Cedeno lined out to right to end the inning.  Figueroa gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 2 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 5th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 6th, Blanco led off by grounding a single under Reyes and into left.  Fontenot is pinch hitting for Lilly.  This move brought Randolph to out to the mount to make a pitching change.  Figueroa gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.  Figueroa left the game after pitching 5.0 Innings allowing 7 Hits, 3 Runs, 3 ER, 5 BBs, and he had 2 SOs.

Randolph replaced Figueroa with Scott Schoeneweis with no outs in the Bottom of the 6th.  Fontenot dropped down a sacrifice bunt along the first base line, and Scoeneweis made the out at first as Blance advanced to second.  Johnson drew a one-out walk.  Pie grounded right in front of home plate, and Casanova made the out at first as both runners advanced.  Schoeneweis gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.

Randolph replaced Schoeneweis with Joe Smith with two outs in the Bottom of the 6th.  Lee flied out to the warning track in dead center, but Beltran made the out to leave two Cubs on base.  Smith gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 7th, Ramirez grounded a leadoff single through the hole on the left side.  Fukudome drove a no-out double that one-hopped the wall, and Rameriz went first to third.  Mark DeRosa lined an RBI single into right center, and Aramis Ramirez came home to score and Fukudome advanced to third.  Smith caught Cedeno swining at ball four to strike him out.  Smith gave up 3 Hits, 1 Run, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 7th Inning.

Randolph replaced Smith with Pedro Feliciano with one out in the Bottom of the 7th.  Soto is pinch hitting for Blanco, and Feliciano threw a wild pitch to Soto so DeRosa moved over to second.  Soto drew an intentional walk to load the bases.  Feliciano gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 7th Inning.

Randolph replaced Feliciano with Jorge Sosa with one out in the Bottom of the 7th.  Murton is pinch hitting for Howry, and Murton grounded to first so Delgado made the out at home.  Johnson popped up to second to end the inning.  Sosa gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 7th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 8th, Pie lined a leadoff single into right.  Lee grounded a no-out single through the hole on the right side, and Pie moved over to second.  Ramirez flied out to the warning track in left.  Fukudome drew a one-out walk to load the bases.  DeRosa grounded to short, and Reyes made the out at home as DeRosa beat out the relay throw to first.  Ronny Cedeno smacked a Grand Slam near the foul poul in left scoring Derrek Lee, Kosuke Fukudome, and Mark DeRosa.  Soto lined a two-out single into left.  Marquis popped up to shallow left, and Reyes made the catch to end the inning.  Sosa gave up 4 Hits, 4 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 8th Inning.

Final Score: New York Mets 1 - Chicago Cubs 8.  The MLB.com Box Score is attached.  Nelson Figueroa Jr. (1-1) got the loss and Ted Lilly (1-3) got the win.

OUCH!!!  It bothered me a little bit when the Mets lost the final game of the Phillies series, but I figured that the Mets would recover quickly and sweep this mini-series.  As you can tell by the scoreboard, the Mets got stomped twice by the Cubies.  The Mets starters pitched decently.  Wright was the one that stopped driving in the runs.  He’s been the only one doing that for the Mets so if he stops then the Mets only put up a run a game which isn’t enough.  This Cedeno kid beat the Mets by himself.

The Mets need to get out of Chicago ASAP.  Maybe things will turn around as soon as they get off the plane in Washington.  The Mets are 10-9 now.  They are disappointing me right now.

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The New York Mets (10-7) are playing Game 18 of the 2008 Regular Season against the Chicago Cubs (12-6) at Wrigley Field.  It’s the first game of the two-game series.  The game began at 7:05 p.m., and it was aired on SNY.

Mets Lineup: Reyes, Castillo, Wright, Beltran, Delgado, Church, Casanova, Chavez, Maine.

Phillies Lineup: Johnson, Fontenot, Lee, Ramirez, Fukudome, DeRosa, Soto, Cedeno, Zambrano.

At the Plate

Carlos Zambrano (2-1) was the starting pitcher for the Cubs.  In the Top of the 1st, Reyes dumped a leadoff single into left field.  Castillo grounded to first, and Lee made the out at first as Reyes moved over to second.  Wright worked himself into a full count before staring at strike three.  Beltran grounded to short, and Cedeno made the out at first to leave a runner at second.  Zambrano gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 1st Inning.  In the Top of the 2nd, Church grounded a one-out single through the hole on the right side.  Casanova struck out swinging as Church attempted to steal third, but Soto threw out Church to end the inning.  Zambrano gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 2nd Inning.  In the Top of the 3rd, Zambrano quickly retired the side.  Zambrano gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 3rd Inning.  In the Top of the 4th, Castillo drew a leadoff walk.  Wright grounded to third, and the Cubs turned the double play.  Beltran popped up to third, and Ramirez made the catch.  Zambrano gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 4th Inning.  In the Top of the 5th, Delgado led off by lining a single into center.  Church grounded to second, and Fontenot only made the force out at second on the double play attempt.  Casanova grounded to first, and Lee made the out at first and then got the Cubs got Delgado out in a rundown.  Zambrano gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 5th Inning.  In the Top of the 6th, Chavez led off with a standup double off the wall in left center.  Maine dropped down a sacrifice bunt in front of home plate, and Soto threw to third but Ramirez didn’t tag Chavez at third so everybody is safe.  Reyes grounded to short, and the Cubs turned the double play as Endy Chavez came home to score.  Castillo grounded to third and beat out the throw by Ramirez for a two-out single.  With Wright in the batters box, Castillo stole second safely.  Wright drew a two-out walk.  Beltran lined out to left to leave two Mets stranded.  Zambrano gave up 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.  In the Top of the 7th, Zambrano sent the Mets down in order.  Zambrano gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 7th Inning.  Zambrano left the game after pitching 7.0 Innings allowing 5 Hits, 1 Run, 1 ER, 2 BBs, and he had 4 SOs.

Piniella replaced Zambrano with Carlos Marmol to begin the Top of the 8th.  Marmol retired the side in order.  Marmol gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 8th Inning.

Piniella replaced Marmol with Kerry Wood to begin the Top of the 9th.  Wood pitched a 1-2-3 inning.  Wood gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 9th Inning.

On the Field

John Maine (1-1) was the starting pitcher for the Mets.  In the Bottom of the 1st, Johnson grounded a leadoff single up the middle.  With Fontenot at the plate, Casanova threw out Johnson as he attempted to steal second base.  Maine fanned Fontenot.  Lee flied out to right to end the inning.  Maine gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 1st Inning.  In the Bottom of the 2nd, Ramirez drew a leadoff walk.  Fukudome flied out to shallow center.  DeRosa popped up in foul ground along the first base line, and Delgado made the catch.  Soto grounded slowly in front of home plate, and Casanova made the out at first.  Maine gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 3rd, Cedeno grounded out to second.  Maine fanned Zambrano.  Maine hit Johnson with the pitch in the left arm.  Fonteno grounded to second, and Castillo made the out at first to leave on Cub on base.  Maine gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 3rd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 4th, Lee lined a leadoff single into center.  Aramis Ramirez drove a 2-run homer to left center scoring Derrek Lee.  Fukudome grounded out to short.  DeRosa grounded a one-out single through the hole on the left side.  Maine got Soto swinging at strike three.  Cedeno flied out to left to end the inning.  Maine gave up 3 Hits, 2 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 4th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 5th, Maine walked Fontenot on four pitches to give the Cubs a two-out runner.  Lee grounded to third, and Wright got the lead runner at second to end the inning.  Maine gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 5th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 6th, Ramirez grounded out to third.  Fukudome lined a one-out single into left.  Maine struck out DeRosa on a check swing.  With Soto at the plate, Maine threw a wild pitch so Fukudome moved over to second.  Maine got Soto staring at strike three to end the inning.  Maine gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 6th Inning.  Maine left the game after pitching 6.0 Innings allowing 5 Hits, 2 Runs, 2 ER, 2 BBs, and he had 6 SOs.

Randolph replaced Maine with Duaner Sanchez to begin the Bottom of the 7th.  Cedeno grounded to third, but the ball bobbled in Wright’s (Error on David Wright) hand so Cedeno beat out the throw to first.  Ward is pinch hitting for Zambrano, and Ward grounded to third and Wright made the out at first while Cedeno moved over to second.  Johnson also grounded to third, and Wright held Cedeno at second before making the out at first.  Fontenot grounded out to second to end the inning.  Sanchez gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 7th Inning.

Randolph replaced Sanchez with Aaron Heilman to begin the Bottom of the 8th.  Lee led off by grounding to short, but Reyes (Error on Jose Reyes) mishandled the ball so Lee beat out the play.  Heilman hit Ramirez with the pitch.  Fukudome grounded a no-out single through the hole on the left side to load the bases.  Heilman fanned DeRosa.  Soto popped up to second.  Ronny Cedeno lined a 2-run single up the middle scoring Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez, and Fukudome advanced to second.  Heilman gave up 2 Hits, 4 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 8th Inning.

