Definitely agree that it's tough to have an off day when you're hot, but that off day allowed Mendoza to deploy the bullpen aggressively which is likely a major part of why they won. I'll take the trade off and hope they don't have a lull on Friday. Citi ought to be rocking, so I am not expecting a lull.
What a fun group to root for; they all seem extremely happy to be here too. Winker sounds like he has had a life long dream fulfilled being on this team; can't recall someone sounding so openly happy about being on a team like he does in the post game interviews.
Did you see what the Padres bullpen did yesterday? Very formidable, late and close. They are a very tough team with Tatis back. At the same time, Darvish struggled on his return. Such a strange up-and-down player. At his best, there's no one better. But he goes through entire seasons without reaching that potential.
Darvish is coming back at the right time though. He should make at least three more starts and if he's healthy, he will be ready for them in the playoffs. He's up and down but when he pulls the string...
I don’t get the feeling Megil offers much to stick around in the pen. He looks indifferent on the mound and when he got the hook not many players were giving him props. I feel he’s not the most liked guy on the team. I know I’m not any expert reading body language or in that clubhouse either. Mendoza speaking after the game seemed miffed how he pitched like they were telling him to use certain pitches and he ignored them. Again, I’m nobody but it was the feeling I got. If this team is that in tune with each other it might be the first time I’ve seen this as a Mets fan. Those double plays were a thing of beauty. Iglesias and Lindor look like ballerinas out there when they turn two. McNeil gets it done too but it looks more mechanical and I’m not complaining at all just an observation because they were all a thing of beauty. That Jaren Duran would look damn good in a Mets uniform. The Mets defense kept the team in front which certainly took the wind out of the Red Sox sails. If this team can keep this up and then tack on late? I’m not sure anyone stands in our way. Gotta take the day off and enjoy it. Let’s go Mets!
I watched Megill's postgame interview, and he sounded and looked depressed. Listless, clueless, worthless. He showed no eagerness to go to the pen and, obviously, who would he replace? Clearly he should go to AAA and continue to work as a starter. While I've always thought he should be tried as a reliever, it's too late now for this season. We went out and traded for better players. Going into this game, I had hoped that Mendoza would do exactly what he did. Short leash on Megill -- don't let this guy lose the game for us -- and ride the pen hard with a day off tomorrow. Excellent.
I should add that he got two starts and a golden opportunity, once again, to be a part of this pennant drive. If he pitched one very good game last night -- 6 innings, 1 run, good body language, some fire -- he would have earned the next start. While Blackburn seems like an outstanding guy, and a competitor, he needs everything to be working to be effective. A good #5 guy in the rotation. But we can hardly have confidence in his next start. The job was there for the taking and Megill -- again, again, again -- failed to grasp the gold ring.
When there was 25 games left, I hoped for a 15-10 finish, 88 wins, not sure if that would be enough or not. Given the difficulty of the schedule, etc, 15 seemed like a lot to hope for. Now there are 22 games left and 12-10 does not seem good enough. One of us talked about a clean 90 wins and sure, sign me up for 90 wins. 14-8 the rest of the way.
It's a little sad to scroll through the scores to see that the Dbacks, Braves, and Padres all won again. However, I guess that's what a good race should be like, not mediocre teams fumbling for a last spot. For fans that hope to make the playoffs . . . these ARE the playoffs. We're already in it. Get to CitiField if you can.
I think a key was not allowing Devers to hot a "3-run shot for a quick 3 spot". He came everytime seemingly with men on base. He killed the Yankees this way. Living in New England and in the wrong part of CT.. Its a pleasure to wear Mets stuff among Red Sox and Yankee fans ! The rest is pure gravey ! Lets Go Mets.
Yes on Devers. The other was pulling Megill after 4 innings. Recognizing the moment, the player, the schedule. It was all smart. It looks like the Mets got a manager. That's huge.
This might sound crazy but i firmly believe it'll take AT LEAST 90 wins to earn a NL Wildcard spot this year. And i'm 50/50 on the Mets winning that many games. BUT, whereever they'll End up in Standings - 2024 was a HELL OF A RIDE from the final out of the London Series until today.
What a great season! Jimmy P is right. This is the playoffs.
12-10 won’t get us to the next round, however. With 3 games against ATL, I think it will still be in play at that time. We have 16 games before then, and Atlanta has 16 after their game tonight. It might be tied after tonight, or it might be ATL with a 1 game advantage. We need to keep up the pace we’ve been on for the past 80 games, not try to win this with a .500 run, right? 10-6, 11-5 over the next 16 and we should be in good shape heading into ATL. 9-7? 8-8? That won’t do it unless ATL goes into a nosedive too. And that would be an awful high stress way to go.
I am not sure I have ever attended a game where so many things happened: grand slam, walk parade and three DP's in three innings. It was not a sell-out crowd but it was a hardcore crowd. There are 10 home games left and they'll all be like this. I urge you to take in one of those games.
What I find interesting about Winker is how soft spoken his is. Even his stance at the plate is quiet and compact. Not sure how he generates his power but he's a fun player to watch.
Definitely agree that it's tough to have an off day when you're hot, but that off day allowed Mendoza to deploy the bullpen aggressively which is likely a major part of why they won. I'll take the trade off and hope they don't have a lull on Friday. Citi ought to be rocking, so I am not expecting a lull.
What a fun group to root for; they all seem extremely happy to be here too. Winker sounds like he has had a life long dream fulfilled being on this team; can't recall someone sounding so openly happy about being on a team like he does in the post game interviews.
