Player Profile: Wilson Valdez

Mets fans watching the series against the Florida Marlins this weekend could be forgiven for not knowing who was playing shortstop. That’s because with Jose Reyes and Alex Cora still on the disabled list, the Mets have brought up a new infielder, Wilson Valdez.

Valdez is a 31 year old journeyman from the Dominican Republic. He never went to college. He wasn’r drafted either. He first broke into the big leagues in 2004 when he got 43 at-bats for the Chicago White Sox. Since then, he has played for the Mariners, Padres, and Dodgers. Now, he is a New York Met.

He made his Mets debut May 27 against Washington and made an appearance in all three games against the Marlins. He is two for seven on the season with one walk and one run scored. In the field, he has yet to make an error.

This brief stint in the majors figures to end soon for Valdez. Alex Cora is set to return Tuesday, presumably meaning reduced playing time for Valdez. And then, Reyes is expected to return later this week assuming his rehab stint goes without incident. When Reyes does return, it seems likely that Valdez will be sent back down to the minors.

Off-Day Notes: The Braves, The NL Wild Card, Inside the Mets Dugout, and What Lies Ahead

An Eye on the Braves

After getting swept in San Francisco, the Atlanta Braves began their four-game series in Arizona tonight with yet another loss. This time, the Braves were stifled by Diamondbacks ace Dan Haren, and ended up losing 5 – 1. They are now three and a half games behind the first-place New York Mets.

The NL Wild-Card Scene

The Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Chicago Cubs 2 – 1 at Wrigley Field tonight, guided by seven beautiful innings from Randy Wolf and a 2-inning save from Ramon Transoco. The Cubs are now 23 – 22, three and a half games out of the wild card lead. The Giants and Braves are also three and half back.

None of the other wild-card contenders played tonight. Milwaukee remains in the lead, holding a half game lead over the Reds, a one game lead over the Phillies, a three game lead over the Padres, and a three and half game lead over the Cubs, Braves, and Giants. If the Mets were to fall out of first place, they would be just one half game behind the Brew Crew.

In the Mets Dugout

Carlos Beltran has hit in six consecutive games…Daniel Murphy’s three-hit, five-RBI performance Wednesday was his first multi-hit performance since an April 19 home game against the Brewers. The performance raised his batting average 16 percentage points from .246 to .262…In the bullpen, Pedro Feliciano hasn’t given up an earned run since May 2. Since that date, he has pitched eight and two-thirds innings, giving up just seven hits and one walk. His WHIP is 0.96 this year and opposing hitters are hitting just .208 off Feliciano.

Florida Marlins @ New York Mets

Friday’s matchup pits Florida Marlins starter Sean West against Mets starter Mike Pelfrey. This will be West’s second appearance for the Marlins. He gave up two earned runs in five innings against the Tampa Bay Rays on May 23. Pelfrey, meanwhile, has given up three or less runs in six consecutive starts…Saturday will be a big day for Tim Redding, who will try to show the Mets that he deserves to stay n the big leagues. He has made two starts thus far for the Mets, giving up six runs to the Red Sox his last time out. His job is in serious jeopardy now that Oliver Perez is healthy again. Redding will oppose Marlins ace Josh Johnson, who is 3 – 1 with a 2.67 ERA this season…And on Sunday, Chris Volstad (4 – 3, 3.69 ERA) of the Marlins will take on John Maine (4 – 3, 4.18 ERA) of the Mets. Volsted has given up 18 earned runs in his last 5 starts. Maine gave up just one runs in his last start against the Washington Nationals.

The Marlins are coming off a big series win in Philadelphia after they spent most of May in free fall. They are 22 – 26 overall, five and half back of the Brewers in the Wild Card Chase.

Santana Stumbles But Mets Win Regardless

Phillies Loss Combined With Mets Win Puts Mets In First 

Everything seemed so perfect. The Mets were leading 3 – 0 with their ace pitcher and possibly the best pitcher in all of baseball, Johan Santana, on the mound. Meanwhile, the Phillies were off to a bad start against the Florida Marlins. It seemed the Mets would end the night in first for sure.

