It Could Be Worse

by Eric Simon on Jun 23, 2008 11:23 PM EDT in Aftermath Comment 11 comments

I almost feel bad complaining about how the Mets didn't really show up for this game when Mariners' fans just lost the only thing worth rooting for this season.

But, yea, the Mets really phoned this one in. They couldn't get anything going against Felix Hernandez, but he's also a great pitcher and is often unhittable. They managed just two hits in four-plus innings against the beleaguered Mariners' bullpen, finally squeaking a run across in the the ninth when they managed to get the tying run to the plate with just one out. Carlos Delgado against a lefty made that two outs. Damion Easley against anyone unless it's one of the several times a year he comes up with a huge homerun made it three outs and game over.

The Mariners are probably the worst team in baseball. The Nationals are pretty bad, too, and actually have a worse run differential by about -30 while playing in a crappier division. Still, I think we're all in agreement that Seattle blows and anything less than a 2-1 series win would be a significant blow to morale. Thanks to the Mets leaving their bats in Colorado, they have to win the next two games to salvage this thing, and that's seriously in question when you're starting four of the following every day:

Endy Chavez
Trot Nixon
Brian Schneider
Damion Easley
Marlon Anderson
Carlos Delgado

That's a pretty solid bench, not the 5-thru-8 hitters of a $139 million ballclub. But the Mets are skating by with the latter, and we can only hope the Phillies and Braves keep treading water while the Mets wait for Ryan Church's scrambled brains and Carlos Delgado circa two years ago to come and rescue them.

Big winners: Carlos Beltran, +6.7% WPA, Jose Reyes, 2.2% WPA
Big losers: Johan Santana, -22.0% WPA, Carlos Delgado, -11.4% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Beltran 9th inning RBI single, +6.1% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: King Felix goes boom, -29.7% WPA
Total pitcher WPA: -20.7%
Total batter WPA: -29.3%

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Let's get something straight.

Eric, seriously, I love ya, but your consistently surprised when the Mets “phone one in.” This is absolutely normal for this team this year. It’s like Reyes getting a triple. You wouldn’t say:

“Wow, Reyes tripled, that was crazy!”

The post should read:

“Damn, we got one of the two weekly phone-on games. Ah, well.”

And yes, the phone-in games are recognizable by pitchers hitting grand slams, errors on routine ground balls, and a lack of any kind of hitting.

The 2008 NY Mets: Reyes singles. Castillo infield single. Wright walks. Beltran lines out. ZaBlanc bitches. Delgado strikes out. Reyes picked off third. Fans boo. Padres win 2-1.

by ZaBlanc on Jun 24, 2008 10:00 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

That was the old, lethargic, Willie Randolph-led Mets

These were supposed to be the new, dynamic, Jerry Manuel-led Mets. I’m allowed to be surprised once or twice before falling into my rest-of-the-season long apathy for this team again.

by Eric Simon on Jun 24, 2008 10:09 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'm getting tired of this

Why are the Mets failures due to them not having heart or passion, or phoning it in? It’s a weak lineup after Beltran. Here are the career OPS+ for the following players. Chavez 73, Anderson, 84, Easley 92, Schneider 82. Nixon has a career OPS+ of 112 but 96 and 78 the past two years and he was in the minors prior to the trade. And as long teams keep the shift on against Delgado we have a better chance of seeing Jimmy Hoffa than the Delgado of 2006.

Let’s face it…It’s a bad lineup without Alou and Church. We can’t count on Alou coming back and even if Church is healthy at some point he is going to wake up and realize that he is Ryan Church.

This team was built around the fact that Alou would be healthy and Delgado would return to pre 2007 form. Those were both big assumptions that have been predictably wrong. Occasionaly they will get enough production from the big guns and the scrubs to keep things interesting. That is why they are a .500 team. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s not the lack of heart it’s the lack of good players.

by Reg Dunlop on Jun 24, 2008 10:21 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Of course

When I say “phone it in” I really mean “played terribly”, not “didn’t care enough to win”.

by Eric Simon on Jun 24, 2008 10:34 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Didn't mean to jump on you

I know what you are saying. It’s just that so many people I talk to really do blame it on a “lack of (insert cliched word for passion here)”.
Maybe they can make Tyler Hansbrough a coach so he can “will us to victory” like he did with UNC.

by Reg Dunlop on Jun 24, 2008 10:47 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

thank you.

great post. if only heart and fire could make endy chavez raise his OPS+ by 30.

by gogomets on Jun 24, 2008 10:35 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

One guy?

Methinks you need to pay better attention. How many lineups in the entire league have sluggers in their 6th – 8th spots? No excuses. it’s like declaring we are doing poorly because our 4th and 5th starters aren’t up to par.

Interestingly, It’s ONLY the bottom tier of our lineup that even has hits tonight.

The 2008 NY Mets: Reyes singles. Castillo infield single. Wright walks. Beltran lines out. ZaBlanc bitches. Delgado strikes out. Reyes picked off third. Fans boo. Padres win 2-1.

by ZaBlanc on Jun 24, 2008 9:20 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

That's a pretty solid bench? really?

I guess with Delgado as the first pinch-hitter off the bench it’s adequate, but I’m not so sure that’s the bench I’d want my team to have at this point. To say the least, on a playoff-bound team, many of those guys would be getting a lot of pine time and making a lot of trips back and forth from AAA.

by anonymous on Jun 24, 2008 11:06 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Pretty solid

Nothing spectacular, but you could do a lot worse. Delgado’s got some pop still, Easley’s a nice super-sub type with some power, Chavez is a terrific defensive replacement, Schneider can take a walk. Generally, players significantly better than these guys are starting somewhere, and players exactly as good as these guys are starting right here.

by Eric Simon on Jun 24, 2008 12:31 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

In any case

These are not players we want starting regularly.

by ams258 on Jun 24, 2008 1:02 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

an awful lot of 25th men there

Marlon Anderson probably wouldn’t make the roster on any of the division leaders. Endy Chavez and Damion Easley are basically 25th-man types, utility players. Nixon, honestly, is probably toast at this point in his career, but in any case he’d be little more than a pinch-hitter on a team that had a real starting outfield. This isn’t really a serious debate, but I do think that a lot of that group of players would be nothing special even as the bench for a team that had better starters.

by anonymous on Jun 24, 2008 1:26 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs