Die Hard Sports Fan

On Sunday, by 12 PM, I had my three televisions in the living room set up.  With the two extra co-axel cables running through my living room, down through the garage roof, and through the wall, and the bedroom DirecTV receivers out in the living room and successfully connected to everything, I was pumped and ready to go for the 1 PM games with of course the Redskins-Eagles game on the 40 inch High Definition TV with the sound blasting.  The other televisions would be muted but there for me to enjoy the rest of what the NFL had in store for the day.  Yes indeed, the NFL Ticket on DTV is better than sliced bread.

Then the door rang and it was my Dad.  After all these years, he and I still watch each and every Eagles game together.  Our weekly tradition was only temporarily interrupted when I was away to college (WE ARE!!  PENN STATE!!) and didn’t make it home on Eagles game day weekends.  He walked in, said hello to the dog, put his stuff down, and sat in his spot.  He looked up and said “good you have the Eagles game on the big screen, but can you put one of the other tv’s to the Phils game?”

Huh, what?!  It’s October.  The leaves are changing colors.  The weather is getting cooler.  Its week 5 of the NFL and he wants me to reduce my NFL intake by 33% for baseball?!  I am a Die Hard Eagles Fan.  It didn’t even occur to me that yes the Philadelphia Phillies are in the playoffs, but to watch the game while Eagles football was on?

I gave in.  This way, we didn’t have to flip back and forth between the two channels on the big screen and risk missing an Eagles play or two as the channels takes forever to flash back.  However, it turns out I am not the only one that feels this way.

The Eagles had a week 5 regular season game the same time the Phillies played for the winning game of their first playoff series.  It turns out that the Eagles blew the Phillies away television viewing ratings wise.  The Eagles drew a rating of 22.7 while the Phillies, again in a playoff game, drew a rating of 13.8.

My first thought was wow.  But that quickly dissipated and my true feelings are shining through.  I knew it.  This place is Eagles country and will always be.  Even if we are 2-3 and the Phillies are now in the NCLS.  Yes, it is definitely Eagles country!

With that said, “E-A-G-L-E-S!!  EAGLES!!”

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For those of you that are fans of Jose Reyes, the New York Times found out that Jimmy Rollins had to go through some tough times before becoming the MVP last season. Rollins said…

Sometimes it takes a year or two, but with me, it took three. I was the same way until I figured out who the heck I was. I could run, I could play, I was fast, but it was all raw ability. But now, I’m showing off my raw ability, with learning, with knowledge. I’ve learned the game. I understand the game. You come out of that, you’re a completely different player.

The big thing for me is: how do you make that adjustment? That’s the learning curve. He still has the tools, a great arm. He does have power, hits from both sides of the plate, speed, good glove. The mental makeup. He’s a smart baseball player. He’s the complete package, but he won’t fully mature until his failures start making sense to him.

At times, it was like, I don’t care what you say. Other times, it was like, O.K., let me try it. Or, I’m struggling, let me try what they say. If I’m feeling good, I didn’t listen to what they say. When I’m feeling bad, all right, I’ll try it. But now, I’ve processed all the information, and I know me. I can’t do Ryan Howard. I can’t do Chase Utley. I can only do Jimmy Rollins.

People always have more expectations for you than they have for themselves. Put that out of your mind, learn who you are, know who you are and go out and do it. Believe me, people will accept you, because my on-base percentage has never been high, but I score runs. What’s more important? Me being on base or me scoring runs? If I’m scoring more runs, I’m doing my job.

Wright and Reyes quickly became my new favorite Mets, but you probably know by now that I have completely fallen out of love with Reyes over the past year. The most important thing that Jimmy mentioned was that Jose ‘won’t fully mature until his failures start making sense to him’. That’s the same thing as when people admit they have a problem at AA. Maybe Jerry Manuel will be able to get into Reyes’ head. Otherwise, somebody else has to whether it’s management or a player. He needs to be molded into a Professional baseball player.

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So most Mets fans wanted Willie whacked and those of you who wanted that got their wish. The only improvement since then is the play of Jose Reyes. Reyes has decided to finally play baseball once Jerry Manuel took over which is another reason why this guy is so hard to root for. Otherwise, the team is playing exactly the same under Manuel as they did under Willie.

