Abbott and Costello Have Nothing on the Mets After Big Comeback Win

So Hu was it. Hu was the guy with the clutch 9th inning sacrifice fly that tied the game for the Mets.


Was it Daniel Murphy, who had homered the previous inning to offset an incredibly bad call at by third base umpire Marvin "Kate" Hudson, who mysteriously called Reyes out on an attempted triple when he was clearly safe from all angles?

No, I'm telling you Hu was the guy.

Was it Jason Bay, who started the ninth with a tough at-bat and single to start the ninth inning rally?

I keep telling you Hu was the guy.

That's what we're trying to figure out! Was it Ike Davis, who punched a bloop single in the inning?

No, Ike was there in the first place. Ike started the game at first.

Then what happened to him? At first? Nothing.

How about Willie Harris laying down a nice bunt single?

No, I don't know how many times we have to tell you: Hu was the guy who hit the sacrifice fly to tied the game.

That's what many of you are probably asking! But we're telling you Hu was the guy.

Hu was erased at third? No, Jose was Reyes on third by the bad call by the umpire. Hu was the guy that tied the game.

And the Mets held the Nats at bay? No, Bay was the guy who had the leadoff hit in the inning and tried to make a nice diving catch of a screaming liner the inning before.

So Hu was the guy in left. No, Bay was the guy in left. Hu was the guy playing second in the bottom of the inning when KRod picked up his 6th save.

Was it pretty to see the Mets actually win their first game after trailing in the ninth since September 25th, 2009? No, Pridie was in center. He didn't see most of the game.

Hu didn't see most of the game? No, he did. But it wasn't Pridie. It was only Pridie in the ninth.

Because the Mets came back then, right? No, Wright had nothing to do with it. In fact, he struck out to end the inning.

And it was a totally team effort? No Thole's just one guy. He's the catcher. Thole was the catcher and his passed ball caused the Nats to score their go-ahead run at the time in the eighth.

So the Mets Thole dropped the ball?

No, not totally. After all, they won the game after Hu tied it.

You're asking me who tied the game again! I thought we just went through all that!

So the Mets held the Nats at Bay, they Thole dropped the ball at the plate, Jose was Reyes at third, Hu tied the game and played second, the Mets had no Wright to win it at third, Ike played the whole game in the first place, and it wasn't Pridie. Now that makes total sense!

Hambone! Mets Take Advantage of Armando Benitez Syndrome

Anyone who watches PBA Bowling knows (and there are many who think watching bowling is more exciting than sitting through Mets games unfortunately) ESPN color commentator Rob Stone refers to 4-strikes in a row as a "hambone". Well, the Mets have achieved something similar as they're currently in the midst of a 4-game winning streak. And instead of fans being happy about the latest positive Met development, we're hearing lines such as:

"Oh, well, it's only the D-backs. Wait 'till they play a real team."

"I can't get excited over this team until they beat someone good."

"Bad team? No pressure? I bet Wright's hitting."

And the ever popular, "What do you expect? They're SUPPOSED To beat those teams!"

And that's exactly the point, something I call the "Armando Benitez Syndrome" named after one of the most unsung Mets relievers in the history of the franchise. I loved Armando Benitez, and do you want to know why? Because he saved the games he was supposed to save. Sure he blew up in pressure situations against the hated Braves and many, MANY, a postseason appearance. But the point is this: if you want to be successful in baseball, YOU HAVE TO BEAT THE TEAMS YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BEAT.

Every single team that's made the postseason in the history of baseball has beaten the teams they're supposed to beat - no exceptions! When you beat the teams you're supposed to beat, your chances of reaching the postseason drastically increase. It's only when you don't that your team misses out.

Take the Mets "choke" years of 2007 and 2008 as examples. When they blew a 7 game lead with 17 games left to go in the season, it wasn't because they lost to Philadelphia - it was because they couldn't beat the likes of Washington and Florida. And when they had their second September collapse, it wasn't Atlanta that did them in. It was losing to the woeful Marlins that killed them. In both cases, the Mets were clearly better than those teams, yet they didn't get the job done. They didn't beat the teams they were supposed to beat. And as a result blew their shot at a postseason berth.

You could fill a scrapbook of painful memories watching Benitez pitch in "big" games. But the guy was lights out when it came to the likes of the Pirates, the Brewers, the Expos, the Phillies (then), etc. He beat the teams he was supposed to beat, and because of that, the Mets were in a position to put him on the big stage for his memorable implosions. Isn't that what we all want?... Just the CHANCE to see the Mets fail in a big game?

All kidding aside, beating the teams you're supposed to beat is the secret of a successful season and NO TEAM earns a post-season berth without doing so. The Mets just did that over the weekend at Citi. Fans can discount the current 4-game winning streak all they want, but the point is just doing so is a great sign in the right direction.

And by the way, the Armando Benitez Syndrome is the secret of success in many other areas of life as well. Ace the tests in school you're supposed to ace. Do the little things you're supposed to do. Give the presentation at work you're supposed to give. Buy the gift you're supposed to buy. Compliment the person you're supposed to compliment. Life's a lot easier that way.