Randolph replaced Heilman with Jorge Sosa with two outs in the Bottom of the 8th.  Felix Pie broke the game open by crushing a 3-run shot to right scoring Kosuke Fukudome and Ronny Cedeno.  Johnson grounded out to third to end the inning after the Cubs put a 5-spot on the scoreboard.  Sosa gave up 1 Hit, 1 Run, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 8th Inning.

Final Score: New York Mets 1 - Chicago Cubs 7.  The MLB.com Box Score is attached.  John Maine took the loss while Carlos Zambrano got the win.

I hate when the Mets face a pitcher like Zambrano did tonight.  Carlos pitched 7 scoreless innings allowing 5 hits.  Maine pitched a pretty good game.  John gave up 2 runs over 6 innings, and gave up 5 hits.  One of the hits was a two-run jack.  So the Mets dropped 2 consecutive games right now.  They have to wake up early tomorrow to play a day game.  Figueroa will make his first start as a Met away from Shea.

The Mets are 10-8 now.  It seems like the NL is playing them tough this year.  They need to put their foot down on the NL already.

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The New York Mets (10-6) are playing Game 17 of the 2008 Regular Season against the Philadelphia Phillies (8-10) at Citizens Bank Park.  It’s the third game of the three-game series, and the Metsies can sweep the Phils.  The game began at 8:05 p.m., and it was aired on ESPN.

Mets Lineup: Reyes, Castillo, Wright, Beltran, Delgado, Church, Casanova, Chavez, Pelfrey.

Phillies Lineup: Werth, Dobbs, Utley, Howard, Burrell, Jenkins, Coste, Bruntlett, Eaton.

At the Plate

Adam Eaton (0-0) was the starting pitcher for the Phillies.  In the Top of the 1st, Wright drew a two-out walk.  Beltran grounded to second, and Utley made the out at first to end the inning.  Eaton gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 1st Inning.  In the Top of the 2nd, Casanova grounded a two-out infield single to short.  Chavez grounded out to first to end the inning.  Eaton gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Top of the 3rd, Eaton sent the Mets down in order.  Eaton gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 3rd Inning.  In the Top of the 4th, Wright lined a leadoff single into right field.  Eaton caught Beltran looking at strike three.  Delgado grounded out to first, and Howard tagged the first base bag as Wright advanced to second.  Eaton also got Church watching strike three.  Eaton gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 4th Inning.  In the Top of the 5th, Eaton sent the Mets down in order.  Eaton gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 5th Inning.  In the Top of the 6th, Reyes lined the ball off of the right field wall for a leadoff triple.  Luis Castillo lined a no-out RBI single into left scoring Jose Reyes.  Wright pulled a standup double down the left field line, and Castillo went first to third.  Carlos Beltran lined a 2-run single into center scoring Luis Castillo and David Wright.  Eaton gave up 4 Hits, 4 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.  Eaton left the game after pitching 5.0 Innings allowing 6 Hits, 4 Runs, 4 ER, 1 BB, and he had 4 SOs.

Manuel replaced Eaton with Chad Durbin with no outs in the Top of the 6th.  Delgado flied out to deep left field so Beltran held up.  With Church in the batters box, Beltran stole second safely.  Ryan Church blooped a one-out RBI single into right which brought Carlos Beltran around to score to tie this baby up.  Casanova drew a one-out walk.  Chavez flied out to center.  Anderson is pinch hitting for Pelfrey, and Durbin fanned Anderson to end the inning.  Durbin gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 6th Inning.

Manuel replaced Durbin with J.C. Romero to begin the Top of the 7th.  Wright drew a two-out walk.  With Beltran at the plate, Wright stole second.  Romero caught Beltran staring at strike three to end the inning.  Romero gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 7th Inning.  In the Top of the 8th, Casanova drove the ball to deep left field, but Taguchi didn’t catch the ball so Casanova ended up with a two-out double.  Pagan is pinch hitting for Chavez, and Pagan popped up to second to end the inning.  Romero gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 8th Inning.

Manuel replaced Romero with Brad Lidge to begin the Top of the 9th.  Easley is pinch hitting for Smith, and Easley drew a leadoff walk.  Reyes grounded to the pitcher, but the ball bounced off of Lidge and everyone was safe.  Lidge fanned Castillo.  Wright popped up in foul territory near the Phillies dugout, and Howard made the catch.  Beltran grounded hard to short, but Bruntlett made the out at first to end the game.  Lidge gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 9th Inning.

On the Mound

Mike Pelfrey (2-0) was the starting pitcher for the Mets.  In the Bottom of the 1st, Chase Utley crushed a two-out solo shot to right center.  Howard lined a two-out single into the gap in right center.  Pelfrey got Burrell swinging at strike three.  Pelfrey gave up 2 Hits, 1 Run, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 1st Inning.  In the Bottom of the 2nd, Coste lined a one-out single down the line in right.  Bruntlett grounded to short, and the Mets turned the double play to end the inning.  Pelfrey gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 3rd, Eaton drew a leadoff walk.  Werth grounded to short, and Castillo made the force out at second.  Dobbs flied out to right.  Utley drew a two-out walk.  Howard flied out to left to leave two stranded.  Pelfrey gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 2 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 3rd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 4th, Burrell led off by lining the ball into left that one-hopped the wall.  Burrell took off for second, but Chavez threw Burrell out by a mile.  Jenkins lined a one-out single up the middle.  Coste grounded to short, and the Mets only got the out at second on the double play attempt.  Bruntlett grounded a two-out single up the middle.  Eaton popped up in foul territory near the Phillies dugout, and Delgado made the catch.  Pelfrey gave up 3 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 4th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 5th, Werth dumped a leadoff single into right field.  Dobbs lined a no-out opposite field single into left.  With two outs, Chase Utley hit a towering 3-run homer that hit the right field foul pole scoring Jayson Werth and Greg Dobbs.  Burrell popped up in foul territory along the right field line, and Church made the catch.  Jenkins grounded towards first and the ball hit the bag, bounced up in the air, and ended up in right field so Jenkins ended up with a two-out single.  Coste grounded to third, and Wright made the out at first to end the inning.  Pelfrey gave up 4 Hits, 3 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 5th Inning.  Pelfrey left the game after pitching 5.0 Innings allowing 10 Hits, 4 Runs, 4 ER, 2 BBs, and he had 2 SOs.

Randolph replaced Pelfrey with Jorge Sosa to begin the Bottom of the 6th.  Sosa pitched a 1-2-3 inning.  Sosa gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 6th Inning.

Randolph replaced Sosa with Pedro Feliciano to begin the Bottom of the 7th.  Feliz is pinch hitting for Dobbs, and Pedro Feliz led off with a solo shot to right center.  Utley lined a no-out single into right field.  Feliciano caught Howard looking at strike three.  Burrell drew a one-out walk.  Jenkins flied out to left.  Feliciano gave up 2 Hits, 1 Run, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 7th Inning.

Randolph replaced Feliciano with Joe Smith with two outs in the Bottom of the 7th.  Smith struck out Coste looking.  Smith gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 7th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 8th, Smith retired the side in order.  Smith gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 8th Inning.

Final Score: New York Mets 4 - Philadelphia Phillies 5.  The MLB.com Box Score is attached.  The starters got a no decision.  Pedro Feliciano got the loss and J.C. Romero got the win.

Chase Utley immediately gave the Phils the lead with a solo shot in the 1st Inning.  Then Utley hit a 3-run shot in the 5th Inning to give the Phils a 4-0 lead.  That must of pissed of the Mets because they put up a 4-spot in the 6th to tie it up.  However, another pinch hitter named Pedro Feliz came in and jacked one out of the ballpark.  That one run lead was enough for the Phillies bullpen to hold on to.  So the Metsies were not able to take the brooms out tonight, and the 5-game winning streak came to an end.

The Mets travel to Chicago to take on the Cubs next for a pair of games on Monday and Tuesday.  Then they travel to D.C. to play the Nationals on Wednesday and Thursday.

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The New York Mets are playing Game 14 of the 2008 Regular Season against the Washington Nationals at Shea Stadium.  It’s the final game of the three-game series, and the Mets have the opportunity to take the brooms out tonight.  The game began at 7:10 p.m., and it was aired on SNY.Nationals Lineup: Guzman, Belliard, Zimmerman, Johnson, Milledge, Kearns, Pena, Nieves, Lannan.

Mets Lineup: Reyes, Church, Wright, Delgado, Pagan, Clark, Casanova, Castillo, Figueroa.

On the Mound

Nelson Figueroa Jr. (1-0) was the starting pitcher for the Mets.  In the Top of the 1st, Belliard drew a one-out walk before Figueroa had back-to-back strike outs to Zimmerman and Johnson.  Figueroa gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 2 SOs in the 1st Inning.  In the Top of the 2nd, Figueroa sent the Nats down in order.  Figueroa gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Top of the 3rd, Figueroa retired the side again.  Figueroa gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 3rd Inning.  In the Top of the 4th, Zimmerman grounded to first, but it bounced off of Maine and towards Reyes so Zimmerman beat out the play for an one-out single.  Johnson crushed a one-out 2-run homer over the right field fence scoring Zimmerman and himself.  Milledge dropped a one-out single into shallow right field.  Kearns grounded to short, and Reyes made the out at first but Milledge took off for third so Delgado threw the ball to Wright and Milledge slid in safely.  Pena popped up to third to end the inning.  Figueroa gave up 3 Hits, 2 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 4th Inning.  In the Top of the 5th, Lannan lined the ball to the pitcher, and Figueroa caught the line drive with his back to the plate (It was beautiful).  Figueroa sent the Nationals down 1-2-3.  Nieves gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 5th Inning.  In the Top of the 6th, Figueroa retired the side again.  Figueroa gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.  In the Top of the 7th, Pena drew a two-out walk.  Nieves flied out to right.  Figueroa gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 7th Inning.  Figueroa left the game after pitching 7.0 Innings allowing 3 Hits, 2 Runs, 2 ER, 2 BBs, and he had 7 SOs.