Last night, Manuel took Johan Santana out of the game against the Phillies after pitching eight innings. The score was 2-2 at the time, and Manuel brought in Duaner Sanchez to save the game but ended up giving a two-out RBI single to Shane Victornino. It was a very questionable move Mets fans because Santana only had 95 pitches when he was taken out. We know that Willie would’ve taken Johan out too. So what’s different? Absolutely nothing. The Bullpen still couldn’t save the game. It’s the same problem as last season. The Bullpen was smokin’ until July of 2007, and then they couldn’t hold a lead the rest of the season. Since I’m such a realistic Mets fan, I saw the collapse coming a mile away. It began in July, and I knew that the Mets wouldn’t have been able to do anything in the Playoffs if they ended up making it. Of course I thought that they would’ve made the Playoffs, but I saw the flaws and knew that they would’ve been outed in the first round. We were hoping that Sanchez would’ve come back and pitch like he did in ‘06. Omar brought in Matt Wise in the offseason. Duaner’s return didn’t live up to the hype, and Wise hasn’t done much of anything before being placed on the DL.

My point has always been that this is on the players. It doesn’t matter if Willie or Jerry is the Coach. I also heard on WFAN that Willie wasn’t able to punish Reyes whenever Reyes acted up because Minaya said that Reyes was too valuable to the team. So Jose has gotten away with whatever he wanted. You can see on the field that Reyes’ immaturity has regressed. He never showed it until he was benched by Willie for not running out a few ground balls last year. These on-the-field temper tantrums are current because Reyes never did that in his first few seasons. Now, the Mets fired the Manager who did the right thing by benching him so Jose can continue to feel like he’s bigger than the team. I’ve got a huge problem with all of this. The Phillies had no problem benching Jimmy Rollins for not running out a ground ball, and Rollins was the MVP last year. Jimmy said he deserved to be benched. So why can’t the Mets do this? Why can’t Reyes handle being benched? I have no idea, but the Mets have to do something with Reyes. I know that Jose puts up great numbers when it doesn’t matter a la A-Rod, but where was Reyes in the ‘06 Playoff, in September ‘07, and in the first half of ‘08? He’s nowhere to be found when there’s pressure or criticism which means he lacks Rocky Balboa heart. It’s a shame with all of that talent. Just like Lorenzo said to Calogero in A Bronx Tale, “There’s nothing worst than wasted talent.”

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Unfortunately, Jerry Manuel lost his Mets debut even with Santana on the mound.  Santana didn’t look good at all last night.  I was pretty annoyed with how Jose Reyes handled him self when he was taken out of the game.  Very classless, and that was in the first inning of Manuel’s debut.  Reyes looked like a baby out there, and then he threw his helmet.  I wish Jerry made an example of him.  I know he said that Reyes’ behavior was unacceptable in the post game which is a start.  Hopefully the Mets can get a victory tonight so they win the series.

Mets.com:

Manuel’s managerial debut spoiled - Rhett Bollinger summarized last night’s Mets-Angels game.

Mets shift their focus to winning games - Rhett Bollinger wrote up a pregame analysis for tonight’s game between the Mets and the Angels.

Newsday:

Omar deserves plenty of blame for Mets’ fiasco

New York Daily News:

Next nightmare will be Omar Minaya’s

Willie Randolph knew he was a ‘dead man walking’

New zookeeper for flawed Mets as Jerry Manuel inherits mess

New York Post:

KINGS OF QUEENS ACT LIKE CLOWNS

EAST RIVALS NOT PHIL-ING ANY SYMPATHY FOR METS

BIZARRE DAY HAS FITTING END - A FIASCO

PETERSON DESERVED BETTER FATE

New York Times:

New Mets Manager Mixes Intellect With Fire

The Star-Ledger:

In this corner…

Willie’s side of the story

Willie: ‘This happened way, way too early’ - Willie spoke extensively for the first time since being let go by the Mets, and Colin Stephenson captured his thoughts.

More of the same in Manuel’s debut (a loss)

Willie not ready to talk

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The Mets are in Chicago for a quick two-game set with the Cubies.  By quick, I mean that the Mets will play a night game followed by a day game and then they leave the Windy City.  Tonight’s game begins at 7:05 p.m. ET, and tomorrow’s game begins at 2:20 p.m. ET.  Here’s the pitching matchups for this series:

• 04/21/2008 - John Maine (1-1) - Carlos Zambrano (2-1)
• 04/22/2008 - Nelson Figueroa Jr. (1-0) - Ted Lilly (0-3)

Hopefully, the Metropolitans can rebound from last night’s loss and sweep this two-game series against the Cubs.  It’s time for the Mets to stomp on the NL, seriously.  It will make up for losing the series to the Brewers.  After this Chicago trip, the Mets head down for a quick series in D.C.  It’s the first time the Mets will play the Nats in their new stadium.  On the weekend, the Mets host the Braves at Shea, and it’s on.

