Mets

[Westheim]

MCLEAAAAAAAAAN!!!!!

SEVEN innings from somebody not named Peterson! In one go!

The offense thumped the remainder-Barves for a dozen, which doesn't mean the pen didn't give it an honest go at blowing the game after McLean went seven and gave up just two runs. Garrett gave up two in the eighth, and the worst deadline acquisition I've ever seen, Helsley, was beaten around for three more in the ninth, and Boom-Boom had to put his pants back on. Great job.

[Amazin69]

It took MLB until 1:30 AM to post the highlights, but they were nice. Production up and down the lineup, and even some hustle. It would be nice if the bullpen could finish up with a 10-run lead, but let's look on the bright side…Ryan Hellish got two outs before he allowed any runs. As long as we have the hook ready…

Nolan #2 (I like Mr Mclean, but he is 329 wins behind Mr Ryan…) became the first non-David Peterson Met to go 6 innings since 7th June. Gosh, only 2.5 months? Hope the boy didn't exert himself over-much.

Finishing up with 94 pitches means that McLean could have probably finished the game in fewer than 120 pitches, which was Ronnie's standard back in the day. But Ronnie is in the booth these days, of course, and so 7 innings is noteworthy…sigh.

[Westheim]

Mets hit the cover off the baseballs and the Barves pitchers with six homers, and Clay Holmes also goes six innings and small change

Peeeeeete hit #255, tying for 242nd with ex-Met John Olerud, Kirk Gibson, Adam LaRoche, and the father of another vaunted Mets cleanup hitter, John Mayberry sr.!

McNeil squirreled away a pair of blasts, as did Vientos. Soto had one, apparently this one tied him for 300th all time with Cliff Floyd.

We were also in passing introduced to another Mets SP prospect, Jonah Tong, who I looked up between innings. He looks like 12, but if he can pitch...! Also, McLean looks like he's going hard on 37, so on average it'll be fiiiiiine.

I am very tired. Why am I even up? NASCAR. And I regret all my life choices.

[Déjà Bru]

A sudden thought: You have access to these sports over here, but suffer from the time differential. Couldn't you TiVo (or whatever the equivalent is in your region) these broadcasts, or would that be against your code of sports viewing which demands Live View at all costs?

[Westheim]

There's a NASCAR rerun at 10:30pm my time Sunday, and I have next week off, so I could have watched that one ...

But then I can't go onto the Youtube main page all of tomorrow because it will be full of spoilers. And while I know that, I sometimes go dumb randomly at half past three and click on it anyway.

Regardless, NASCAR just ended, and the little raccoon is vry, very tired now and must cover his eyes with his bushy tail. Farewell, dear people.

[Amazin69]

So now everybody is going six EXCEPT David Peterson? Criminy.

Also it would be nice if we could drive in runs, but Six Most Common Words in English, yada-yada.

[Amazin69]

Final weekend with Brandon and friends:

…we got Tom Glavine, rather than CJ, but he's better without Frenchy, who drives him into chauvinism. Saturday was about honoring the 30th anniversary of the 1995 championship team, so Tom was talking about that all game, which…fair enough.

Today, he was talking a lot about visualizing the game as a starting pitcher, so that was interesting, even if it wasn't pure analysis.

…Gaudin was talking up the Mets offense, noting that they have hit the most home runs of any team in August and scored the 3rd-most runs. Yeah, and look where that has gotten us. Big whoop.

…Clay Matthews, the Braves' music guy, is still doing music for visiting players, which still doesn't make much sense. "Here comes Peter Cottontail" for Alonso seemed a bit silly, but "Toreador" (from Bizet's "Carmen") for Torrens was rather classy.

Apparently, Matthews does this stuff for the Braves players, too. I heard him playing Billy Joel's "Allentown" for Nick Allen and "Iron Man" for Ozzie Albies as a riff on Ozzy Osbourne. Frankly, this would piss me off if I were on the Braves. I'd be all "Er, Clay, you're supposed to play MY music to announce my presence, because I AM PLAYING FOR OUR TEAM. Stick your cheap musical puns in your blowhole."

[Amazin69]

Very nice win tonight, especially with the top of the lineup not doing so much. And who needs starting pitching?

My dad (RIP) would be saying that the Mets should save some of those runs for tomorrow. Miss you, Dad…but you were a bit of a buzzkill, lbr.

[Westheim]

They should flip the lineup and have Torrens bat leadoff and Lindor batting ninth. Would lead to even more runs!

Apparently 31243 (what the Mets did to the Phillies after three leading zeroes) is not a valid zip code, but 312xx is according to Wikipedia assigned to Macon, GA.

But, boy, Soto doesn't slide for anything, huh? Senga can't get anybody out, but how many dinkers have dropped six feet in front of Soto this year?

[Amazin69]

Originally Posted by Westheim

They should flip the lineup and have Torrens bat leadoff and Lindor batting ninth. Would lead to even more runs!

Apparently 31243 (what the Mets did to the Phillies after three leading zeroes) is not a valid zip code, but 312xx is according to Wikipedia assigned to Macon, GA.

But, boy, Soto doesn't slide for anything, huh? Senga can't get anybody out, but how many dinkers have dropped six feet in front of Soto this year?

Somebody should tell Soto he already has the big contract, I guess. I mean, not that I want him to Pete Reiser his career away, but…

[Westheim]

Bring the brooms out, get rid of the Philthies!

McLean becomes the first Mets pitcher EVER to win his first three career starts with the team. Not bad for a 37-year-old rookie!

Ah, it will all even out with Jonah Tong (visual age: 12) coming up for his debut on Friday.