Randolph replaced Figueroa with Aaron Heilman to begin the Top of the 8th.  Heilman retired the side.  Heilman gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 8th Inning.

Randolph replaced Heilman with Billy Wagner to begin the Top of the 9th.  Wagner retired the side.  Wagner gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 9th Inning.

Randolph replaced Wagner with Duaner Sanchez to begin the Top of the 10th.  Nieves drew a two-out walk.  Harris flied out to center.  Sanchez gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 10th Inning.  In the Top of the 11th, Guzman lined to third but the ball bounced off of Wright’s glove so the Nationals have a leadoff runner.  Belliard bunted in foul territory and Casanova dove for it to make the catch.  Sanchez got Zimmerman to chase strike three.  Sanchez left the game after pitching 1.2 Innings allowing 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO.

Randolph replaced Sanchez with Pedro Feliciano with two outs in the Top of the 10th.  Johnson drew a two-out walk.  Feliciano gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 10th Inning.

Randolph replaced Feliciano with Joe Smith with two outs in the Top of the 10th.  Milledge grounded to short, and Reyes made the force play at second to leave two Nationals stranded.  Smith gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 11th Inning.  In the Top of the 12th, Kearns got hit with a pitch to give the Nationals a leadoff runner.  With Lopez in the batters box, Smith pitched out and Casanova threw it to Reyes as Kearns was stealing.  Reyes and Delgado got Kearns in  rundown and eventually out.  Lopez grounded out to second.  Smith struck out Nieves trying to check his swing.  Smith gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 12th Inning.  Smith left the game after pitching 1.1 Innings allowing 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO.

Randolph replaced Smith with Jorge Sosa to begin the Top of the 13th.  Harris flied out to right.  Guzman grounded out to short.  Belliard drew a two-out walk.  Zimmerman lined a single into center, and Belliard advanced to second.  Johnson popped up to shallow center to leave two Nationals on base.  Sosa gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 13th Inning.  In the Top of the 14th, Kearns lined a one-out single into right field.  Hanrahan dropped down a sacrifice bunt towards the pitcher, and Sosa made the out at first and Kearns moved over to second.  Sosa fanned Nieves to leave one National on base.  Sosa gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 14th Inning.

At the Plate

John Lannan (0-2) was the starting pitcher for the Nationals.  In the Bottom of the 1st, Reyes grounded up the middle for a leadoff single.  Church hit a fly ball to deep left, and Pena got his glove on the ball but couldn’t hold onto it so Church ended up with a no-out RBI double and Reyes came around to score.  Wright lined out to third.  Then Lannan fanned Delgado and Pagan to leave one runner stranded.  Lannan gave up 2 Hits, 1 Run, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 1st Inning.  In the Bottom of the 2nd, Lannan sent the Mets down 1-2-3.  Lannan gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 3rd, Lannan retired the side.  Lannan gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 3rd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 4th, Lanned now retired 12 Mets in a row.  Lannan gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 4th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 5th, Lannan is up to 15 in a row.  Lannan gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 5th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 6th, Reyes lined one-out single into right.  Lannan fanned Church.  Wright grounded out to short to end the inning.  Lannan gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 6th Inning.  Lannan left the game after pitching 6.0 Innings allowing 3 Hits, 1 Run, 1 ER, 0 BBs, and he had 11 SOs.

Acta replaced Lannan with Saul Rivera to begin the Bottom of the 7th.  Delgado drew a leadoff walk.  Pagan lined a no-out single into right as Delgado advanced to second.  Clark dropped down a sacrifice bunt to the pitcher, and both runners moved over.  Casanova lined out to third.  Castillo grounded out to third to leave two runners stranded.  Rivera gave up 0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 7th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 8th, Church grounded to second, and Belliard (Error on Belliard) couldn’t field the ball so Church arrived safely to give the Mets a two-out base runner.  Rivera gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 8th Inning.  Rivera left the game after pitching 1.2 Innings allowing 1 Hit, 1 Run (Unearned), 1 BB, and he had 1 SO.

Acta replaced Rivera with Luis Ayala with two outs in the Bottom of the 8th.  Wright drew a two-out walk.  Acta gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 8th.

Acta replaced Rivera with Jon Rauch with two outs in the Bottom of the 8th.  Delgado lined a two-out RBI single into right field which scored Church and moved Wright over to second.  Rauch caught Pagan looking at strike three to leave two Mets stranded.  Rauch gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 8th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 9th, Castillo lined a two-out single near the left field line.  With Beltran in the batters box, Castillo stole second.  Rauch fanned Beltran.  Rauch gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 9th Inning.  Rauch left the game after pitching 1.1 Innings allowing 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs.

Acta replaced Rauch with Jesus Colome to begin the Bottom of the 10th.  Church drew a one-out walk.  Wright hit a sacrifice fly to center field as Church advanced to second.  Colome intentionally walked Delgado before Pagan lined out to second leaving two Mets stranded.  Colome gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 2 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 10th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 11th, Chavez grounded a leadoff single to short because Guzman couldn’t field it cleanly.  With Casanova in the batters box, Colome threw a pitch out and Nieves caught Chavez stealing second.  Colome fanned Casanova.  Castillo grounded to first to end the inning.  Colome gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 11th Inning.  Colome left the game after pitching 2.0 Innings allowing 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 2 BBs, and he had 1 SO.

Acta replaced Colome with Ray King to begin the Bottom of the 12th.  Easley led off by grounding a single through the hole on the left side.  Reyes dropped down a bunt towards the pitcher for a single and Easley advanced to second.  Church also bunted to the pitcher, and King made the force out at third (Willie Randolph came out to argue the call).  King gave up 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 12th Inning.

Acta replaced King with Joel Hanrahan with one out in the Bottom of the 12th.  Wright grounded out to short, and the Nationals turned the double play to leave two Mets stranded.  Hanrahan gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 12th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 13th, Sosa drew a one-out walk.  Chavez also drew a one-out walk.  Hanrahan caught Casanova looking at strike three.  Castillo lined out to short to leave two Mets stranded.  Hanrahan gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 2 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 13th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 14th, Easley led of grounding a single through the hole on the left side.  Reyes popped up a bunt, and Hanrahan made the catch.  With Church in the batters box, Easley took off for second as Church swung at srike two and Easley was safe.  With Church in the batters box, Hanrahan attempted to pick off Easley but the ball went into left field so Easley advanced to third.  Church worked himself into a 2-2 count before striking out.  Wright worked himself into a 2-1 count before drawing an intentional walk.  Hanrahan intentionally walked Delgado to load the bases to get to the pitcher.  Schneider came in to pinch hit for Sosa, and Hanrahan threw a wild pitch on the first pitch to Schneider which brought Easley home to score.

Final Score: Washington Nationals 2 - New York Mets 3 (in 14).  The MLB.com Box Score is attached.  Both starting pitchers got a no decision.

WOW!  Now that’s an extra innings game worth watching.  Both starters, Lannan and Figueroa pitched really good games.  Lannan got on a roll and retired 16 in a row.  The Bullpens got in and out of jams until the Bottom of the 14th.  Both teams left runners on base in multiple innings.  In the Bottom of the 14th, Easley led off with a single to left.  The Nats made two blunders which moved Easley to third.  Two intentional walks to Wright and Delgado.  With the bases loaded, Hanrahan throws a wild pitch on the first pitch to bring Easley home.  That’s what led to a sweep over the Nationals.  It was crazy.

So the Mets are 7-5 now.  They play the Phillies this weekend down in Philadelphia.  It’s late and I have to wake up early.  Good night.

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The New York Mets are playing Game 11 of the 2008 Regular Season against the Milwaukee Brewers at Shea Stadium.  It’s the rubber game of the three-game series.  The game began at 1:10 p.m., and it was aired on CW11.

Prior to the game, Carlos Beltran, David Wright, and Johan Santana were given their Gold Gloves from 2007.

Brewers Lineup: Weeks, Kapler, Braun, Fielder, Hall, Hart, Hardy, Suppan, Kendall.

Mets Lineup: Pagan, Castillo, Wright, Beltran, Delgado, Church, Easley, Schneider, Perez.

