Game #145: Cubs 5, Mets 4

Mets third baseman David Wright makes two errors as Cubs rally for 5-4 win at Citi Field. (NYDailyNews.com)

New York was extra generous this afternoon. Unfortunately, this kind of generosity will get you nowhere in baseball.

Jason Bay's 2-run single gave the Mets a late lead, but Chicago took the lead again after New York's fourth error of the game, and the Mets fell to the Cubs 5-4.

The Bad Stuff:

• Gee, I wonder what's going here. Oh yeah, dumb mistakes. Four, count 'em, four errors, two each by Jose Reyes and David Wright, spelled doom for the Mets on this day. Reyes' first one in the 1st led to the Cubs' first run of the day. Wright's first came in the 4th and didn't lead to anything, but it would be a sign of things to come. One inning later, Reyes committed his second fielding gaffe, leading to another Chicago run. Then, after an explosive and exciting 8th inning which we'll talk about later in Good Stuff, the momentum came crashing down on Wright's second error, putting New York at an even 4 in that third line score column. That one eventually led to two more runs, another Bobby Parnell blown save, and a deflating loss.

The Good Stuff:

• Take away the errors, and this was a great game for the Mets, one that would have put this section on top instead of flattened by a mountain of Bad Stuff. Let's take a look:
• Chris Capuano won't get the loss in this one, nor did he deserve it: 7 innings, 2 runs (1 earned), 5 hits, 1 walk, 6 Ks.
• Down 3-0 in the 8th, the Mets decided to make things more interesting. Willie Harris drew a leadoff walk, then Jose Reyes lined a double into the right center gap to score him. After Ruben Tejada singled and Lucas Duda struck out, David Wright lined a single over the secodn baseman's head to score Reyes. Angel Pagan struck out, and up came Jason Bay. Bay has been dreadful this year in clutch situations, but he's in the middle of a resurgence right now. Thus, even in the daytime sun (hear that, Josh Hamilton?), Jason's gonna come up with some big hits. Try a should've-been game-winning 2-run single. After seeing that on my iPhone, I already writing my Final Analysis in my head. And then came the 9th.

Final Analysis:
Thus, my FA for the day is not one of goodness, but of disappointment.

Try to keep this straight: the Mets gave this one away, got it back, had it, and decided to give it away again. It's good to be generous, but that kind of generosity will not get you anywhere in baseball. Should've won this one.

Still, you never assume the sweep. New York has another chance to win this series tomorrow on the 10th anniversary of 9/11. Mike Piazza will be there to throw out the first pitch. Hopefully some of his magic will rub off on this Mets team and can provide some more memories.

MM