All the Mets did tonight was start a rookie and beat the best pitcher in the NL. All they have to do tomorrow is start a guy who was sent to the minors by the PIRATES and beat a pitcher who held them scoreless over 8 innings last time out.
No problem.
Go Mets!
If it’s true that anything can happen in a short series, it’s even more true that anything can happen in two games. John Maine can beat Chris Carpenter, and WhoTheHellKnows can beat Jeff Suppan.
Go Mets!
Glavine gets squeezed because they don’t want to give him “the Glavine strike zone,” and then Wainwright gets everything within 6 inches of the plate. Fuck Jeff Kellogg.
No liveblog tonight (or the rest of the series) from me. I’ll be watching tonight from the bowling alley. Tom Glavine on full rest is good. Not much else to say, except GO METS!
As much as I’d like to see a game tonight, and think the Mets have a good shot to win with Glavine vs Weaver both on short rest, I think a rainout helps the Mets tonight more than the Cardinals. In the same way the rainout earlier in the series helped out St. Louis, this would let the Mets rest the bullpen and get Glavine on full rest. Either way, it’s “nice” to have at least one series in the postseason be interesting. I just wish it had been the Detroit/Oakland series. π
No liveblogging from me tonight even if the game does happen, as I’ll be at work and then at the bowling alley for it.
Go Mets!
Update: Well, it’s been rained out. Already postponed an hour and a half before the game. Good for the Mets, I think, though the Cardinals bullpen does get to rest as well. Really, this is just good for the Tigers.
5:06 PM: I’ll give it another shot. First pitch strike from (Anthony) Reyes to (Jose) Reyes. Reyes strikes out swinging at a changeup.
5:09 PM: Lo Duca flies out to pretty deep center field.
5:11 PM: The count runs full on Carlos Beltran… the payoff pitch is ball four.
5:12 PM: The count is 2-0 on Delgado. Molina’s talking to Reyes on the mound. Delgado swings through strike one on a 3-0 count, and then walks on the next pitch.
5:18 PM: Wright works the count full after being down 0-2. Wright flies out to center.
5:22 PM: Eckstein leads off the game with a single to left.
5:24 PM: Spiezio pops out to Valentin in short right center. One out.
5:26 PM: Pujols reaches on an error by Delgado after Reyes makes a great play on a ball off Wright’s glove.
5:28 PM: Perez gets an inning ending double play. So far, so good.
5:34 PM: Green hits a line shot, but right at Edmonds in center. He was right on the ball.
5:36 PM: Valentin is fooled by a changeup, and strikes out.
5:37 PM: Endy Chavez rips a two out single to right, but Oliver Perez is coming up.
5:39 PM: Perez walks! Reyes coming up.
5:42 PM: Reyes pops out to shortstop. Dammit.
5:52 PM: Mister .216, Yadier Molina, gets an RBI single to drive in the first run of the game. 1-0 Cards. It seems like EVERY SINGLE big Cardinals hit has been just an inch or two from being caught. They’ve been very lucky this series. Not that the Mets have done any hitting, so it’s not all luck. Belliard got thrown out at third on the play, and Reyes grounded out to Delgado, inning over.
5:59 PM: Beltran homers! Tied at 1!
6:02 PM: David Wright! GONE! 2-1 Mets!
6:04 PM: Green strikes out to end the inning, but it was a good one.
6:11 PM: Brilliant, a 4 pitch walk to bring up Albert Pujols.
6:14 PM: Encarnacion triples to right center to tie the game, 2-2. Rolen flies out to end the inning.
6:31 PM: Whew. Edmonds flies out to deep left.
6:39 PM: Valentin fails to tag out Belliard to end an inning with a strike-him-out-throw-him-out double play, but then redeems himself by making a great play on Chris Duncan’s groundball up the middle to end it.
6:43 PM: Belliard error, Lo Duca at first. Basehit Beltran, first and second, no out for Delgado.
6:46 PM: GONE! CARLOS DELGADO A THREE RUN SHOT! 5-2 METS!
6:52 PM: Woo, ball misplayed in the outfield. Two on, one out.
7:00 PM: David Eckstein?! WTF! 5-3 Mets
7:10 PM: Leadoff single from Reyes to start the 6th.
7:11 PM: Hit and run, first and third nobody out for The Carloses.
7:15 PM: After being behind 0-2, Beltran walks. Bases loaded, nobody out, for the big man Carlos Delgado.
7:17 PM: Delgado hits a ground rule double! Spiezio may have been able to catch it if he ran the right way to the ball. 7-3 Mets
7:19 PM: Wright walks on four straight, bases loaded, still nobody out. Shawn Green coming up.