On the Mound

Oliver Perez (1-0) was the starting pitcher for the Mets.  In the Top of the 1st, Perez hit Weeks with the pitch to give the Brewers a leadoff runner.  Kapler lined a no-out, two-run shot near the foul pole in left field which scored Weeks and himself.  Braun grounded out to third.  Fielder flied out to center.  Perez fanned Hall to end the inning.  Perez gave up 1 Hit, 2 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 1st Inning.  In the Top of the 2nd, Hart lined a leadoff single into center.  Hardy grounded a no-out single through the hole on the left side.  With Suppan in the batters box, Perez threw a passed ball which allowed both runners to advance safely.  Perez caught Suppan swinging at strike three.  Kendall popped up in foul territory along the first base line, and Delgado made the out.  Weeks drew a two-out walk to load the bases.  Perez struck out Kapler to get out of a jam.  Perez gave up 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 2 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Top of the 3rd, Perez got the heart of the lineup to fly out.  Perez gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 3rd Inning.  In the Top of the 4th, Hart lined a leadoff single into center.  Hardy drew a no-out walk.  Suppan dropped down a sacrifice bunt towards third, and Wright made the out at first while both runners moved over.  Kendall grounded a one-out 2-Run single up the middle scoring Hart and Hardy.  Perez caught Weeks looking at strike three.  Kapler pulled a two-out double down the third base line.  Braun lined a 2-Run single into left which scored Weeks and Kapler, and Braun advanced to second when the throw came home.  Fielder grounded out to second to end the inning.  Perez gave up 4 Hits, 4 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 4th Inning.  In the Top of the 5th, Hall flied out to center.  Hart lined a one-out single into left.  Hardy drew a one-out walk.  Dillon came in to pinch hit for Suppan, and Randolph came out to make a pitching change.  Perez gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 5th Inning.  Perez left the game after 4.1 Innings allowing 8 Hits, 6 Runs, 6 ER, 3 BBs, and he had 4 SOs.

Randolph replaced Perez with Jorge Sosa with one out in the Top of the 5th.  Dillon popped up in foul ground near first base, and Delgado made the out.  Kendall flied out to center to end the inning.  Sosa allowed 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 5th Inning.  In the Top of the 6th, Weeks led off with a homer to left.  Kapler drew a no-out walk.  With Braun in the batters box, Sosa threw a wild pitch and Kapler advanced to second.  For the second time, Sosa threw a wild pitch and Kapler moved over to third.  Sosa fanned Braun.  Sosa intentionally walked Fielder.  Hall popped up to short.  Hart lined an RBI single into left field which scored Kapler, and Fielder advanced to second.  Hardy flied out to left to end the inning.  Sosa gave up 2 Hits, 2 Runs, 2 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 6th Inning.  Sosa left the game after pitching 1.2 Innings allowing 2 Hits, 2 Runs, 2 ER, 2 BBs, and he had 1 SO.

Randolph replaced Sosa with Scott Schoeneweis to begin the Top of the 7th.  Iribarren lined out to short.  Schoeneweis left the game after pitching 0.1 Innings allowing 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs.

Randolph replaced Schoeneweis with Joe Smith with one out in the Top of the 7th.  Weeks grounded to third, but Delgado (Error on Delgado) dropped the throw from Wright which gave the Brewers a one-out base runner.  With Kapler in the batters box, Weeks stole second.  Kapler grounded an RBI double over the first base bag, and Weeks came around to score.  Smith caught Braun looking at strike three to end the inning.  Smith gave up 1 Hit, 1 Run, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 7th Inning.  Smith left the game after pitching 0.2 Innings allowing 1 Hit, 1 Run (Unearned), 0 BBs, and 1 SO.

Randolph replaced Smith with Pedro Feliciano to begin the Top of the 8th.  Feliciano got Fielder to chase strike three.  Randolph went out to the mound and made a double switch.  Feliciano left the game after pitching 0.1 Innings allowing 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO.

Randolph replaced Feliciano with Aaron Heilman and Clark replaced Church with one out in the Top of the 8th.  Heilman threw strike three right by Hall.  Hart popped up to shallow right field, and Castillo made the out to end the inning.  Heilman gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 8th Inning.  In the Top of the 9th, Heilman hit Kendall with the pitch to give the Brewers a two-out base runner.  Weeks grounded to third, and Wright made the out at first.  Heilman gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 9th Inning.

At the Plate

Jeff Suppan (1-0) was the starting pitcher for the Brewers.  In the Bottom of the 1st, Wright jacked a two-out solo shot to center field, the 100th Home Run of his career, scoring himself.  Beltran grounded out to second to end the inning.  Suppan gave up 1 Hit, 1 Run, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 1st Inning.  In the Bottom of the 2nd, Delgado drew a leadoff walk.  Church lined a no-out double to the right field corner as Delgado went first to third.  Easley grounded to second, and Weeks made the out at first while Delgado came home and Church advanced to third.  Schneider grounded an RBI single under Weeks and into right center as Church came home to score.  Perez dropped down a sacrifice bunt to towards the pitcher, and Suppan made the out at first as Schneider advanced to second.  Pagan grounded out to short to end the inning.  Suppan allowed 2 Hits, 2 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 3rd, Castillo had a broken bat flair over the head of Hall to lead off the inning with a double.  Wright grounded to short, and Weeks made the out at first as Castillo moved over to third.  Beltran lined a one-out RBI single into right center as Castillo came in to score.  Delgado grounded to first, but Fielder couldn’t field it properly so Beltran advanced to second and the Brewers ended up getting Delgado out at first.  Suppan intentionally walked Church with two outs.  Easley grounded a single up the middle and Weeks ended up fielding the ball, but Easley beat out the throw to load the bases.  Schneider lined a 2-Run single into center field which scored Beltran and Delgado, and Easley went first to third.  Suppan got Perez looking at strike three.  Suppan gave up 3 Hits, 3 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 3rd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 4th, Pagan led off with a double to the gap in right center.  Castillo grounded up the middle for a no-out single, and Pagan moved over to third.  Wright popped up to shallow center, and the runners held up.  Beltran lined out to first, and Fielder made the force out at first because Castillo was off the bag.  Suppan gave up 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 4th Inning.  Suppan left the game after pitching 4.0 Innings allowing 9 Hits, 6 Runs, 6 ER, 2 BBs, and he had 2 SOs.

Yost replaced Suppan with Salomon Torres to begin the Bottom of the 5th.  Delgado drew a no-out walk.  Church grounded to second, and the Brewers turned the double play.  Easley lined out to left to end the inning.  Torres gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 5th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 6th, Schneider grounded a leadoff single through the hole on the right side.  Chavez is pinch hitting for Sosa, and Chavez grounded into a double play.  Pagan drew a two-out walk.  Castillo also drew a two-out walk.  Wright grounded to third, and Hall made the out at first to end the inning.  Torres gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 2 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.  Torres left the game after pitching 2.0 Innings allowing 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 3 BBs, and he had 0 SOs.

Yost replaced Torres with Brian Shouse to begin the Bottom of the 7th.  Beltran drew a leadoff walk.  Delgado grounded slowly to second, and Weeks only got the out at second on the double play attempt.  Church grounded a one-out single by Hall and into left field as Delgado advanced to second.  Easley grounded a one-out RBI single by Hardy and into center field as Delgado came around to score.  Schneider grounded to second, and the Brewers turned the inning ending double play.  Shouse gave up 2 Hits, 1 Run, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 7th Inning.

Yost replaced Shouse with Guillermo Mota to begin the Bottom of the 8th.  Clark lined a leadoff single into center.  With Pagan in the batters box, Clark stole second base.  Pagan dinked a no-out single over the head of Hardy in left field which moved Clark over to third.  Castillo grounded to first, and Fielder made the tag at first and then made the out at the plate as Clark was coming home.  With Pagan at second and Wright in the batters box, Mota threw a wild pitch and Pagan moved over to third.  Sosa threw back-to-back two-out walks to Wright and Beltran to load the bases.  Delgado flied out to right to end the inning leaving three Mets on base.  Mota gave up 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 2 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 8th Inning.

Yost replaced Mota with Eric Gagne to begin the Bottom of the 9th.  Anderson is pinch hitting for Heilman, and Gagne fanned Anderson.  Easley grounded out to second.  Schneider lined out to short to end the game.  Gagne gave up 0 Hits, Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 9th Inning.

Final Score: Milwaukee Brewers 9 - New York Mets.  The MLB.com Box Score is attached.  Both starting pitcher got a no decision.

Today’s game was poorly played by both sides.  You can tell by the score alone.  Perez got rocked and gave up 6 runs in 4 1/3 which is horrible.  Sosa also got into some trouble in the 6th.  After that, Willie used a bunch of relievers to get through the game.  They did so without giving up any more runs, but it was too much to overcome.  The Mets put 7 on the scoreboard, but there were some lost opportunities.  Especially in the 8th inning with Mota on the mound.

The Amazins’ lost a series that they should’ve won.  When another pitcher wins the first game, and Santana is pitching in the same series then the Metsies should win the series.  But, it didn’t happen.  The Mets are now 5-6 on the season.  They have an off day tomorrow, and then the Nationals show up for a three-game series on Tuesday.

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The New York Mets are playing Game 8 of the 2008 Regular Season against the Philadelphia Phillies at Shea Stadium.  It’s the rubber game of the first home series of the year.  The game began at 7:10 p.m., and it was aired on SNY.

Phillies Lineup: Victorino, Bruntlett, Utley, Howard, Burrell, Jenkins, Feliz, Coste, Eaton.

