Game #138: Mets 5, Braves 2

Looking for some momentum on an actual getaway day, New York turned to its old reliable and was rewarded mightily.

Home runs by Andrew Brown and Lucas Duda(!) backed Dillon Gee's steady-as-she-goes outing as the Mets salvaged the final game from the Braves 5-2.

The Good Stuff:

• Dillon Gee turned in a Solid Seven with a run and five hits against, walking one and striking out five on 102 pitches.
• Andrew Brown gave Gee an early lead with a towering two-run homer in the 1st inning.
• Lucas Duda homered in the 3rd, one of his three hits on the day to make it his best game since returning to the lineup.
• Daniel Murphy and Justin Turner had two hits and a run each.

The Bad Stuff:

• Vic Black didn't impress in his New York debut, surrendering a solo home run to Freddie Freeman in the bottom of the 8th to give Atlanta some semblance of life.

Final Analysis:
It has gotten to the point where the Mets don't have to worry about whether Gee will give them a quality start or not. At this point, they can be all but assured he will give them a chance to win the ballgame.

New York has the day off before they travel from one Native American-themed mascot to the other as they hit Cleveland to take on the Indians.

MM

Game #137: Braves 3, Mets 1

Carlos Torres is looking more and more like Matt Harvey after every start...and he's got the not run support to prove it.

Torres surrendered three runs in the bottom of the 7th as the Braves blew past the Mets 3-1.

The Bad Stuff:

• See Torres's 7th inning.
• See 1-9 with RISP and eight men left on base.
• See only 21,221 at Turner Field and wonder to yourself, "Hey, aren't these guys supposed to be a playoff team?"

The Good Stuff:

• See Torres's scoreless 1st-6th innings.
• See Daniel Murphy's RBI single to score Eric Young after EY's triple.
• See Young's 35th stolen base of the year and 27th since joining the Mets.
• See New York's attendance figures similar to Atlanta's, even in rebuilding mode, and think to yourself, "Hey, things are gonna be great when we start competing!"

Final Analysis:
I think we've seen enough tonight.

MM

Game #136: Braves 13, Mets 5

Yesterday, Howie Rose was quoted as saying something along the lines of, "Daisuke Matsuzaka pitching on Labor Day...I think that's appropriate." Conclusion after today's game: Howie Rose is psychic. Probably. Or Dice-K is just incredibly predictable. But probably the psychic thing.

Matsuzaka was shelled in three innings and the Mets' relief pitchers didn't fare much better in a 13-5 holiday loss to the Braves.

The Bad Stuff:

• Dice-K's final line: 3 IP, 7 H, 6 ER. I think that's self-explanatory.
• Gonzalez Germen, Pedro Feliciano, and David Aardsma each gave up two earned runs in relief (Aardsma's third was unearned).
• New York hit just 3-13 with RISP (compared to Atlanta's astounding 8-20) and stranded eight men on base.

The Good Stuff:

• Josh Satin went 2-5 with a pair of doubles.
• Juan Lagares went 1-3 with a walk, run, and RBI.
• Zack Lutz had an RBI double in his pinch-hit appearance.

Final Analysis:
The one thing I as a Hope College student have in common with major league baseball players: I don't get Labor Day off. It must be nice to do so. The difference is I did what I had to do today. The visiting ball club at Turner Field, on the other hand...

Perhaps it was just the deflated nature of having to play defense and hit behind Dice-K. That would be a tad more excusable.

MM

Game #125: Braves 4, Mets 1 (10)

Much like Dracula before them, New York shriveled up and died in the sunlight today.

A bang-bang call at first base by umpire Jerry Layne led to a Chris Johnson three-run home run in the 10th inning as the Braves topped the Mets 4-1 for a split of the short series.

The Bad Stuff:

• With a runner on first and two out in the top of the 10th, Scott Rice mishandled a sharp groundball off the bat of Freddie Freeman. While Rice recovered, his throw to the bag was ruled too late and Freeman was awarded an infield single. The call could have gone either way, but it appeared Jerry Layne was incorrect in calling Freeman safe. One pitch later, Chris Johnson turned what could've been a 1-1 tie into a 4-1 Atlanta lead with a home run to left.
• The Mets were powerless to solve the Braves' pitching from Alex Wood to Craig Kimbrel, laying an egg with RISP (nine at-bats) and stranding 10 men on base.