7:25 PM: RBI single for Green, still nobody out, bases loaded.
7:26 PM: Bases clearing double for Valentin! 11-3.
7:31 PM: Edmonds makes a great catch at the wall to rob Reyes of a double and another run. Inning over.
7:35 PM: He can hit, too. Edmonds with a solo shot. 11-4 Mets.
7:39 PM: Yadier Molina with a solo shot. 11-5 Mets.
7:52 PM: Carlos Beltran with another solo shot. 12-5 Mets.
8:20 PM: Nothing interesting happened since. Still 12-5, going to the 9th. Three outs to go.
8:35 PM: Pinch hitter Aaron Miles leads off the 9th with a single. Pinch hitter Gary Bennett strikes out. Pinch hitter John Rodriguez up now… Guillermo Mota gets a groundball double play to end the game. 12-5 Mets final!
4:58 PM: The Tigers just finished off their sweep of the A’s in the ALCS. Hopefully the NLCS game will start soon. I don’t need to see all this postgame crap.
5:05 PM: Bah, I’m going out to bring in some food. I’ll probably miss the first pitch or so.
5:25 PM: I’m back. Listened to the first inning on my XM in the car, to hear the Mets go down 1-2-hit-3 in the top of the first.
5:45 PM: Well, crap, I forgot about the liveblog. Cards scored 2 in the first, and loaded the bases before finally having the inning end on a called strike three to Yadier Molina. 2-0 Cardinals.
5:50 PM: Mets go down 1-2-3 in the second. This is frustrating.
5:54 PM: Jeff fucking Suppan just homered for the Cardinals. 3-0.
5:59 PM: I give up. Why is Darren Oliver not in the game? Or at least warming up? I think I might stop the liveblogging.
6:03 PM: Trachsel is out with “injury” after getting hit with a ball up the middle, and then walking Pujols to load the bases with no outs. Oliver has as much time as he needs to warm up so he can give up the grand slam to Edmonds.
6:10 PM: Eckstein scores on a wild pitch. 4-0. Edmonds grounds out to first, driving in another run. 5-0.
6:12 PM: I’m gonna keep the game on, but go do other things. Too frustrating with the liveblog. I know from all the (zero) comments I’ve gotten, all my (any?) readers will really be upset.
4:59 PM: It’s Friday night in Santa Barbara (though it is raining a bit), and I’m sitting at home blogging a baseball game I’m watching on TV. Go Mets!
5:06 PM: First pitch strike from John Maine, second pitch flyout to Beltran. Eckstein out. Similar to last night.
5:08 PM: Chris Duncan grounds out to Valentin. Two down. Maine looks sharp. Pujols flies out just short of the warning track in right field. 1-2-3 first for Maine.
5:12 PM: First pitch from Chris Carpenter way outside. Second pitch fouled back. I hope the Mets can get to him today.
5:13 PM: Leadoff double from Jose Reyes! Followed up by a sac bunt from Lo Duca, Beltran up with Reyes on third and one out.
5:18 PM: Carlos Delgado with a 3 run homer! 3-0 Mets!!!
5:20 PM: Time was called by the first base umpire because of a beach ball on the field, saves David Wright from flying out to center. No pitch. Ball four on the next pitch. Carpenter gets a visit on the mound from Dave Duncan.
5:23 PM: Carpenter just doesn’t have it tonight. The only out recorded was a sacrifice bunt so far. 3-0 count on Shawn Green.
5:24 PM: Strange play on the infield, as Green grounds out to second. Valentin flies out to center, inning over.
5:32 PM: Delgado misplays a ball at first on what could have been a double play, Cards have first and third with nobody out.
5:34 PM: Full count on Encarnacion. The payoff pitch… ball four, bases loaded. Tight strike zone tonight, Maine (and Carpenter) have been squeezed on a few pitches already.
5:36 PM: Strike one to Belliard, on a pitch everyone thought was inside. Then a close one outside called a ball. Pop up on the infield! One out.
5:38 PM: Yadier Molina lines a double to right, two runs in. 3-2 Mets, now.
5:42 PM: Carpenter strikes out, Eckstein hits a soft liner to second, inning over.
5:45 PM: For the second straight inning, a leadoff double off Carpenter. This time, from Endy Chavez. Maine successfully bunts him over to third. This inning looks awfully familiar.
5:48 PM: Basehit for Reyes, 4-2 Mets!
5:51 PM: Hit and run keeps Lo Duca from grounding into a double play as Reyes gets to second easily.