Mets Lineup: Reyes, Pagan, Wright, Beltran, Delgado, Church, Easley, Schneider, Maine.

On the Mound

John Maine (0-1) was the starting pitcher for the Mets.  In the Top of the 1st, Victorino grounded a leadoff single up the middle.  Bruntlett popped up along the first base line as Victorino took off for second, but Delgado made the catch and throw to Easley at first for a double play.  Utley flied out to left to end the inning.  Maine gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 1st Inning.  In the Top of the 2nd, Jenkins lined a two-out double off the wall in left center before Feliz flied out to center to end the inning.  Maine gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Top of the 3rd, Coste drew a leadoff walk.  Eaton dropped down a sacrifice bunt towards first base to move Coste over to second, and Maine made the out at first.  Victorino grounded to the pitcher, and Maine made the out at first as Coste moved over to third.  Bruntlett flied out to center to end the inning.  Maine gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 3rd Inning.  In the Top of the 4th, Burrell drew a two-out walk before Jenkins grounded out to first to end the inning.  Maine gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 4th Inning.  In the Top of the 5th, Maine retired the bottom of the lineup in order.  Maine gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 5th Inning.  In the Top of the 6th, Victorino drew a leadoff walk.  Bruntlett flied out to right.  With Utley in the batters box, Victorino took off for second and Schneider threw him out (Schneider made a great throw to Reyes).  Utley grounded to first and the ball hit first base and shot up in the air so Easley came towards first to field it and flipped it to Maine on the bag, but Utley beat out the play and collided with Easley.  Howard drew a two-out walk.  Burrell drew a two-out walk to load the bases.  Peterson paid a visit to the mound, and Smith and Schoeneweis are warming up in the bullpen.  Jenkins grounded to second, and Easley made the force play at second to get the Mets out of a jam.  Maine gave up 1 Hits, 0 Runs, 3 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.  In the Top of the 7th, Ruiz led off with a solo shot down the left field line.  Coste lined a no-out double off of the wall in left field.  Maine left the game after pitching 6.0 Innings allowing 5 Hits, 1 Run (1 ER), 5 BBs, and he had 1 SO.

Randolph replaced Maine with Pedro Feliciano after Maine faced two batters in the 7th and retired none.  Werth is pinch hitting for Eaton, and Werth drew a no-out walk.  Feliciano struck out Victorino, Bruntlett, and Utley to leave two runners straned.  Feliciano gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 3 SOs in the 7th Inning.

Randolph replaced Feliciano with Aaron Heilman to begin the Top of the 8th.  Howard led off by jacking a solo shot to deep center field to make it a one-run game (Heilman keeps on giving up homers in the 8th).  Burrell drew a no-out walk, but Taguchi is pinch running for Burrell.  Jenkins pulled a single into right field as Taguchi advanced to third.  Feliz grounded to third, and Wright made the out at first as Taguchi came home and Jenkins moved over to second.  Heilman fanned Coste.  Werth grounded out to first to end the inning as the Shea Faithful boo Heilman.  Heilman gave up 2 Hits, 2 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 8th Inning.

Randolph replaced Heilman with Billy Wagner to begin the Top of the 9th.  Rollins is pinch hitting for Romero, and Wagner caught Rollins swinging at strike three.  Bruntlett flied out to right field.  Utley drew a two-out walk.  Wagner fanned Howard.  Wagner gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 2 SOs in the 9th Inning.

Randolph replaced Wagner with Joe Smith to begin the Top of the 10th.  Jenkins drew a one-out walk.  Feliz flied out to center.  Coste lined out to first.  Smith gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 10th Inning.  In the Top of the 11th, Werth grounded to third and beat out the throw at first.  Hamels is pinch hitting for Seanez, and Hamels dropped down a bunt in front of home plate and Schneider fell so everyone is safe (Hamels was credited with the hit).  Bruntlett struck out trying to bunt.  Smith left the game after pitching 1.1 Innings allowing 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO.

Randolph replaced Smith with Scott Schoeneweis with one out in the Top of the 11th.  Utley grounded to second, and the Mets turned the double play.  Schoeneweis gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 11th Inning.  In the Top of the 12th, Jenkins grounded hard to second, but Easley (Error on Easley) couldn’t field it cleanly or make the throw on time whcih gave the Phillies a two-out base runner.  Schoeneweis gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 12th Inning.  Schoeneweis left the game after pitching 1.1 Innings allowing 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs.

Randolph replaced Schoeneweis with Jorge Sosa with two outs in the Top of the 12th.  Feliz grounded to third, and Wright got the force play at second to end the inning.  Sosa gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 12th Inning.

At the Plate

Adam Eaton (0-0) was the starting pitcher for the Phillies.  In the Bottom of the 1st, Eaton sent the Mets down 1-2-3.  Eaton gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 1st Inning.  In the Bottom of the 2nd, Delgado drew a one-out walk.  Church grounded a single through the hole on the right side as Delgado moved over to second.  Easley grounded to short, and the Phillies turned the double play to end the inning.  Eaton gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 3rd, Eaton retired the side in order.  Eaton gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 3rd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 4th, Pagan lined a leadoff single into shallow left field.  Eaton caught Wright looking at strike three.  Beltran drew a one-out walk.  Delgado grounded to second, and Utley made the out at first as the runners advanced.  Church lined an RBI single into left center which scored Pagan and Beltran.  Easley grounded to short, and Bruntlett made the force play at second.  Eaton gave up 2 Hits, 2 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 4th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 5th, Eaton pitched a 1-2-3 inning.  Eaton gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 5th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 6th, Pagan lined a leadoff double into the corner in left field.  Wright grounded to short, and Bruntlett made the out at first as Pagan advanced to third.  Beltran lined an RBI single into right which scored Pagan.  Eaton fanned Delgado.  With Church in the batters box, Beltran took off for second and was thrown out by Coste.  Eaton gave up 2 Hits, 1 Run, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 6th Inning.  Eaton left the game after pitching 6.0 Innings allowing 5 Hits, 3 Runs (3 ER), 2 BBs, and he had 5 SOs.

Manuel replaced Eaton with Ryan Madson to begin the Bottom of the 7th.  Easley lined a one-out double into the right field corner.  Schneider lined out to second.  Anderson is pinch hitting for Feliciano, and Anderson grouned out to short.  Madson gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 7th Inning.

Manuel replaced Madson with J.C. Romero to begin the Bottom of the 8th.  Reyes grounded to short, but Reyes beat out the throw to first for a leadoff single.  Pagan dropped down a sacrifice bunt towards third, and Romero made the out at first as Reyes moved over to second.  Romero intentionally walked Wright.  With Beltran in the batters box, the Mets put on a double steal as Reyes and Wright advanced safely.  Romero fanned Beltran.  Delgado grounded out to third to end the inning while leaving to men on.  Romero gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 8th Inning.

Manuel replaced Romero with Brad Lidge to begin the Bottom of the 9th.  Lidge got Church swinging at strike three.  Easley grounded out to third.  Schneider drew a two-out walk.  Chavez is pinch hitting for Wagner, and Chavez grounded out to short.  Lidge gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 9th Inning.

Manuel replaced Lidge with Rudy Seanez to begin the Bottom of the 10th.  Wright drew a two-out walk.  With Beltran in the batters box, Wright stole second base.  Beltran worked himself into a full count before swinging at strike three.  Seanez gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 2 SOs in the 10th Inning.

Manuel replaced Seanez with Tom Gordon to begin the Bottom of the 11th.  Gordon sent the Mets down in order.  Gordon gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 11th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 12th, Schneider popped up to second.  Clark replaced Church, and Clark grounded out to third.  Reyes hit a two-out gaper to right center for a double.  Pagan grounded up the middle to bring Reyes home, and Reyes may have been safe or may have been out.  The Umpire called him safe.

Final Score: Philadelphia Phillies 3 - New York Mets 4.  The MLB.com Box Score is attached.  John Maine (0-1) and Adam Eaton (0-0) each got a no decision.

The Mets were able to grind out a win tonight so they won the series against the Phillies that they needed to win.  The Brewers are coming to Shea for a three-game series tomorrow, and then the Nationals come to Shea for a three-game series on Tuesday.

The Mets got themselves back to a .500 record (4-4) which moved them up to 2nd place.  Atlanta (3-6) went out to Colorado, but the game was postponed due to snow.  Go figure.  The Marlins beat the Nationals so the Marlins are 6-3 and the Nationals are 3-7.

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The New York Mets are playing Game 7 of the 2008 Regular Season against the Philadelphia Phillies at Shea Stadium.  The game began at 7:10 p.m., and was aired on SNY.

Phillies Lineup: Victorino, Bruntlett, Utley, Howard, Burrell, Jenkins, Feliz, Ruiz, Kendrick.

Mets Lineup: Reyes, Pagan, Wright, Beltran, Delgado, Church, Easley, Schneider, Pelfrey.