Mets.com:

Chicago busy with Mets, Yanks - In case you didn’t know this already, Anthony DiComo reminds us that both New York teams will be playing in the Windy City on Tuesday.

Mets rally, but can’t sweep Phillies - Marty Noble summarized last night’s game between the Mets and the Phillies.

Mets no strangers to ‘grind’ of season - Marty Noble put together a pregame analysis for tonight’s game between the Mets and the Cubs.

Schneider out with bruised right forearm - Marty Noble pointed out that Brian Schneider didn’t play in last night’s game due to a bruised right forearm.  Schneider is expected to return to the lineup tonight in Chicago.

Alou progressing in rehab stint - Joseph Santoliquito tells us how Moises Alou is doing with his rehab assignment down in Port St. Lucie.  If all goes well then Alou may be back at Shea this weekend when the Mets host the Braves.

Church was ready to toe slab - Marty Noble pointed out that Ryan Church would’ve pitched in the 14-inning game last week against the Nationals.  It turns out that Church was a pitcher during his freshman year at the University of Nevada which was eight years ago.

Newsday:

Three Phillies HRs negate Mets’ comeback - Anthony Rieber also summarized last night’s game between the Mets and the Phillies.

Everything adding up for Mets’ rising star Wright - Johnette Howard wrote an article about how David Wright is a rising star.

Mets’ Schneider sits with bruised forearm

New York Daily News:

Pedro Feliz slugs pinch-hit homer to lift Phillies past Mets, 5-4 - Adam Rubin summarized last night’s game between the Mets and the Phillies as well.

Mets’ Home Run Apple loved to core - Anthony McCarron tells us why the Home Run Apple is loved.

Moises Alou may return Friday

A Shea honor for Jack Lang - Adam Rubin reported that, “The Mets will honor the late Daily News sports writer Jack Lang with a ceremony and video tribute before Saturday’s 1:10 p.m. game against the Braves at Shea. Lang, who died in January 2007, covered the Mets for 25 years, from the team’s inception in 1962.”

Brian Schneider: One day at a time

New York Post:

HOMER COOKIN’ BEATS METS - Bart Hubbuch also wrote up a game summary about last night’s Mets-Phillies game.

WILLIE: NO SYMPATHY FOR PHIL ILLS - Bart Hubbuch captured Willie Randolph’s thoughts on the injuries that the Phillies are suffering.  Willie said, “Welcome to the club, just like everybody else. No one feels sorry for us when we have injuries, so we’re definitely not going to feel sorry for them, that’s for sure. Injuries are part of the game. We’ve got guys out, too.”

AMAZIN’ OPPORTUNITY MISSED - Mike Vaccaro lets us know that the Mets missed out on a golden opportunity by not being able to sweep the Phillies.

PELFREY ON RIGHT TRACK - Dan Tomasino liked what he saw out of Mike Pelfrey last night.

New York Times:

Two Homers From Utley as Phillies Top the Mets

The Star-Ledger:

Greetings from Chicago

Mets fall in series finale

Forearm bruise sits Schneider

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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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Who doesn’t love it when they know the Mets have a chance to sweep a divisional rival?  We know it’s a 50/50 chance tonight, and it is less stressful to watch the final game of a series that has already been won.  It makes it even better when the Metsies do it to the NL East Champs.  Today’s game begins at 8:05 p.m., and it will be aired on ESPN.  Mike Pelfrey will be facing Adam Eaton, and you don’t want to miss it. 

Mets.com:

Heilman gets right back on horse - Marty Noble walks us through the eighth inning of yesterday’s game between the Mets and the Phillies where Aaron Heilman came in and struck out two batters with the bases loaded.

Pelfrey, Mets go for sweep of rival Phils - Joseph Santoliquito put together a pregame analysis for tonight’s game between the Mets and the Phillies.

Schneider sore, OK after injury scare - Marty Noble reported that the Mets thought that Brian Schneider might of suffered a broken bone in his right arm from a foul tip by Chase Utley on a 97-mph fastball from Billy Wagner that struck Schneider on the top of the forearm and eliminated some of the function of the arm.  Noble wrote that, “X-rays were negative, and Schneider intended to ice it all night. But the Mets were already making plans to summon an understudy from their Triple-A team.”

Mets putting last year in rearview mirror - Mike Bauman feels like the Mets are turning the page of 2007 by beating the Phillies four straight games.