Excellent essay today! And yes the DPs were the key. If any of those grounders find a hole we likely lose.
Mets may be off, but Braves, Padres, and Dbacks all play. Lets gain a half a game on each team!
And the Padres face Snell !
or at least one of them
Did you see what the Padres bullpen did yesterday? Very formidable, late and close. They are a very tough team with Tatis back. At the same time, Darvish struggled on his return. Such a strange up-and-down player. At his best, there's no one better. But he goes through entire seasons without reaching that potential.
Darvish is coming back at the right time though. He should make at least three more starts and if he's healthy, he will be ready for them in the playoffs. He's up and down but when he pulls the string...
I saw a bunch of zeroes. I’m not counting on catching them. I still think Arizona is more in play.
Same.
I don’t get the feeling Megil offers much to stick around in the pen. He looks indifferent on the mound and when he got the hook not many players were giving him props. I feel he’s not the most liked guy on the team. I know I’m not any expert reading body language or in that clubhouse either. Mendoza speaking after the game seemed miffed how he pitched like they were telling him to use certain pitches and he ignored them. Again, I’m nobody but it was the feeling I got. If this team is that in tune with each other it might be the first time I’ve seen this as a Mets fan. Those double plays were a thing of beauty. Iglesias and Lindor look like ballerinas out there when they turn two. McNeil gets it done too but it looks more mechanical and I’m not complaining at all just an observation because they were all a thing of beauty. That Jaren Duran would look damn good in a Mets uniform. The Mets defense kept the team in front which certainly took the wind out of the Red Sox sails. If this team can keep this up and then tack on late? I’m not sure anyone stands in our way. Gotta take the day off and enjoy it. Let’s go Mets!
I watched Megill's postgame interview, and he sounded and looked depressed. Listless, clueless, worthless. He showed no eagerness to go to the pen and, obviously, who would he replace? Clearly he should go to AAA and continue to work as a starter. While I've always thought he should be tried as a reliever, it's too late now for this season. We went out and traded for better players. Going into this game, I had hoped that Mendoza would do exactly what he did. Short leash on Megill -- don't let this guy lose the game for us -- and ride the pen hard with a day off tomorrow. Excellent.
I should add that he got two starts and a golden opportunity, once again, to be a part of this pennant drive. If he pitched one very good game last night -- 6 innings, 1 run, good body language, some fire -- he would have earned the next start. While Blackburn seems like an outstanding guy, and a competitor, he needs everything to be working to be effective. A good #5 guy in the rotation. But we can hardly have confidence in his next start. The job was there for the taking and Megill -- again, again, again -- failed to grasp the gold ring.
Interesting insights on Megill. I don’t think he will have a role on the team for the rest of this year. Or ever.
I love Winker's comments. He gets it.
When there was 25 games left, I hoped for a 15-10 finish, 88 wins, not sure if that would be enough or not. Given the difficulty of the schedule, etc, 15 seemed like a lot to hope for. Now there are 22 games left and 12-10 does not seem good enough. One of us talked about a clean 90 wins and sure, sign me up for 90 wins. 14-8 the rest of the way.
It's a little sad to scroll through the scores to see that the Dbacks, Braves, and Padres all won again. However, I guess that's what a good race should be like, not mediocre teams fumbling for a last spot. For fans that hope to make the playoffs . . . these ARE the playoffs. We're already in it. Get to CitiField if you can.
I think a key was not allowing Devers to hot a "3-run shot for a quick 3 spot". He came everytime seemingly with men on base. He killed the Yankees this way. Living in New England and in the wrong part of CT.. Its a pleasure to wear Mets stuff among Red Sox and Yankee fans ! The rest is pure gravey ! Lets Go Mets.
I did figure Devers was going to hit one out eventually. But they did a great job with him all series.
Yes on Devers. The other was pulling Megill after 4 innings. Recognizing the moment, the player, the schedule. It was all smart. It looks like the Mets got a manager. That's huge.
This might sound crazy but i firmly believe it'll take AT LEAST 90 wins to earn a NL Wildcard spot this year. And i'm 50/50 on the Mets winning that many games. BUT, whereever they'll End up in Standings - 2024 was a HELL OF A RIDE from the final out of the London Series until today.
crazy that it might take 90 wins when at one point it looked like 84 would be good enough - but i agree it'll be in the 88-90 range for sure
Great comments everyone!
What a great season! Jimmy P is right. This is the playoffs.
12-10 won’t get us to the next round, however. With 3 games against ATL, I think it will still be in play at that time. We have 16 games before then, and Atlanta has 16 after their game tonight. It might be tied after tonight, or it might be ATL with a 1 game advantage. We need to keep up the pace we’ve been on for the past 80 games, not try to win this with a .500 run, right? 10-6, 11-5 over the next 16 and we should be in good shape heading into ATL. 9-7? 8-8? That won’t do it unless ATL goes into a nosedive too. And that would be an awful high stress way to go.
I am not sure I have ever attended a game where so many things happened: grand slam, walk parade and three DP's in three innings. It was not a sell-out crowd but it was a hardcore crowd. There are 10 home games left and they'll all be like this. I urge you to take in one of those games.
What I find interesting about Winker is how soft spoken his is. Even his stance at the plate is quiet and compact. Not sure how he generates his power but he's a fun player to watch.
I loved Sherman's line about "relentless competence."