On the Mound

Mike Pelfrey (0-0) was the starting pitcher for the Mets.  In the Top of the 1st, Pelfrey sent the top of the lineup down in order.  Pelfrey gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 1st Inning.  In the Top of the 2nd, Pelrey struck Howard out swinging.  Burrell grounded a one-out single up the middle.  Jenkins grounded a single through the hole on right side which moved Burrell over to second. Feliz grounded to short, and Reyes (Error on Reyes) flipped it to Easley but it went into center field which loads the bases.  Ruiz grounded an RBI single through the hole on the right side which scored Burrell.  Kendrick grounded to first, and Delgado made the out at home plate.  Victorino grounded to third, and Wright made the out at first.  Pelfrey gave up 3 Hits, 1 Run, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 2nd Inning.  In the Top of the 3rd, Pelfrey retired the side in order.  Pelfrey gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 3rd Inning.  In the Top of the 4th, Feliz drew a one-out walk.  Ruiz grounded into a double play.  Pelfrey gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 4th Inning.  In the Top of the 5th, Bruntlett drew a two-out walk.  Utley doubled with a gaper to left center which scored Bruntlett.  Howard grounded out to first to end the inning.  Pelfrey gave up 1 Hit, 1 Run, 1 BB, and he 0 SOs in the 5th Inning.  Pelfrey pitched 5.0 Innings and allowed 5 Hits, 2 Runs, 2 ER, 2 BBs, and he had 3 SOs.

Randolph replaced Pelfrey with Jorge Sosa to begin the Top of the 6th.  Sosa got three batters to ground out.  Sosa allowed 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SO in the 6th Inning.  In the Top of the 7th, Sosa had another 1-2-3 inning.  Sosa allowed 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 7th Inning.

Randolph replaced Sosa with Pedro Feliciano to begin the Top of the 8th.  Bruntlett lined a leadoff single into center.  Utley flied out to left field.  Feliciano struck Howard out swinging.  Burrell grounded a single through the hole on the right side as Bruntlett advanced to second.  Werth replaced Jenkins, and Werth drew a two-out walk to load the bases.  Feliz popped up to shallow center to end the inning.  Feliciano allowed 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 8th Inning.

Randolph replaced Feliciano with Carlos Muniz to begin the Top of the 9th.  Muniz fanned Ruiz.  Coste is pinch hitting for Seanez, and Coste lined a one-out double into the left field corner.  Victorino grounded out to short as Coste moved over to third.  Bruntlett popped up at home plate, and Schneider made the final out.  Muniz allowed 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 9th Inning.

At the Plate

Kyle Kendrick (1-0) was the starting pitcher for the Phillies.  In the Bottom of the 1st, Reyes drew a leadoff walk.  Pagan grounded to the pitcher, and Reyes advanced to second safely as Kendrick made the out at first.  Wright grounded to second base which bounced off of Utley (Error on Utley) and went into center field as Reyes came home to score.  Beltran line out to deep right center.  Delgado drew a two-out walk.  Church drew a two-out walk to load the bases.  Easley grounded to short, and Bruntlett made the out at first to end the inning.  Kendrick gave up 0 Hits, 1 Run (Unearned), 3 BBs, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 1st Inning.  In the Bottom of the 2nd, Schneider drew a leadoff walk.  Pelfrey dropped down a sacrifice bunt along the first base line to move Schneider over to second while Pelfrey was tagged out.  Reyes grounded to first, and Howard flipped it to Kendrick at first as Schneider advanced to third.  Pagan drew a two-out walk.  Wright drew a two-out walk to load the bases.  Beltran grounded out to second to end the inning.  Kendrick gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 3 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 3rd, Delgado hit a leadoff double that one-hopped the wall in left.  Church lined a single to center which moved Delgado over to third.  Easley grounded an RBI single through the hole on the left side to score Delgado and advance Church over to second.  Schneider lined out to first.  Pelfrey dropped a bunt right in front of home plate, and Ruiz (Error on Ruiz) attempted to make the out at third, but Feliz couldn’t make the catch so the bases are loaded.  Reyes grounded to short, but Brutlett (Error on Bruntlett) couldn’t field the ball which led to Church coming home to score and the bases remained loaded.  Pagan grounded an RBI double over the third base bag and into the left field corner which scored Easley and Pelfrey and moved Reyes over to third.  Kendrick pitched 2.1 Innings allowing 4 Hits, 7 Runs, 1 ER, 6 BBs, and 0 SOs.

Manuel replaced Kendrick with Chad Durbin with one out in the Bottom of the 3rd.  Wright grounded an RBI single under the glove of Bruntlett (Error on Bruntlett) on the left side to score Reyes and moved Pagan over to third.  With Beltran in the batters box, Durbin threw a wild pitch which led to Pagan scoring.  Beltran drew a one-out walk.  Delgado lined out to right field.  Durbin struck out Church to finally bring the inning to a close.  Durbin allowed 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 3rd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 4th, Durbin retired the bottom of the lineup in order.  Durbin gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 4th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 5th, Durbin sent the top of the lineup down 1-2-3.  Durbin allowed 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 5th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 6th, Durbin retired the side again.  Durbin allowed 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 6th Inning.  Durbin pitched 3.2 Inning allowing 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 4 SOs.

Manuel replaced Durbin with Clay Condrey to begin the Bottom of the 7th.  Easley drew a leadoff walk.  Schneider lined a single into right which moved Easley over to second.  Anderson is pinch hitting for Sosa, and Anderson flied out to the gap in left center, and Easley moved over to third.  Reyes grounded to second, and Schneider stalled running to second which allowed Easley to score before the double play was complete.  Condrey allowed 1 Hit, 1 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 7th Inning.

Manuel replaced Condrey with Rudy Seanez to begin the Bottom of the 8th.  Pagan drew a leadoff walk.  Wright lined out to short.  Beltran flied out to right field.  Delgado flied out to left.  Seanez gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 8th Inning.

Final Score: Philadelphia Phillies 2 - New York Mets 8.  The MLB.com Box Score is attached.  Mike Pelfrey (1-0) got the win, and Kyle Kendrick (1-1) got the loss.

I’m very happy that the Mets sent a message to the Phillies by beating them 8-2.  Prior to the game, I was very concerned about Pelfrey.  Pelfrey looked really good tonight.  One of the runs he gave up in the 2nd Inning was the result of an error on Reyes which should’ve resulted in at least one out and maybe a double play.  The Bullpen put up the goose eggs today which does not follow the early trend.  The Mets only had 5 Hits today, but they cashed in on 9 BBs and 4 Errors.  With the Mets winning tonight, at least they have a shot at winning the series tomorrow with Maine on the mound.  The Mets need to win the series against the Phillies since they lost the last series to the Braves.   Last, the Amazins’ finally ended the 9-game winning streak that the Phillies were on…which is huge!

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The Mets honored William A. Shea in a pregame ceremony on the field.  The Mets retired the Shea name and hung up the plaque next to the other retired numbers.

The New York Mets are playing Game 6 of the 2008 Regular Season against the Philadelphia Phillies at Shea Stadium.  Today’s game is the 2008 Home Opener for the Mets, and the final Home Opener at Shea Stadium.

Phillies Lineup: Rollins, Victorino, Utley, Howard, Burrell, Werth, Feliz, Ruiz, Moyer.

Mets Lineup: Reyes, Castillo, Wright, Beltran, Delgado, Pagan, Church, Schneider, Perez.

On the Mound

Oliver Perez (1-0) was the starting pitcher for the Mets.  In the Top of the 1st, Victorino dropped a one-out single into shallow center field.  Perez hit Utley with the pitch.  Howard popped up to center, and the runners held up.  Perez caught Burrell looking at strike three.  Perez gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and Struck Out 1 in the 1st Inning.  In the Top of the 2nd, Werth grounded a leadoff single through the hole on the right side.  Feliz grounded out to first, and Werth was off the bag so Delgado got the unassisted double play.  Ruiz popped up to shallow center to retire the side.  Perez gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 2nd Inning.  In the Top of the 3rd, Perez sent the Phillies down in order.  Perez gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 3rd Inning.  In the Top of the 4th, Perez hit Utley with another pitch.  Perez struck Howard out swinging.  Burrell lined out to right.  Werth grounded to short, and Reyes made the out at second to retire the side.  Perez gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he Struck Out 1 in the 4th Inning.  In the Top of the 5th, Ruiz lined a one-out single into right field.  Moyer drew a one-out walk.  Rollins grounded to third, and Wright made the out at second.  Victorino popped up to shallow left field to end the inning.  Perez gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 5th Inning.  In the Top of the 6th, Utley popped up to shallow center field.  Howard also popped up to shallow center.  Burrell drew a two-out walk.  With Werth in the batters box, Perez was called for a balk and Burrell advanced to second.  Perez threw a passed ball on ball four, so Burrell took off for third as Werth was granted first base.  Perez pitched 5.2 Innings giving up 3 Hits, 0 Runs, 3 BBs, and he Struck Out 2.

Randolph replaced Perez with Joe Smith with two outs in the Top of the 6th, Feliz drew a two-out walk to load the bases.  Ruiz grounded out to short to leave three Phillies stranded.  Smith gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 6th Inning.