Reyes feeling no ill effects after collision - Joseph Santoliquito wrote that, “Jose Reyes woke up Saturday morning without any swelling or wooziness and without feeling any after effects of being jarred in the head by the knee of Phillies second baseman Chase Utley while attempting to steal second in the third inning of Friday night’s game.”

Randolph not happy about missed sign - Joseph Santoliquito found out that Willie Randolph wasn’t happy that Luis Castillo didn’t pick up the signal for a suicide squeeze during Friday night’s game against the Phillies.  If Castillo can’t even walk then how is he supposed to pick up a sign, or more importantly execute anything.  I have no idea how Luis got a four-year deal worth more than the league minimum when they guy can’t walk, hit, or field.

Newsday:

Start spreading news: Starters ace it! - Johnette Howard pointed out how great the starting pitchers have been for the Mets so far this season.

Mets beat Phillies, 4-2, for fifth straight win - David Lennon summarized last night’s game between the Mets and the Phillies.

Determination, patience land Figueroa with Mets - Barbara Barker wrote up a Bio about Nelson Figueroa Jr., and how he ended up back on the Mets.

METS NOTEBOOK: Battered battery member - David Lennon also talks about the injury status of Schneider.

New York Daily News:

Jose Reyes, Oliver Perez lead Mets past Phillies for fourth straight time - Adam Rubin also summarized yesterday’s game between the Phillies and the Mets.

Cheering over Jose Reyes injury pains Billy Wagner - Adam Rubin gathered the thoughts of Billy Wagner on the Phillies fans after they booed when Reyes getting the wind knocked out of him.  Wagner said,

It’s really sad when humanity comes to the point where somebody getting hurt, it’s fun to watch. It’s sad when that happens. Nobody wants anybody to get hurt. I don’t want Jimmy Rollins getting hurt. I don’t want Pat Burrell to get hurt. I don’t want none of these guys. I want to compete against these guys because they’re the best, and you want to beat the best. You don’t want excuses. When you see Reyes laying there - it’s a tough shot, a clean play - and the fans cheering that he’s hurt, that just goes and shows you volumes about where our society is headed.

Brian Schneider’s arm hit on foul tip, swells up

New York Post:

IN THE ‘BANK’ - Bart Hubbuch discusses the Mets-Phillies rivalry

METS TAKE SHOTS AT PHIL FANS

METS PLAN ON EDDIE TO BE THERE IN END - Tim Bontemps tells us how Eddie Kunz is doing down in the Minors.

HEILMAN KING FOR A DAY

New York Times:

With Mets on Edge, Heilman Prevents a Fall

Hit by Hit, Wright Puts Last Season Behind Him

The Star-Ledger:

Three Sunday Thoughts (Mets Edition)

Mets take it to Phillies again

Schneider hit, X-rays negative

Final: Mets 4, Phillies 2 - Jeremy Cothran summarized yesterday’s game between the Mets and the Phillies yesterday.

News, notes & lineups: Game 17 - Jeremy Cothran provided the lineup and more for yesterday’s game between the Mets and the Phillies.

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The New York Mets (9-6) are playing Game 16 of the 2008 Regular Season against the Philadelphia Phillies (8-9) at Citizens Bank Park.  It’s the second game of the three-game series.  The game began at 3:55 p.m., and it was aired on FOX.

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

Phillies Lineup: Taguchi, Werth, Utley, Howard, Burrell, Feliz, Coste, Bruntlett, Moyer.

At the Plate

Jamie Moyer (1-0) was the starting pitcher for the Phillies.  In the Top of the 1st, Reyes hit the first pitch down the left field line for a standup double.  Church lined the ball to right, but Taguchi dropped the ball so Church ended up with a no-out single and Reyes held up at second.  With Wright in the batters box, Reyes stole third without a throw.  David Wright hit a 2-run gaper to right center for a no-out double scoring Jose Reyes and Ryan Church.  Beltran popped up to second.  Delgado grounded out to first, and Wright moved over to third.  Pagan grounded out to third to end the inning.  Moyer gave up 3 Hits, 2 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 1st Inning.  In the Top of the 2nd, Schneider grounded a single through the hole on the right side for a leadoff single.  Castillo worked the count full before grounded to second, and the Phillies turned the double play.  Perez blooped an opposite field single.  Reyes flied out to left center to leave Perez stranded.  Moyer gave up 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Top of the 3rd, Wright grounded a one-out single to short that went under the legs the diving Bruntlett.  With Beltran in the batters box, Coste threw out Wright as he attempted to steal second.  Beltran grounded towards first, and Moyer fielded the ball and flipped it to Howard to end the inning.  Moyer gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 3rd Inning.  In the Top of the 4th, Moyer sent the Mets down in order.  Moyer gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 4th Inning.  In the Top of the 5th, Perez drew a one-out walk on four pitches.  Reyes flied out to left center, and Werth made the catch.  Church lined a two-out single into left center, and Perez moved over to second.  Wright lined out to center to leave two Mets stranded.  Moyer gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 5th Inning.  In the Top of the 6th, Moyer pitched a 1-2-3 inning.  Moyer gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.  Moyer left the game after pitching 6.0 Innings allowing 7 Hits, 2 Runs, 2 ER, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO.