And then, Santana stumbled. Up 3 – 0 in the top of the fourth, Santana walked Ryan Zimmerman and then gave up a two-run home run to Adam Dunn. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the Nationals would load the bases off Santana, on a single and two walks. With two outs and the bases loaded, Santana proceeded to issue his fourth walk of the inning, a walk to Christian Guzman that tied the game at 3. Santana would escape the inning without any further damage, but for a second, it looked as if the Mets night might not turn out so well after all.

Santana thankfully regained his control after that disastorous top of the fourth, getting the Nationals out 1-2-3 in the top of the fifth and the top of the sixth. Then, fortune turned the Mets way in the bottom of the sixth, when with Gary Sheffield on first, Daniel Murphy hit a high fly ball to right field. The ball apparently hit the right-field wall, and when Sheffield tried to score on the play, he was tagged out at home. Murphy ended up on second with a double. But then the umpires examined the video, and decided that the ball had bounced off the Subway sign overhang above the right-field wall and thus was a home run. 5 – 3 Mets. It appears the umpires were wrong. It appears it was just a double, but regardless of whether the call was correct or not, the Mets now had the lead.

And from there on, it was easy. Bobby Parnell and Pedro Feliciano combined to pitch a relatively easy top of the seventh. The Mets then added two more runs in the bottom of the seventh. The big hit in the seventh was Daniel Murphy’s 2-RBI double, which gave him an impressive 5 RBIs on the day.

Manuel brought in J.J. Putz to pitch the top of the eighth, and after a leadoff walk, Putz got Ronnie Belliard to ground into a double play and then got Willie Harris to ground out to end the inning. Still 7 – 3 Mets. Francisco Rodriguez had a little trouble in the ninth, giving up an RBI single to Nick Johnson after Daniel Murphy’s error allowed Christian Guzman to reach base. But it was over. Rodriguez struck out Zimmerman to win the ballgame and clinch the sweep of the Nationals.

It was a strange day for Johan Santana. The fourth inning aside, he was phenomenal. His final numbers were three hits, six walks, 11 strikeouts, and 120 pitches in just six innings of work. The bullpen was strong.

The offense was good too although they left nine runners on base. Angel Pagan got two more hits from the leadoff spot. Luis Castillo was spectacular, getting two hits, scoring two runs, and walking three times from the two spot. Murphy was tremendous too, ending with three hits and of course the five RBIs. The one downer was David Wright, who went 1 for 5 with four strikeouts.

With the Phillies losing 6 – 2 to the Florida Marlins shortly after the Mets game ended, the Mets  are now in first place in the NL East. They are a half game up on the Phillies. Meanwhile, the Braves are currently losing to the Giants, and if they do end up losing, then the Mets will be three games up on the Braves.

The Mets have an off day before they begin a home series with the Florida Marlins on Friday night.

Pair of Ninth Inning Comebacks Puts Mets Back in Striking Distance of First

Two-Run Santos Homerun Lifts Mets to 3 - 2 Victory Over Red Sox

Despite a brilliant start from Mike Pelfrey, an errorless game by the Mets defense, and an excellent relief appearence from Pedro Feliciano, the New York Mets were down to their final out Saturday afternoon. There they were, two outs in the top of the ninth, a runner on first, and reserve catcher Omir Santos at the plate. On the mound was Jonathan Papelbon, perhaps the best closer in the major leagues. That’s when the improbable occured. That’s when Santos hit a shot to left-center field that bounced high off the Green Monster and back iunto play. At first, it was ruled in-play, but after much discussion, the umpires correctly ruled that it was a home run. 3 – 2 Mets. Suddenly, the Mets were on line for their second straight victory over the Boston Red Sox.

The Mets got off to a good start Saturday as Carlos Beltran hit a two-out single in the top of the first off Josh Beckett. After a Beckett throwing error allowed Beltran to advance to second, Gary Sheffield hit a single to put the Mets in front 1 – 0. Sheffield’s average is now up to .260, and he has 10 RBIs and 19 runs on the season.

Unfortunately for the Mets, the Red Sox stormed back with two runs in the bottom of the inning. Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia started the inning with consecutive singles. After a David Ortiz strikeout, Ellsbury and Pedroia managed a double steal, and were then brought home by a Kevin Youklis 2-RBI single. 2 – 1 Red Sox.