Randolph replaced Smith with Scott Schoeneweis to begin the Top of the 7th.  Taguchi is pinch hitting for Moyer, and Taguchi grouned out to second.  Rollins lined a one-out single to left.  Victorino grounded a single up the middle, and Rollins moved over to second.  Shoeneweis hit Utley with the pitch to load the bases.  Howard grounded an RBI single to first, and Delgado hit Utley in the back as he was running to second which scored Rollins and Victorino (an Error by Delgado allowed Victorino to score).  Shoeneweis pitched 0.1 Innings giving up 2 Hits, 3 Runs (1 Earned), 0 BBs, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 7th Inning.

Randolph replaced Schoeneweis with Jorge Sosa with one out in the Top of the 7th.  Burrell lined out to right field, and Utley tagged and moved over to third.  Werth grounded an RBI opposite field single through the hole on the right side to score Utley.  Feliz popped up to shallow center to end the inning.  Sosa pitched 0.2 Innings allowing 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 7th Inning.

Randolph replaced Sosa with Aaron Heilman to begin the Top of the 8th.  Ruiz drew a leadoff walk.  Taguchi laid down a sacrifice bunt towards first, and Heilman made the out at first.  Rollins pulled an RBI single into right field scoring Ruiz.  With Victorino in the batters box, Heilman threw a passed ball which moved Rollins to second.  Victorino drew a one-out walk.  Utley pulled an RBI double into right that one-hopped the wall and scored Rollins.  Heilman intentionally walked Howard to load the bases.  Jenkins is pinch hitting for Burrell, and Jenkins popped up to first.  Werth lined out to right to end the inning.  Heilman gave up 2 Hits, 2 Runs, 3 BBs, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 8th Inning.

Randolph replaced Heilman with Carlos Muniz to begin the Top of the 9th.  Ruiz retired the side in order.  Ruiz gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 9th Inning.

At the Plate

Jamie Moyer (0-0) was the starting pitcher for the Phillies.  In the Bottom of the 1st, Castillo drew a one-out walk.  Wright flied out to the warning track in center field.  Beltran grounded out to third to end the inning.  Moyer gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 1st Inning.  In the Bottom of the 2nd, Delgado belted a leadoff home run off the scoreboard in right center.  Pagan flied out to deep left center.  Moyer hit Church with a pitch.  Schneider grounded into a double play to end the inning.  Moyer gave up 1 Hit, 1 Run, 0 BBs, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 2nd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 3rd, Moyer got all three batters he faced to ground out.  Moyer gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 3rd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 4th, Wright flied out to deep right center, and Victorino collided into Werth but held onto the ball.  Beltran drew a one-out walk.  Delgado softly hit an opposite field single into left as Beltran advanced to second.  Pagan grounded hard to second and beat out the play at first to load the bases.  Church grounded out slowly to first which scored Beltran, and the runners advanced to second and third.  Moyer intentionally walked Schneider to load the bases.  Moyer struck out Perez swining to limit the damage.  Moyer gave up 2 Hits, 1 Run, 2 BBs, and he Struck Out 1 in the 4th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 5th, Wright pulled a two-out double into the left field corner.  Beltran lined out to deep center to end the inning.  Moyer gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he did’t Strike Out anybody.  In the Bottom of the 6th, Moyer sent the Mets down 1-2-3.  Moyer gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 6th Inning.  Moyer pitched 6.0 Innings and gave up 4 Hits, 2 Runs, 3 BBs, and he Struck Out 1.

Manuel replaced Moyer Chad Durbin with to begin the Bottom of the 7th.  Church led off with a ground ball up the middle.  Chavez replaced Pagan, and Chavez grounded to short and the Phillies turned the double play.  Reyes grounded a two-out single up the middle.  Easley replaced Castillo, and Easley flied out to the warning track in left field to end the inning.  Durbin gave up 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he didn’t Strike Out anybody in the 7th Inning.

Manuel replaced Durbin with J.C. Romero to begin the Bottom of the 8th.  Beltran pulled a line drive down into the left field corner for a one-out double.  Delgado grounded out to second as Beltran moved over to third.  Clark is pinch hitting for Chavez, and Clark drew a two-out walk.  Church grounded out to second to end the inning.  Romero gaveup 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he Struck Out 1 in the 8th Inning.

Manuel replaced Romero with Tom Gordon to begin the Bottom of the 9th.  Gordon struck Schneider out swining.  Chavez grounded out to the pitcher.  Reyes flied out to the warning track in right to end the game.  Gordon gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he Struck Out 1 in the 9th Inning.

Final Score: Philadelphia Phillies 5 - New York Mets 2.  The MLB.com Box Score is attached.

Oli pitched shutout ball through 5 2/3 innings before the Bullpen gave another game away.  It was a good thing that the Mets beat the Marlins in the 2008 Season Opener because they were unable to win their final Home Opener at Shea.  The Bullpen gave away 3 straight games to the NL East contenders which is really bad.  The Mets need to win the final two games of this series so Pelfrey needs to step up big tomorrow night.  Even more than that, the Bullpen needs to resolve their issues so the Mets can win some games.

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Proir to the Mets-Braves game, the Nationals lost last night so the Mets moved into first place.  Let’s hope they stay there until they clinch the NL East.  The Mets are playing Game 4 of the 2008 Regular Season against the Braves at Turner Field in Atlanta.  It is the first time they face each other this year.

Mets Lineup: Reyes, Castillo, Wright, Beltran, Delgado, Church, Pagan, Schneider, Maine.

Braves Lineup: Escobar, Kotsay, Jones, Teixeia, McCann, Francoeur, Diaz, Prado, Hudson.

At the Plate

Tim Hudson was the starting pitcher for the Braves.  Hudson got the first three Mets to ground out in the Top of the 1st.  In the Top of the 2nd, Hudson got Beltran to ground out.  Delgado grounded a single up the middle, and then Church grounded a single up the middle to advance Delgado to third.  Pagan hit a ground ball to short where the Braves made the out at second but couldn’t turn the double play which allowed Delgado to score.  Hudson fanned Schneider to end the inning.  Hudson gave up 1 Run on 2 Hits while Striking Out 1 in the 2nd Inning.  In the Top of the 3rd, Hudson retired the side in order while Striking Out 2.  In the Top of the 4th, Hudson retired the heart of the Mets order.  Hudson gave up 0 Runs and 0 Hits in the 4th.  In the Top of the 5th, Church hit a leadoff single into center field.  Pagan slapped an opposite field single into left which moved Church over to second base.  Schneider grounded out to first which advanced both runners.  Clark was pinch hitting for Maine, and Hudson hit Clark with the pitch to load the bases.  Reyes slapped a single into center field that hopped before a diving Kotsay got the leather on the ball.  The Mets thought it bounced, and the runners took off so the Braves turned the double play (On the replay, the ball clearly bounced before Kotsay caught the ball).  The call was reversed after the Umpires had a meeting of the minds.  The Umpires called it an RBI single for Reyes, and the runners were allowed to advanced one base which scored Church.  Castillo hit an RBI ground out to second which scored Pagan and moved the runners over to second and third.  Wright grounded out to third to end the inning.  Hudson gave up 2 Runs, 3 Hits, and 1 HBP in the 5th.  In the Top of the 6th, Hudson gave up 0 Runs, 1 Hit, and Struck Out 1.  Hudson pitched 6.0 Innings giving up 6 Hits and 3 Runs while Striking Out 4.

Cox replaced Hudson with Peter Moylan to begin the Top of the 7th.  Schneider lined a leadoff single into center.  Chavez is in to pinch hit for Schoeneweis, and Chavez grounded hard to second.  The ball bounced off of Prado and into right field so the runners are on first and second (It was ruled a hit).  Moylan worked himself out of the jam leaving two Mets stranded.  Moylan gave up 2 Hits and 0 Runs in the 7th.

Cox replaced Moylan with Royce Ring to begin the Top of the 8th.  Beltran led off with a double that one-hopped the left field wall.  Delgado pulled an RBI double into the right field corner which scored Beltran.  Church grounded out to first, and Delgado advanced to third.  Pagan lined an RBI sacrifice fly to left field which brought home Delgado.  Schneider grounded out to second to end the inning.  Ring gave up 2 Hits and 2 Runs, in the 8th Inning.

Cox replaced Ring with Rafael Soriano to begin the Top of the 9th.  Anderson is pinch hitting for Figueroa, and Anderson lined out to right field.  Soriano struck Reyes out swinging.  Castillo popped out to short to end the game.  Soriano retired the Mets in order in the 9th.

On the Mound

John Maine was the starting pitcher for the Mets.  In the Bottom of the 1st, Maine caught Escobar looking at strike three.  With one out, Kotsay grounded a single through the hole on the left side.  Jones lined a single into right field, and Kotsay advanced to second.  Maine walked Teixeira to load the bases.  McCann hit an RBI sacrifice fly to right field which scored Kotsay and Jones advanced to third.  Maine struck out Francoeur swinging.  Maine is throwing heat but doesn’t look sharp as he gave up 1 Run, 2 Hits, and 1 Walk while Striking Out 2 in the 1st Inning.  In the Bottom of the 2nd, Prado flaired a one-out single into right and that was it.  Maine gave up 1 Hit and Struck Out 2 in the 2nd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 3rd, Jones grounded a one-out single through the hole on the right side.  Maine walked Teixeira…again.  McCann flied out to center, and the runners held up.  Francoeur blooped an RBI single into shallow left field which scored Jones and advanced Teixeira to third.  Diaz hit an RBI single into center field scoring Teixeira and Francoeur advanced to second.  Prado grounded out to second to end the inning.  Maine gave up 2 Runs, 3 Hits, and 1 Walk in the 3rd.  In the Bottom of the 4th, Maine struck out Hudson, and then he walked Escobar.  Kotsay popped up to left, and Escobar stayed put.  Jones singled up the middle to advance Escobar to third.  Teixeira pulled an RBI single through the hole on the right side to score Escobar and advance Jones to second.  McCann popped up to short to end the inning.  Maine gave up 1 Run, 2 Hits, 1 Walk, and Struck Out 1 in the 4th.  John Maine left the game after pitching 4 Innings giving up 8 Hits, 4 Runs, 4 ER, 3 BB, and 5 SO.