Manuel replaced Moyer with Ryan Madson to begin the Top of the 7th.  Schneider grounded out to first.  Castillo drew a one-out walk.  Chavez is pinch hitting for Sanchez, and Chavez grounded to first and Howard bobbled the ball so he could only make the out at first as Castillo moved over to second.  Jose Reyes jacked a two-out 2-run shot to right scoring Luis Castillo and himself.  Church grounded out to second to end the inning.  Madson gave up 1 Hits, 2 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 7th Inning.  In the Top of the 8th, Madson retired the side in order.  Madson gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 8th Inning.  Madson left the game after pitching 2.0 Innings allowing 1 Hit, 2 Runs, 2 ER, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs.

Manuel replaced Madson with Chad Durbin to begin the Top of the 9th.  Schneider drew a one-out walk.  Castillo grounded a one-out single up the middle and Schneider moved over to second.  Anderson is pinch hitting for Heilman, and Anderson grounded to the pitcher but the Phillies turned the double play to leave two Mets on base.  Durbin gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 9th Inning.

On the Mound

Oliver Perez (1-0) was the starting pitcher for the Mets.  In the Bottom of the 1st, Perez quickly retired the top of the lineup in order.  Perez gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 1st Inning.  In the Bottom of the 2nd, Perez struck out Howard and Burrell before giving up a two-out walk to Feliz .  Coste lined a single into left field, and Feliz advanced to second.  Bruntlett popped up in foul territory along the first base line, and Delgado made the catch to leave two Phillies stranded.  Perez gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 2 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 3rd, Taguchi grounded a one-out single through the hole on the right side.  Werth flied out to right.  Utley drew a two-out walk.  Perez caught Howard looking at strike three to leave to runners on.  Perez gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 2 SOs in the 3rd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 4th, Coste drew a two-out walk.  Bruntlett grounded to third, and Wright made the force play at second to end the inning.  Perez gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 4th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 5th, Taguchi grounded to the pitcher, and the ball bounced off of Perez towards second so Taguchi beat out the play for a one-out single (Randolph and the trainor came out to the mound to check on Perez).  Perez got Werth swinging at strike three.  Utley lined a two-out single into center, and Taguchi went first to third.  Howard flied out to left to leave runners on the corners.  Perez gave up 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 5th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 6th, Feliz drew a one-out walk.  Coste grounded to short, and Reyes got the out at second but Coste beat out the play at first on the double play attempt.  With Bruntlett in the batters box, Perez threw a wild pitch so Coste advanced to second.  After 13 pitches, Bruntlett drew a two-out walk.  Rollins is pinch hitting for Moyer, and Rollins .  This move by Manuel brought Randolph out to the mound to make a pitching change.  Perez gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 2 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.  Perez left the game after pitching 5.2 Innings allowing 4 Hits, 0 Runs, 5 BBs, and he had 7 SOs.

Randolph replaced Perez with Duaner Sanchez with two outs in the Bottom of the 6th.  Rollins grounded out to first to leave two Phillies stranded.  Sanchez gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.

Randolph replaced Sanchez with Scott Schoeneweis to begin the Bottom of the 7th.  Chase Utley pulled a two-out home run to left.  Schoeneweis fanned Howard.  Schoeneweis gave up 1 Hit, 1 Run, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 7th Inning.

Randolph replaced Schoeneweis with Joe Smith to begin the Bottom of the 8th.  Burrell drew a leadoff walk.  Feliz grounded out to third as Burrell moved over to second.  Dobbs is pinch hitting for Coste.  This move by Manuel brought Randolph out to the mound for a pitching change.  Smith gave up 1 Hits, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 8th Inning.

Randolph replaced Smith with Pedro Feliciano with one out in the Bottom of the 8th.  Dobbs worked the count full prior to dropping a pop up into shallow center for a one-out single, and Burrell advanced to third.  Bruntlett drew a one-out walk to load the bases.  Feliciano gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 8th Inning.