5:52 PM: Beltran looked bad at Carpenter’s changeup. 0-2 count. Now 1-2. Beltran strikes out, stranding Reyes.
5:59 PM: After a strikeout of Chris Duncan, the count is full on Albert Pujols. After fouling a few off, he walked.
6:02 PM: Heh. “John Maine came to NY from Baltimore with Jorge Julio in a trade for Anna Benson.”
6:03 PM: Jim Edmonds ties up the game with a two run shot to center. 4-4
6:07 PM: Finally another out, as Encarnacion flies out to Beltran.
6:08 PM: Belliard flies out to right, inning finally over.
6:17 PM: Good AB from Shawn Green, working the count full and making Carpenter throw a lot of pitches, after being behind 0-2. Carpenter finally loses the battle, and walks Green putting runners on first and second.
6:19 PM: Valentin then goes and grounds into a first pitch double play to end the inning. Dammit.
6:29 PM: Maine can barely throw strikes anymore. With two outs, Eckstein walked, stole second, and took third on Lo Duca’s throwing error. 2-2 count on Chris Duncan. Swing and a miss, struck him out. Hopefully, they pinch hit for him in the bottom of the 4th.
6:35 PM: After Chavez grounds out sharply to second, Michael Tucker gets a pinch hit HBP batting for John Maine.
6:36 PM: Reyes grounds it to second, but beats out the throw back to first to stay out of the double play. Lo Duca grounds out to short to end the inning.
6:43 PM: Chad Bradford replaced John Maine, and gets Pujols to ground to short for the first out.
6:46 PM: Edmonds flies out to the wall for the second out. Spiezio flies out to Chavez to end the 1-2-3 inning.
6:54 PM: Delgado with his second homer of the night, puts the Mets back on top 5-4!
6:55 PM: Wright grounds to second and barely beats out the throw after Belliard can’t pick up the ball cleanly.
7:01 PM: Green singled to right, Valentin popped out. Chavez up with two on, two out. The Ageless Wonder on deck. Grounds into a fielder’s choice to third, inning over. 5-4 Mets after 5.
7:11 PM: Bradford gives up a two out broken bat single to Yadier Molina, after retiring 5 in a row. Pedro Feliciano coming in to face pinch hitter John Rodriguez. Chris Carpenter is done for the night.
7:15 PM: Feliciano gets a popup to third, inning over.
7:26 PM: Lo Duca hits a one out RBI double, driving in Jose Reyes who walked. 6-4 Mets!
7:29 PM: Belliard makes an amazing play to throw out Beltran at first on a grounder to the left side of the second base bag. Two down.
7:32 PM: Delgado grounds out to second to end the inning.
7:36 PM: Mota in pitching for the Mets. He gets David Eckstein to groundout to second for the first out. Chris Duncan flies out to left on the first pitch for the second out. Pujols comes up with the bases empty, again.
7:42 PM: After a real battle, Pujols finally gets his first hit of the series, a single down the left field line.
7:46 PM: After walking Edmonds, Mota almost gives up a homerun to Spiezio. Shawn Green saved it from going over by having the ball hit his glove, but failed to catch it allowing the tying runs to score. Tie game, unless the umpires overturn the call, in which case the Cardinals lead 7-6. Looks like they made the right call.
7:55 PM: Heilman gets Encarnacion to groundout to second to end the inning. 6-6 going to the 7th inning stretch.
8:02 PM: Valentin finally gets his first hit of the postseason, a two out single in the 7th. Chavez grounds out to end the inning.
8:11 PM: WTF is up with Yadier Molina? Hit .216 during the regular season, and another one out single tonight.
8:14 PM: A beautiful changeup to Preston Wilson to strike him out for the second out.
8:17 PM: Eckstein is putting up a fight. Fouling off pitch after pitch, including one deep foul ball that was gone if fair. From a guy who hit two homers in the regular season.
8:21 PM: On the 12th pitch of the at bat, David Eckstein FINALLY grounds out to second. We go to the bottom of the 8th all tied up at 6.
8:25 PM: The Ageless Wonder Julio Franco pinch hitting for Heilman to leadoff the bottom of the 8th. And strikes out on three pitches.
8:29 PM: Reyes gets his third hit of the night, a single up the middle.
8:33 PM: Lo Duca takes a walk, runners on first and second for Beltran, who takes ball one.
8:35 PM: Shit, Beltran grounded into a double play. We go to the ninth tied at 6, with Pujols due up in the inning.