But what started out as an offensive game quickly turned into a masterful pitcher’s duel between Mike Pelfrey of the Mets and Josh Beckett of the Red Sox. Pelfrey ended up going seven innings for the Mets. In those seven innings, he gave up just six hits, one walk and struck out eight. Meanwhile, Beckett pitched eight beautiful innings, giving up just five hits and one run. The run was unearned, a result of Beckett’s own error in the first.

The Red Sox still led 2 - 1 as the game headed into the bottom of the eighth. Mike Pelfrey had already thrown 111 pitches,  so Pedro Felicano was brought in to pitch the eighth.  Feliciano was excellent, retiring the Red Sox 1-2-3. Saturday’s successful appearance was yet another example of a rathe r remarkable turnaround for Feliciano, who had a 4.5o ERA on May 2. Now, just weeks later, his ERA is down to 2.65.

Then, in the top of the ninth, Papelbon walked Sheffield, struck out David Wright and Jeremy Reed, before surrendering the game-winning blow to Santos. Things got a little shaky in the bottom of the ninth, when J.J. Putz walked the leadoff batter, but then he retired Jason Bay, J.D. Drew, and Mike Lowell to seal the victory.

Meanwhile, the New York Yankees scored three runs in the bottom of the ninth to defeat the Philadelphia Phillies. The Yankees entered the inning down 4 – 2, but managed to muster three hits and three runs off Phillies closer Brad Lidge to win the game. They tied the game on a two-run homerun by Alex Rodriguez. Yankees outfielder Melky Cabrera got the game-winning blow, doubling in Robinson Cano to win the game.

So, the Mets are now just a half-game behind the Phillies for first place in the NL East. The Braves are a half-game behind the Mets and one and a half behind the Phillies. Meanwhile, the Florida Marlins are fading. They’re now five and half games out of first place in the NL East.

NL East: The Upcoming Week (Tuesday – Sunday)

New York Mets (tied for first place) – 2 @ LA Dodgers (27 – 13), 3 @ Boston (22 – 16)

Philadelphia Phillies (tied for first place) – 3 @ Cincinnati (20 - 17), 3 @ NY Yankees (21 – 17)

Atlanta Braves (2.5 games back) – 3 vs. Colorado (15 – 22),  3 vs. Toronto (27 – 14)

Florida Marlins (3 games back) - 3 vs. Arizona (14 – 23) , 3 vs. Tampa Bay (20 – 20)

Washington Nationals (8.5 games back) - 3 vs. Pittsburgh (17 – 21), 3 vs. Baltimore (16 – 22)

OVERALL OUTLOOK: The Mets probably have the toughest schedule of the bunch, and thus this a good chance for Philadelphia to take advantage and perhaps seize first place from the Mets. The Marlins have a fairly easy schedule this week, so this might be a chance for them to get back in the swing of things.

Many Opportunities, Nothing to Show for It

Matt Cain was all over the place Sunday evening. In the top of the second, right after Bengie Molina singled to put the Giants ahead 1 – 0, Cain walked the first three hitters. Bases loaded. No outs. The perfect chance to hit it big. But then Jeremy Reed hits into a double play and Mike Pelfrey grounds out. In the fifth, Mike Pelfrey walked to leadoff the inning, but then the 1, 2, and 3 hitters went down in order. Inning over. In every inning except the 6th and 9th, the Mets had at least one base runner. And yet, at the end of the night, the Mets were unable to score, shut out for the first time this season.

David Wright had another good game for the Mets, singling in the third and walking twice. Carlos Beltran singled and walked. Yet overall, the Mets offense was stymied by a wild yet effective Matt Cain. Cain would end up going six innings for the win. Bob Howry, Jeremy Affeldt, and Brian Wilson each piched an inning out of the bullpen to secure the 2 – 0 win. It was a particularly important outing for Wilson, who had already lost two games in the series.

Meanwhile, Mike Pelfrey struggled for the Mets. He gave up only two runs in six innings of work, but he clearly had his struggles on the mound. He gave up six hits, two walks, balked three times, and looked visibly frustrated as the game went on.

The Mets, however, did get two nice comeback outings from their bullpen. Ken Takahashi pitched a scoreless seventh after giving up runs in his two previous outings, and Sean Green pitched a 1 – 2 – 3 eighth. Green has struggled over the past month. His ERA was 2.45 after a scoreless outing against Milwaukee on April 19. It was 8.80 going into tonight’s game, so the scoreless inning was huge for Green and the Mets.