Randolph replaced Feliciano with Aaron Heilman with one out in the Bottom of the 8th.  Ruiz is pinch hitting for Madson, and Carlos Ruiz lined an RBI single into left scoring Pat Burrell.  Jenkins is pinch hitting for Taguchi, and Heilman fanned Jenkins after falling behind 3-1.  Then Heilman got Werth to strike out leaving the bases juiced like Scott Schoeneweis.  Heilman gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 8th Inning.

Randolph replaced Heilman with Billy Wagner to begin the Bottom of the 9th.  Wagner came in and slammed the door on the Phillies.  Wagner gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 9th Inning.

Final Score: New York Mets 4 - Philadelphia Phillies 2.  The MLB.com Box Score is attached.  Oliver Perez (2-0) got the win and Jamie Moyer (1-1) got the loss.

Before I talk about the Mets, I would like to thank FOX for not making us suffer through another game having to listen to Joe Morgan.  We had to listen to him two weeks ago, and that was more than enough for the season.

Back to the Mets…They are on a roll now.  They already took the series from the Phillies down in Philly.  Tomorrow, Mike Pelfrey will face Adam Eaton as the Mets have the opportunity to sweep their second divisional foe in row.  The Mets now won the first two series against the Phillies in ‘08.  That’s awesome.  The Mets also won their fourth straight game today so they finish the day with a 10-6 record.  We have to start giving some props.  Mr. Wright continues to drive in half of the runs each day.  Props to Willie for trying not to put in Heilman because Mets fans don’t want to see him, but it backfired on him.  Heilman ended up striking out two batters in a row to get out of a bases loaded jam.  So props to Heilman.  Reyes has been on fire since Beltran’s little pep talk.  Church has done a great job batting in to two spot.  The starters have been really good this year also.  The Bullpen seems like it has gotten better than early on, but they still need to improve.  Beltran and Delgado are struggling.  Pagan’s hot streak has diminished.

The Mets have quickly turned the tide on the Phils.  They are now on a 4-game winning streak against them.  I do have to point out that they haven’t been at full strenght.  Rollins hasn’t played in four out of five games.  Victorino hasn’t played in most of the games.  Howard is batting .182.  The Mets stuck it to them when they were down, but it will be more difficult when they are healthy.  For now, great job by the Mets.  Hopefully, we’ll see another sweep tomorrow.

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Well, the Mets were fortunate enough to take the first game from the Phillies in this series as opposed to losing the first game of the series last time them faced each other at Shea.  New York now won the last three games against Philadelphia which is much better than the 9-game losing streak.  Also, the Amazins’ have won their last four games against NL East rivals which puts them back on top of the division.  Now, the Metropolitans only need to win one out of two to win the series.  If they get really lucky then they will sweep the Phils.  Boy, that would be wonderful.  Two straight division sweeps.  After all of the Phillies fans booed Reyes when he got the wind knocked out of him, I hope the Mets sweep the Phils.

Mets.com:

Jackson recollects first win at Shea - Marty Noble pointed out that today is the 44th Anniversary of the Mets first win at Shea, and Al Jackson was the starting pitcher.  Noble captured Jackson’s thoughts of that game.

Johan, Mets get better of Hamels, Phils - Marty Noble talked about what a great game Johan Santana pitched last night against the Phillies.

Perez gets another shot vs. Moyer, Phils - Andy Jasner put together a pregame analysis for today’s game between the Mets and the Phillies.

Santana delivers clutch performance - Mike Bauman describes Santana’s outstanding performance last night against the Phillies.

Wright solves Hamels with four-hit night - Andy Jasner talks about David Wright’s 4-Hit night against Cole Hamels.

Reyes OK after colliding with Utley - Andy Jasner stated that Jose Reyes was shaken up on the slide into second, but he was tough enough to remain in the game.  Jasner didn’t write anything about the Phillies fans booing Reyes, but they sould be ashamed of themselves for that.  Classless, but that’s why they booed Santa at the Eagles game and put a jail in Veterans Stadium.  Did the jail get moved to Pro Player Stadium and Citizens Bank Park?  If not then we’ll see how long it takes Philadelphia to put one in each stadium.

Feeling better, Beltran returns to lineup - Andy Jasner pointed out that Carlos Beltran felt better and returned to the lineup last night.

Wagner downplays Mets-Phils rivalry - Ken Mandel found that Billy Wagner says players on the Mets and Phillies get along.