Randolph replaced Maine with Joe Smith to begin the 5th Inning.  Smith sent the Braves down in order, and he Struck Out 1 in the 5th.  In the Bottom of the 6th, Gotay came in to pinch hit for Hudson.  Gotay hit a leadoff single up the middle.  Escobar sacrifice bunted to the pitcher, and Smith made the play at first while Gotay moved over to second.

Randolph replaced Smith with Scott Schoeneweis with 1 Out in the 6th Inning.  Kotsay ripped an RBI single into right field which scored Gotay (Gotay got his revenge on the Mets).  As Kotsay took off for second base, Church threw out Kotsay.  Jones popped up just foul of the first base line to end the inning.  Schoeneweis gave up 1 Hit and 1 Run (Charged to Smith) in the 6th Inning.

Randolph replaced Schoeneweis with Jorge Sosa to begin the Bottom of the 7th.  Sosa fanned Teixeira.  McCann doubled into the gap in right center.  Francoeur grounded the ball through the hole on the left side for a single which moved McCann over to third.  Sosa then fanned Diaz.  Sosa walked Prado to load the bases.  Johnson is in to pinch hit for Moylan, and Johnson lined a Grand Slam into right field scoring McCann, Francoeur, Prado, and himself (a pinch hit Grand Slam…that is the last thing I ever want to see the Braves do).  Escobar lined out to right to end the inning.  Sosa gave up 3 Hits, 4 Runs, 1 Walk, and Struck Out 2 in the 7th.

Randolph replaced Sosa with Nelson Figueroa Jr. to begin the Bottom of the 8th.  Kotsay grounded out to second.  Jones grounded out to first.  Teixeira lined a single into right.  Figueroa walked McCann.  Francoeur lined into center, but the diving Beltran couldn’t get to the ball in time, and Teixeira and McCann both scored.  Diaz flied out to center to end the inning.  Figueroa gave up 2 Hits, 2 Runs, and 1 Walk in the 8th Inning.

Final Score: New York Mets 5 - Atlanta Braves 11.  The MLB.com Box Score is attached.  John Maine got the loss (0-1) and Tim Hudson (1-0) got the win.

What an ugly game down in Atlanta.  Maine was throwing heat, but couldn’t locate his pitches.  The Bullpen gave up a ton of runs after Maine gave up 4.  Larry and Francoeur each went 3-5.  Teixeira was on base too much.  And worst of all…the Grand Slam by the pinch hitter, Kelly Johnson.  That’s not what I expected with Johnnie on the mound.  The Amazins’ will find out how for real Santana is tomorrow when he goes up against Smoltz.  The Mets need Santana to be the stopper that they paid $150 million for because they need to even out this series at 1-1.

On more of a positive note, the Phillies lost to the Reds, and the Nationals lost to the Cardinals which means that the Mets are still tied for first place pending the outcome of the Marlins-Pirates game where the Marlins have a 1-0 lead over the Pirates in the 2nd Inning.

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The Marlins hosted the Mets at Dolphin Stadium for a 7:10 PM start.  The Mets trailed 4-0 early as Pedro got rocked and injured, but the Mets fought back to tie the game.  The Bullpens held it down until Wise gave up a walkoff home run to Andino in the 10th.  The Mets can still win the series with a win tomorrow.

Mets Lineup: Reyes, Castillo, Wright, Beltran, Delgado, Church, Pagan, Schneider, Martinez.

Marlins Lineup: Ramirez, Uggla, Jacobs, Willingham, Cantu, Gonzalez, Treanor, Amezaga, VandenHurk.

At the Plate

VandenHurk was the starting pitcher for the Marlins.  VandenHurk got threw the Top of the 1st only giving up a hit where Castillo beat out a ground ball to short.  In the Top of the 2nd, VandenHurk walked Pagan with 2 outs.  Then Schneider singled through the hole on the right side to advance Pagan to third, but VandenHurk struck out Martinez during a 12 pitch at-bat to retire the side.  In the Top of the 3rd, Reyes lined a leadoff single to center.  Castillo dropped down a sacrifice bunt to advance Reyes to second, but VandenHurk got through another scoreless inning.  In the Top of the 4th, Delgado drove the ball up the middle for a leadoff single.  Church pulled a single through the hole on the right side to advance Delgado to second.  Pagan also pulled an RBI single through the hole to score Delgado and advanced Church to second. 

Gonazalez made a pitching change so Pinto replaced VandenHurk.  Schneider lined an RBI single up the middle to score Church and Pagan advanced to second.  Martinez dropped down a sacrifice bunt to advance both runners.  Reyes sacrificed flied to left scoring Pagan while Schneider remained on second.  The Mets got 3 runs back in the 4th.  In the Top of the 5th, Wright lined a leadoff single into left field.  Pinto walked Beltran on 5 pitches before striking out Delgado.  Pinto walked Church to load the bases.  Pagan sacrifice flied to center to score Wright which tied the game.  Pinto got out of the 5th only giving up 1 run.

Gardner replaced Pinto for the Marlins in the Top of the 6th, and Gardner retired the Mets in order.

Kensing replaced Gardner in the Top of the 7th, and Kensing pitched a scoreless inning.  In the Top of the 8th, Kensing walked Schneider with one out.  Gonzalez replaced Kensing with Tankersly.  Tankersly retired the two Mets he faced.

Gregg replaced Tankersly in the Top of the 9th, and Gregg pitched a scoreless 9th.

Miller replaced Gregg in the Top of the 10th, and Miller pitched a scoreless 10th.

On the Mound

Martinez was the starting pitcher for the Mets.  In the Bottom of the 1st, Martinez hit Ramirez with a pitch to give the Marlins a leadoff runner.  Uggla lined a 2-run shot to left to score Ramirez and himself.  Pedro got out of the 1st giving up 2 Runs.  In the Bottom of the 2nd, Gonzalez drove a solo shot to deep center to lead off the inning.  Amezaga beat out a ground ball to second base with one out, and then VandenHurk sacrifice bunted to advance Amezaga to second.  Ramirez drove the ball to the wall in right center for a triple scoring Amezaga.  Pedro walked Uggla to put runners on the corners before getting Jacobs to fly out to center.  After 2, Pedro gave up 4 runs.  Martinez retired the side in order in the Bottom of the 3rd.

In the Bottom of the 4th, Randolph came out to mound to pull Martinez because Pedro pulled his hamstring after getting the first batter out.  Sosa replaced Martinez.  Amezaga hit a ground rule double to right center off of Sosa.  Pinto sacrificed bunted to advance Amezaga to third.  Sosa intentionally walked Ramirez to put runners on the corners, but Sosa was able to get out of the 4th inning without any damage.  With 2 outs in the Bottom of the 5th, Sosa only gave up 1 Hit.  In the Bottom of the 6th, it was a little hectic, but Sosa got out of the inning without giving up any runs.

In the Bottom of the 7th, Schoeneweis replaced Sosa.  Ross pinch hit for Jacobs.  After Schoeneweis got Ross out, Randolph replaced him with Smith.  Smith got the two batters he faced out.

In the Bottom of the 8th, Heilman replaced Schoeneweis on the mound.  Heilman pitched a scoreless 8th and 9th.

Wise replaced Heilman in the Bottom of the 10th.  With two outs, Andino jacked a walk-off homerun to left field to win it for the Marlins.

Final Score: New York Mets 4 - Florida Marlins 5.  The MLB.com Box Score is attached.

Mets.com:

Santana as advertised as Mets roll - Marty Noble put together an extensive article about Johan Santana’s Opening Day performance.

Wright doesn’t miss a beat in opener - Charlie Nobles pointed out that David Wright extends his two-year hitting streak to 18 with two doubles.

Forecast mixed for Pedro’s debut - Marty Noble provided the weather forecast as Pedro Martinez is about to take the mound.

Johan shows off ability to vary speeds - Charlie Nobles describes Santana’s performance on Opening Day.

Concepcion makes trip to see Santana - According to Joe Frisaro, Dave Concepcion, also Venezuelen, flew in from his native country specifically to see Johan’s debut as a Met.

Santana’s debut brings smiles - Fred Claire captured the thoughts of Willie Randolph regarding Santana’s debut as a Met.

Newsday:

Santana takes charge as Mets top Marlins in opener

Mets come out swinging in knockout of an opener

Randolph gets third degree after Mets win - David Len