The Phillies beat the Nationals on Sunday, to move just a half-game behind the Mets. The Braves game against Arizona was postponed Sunday and are now just two and a half behind the Mets. The Marlins lost yet again Sunday and remain three and a half games behind the Mets.

Meanwhile, the Mets, if they weren’t leading their division, would be just a half-game back in the wild card chase, which is certainly good news. The Mets will now head to Los Angeles to take on the streaking Dodgers.

Mets Beat Lincecum on Friday, Give Santana Win on Saturday

Mets One Game Away from Sweeping San Francisco

Friday’s pitching matchup looked unfavorable for the Mets, as they sent Livan Hernandez to the hill against Giants phenom Tim Lincecum. Things looked even worse when they found themselves down 5 – 1 after two innings of play. Yet, in a impressive display of resilience, the Mets offense heated up, scoring two runs in the sixth and four runs in the seventh. David Wright had the big hit. With the team down 6 – 3 in the top of the seventh and the bases loaded, David Wright hit a bases-clearing double, tying the game at 6. The Mets then put together two runs in the top of the ninth to win it 8 – 6.

After giving up five runs in the first two innings, Hernandez settled down ending with a line of: 5 IP, 8H, 5ER, 0BB. Most impressive was the lack of walks. The bullpen pitched an excellent game, giving up just one run in four combined innings. Sean Green gave up the run and looked bad once again, but Pedro Feliciano, Brian Stokes, and Francisco Rodriguez all put up scoreless innings to help the Mets win the game.

Then, on Saturday, Johan Santana had a rare bad game. He was shaky throughout giving up 11 baserunners and six runs, although only four of those runs were earned. Fortunately, Santana was backed by a potent Mets offense, who had an awful lot of success against Randy Johnson.

The Mets got off to a good start, scoring three runs in the top of the first. They were led by a 2-RBI double off the bat of Carlos Beltran. Then after Santana and the defense gave away the lead, the Mets scored four runs in top of the fifth, led by RBI doubles from Carlos Beltran and David Wright and an RBI single by Ramon Castro.

The Giants continued to chip away at the Mets lead eventually turning it into a 7 – 6 game, but that’s when the Mets did something they rarely did last season, which is put the game away. In the top of the ninth, the Mets scored two runs on a Fernando Tatis RBI sacrafice fly and a Ramon Castro single. J.J. Putz then threw 13 pitches, 11 for strikes, to close out the game, and the Mets would end with a 9 – 6 victory and an impressive 21 – 15 record.

The Mets  would end the night with a slim 1.5 game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies. They have a 3-game lead over the Atlanta Braves though, and a 3.5-game lead over the Florida Marlins.

Tomorrow’s game features Mike Pelfrey (4 – 0, 4.89 ERA) versus Matt Cain (3 – 1, 3.00 ERA) of the Giants.

Mets Run Wild, Defeat Giants 7 – 4

Victory Gives Mets Two Game Cushion in NL East

Bobby Parnell hadn’t given up an earned run since April 19, but on Thursday evening, Parnell blew his second save in two days, giving up two runs in the eighth to the San Francisco Giants. Yet, after watching their 4 – 2 lead slip away, the Mets responded immediately with three runs in the top of the ninth. A double by Carlos Beltran, a key steal, and then RBI singles from David Wright and Ramon Castro, and the Mets suddenly had a 7 – 4 lead. Francisco Rodriguez pitched a smooth ninth to secure his 10th save in 10 opportunities.

The Mets got a good outing from starter John Maine last night. Maine gave up two runs in the first but held the Giants scoreless from then on. He gave up a lot of baserunners (7H, 4BB) but managed to go 6.2 innings and would have gotten a win out of it if it were not for Parnell’s struggles. The Mets hitting (12 hits and 6 walks) was strong as well, and the baserunning was stellar. The Mets stole a franchise-record seven bases Thursday, including four from David Wright. The most amazing thing is they did this without any help from Jose Reyes, who sat out Thursday with a stiff right calf.