Newsday:

Santana back on track, outduels Hamels - David Lennon summarized last night’s game between the Mets and the Phillies.

Alou’s progress thrills Mets; Reyes takes hard hit - David Lennon reported on the progress of Moises Alou.  Alou was the DH in an extended spring training game last night and took 5 at bats.  This means that he’s getting close to returning to the team.

New York Daily News:

Mets beat Phillies in rivalry game, Johan Santana strikes out 10 in 6-4 win - Adam Rubin summarized last night’s game between the Mets and the Phillies.

New York Post:

AMAZIN’ SANTANA - Bart Hubbuch also covered Johan’s performance last night.

1ST PLACE IS SWEET SPOT - Mike Vaccaro noted that the Mets are in first place.

REYES OK AFTER SECOND-BASE COLLISION

RIVALRY SHORT ONE PLAYER - Tim Bontemps pointed out that Jimmie Rollins was not in the lineup for the Phillies last night due to a sprained his left ankle.

New York Times:

Two Lefties Square Off, and Santana Gets It Right

A Catcher and an Ace Build Trust in Each Other - Jack Curry describes the building relationship betweent Santana and Brian Schneider.

The Star-Ledger:

Mets-Phillies redux

Mets’ ace outduels Phillies’

Reyes collides but keeps ticking

Wrapping up from Citizens Bank

Bottom 9 from Ridgewood - Dan Graziano discusses the Bottom of the 9th of last night’s game with Billy Wagner on the mound.

Final: Mets 6, Phillies 4 - Jeremy Cothran summarized last night’s game between the Mets and the Phillies also.

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The New York Mets (8-6) are playing Game 15 of the 2008 Regular Season against the Philadelphia Phillies (8-8) at Citizens Bank Park.  It’s the first game of the three-game series.  The game began at 7:10 p.m., and it was aired on CW11.

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

Phillies Lineup: Taguchi, Werth, Utley, Howard, Burrell, Feliz, Ruiz, Bruntlett, Hamels.

At the Plate

Cole Hamels (2-1) was the starting pitcher for the Phillies.  In the Top of the 1st, Church drew a one-out walk.  With Wright in the batters box, Hamels threw a passed ball so Church advanced to second.  David Wright drove an RBI double off the left field wall which scored Ryan Church.  Beltran lined out to short, and Wright was in between second and third so the Phillies turned the double play to end the inning.  Hamels gave up 1 Hit, 1 Run, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 1st Inning.  In the Top of the 2nd, Schneider grounded a two-out single through the middle.  Castillo flied out to left to end the inning leaving one stranded.  Hamels gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 2nd Inning.  In the Top of the 3rd, Reyes drew a one-out walk on four pitches.  Church flied out to the warning track in center.  With Wright in the batters box, Reyes stole second safely (However, Reyes slid into Utley’s knee which knocked the wind out of him for a minute.  Randolph and the trainors checked him out on field, and they let him play on.).  David Wright lined an RBI triple that a diving Werth couldn’t catch so the ball kept rolling toward the fence, and Jose Reyes came around to score.  Beltran flied out to left to end the inning.  Hamels gave up 1 Hit, 1 Run, 1 BB, and he had 1 SO in the 3rd Inning.  In the Top of the 4th, Schneider lined a two-out double into right.  Castillo grounded out to third, and Feliz made the out at first to end the inning.  Hamels gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 4th Inning.  In the Top of the 5th, Hamels pitched his first 1-2-3 inning.  Hamels gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 5th Inning.  In the Top of the 6th, Wright lined a leadoff single into left (Wright needs a home run for the cycle).  Beltran grounded out to short, and Bruntlett made the force out at second.  Delgado popped up to second.  Pagan lined a two-out single into right, and Beltran moved over to second.  Schneider flied out to left to leave two Mets stranded.  Hamels gave up 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 6th Inning.  In the Top of the 7th, Hamels sent the Mets down 1-2-3.  Hamels gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 7th Inning.  In the Top of the 8th, Church led off pulling the ball off the wall in the right field corner for a single.  Wright lined a no-out double into the left field corner, and Church went first to third.  Hamels intentionally walked Beltran to load the bases.  Hamels gave up 2 Hits, 3 Runs, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 7th Inning.  Hamels left the game after pitching 7.0 Innings allowing 8 Hits, 5 Runs, 4 ER, 3 BBs, and he had 4 SOs.