8:41 PM: So Taguchi hits a 3-2 over the left field wall to give the Cards a 7-6 lead.
8:49 PM: I’ve lost track of what’s happened, but the Cards have scored two more runs. 9-6.
9:04 PM: Mets go down 1-2-3 in the 9th, Cardinals take game 2.
My AIM conversation, with two outs in the 6th:
(19:01:31) alanmpenner: ok here we go, lo duca single, beltran bomb
(19:01:44) andrew: hahahaha
[Lo Duca singles]
(19:02:50) alanmpenner: halfway there.
[Beltran homers]
(19:06:15) alanmpenner: I CALLED IT
(19:06:17) andrew: holy crap
(19:06:22) andrew: are you psychic tonight!?
I need to do that more often.
5:01 PM: 18 minutes until game time. I love HD TV.
5:22 PM: First pitch strike to start the game. Second pitch Eckstein pops out to gimpy Floyd. Good start. To bet on this game, fans can take a tour on sites like μΉ΄μ§λ Έμμ.
5:25 PM: 8 pitch 1-2-3 first inning for Glavine. Go Mets! He’s certainly no Joe Morgan, but I could do without Tim McCarver. “Very rarely do you see Albert Pujols go out of the strike zone and swing at bad pitches.” Not 5 seconds later, strike three swinging at a pitch low and away.
5:33 PM: Mets go down 1-2-3 in the first as well, though Weaver had to throw a few more pitches to get there. Hoping it continues like this and we get a nice short game, as I have a softball game at 8:50.
5:39 PM: Floyd really looks bad in the outfield. I hope his bat makes up for it. Cards go down 1-2-3 in the second.
5:53 PM: No hits, no walks, no errors through two innings. Both pitchers perfect.
5:57 PM: Cliff Floyd out of the game. Dammit. Endy Chavez has taken over in left field.
5:58 PM: Yadier Molina has the first hit of the game. Jeff Weaver lines the next pitch to right for a basehit. Two on, one out.
6:00 PM: David Eckstein hit hard line drive just to the left of David Wright. He grabbed it and tossed to second for an inning ending double play.
6:03 PM: Shawn Green leads off the third with the Mets’ first hit.
6:09 PM: No runs for either team through three innings.
6:17 PM: After a walk to Pujols, Encarnacion flies out to Beltran in center, who fires a one hop throw to first and doubles up Pujols. Awesome play!
6:27 PM: No runs through four. Both starting pitchers are doing extremely well. The Mets need to start hitting.
6:35 PM: Endy Chavez makes a great diving catch in left! Floyd wouldn’t have had a chance. Two down with a runner on first in the top of the 5th.
6:45 PM: Scoreless through 5 innings. Time for some ice cream for my two new crowns on my teeth.
6:56 PM: Strange. The UPS that my projector was plugged into just lost power. Good thing I had it. Power in my place didn’t go out, though, just that one. No circuit breaker went, and the outlet seems fine now. Weird. Scoreless through 5 and a half.
7:06 PM:
In an IM chat:
(19:01:31) alanmpenner: ok here we go, lo duca single, beltran bomb.
5 minutes later, it happens. 2-0 Mets!
7:21 PM: Did Tim McCarver just say “Endy Up-Endy” after Chavez went into the stands trying to catch a ball? WTF.
7:28 PM: Dinner time. Cheeseburger Hot Pockets. 2-0 Mets after six and a half.
7:39 PM: Damn La Russa and his pitching changes. I need this over quickly!
7:48 PM: Two down in the 8th. Guillermo Mota got a groundout and a strikeout. Four outs to go.
7:52 PM: Dammit, Mota has lost the strike zone and is about to walk Preston Wilson to bring up Pujols as the go-ahead run. OK, just threw strikes one and two. And then a foul ball. And another. POPPED UP TO DELGADO IN FOUL GROUND! Inning over.
8:06 PM: We go to the ninth, Mets up 2-0. Billy Wagner coming in to face Pujols-Encarnacion-Edmonds. Let’s make it quick.
8:10 PM: Pujols lines it RIGHT at Delgado, one away.
8:11 PM: Valentin makes a GREAT play up the middle, Delgado a nice pick at first, two down.
8:13 PM: Grrr. 5 pitch walk to Rolen, Scott Spiezio, the hero for Anaheim in game 6 of the World Series a few years ago, comes to the plate as the tying run.
8:14 PM: Floater to Valentin! METS WIN!!!! I even have a few minutes before heading to softball.
10:57 PM: Just got home. The game started 20 minutes late, and we lost 12-10. At least we made it close.
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