Mets 8, Cardinals 2: Can Jerry Manuel Stay Suspended?

If I were the Mets I would probably appeal Jerry Manuel's suspension which came as a result of his ejection and histrionics in San Francisco. I would bring video evidence and eyewitness accounts of the events. I would solicit expert testimony from folks who understand the appeals process inside and out. I would march into Bud Selig's office and request, nay, demand that Jerry Manuel's suspension be reconsidered and, if at all possible, extended indefinitely.

Not that Dave Jauss actually made any decisions in tonight's game. At least, I hope he didn't. Oh, the win was great, no doubt, but somebody decided to bring Francisco Rodriguez in to an 8-2 game in the ninth inning, and it's the sort of move that has Manuel's fingerprints all over it. I suppose Rodriguez probably needed the work since he wasn't used at all over the weekend in situations of any consequence.

Jon Niese had an interesting outing tonight. He got tons of ground balls -- the majority of them finding David Wright, it seemed -- but he induced just three swinging strikes all night. Hardly dominant, but just one run allowed on seven singles and two walks in six innings. He gave up the run in the first inning, and considering how useless the offense has been of late, a 1-0 deficit to Adam Wainwright seemed almost insurmountable.

But surmount it the Mets did, as the lineup exploded for eight runs on nine hits and five walks. The six runs Wainwright allowed were more than in any previous start this season, with the biggest blow coming in the form of a Jeff Francoeur three-run home run in the fourth. Carlos Beltran's negative energy must have an inverse effect on Francoeur's performance.

The Mets look to make it two in a row when Johan Santana takes on Jaime Garcia on Wednesday night.

Unintentionally sexual quote of the game: "He has holes just like everybody else." -Jon Niese on Albert Pujols (or Poo-Holes). (h/t metsguy234)

Poem by Howard Megdal

After a West Coast trip that was crushing
Mets find their wins, and their runs, back in Flushing
Frenchy hit homer, as his bat went crack
A dozen stories started on how he is "back"
A trade of Niese for an ace you should be dreading
For all that would accomplish is some water-treading

SB Nation Coverage

* Traditional Recap
* Boxscore
* Amazin' Avenue Gamethread
* Viva El Birdos Gamethread

Win Probability Added

Big winners: Carlos Beltran, +17.5% WPA, Jon Niese, +14.9% WPA
Big losers: Jose Reyes, -3.8% WPA, Luis Castillo, -2.4% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Francoeur three-run home run in fourth, +19.3% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Ludwick RBI (infield) single in first, -9.5% WPA
Total pitcher WPA: +32.8% WPA
Total batter WPA: +17.2% WPA
GWRBI!: Jeff Francoeur

Game Thread Roll Call

Nice job by CTRefJay; his effort in the game thread embiggens us all.