Manuel replaced Hamels with J.C. Romero with no outs in the Top of the 8th.  Carlos Delgado grounded an RBI single to first, but Howard bobbled the ball and made the tag at first as Ryan Church came home to score.  Angel Pagan lined a one-out RBI double into the gap in right center, and David Wright came around to score and Beltran moved over to third.  Brian Schneider grounded a one-out RBI single through the hole on the left side scoring Carlos Beltran and Pagan advanced to third.  Castillo grounded to third, and Feliz made the out at first as Schneider moved over to second.  Romero fanned Santana to end the inning.  Romero gave up 2 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and 1 SO in the 8th Inning.

Manuel replaced Romero with Brad Lidge to begin the Top of the 9th.  Church lined a one-out single into right.  Wright drew a one-out walk.  Beltran grounded to first, and Howard (Error on Ryan Howard) deflected the ball so everyone was safe.  Carlos Delgado sacrifice flied to left, and Ryan Church came home to score.  With Pagan in the batters box, Lidge threw a wild pitch so both runners advanced.  Pagan flied out to left to end the inning.  Lidge gave up 1 Hit, 1 Run, 1 BB, and he had 0 SOs in the 9th Inning.

On the Mound

Johan Santana (1-2) was the starting pitcher for the Mets.  In the Bottom of the 1st, Santana sent the top of the lineup down in order.  Santana gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 1st Inning.  In the Bottom of the 2nd, Burrell lined a one-out single into left.  Feliz lined out to center.  Ruiz checked his swing, but the Umpire said he went around to leave one runner aboard.  Santana gave up 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 2nd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 3rd, Santana pitched a 1-2-3 inning.  Santana gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 3rd Inning.  In the Bottom of the 4th, Utley grounded a one-out single through the legs of Delgado (Error on Carlos Delgado).  Santana caught Howard to chase strike three.  Burrell lined out to center to end the inning.  Santana gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 2 SOs in the 4th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 5th, Santana retired the side.  Santana gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 5th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 6th, Santana sent the Phillies down in order for the second straight inning.  Santana gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and 1 SO in the 6th Inning.  In the Bottom of thr 7th, Chase Utley led off the inning with a solo shot to deep center field.  Howard grounded out to first.  Santana struck Burrell out swinging.  Feliz grounded out to short to end the inning.  Santana gave up 1 Hit, 1 Run, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 7th Inning.  In the Bottom of the 8th, Ruiz lined a leadoff single into left field.  Bruntlett lined a no-out single into shallow center, and Ruiz moved over to second.  Coste has been announced as a pinch hitter.  Santana gave up 2 Hits, 3 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 8th Inning. Santana left the game after pitching 7.0 Innings allowing 4 Hits, 3 Runs, 3 ER, 0 BBs, and he had 10 SOs.

Randolph replaced Santana with Aaron Heilman with no outs in the Bottom of the 8th.  Dobbs is pinch hitting for Coste, and Greg Dobbs jacked a 3-Run shot to right field scoring Carlos Ruiz, Eric Bruntlett, and himself.  Jenkins is pinch hitting for Taguchi, and Jenkins flied out to right center.  Werth grounded out to second.  Heilman gave up 1 Hit, 1 Run, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 8th Inning.

Randolph replaced Heilman with Pedro Feliciano with two outs in the Bottom of the 8th.  Feliciano struck out Utley swinging to end the inning.  Feliciano gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 1 SO in the 8th Inning.

Randolph replaced Feliciano with Billy Wagner to begin the Bottom of the 9th.  Wagner retired the side in order to get the save.  Wagner gave up 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 0 BBs, and he had 0 SOs in the 9th Inning.

Final Score: New York Mets 6 - Philadelphia Phillies 4.  The MLB.com Box Score is attached.  Johan Santana (2-2) got the win and Cole Hamels (2-2) got the loss.

The Mets are on a roll now.  They just won four straight division games.  Santana pitched a gem tonight against Hamels who also pitched well.  Wright continues to lead this team by going 4-4 at the plate, he drove in two runs, and he had a walk.  Delgado had two RBIs without even getting a hit, but he made positive outs.  Most of the lineup contributed to tonight’s offensive attack which is a good thing.  The only issue I had tonight was the 3-run homer by the pinch hitter Dobbs.  Heilman continues to give those up.  Fortunately, the Mets added an insurance run in the Top of the 9th, and held onto the lead.  Hopefully the Mets will be able to win at least two out of three this weekend down in Philly.

The Mets are 9-6 now which moved them into 1st Place.  Atlanta is the only team in the division that is still in progress, but they only have 6 wins and can’t skip my boys in orange and blue.  See what a 4-game winning streak can do?  Let’s see if the Mets can run away with the division now.

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