After a game like Saturday's, in which the Mets fell behind and settled in comfortably from there, it felt fair to wonder if they ever planned to mount a comeback again. Then I remembered it was barely 48 hours ago that they indeed came from five runs behind to eventually win a ballgame. They do apparently maintain a pulse for occasional use no matter how intently they try to hide it.
Was the gut-check win in Pittsburgh really only two days ago? Was it really that recently when we were on a two-game winning streak of one-run victories? Because at this point, a certain numbness has set where the Mets are concerned. They win a couple, they lose a couple, you can't quite get a handle on what they're going to be over the next nine innings. That will happen when your team is 39-41, regardless of how sticky every team in the division outside of Washington seems to be to each other. We're certainly helping the Phillies find unstickiness where their juxtaposition to us is concerned.
On the day our country turned 233, Middle-Aged Man looked as spry as he did when he began his career 23 years ago facing off against Steve Carlton — yes, Jamie Moyer's that ancient. He may have played high school ball with John Dickinson. Moyer entered Saturday's game with an ERA over 6. Suffice to say it has dipped significantly toward 5. Phillies fans say long live Jamie Moyer. Jamie Moyer will live long if he faces this lineup regularly.
The Mets did nothing offensively and less defensively. Paul Bako walked in the sixth after David Wright didn't catch a foul pop. Paul Bako came around to score after Omir Santos didn't catch a foul pop. Two runners moved up because Ryan Church made a lousy throw, Omir Santos didn't cut it down and, just to emphasize what a bush league outfit this is, Pat Misch attempted to back up the play by stopping it with his foot.
It didn't work.
This is what the Mets do in 2009. This part has zero to do with injuries or travel. This is their rampant, unchecked unprofessionalism come home to roost yet again. The Mets are three games out with just over a half-season on tap. Keep telling yourself that as if that and Johan taking the ball Sunday are the balm that will soothe otherwise ineffectual pitching, nonexistent batting and fielding you'd blanch at if it were coming from your kindergartener.
They look tepid when they win. They look dreadful when they lose. They don't compete nearly enough so you can immediately detect a difference. Apparently the Mets take the concept of a holiday weekend seriously as death.
Bad Mets teams somehow seem charming in Faith and Fear in Flushing: An Intense Personal History of the New York Mets, available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or a bookstore near you. Keep in touch and join the discussion on Facebook.
Hi Greg,
Wasn't it Knute Rockne who said “it doesn't matter if you win or lose but how you play the game”?
Well, the Old Gipper's coach must be having kiniptions if he's looking down at this current group of New York Mets right now.
Under the circumstances few expected the team to make much dent in the standings. That's too much to ask of any club riddled with enough injuries to shelve two starters, a set-up man and to field a starting lineup dominated by fringe players, add-ons, rookies, sophmores and veterans on their last legs.
But we did expect them to play hard. Who would have ever thought a “hungry” player would show no spark in the field, shun a golden opportunity to show he has what it takes to make it in the majors, not sit on the bench and has something left in the tank to extend a fading career?
It doesn't say much of the few remaining regulars, either. Yes, losing doesn't make it fun coming to the park but, if only for reasons of selfishness. they should be professinal enough to care about their own individual performances.
Well, the established players have their multi-year contracts. The fringe players knocking around for a few years make at least $400 annually. Even the rookies have a minimum wage nearly six times that of the average American worker.
Maybe we shouldn't be surprised that even hungry players aren't that hungry anymore.
This team is a bad joke. I don't even think the Phillies are laughing.
Jacobs, there are those of us among the (fucking) Phillies fans with half a brain aren't laughing. We're saying, “There but for the grace of God go we.” Oh, we may snicker a bit at your owner and GM, but we're not all that far removed from some truly piss poor front office management ourselves.
Console yourself with this; I would LOVE to see a blog as literate and well written as this devoted to the (fucking) Phillies.
(Full Disclosure here – when I was a kid growing up in the '60's in the woods of Northwest PA, our town was blessed with this funny new thing called 'cable TV'. We didn't get a Cleveland station – no Indians. We didn't get a Pittsburgh station – no Pirates. We did get WPIX and WOR along with the Buffalo stations and CHCH out of Ontario. When I wanted to watch a ballgame, I watched the Mets.)
3 chairs for Captain Spaulding!
David Lennon in Newsday summed it up like this on Saturday.
(I'm parphrasing): The Phillies are missing Raul Ibanez and Bret Myers. Those are significant losses. Now take away Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and Ryan Madson. Then the Phillies will feel the Mets' pain.
Or as Lupica wrote this Sunday: How'd the Yankees be doing w/o A-Rod, Captain Jeter, and Texeira (sp)?? Oh, throw in Burnett too.
Look how they played w/o A-Rod and/or Bruney (8th inning guy)…..
The Mets at this point are tough to watch.