And most of all, be happy for the things you get - like hambone winning streaks against the bottom feeders of the league.

Mets 4, Rockies 5: Recap in a Tweet

Mets had lead, but 2nd/3rd 2-outs, Niese pitches to Tulo resulting in 3-run dinger. Bad mgr decision / very Manuel-ish. No clutch hitting for Mets - only took 11 games for 1st Collins media rant. We took the under. Blaine Boyer a free agent and (gasp), F-Mart hurt again.

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Mets 6, Rockies 7: Recap in a Tweet

Wright's HR can't overcome bad bullpen. Pelf average at best / concern grows. Parnell has no shot at closer with outings like this & blows easy out at home with some bad fielding. Mets losers of 4 of last 5

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Long Season Ahead for Mets if Collins Embraces Pitchcount

Willie did it. Jerry did it. Now Terry's doing it.

Let's make one thing perfectly clear once again: the pitchcount is propaganda. It's completely made up and has absolutely no relevance whatsoever to whether a pitcher gets hurt or not. Period.


Nolan Ryan with the Texas Rangers doesn't use it. Bruce Bochy of the San Francisco Giants doesn't believe in it either. What do they both have in common? Both teams met in the World Series last year.

Here's the truth of the matter: if a pitcher has a predisposition to get injured, it's going to happen whether they throw 100 pitches or 50 pitches. The "book" is wrong - and when managers manage toward the worst part of their team (by definition, the bullpen), losses are sure to mount, such as today's very winnable 7-3 loss to the Nationals in extra innings.

The game saw a dominant Chris Young throw seven innings of 1-hit ball, only to be automatically lifted before even starting the eighth inning due to his pitchcount total. Said Terry Collins:

"Sending Young out for the 8th inning was out of the question considering both his pitch count and his injury history"

Yeah, instead, just turn a lead over to the likes of Carrasco, Buchholz, and Byrdak and take the loss by playing it by the book. Sending Young out for the 8th innings was NOT out of the question regardless of that lame reasoning. The truth of the matter, Terry, is that Young could have thrown 150 pitches and it would have played absolutely no part whatsoever to his chances of re-injury. As we've seen from countless major league pitchers both young and old, baby-ing pitchers does not insure health. In fact, there's more pitchers on the disabled list and hurt over the past 10 years than there's ever been in the history of baseball. (the "PitchCount Era")

Now I'm not saying you should never use your bullpen - but not when your starter's blowing away hitters to the tune of 1 hit and tells you he still has gas in the tank to go further. I understand Collins was playing it "safe" and "by the book", but that's what Willie and Jerry did - and until managers realize your worst starter is better than your best middle reliever, wins will morph into losses. Just like today.

It's not just Collins, we see this all the time in baseball. What's really interesting is those announcing the games even pick up on this nuance. "There isn't a National batter that isn't happy to see Chris Young out of this game", said Washington's play by play guy F.P. Santangelo. Well if the players know that they have a better chance of winning the game when the starter's out, and the National fans know they have a better chance of winning the game when the starter gets pulled, and everyone announcing and watching the game knows that, how come the managers don't know that? You know what?... WIN THE GAME FIRST!, I'll deal with the extremely slight chance of injury later.

The Mets were very careful with Johan Santana and pulled him MANY times to the tune of losses by the Mets bullpen which we all remember all too well. Santana still got hurt. Steven Strasberg was closely monitored on every single one of his pitches. He got hurt. There are so many examples of this, I couldn't even start to list them all.

The truth of the matter is the pitch-count is completely made up, created by the Players Association as a means of limiting work and embraced by organizations as a "CYA" stat in case something goes wrong. It's propaganda - and it's sad so many fans and those in the media actually believe it means something.

I like the attitude Terry Collins has brought to the team so far this season and I'm optimistic for what he can do with this team long-term. But today something went wrong: the Mets lost a game they should have won. And Terry's sitting in his office, "protected" by "The Book". That can't happen, or we're in for a long season of frustrating baseball. "The Book" is often wrong.

Mets 7, Phils 10: Recap in a Tweet

Comeback down 7-0? Not quite, but team showed some spunk and banged out 12 hits, including HR by Pagan. Pelf / Boyer bombed and team lost to pitcher named Bastardo.

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Mets 7, Phillies 1: Recap in a Tweet

Chris Young does it all, including 2 hits in 1 inning (Met record) and 3 hits by pitcher in same game. Wright 4 hits too and Reyes 2-5 <--- sign him! Phils overrated?

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Mets 9, Marlins 2: Recap in a Tweet

Dickey starts out new season where he left off, 0 ER in 6 innings. Dingers from Harris & Davis + ATROCIOUS Fla "D" more than enough for 1st road series win. Collins happy as a lark

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Mets 6, Marlins 4: Recap in a Tweet

Hu pinch ran for Ike & scored go-ahead run in 9th? Yes, Hu did! KRod blew save & vultures win in extras w/big hit from Wright & save from Blaine.

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Mets 2, Marlins 6: Recap in a Tweet

No-hit through 6, Pelf threw one bad pitch for a granny. Collin's fire-up speech resulted in 4 hits total and Wright 0-4 w/2 k's. Not good