To make things even sweeter for the Mets, the Phillies and Marlins both lost. The Mets now hold a two-game lead over the Braves and Phillies and a two and a half-game lead over the Marlins.

Weekend Outlook

The Mets continue their series with the Giants tonight as Livan Hernandez (3 – 1, 5.08 ERA) faces off against Giants ace Tim Lincecum (3 – 1, 3.25 ERA). Meanwhile, Philadelphia has a good chance to gain ground as they head to Washington for a three-game series. Atlanta hosts the struggling Arizona Diamondbacks, and Florida hosts red-hot Los Angeles this weekend.

Mets Return Home In Desperate Need of a Win

The bad news: The Mets are 6 – 9. They have lost four straight.  They are next-to-last in the National League East. And they are already 5 games behind the first-place Florida Marlins.

The good news: They’re playing the last-place Washington Nationals. The Nationals, widely expected to be one of the worst teams in the league this year, are off to a horrendous start. The Nationals started by going 1 – 10, and are currently 3 – 11.

A word of caution: The Nationals did play well against the Braves, winning two of three, and holding the Braves to just six runs in the three-game series.

Nationals @ Mets (Friday, April 24, 2009 – 7:10PM)

Friday’s game is a must-win for the Mets. The Metropolitans will send Johan Santana (2 – 1, 0.46 ERA) against a rather weak Nationals batting order. Santana is off to an incredible start. In addition to his sterling ERA, he also has a WHIP of 0.81, and has 27 strikeouts against just 5 walks.

Santana will be opposed by the Nationals #2 starter, Scott Olsen. Olsen (0 – 2, 9.00 ERA) got kicked around in his first two starts, but pitched a beautiful game against the Marlins his last time out. The Mets have a lot of experience against Olsen, who spent his last four years with the Marlins. Both Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran have batting averages of at least .400 against Olsen. Reyes is 14 for 35. Beltran is 13 for 30.

On Saturday, the Mets will send Mike Pelfrey (1 – 0, 8.10 ERA) against Daniel Cabrera (0 – 1, 4.50 ERA). It’s an interesting match-up. On one hand, the Nationals send Daniel Cabrera to the mound. Cabrera, a star prospect for the Orioles, has never been able to put it all together. Cabrera had ERAs over 5 the past two seasons. As he approaches his 28th birthday, it looks like he may never realize his talent. On the other hand, the Mets send Mike Pelfrey to the hill. Pelfrey looked like he too would be a bust. Pelfrey, the Mets first-round pick in 2005, struggled in 2006 and 2007, but then had an excellent 2008 season, posting 13 wins and a 3.72 ERA. He’s off to a rough start in 2009 though, and one has to wonder if his 2008 season wasn’t just a fluke.

Marlins Blow Save But Prevail 5 – 4 Over the Mets

It was a rally that simply led to more heartbreak for the New York Mets Friday against the Florida Marlins. In the top of the ninth, down 4 – 3 to the Florida Marlins, Carlos Beltran started the rally with a one-out single. Ryan Church then followed with another single, moving Beltran to second. Ramon Castro subsequently fouled out, leaving the Mets with just one out to play with. Up came Jeremy Reed, a 27 year-old backup outfielder who was picked by the White Sox but spent the last five years with the Mariners. In his first Mets at-bat, Reed came up big, hitting an RBI single that knotted the game at 4.

But then, the Mets bullpen brought more heartbreak. Pedro Feliciano, who struggled last year and has gotten off to a horrible start this year, was brought in to pitch the bottom of the ninth. It didn’t go well. One walk and two singles later, Feliciano walked off the mound a loser. After two wins to begin the season, the Mets were back to .500, two games behind the first-place Marlins.

John Maine pitched a solid game for the Mets. He gave up only two hits and one walk over five innings. The problem: both hits were solo home runs. 2 runs in 5 innings. Solid, but then in came a always shaky bullpen. In the sixth, Sean Green gave up one run, a walk, and three hits, including an RBI single to Jorge Cantu. Then, in the seventh, Bobby Parnell gave up three hits, including an RBI single to Hanley Ramirez. 4 – 3 Marlins. Putz pitched well in the eighth, but then in came Feliciano in the ninth. Another rough day for the Mets bullpen. Another rough day for a Mets offense that scored just three runs and left 14 men on base. And ultimately, another loss.