[Amazin69]

Hey now, just because that other "Nolan" fella was a Goodenesque 19 when he first showed, that doesn't mean they all need to be teenagers. Seaver was 22, Koosman was 25, and that de Grom person (currently the all-time leader in ERA and WHIP for starting pitchers with 1000+ IP, since 1920…**** YOU EPPLER!!) was nigh on 26. Sometimes you need to let them ripen on the vine.

And besides, Nolan the Newer is barely turned 24.

Giving thanks for the McLean sweep of the Phils, and glad to report that Swaggy V stayed hot, Super Squirrel showed why he remains my top choice for CF, and Soto continues to hit well wRISP and gave no further cause for me to grouse about his non-efforts, as opposed to Tuesday, when Edmundo Sosa made that great sliding stop of So-So's shot in the 1B hole, spun up to his feet and had plenty of time to make the throw to first, since Mr 765 "wasn't really running", to quote Tom McCarthy.

Had we lost that one, I'd have been fulminating about whether $766 mn would be enough for Juandering Juan to get his ass in gear…but as long as the Ws keep coming, I can kid myself and say it's just "laconic elegance"

When it comes to the Mets, I'm easy, let's face it.

[Westheim]

I know he's "normal" age for a rookie pitcher. He just looks like he has a couple of sons playng on their high school team.

[Déjà Bru]

As we were checking out at the supermarket, my wife greeted someone she had not met in a long time, a friend from work. Immediately, I sought a place to sit down. I found one near the newspaper stand on which there was today's issue of that notorious rag, Newsday.

[What a foolish and predatory outfit that is. I subscribed to Newsday for years until they went crazy with their rates. I stopped it for a while, then tried again; for an online subscription, after a year's teaser rate, they wanted upwards of $40 per month. When I called to complain, I was told that was discounted from their regular subscription rate — online, remember — of $80 per month. Whoosh, gone, and not missed. There are other outlets for Long Island news.]

Anyway, their headline sports story of the day was about this phenom of yours, Nolan McLean. I wish I could link to it or reproduce it here, but Newsday's paywall is very strict. [I also noticed the newstand price, $3.50, which made my jaw drop. But enough about Newsdumb.]

Where did this guy come from? I mean that rhetorically, of course, since I see that the Mets drafted him in the third round. But that was barely two years ago. Is he that good that he flew through the minors? He is a bit elderly for a rookie, though; he turned 24 in July.

[Amazin69]

He was primarily a 3B/OF at Oklahoma State (nickname "Cowboy Ohtani" for being a two-way player) and had to have a shakeout season at Binghamton last season, getting used to working regularly.

It seems to be working out okay, though…

[Westheim]

Sure better than Holmes, who needs to go where the pepper grows, urgently. Maybe South Yonkers.

Also sounds like the Mets to sweep the Phillies before playing an absolute klutz of a game against the FISH. The FISH. And losing that 7-4, despite Pete's best, game-tying-homer efforts. Was his 30th of the year - most 30-homer seasons for the Mets!

But in the field they looked like the guy running around with two mini batting helmets full of ice cream right as the last out was made. Completely clueless.

I sure hope they'll be on better behavior for Jonah Tong's debut tonight! Does the game even start before it's his bedtime...??

[Westheim]

I don't think I've ever seen a game in which both teams used position players to pitch. Jonah Tong pitched at least five (muddled) innings in his debut, and we can't find enough arms to not let this develop into some travesty? How about a long man?

Disgrace, I say!

Yes, I am absolutely guilty of having used the spare outfielder to pitch a blowout WIN to conclusion in OOTP. But the Raccoons' Preston Pinkerton was at least a serviceable two-way player. Torrens is *barely a batter*...

Disgrace, I say!

Tong looked good early, not so good after sitting for most of an hour while the Mets strafed the Fish for a dozen in two innings, and then was almost completely undone by some Three Stooges defense in the fifth inning. Four runs (one earned) in the end.

Yeah, absolute ruckus. I think the blue-blooded nobility in South Yonkers will look at the box score and sneer. No such thing would happen on the New York AL team, where baseball is played the right way, or something like that.

Disgrace, I say!

[Déjà Bru]

Originally Posted by Westheim

I don't think I've ever seen a game in which both teams used position players to pitch. Jonah Tong pitched at least five (muddled) innings in his debut, and we can't find enough arms to not let this develop into some travesty? How about a long man?

Disgrace, I say!

Yes, I am absolutely guilty of having used the spare outfielder to pitch a blowout WIN to conclusion in OOTP. But the Raccoons' Preston Pinkerton was at least a serviceable two-way player. Torrens is *barely a batter*...

Disgrace, I say!

Tong looked good early, not so good after sitting for most of an hour while the Mets strafed the Fish for a dozen in two innings, and then was almost completely undone by some Three Stooges defense in the fifth inning. Four runs (one earned) in the end.

Yeah, absolute ruckus. I think the blue-blooded nobility in South Yonkers will look at the box score and sneer. No such thing would happen on the New York AL team, where baseball is played the right way, or something like that.

Disgrace, I say!

Did you say, "Disgrace"? B-b-b-but the Mets won the game!

I see that position players Javier Sanoja and Luis Torrens combined for 10 earned runs. Sanoja at least finished the game; Torrens was so bad that he couldn't close out the game and had to be bailed out by a real relief pitcher.

[Déjà Bru]

And P-e-e-e-e-te hit his 31st home run yesterday. His 257 career home runs have tied him with Ian Kinsler for 238th place on the all-time list. I also note that he has 110 RBIs already this season; 22 more than last year and it's not even September yet!

Are you feeling alright, Westheim?

[Westheim]

Nah, sending out a position player in the ninth while winning pissed me off.