The Good Stuff:

• Jonathon Niese continued his successful comeback tour by tossing seven innings of one-run, five-hit ball, including three walks and nine strikeouts on 106 pitches. Niese's only run against came in the aftermath of a 7th-inning pitch that accidentally hit Jason Heyward in the head.
• Josh Satin liked what Ike Davis did so much last night that he did it himself, clubbing a towering shot down the left field line for a solo home run, his second longball of the season.
• Daniel Murphy also had two hits, and Juan Lagares and Justin Turner smacked a double apiece.

Final Analysis:
As long as the human element remains a part of baseball, there will always be calls like this. I'm sure the Mets have benefited from such a mistake this season just as the Braves have now.

Today's game was yet another instance of one more big bat making the difference for the Mets. Add a key free agent or trade acquisition in the offseason, not to mention put a healthy David Wright on the field, and New York more than likely wins this ballgame. Oh, what exciting things to dream about.

MM

Game #124: Mets 5, Braves 3

Call it the momentum of the frequent flyer miles, but the Mets have momentum to start their tough homestand.

(NYDailyNews.com)

Marlon Byrd and Ike Davis each had long home runs and Zack Wheeler and the Mets withstood a Braves rally to win 5-3.

The Good Stuff:

• Zack Wheeler picked up the 6th win of his major league career and was dominant for six innings before running into trouble in the 7th. His final line was still a quality start-worthy three runs on six hits in 6.2 frames, including three walks and five strikeouts on a hefty 114 pitches.
• The biggest reason why Wheeler has Ws in half his starts and Matt Harvey has just nine in 25 is, for whatever reason, New York flat-out hits when Zack is on the mound. Tonight was no exception.
• Ike Davis got the ball rolling with a hard groundball to right to score Eric Young in the 1st.
• Young started another rally in the 6th as he and Daniel Murphy led off with back-to-back singles. On a double steal attempt by the two, Atlanta catcher Brian McCann through it into the outfield, allowing Young to scamper home to make it 2-0 (the steal of third was Young's second SB of the night, giving him 20 in his two months with the Mets; Young also had a Web-Gem worthy catch in the top of the 6th that robbed McCann of a double).
• Later in the at-bat, Marlon Byrd launched his second rocket in as many days over the Great Wall of Flushing, prompting a "There it GOES!" from Howie Rose that was filled with a schoolboy's glee. It was Byrd's 21st of the year, establishing a new career-high for the Word.
• If home runs were worth more based on how far they travel, Ike Davis's solo shot in the 8th should have been worth three runs or so. But he gladly took the one run on a home run that barely missed clearing the Pepsi Porch. Not reaching. Clearing.
• Travis d'Arnaud finally notched his first career big league hit, a double to the gap in left center in the 8th inning. D'Arnaud's first hit came in his 10th at-bat, beating Willie Mays's mark by two ABs. (Author's note: could've sworn Willie took at least 20 ABs before hitting that homer off Warren Spahn; didn't it seem longer to you?)

The Bad Stuff:

• Carlos Torres was ineffective in his brief relief appearance after Wheeler's exit, allowing all three inherited runners to score on Andrelton Simmons's bases-clearing double.
•  ...Oh, is this another bullet point? I was just thinking about how many more wins Harvey would have if he was blessed with Wheeler's run support is all...

Final Analysis:

(NYDailyNews.com)

Other people will talk about Zack Wheeler's impressive development, Marlon Byrd's comeback for the ages, and Ike Davis's moonshot that everyone prays will be the one to wake his power up. I'm going to focus on the sparkplug that is EY Jr. Eric Young has a driving force behind the Mets' Nieu Year turnaround, and tonight we were reminded why: he steals an XBH from McCann on a Juan Lagares-esque diving catch, then gets on base to lead off the bottom of the inning, flashes some speed on the basepaths, and all of a sudden New York has three more runs on the board. Some people are talking about which outfielders the Mets will go after in the offseason, but I think Sandy Alderson would have to be nuts not to pencil in Forever Young as his leadoff man in 2014 (whether he plays left field or second base is still up in the air).

In a year when the Atlanta Braves have absolutely run away with the NL East, the Mets have played them surprisingly well: tonight's win gives them an 8-7 record against the division leaders in 2013. That'll do.

MM

Games #97 & #98: Mets 2-7, Braves 8-4

The Mets split the final games of their four-game series with the Braves, falling 8-2 last night and prevailing 7-4 this afternoon to salvage a series split.

Wednesday
The Bad Stuff:

• Jeremy Hefner didn't fare any better from his last start, allowing six runs (five earned) on six hits in 4.1 innings. His ERA is now back over 4.00 at 4.17.
• New York could barely figure out Tim Hudson, who tossed 7.2 innings of two-run ball in what will turn out to be his final start of the year: while covering the bag in the 8th inning, Hudson's ankle was accidentally stepped on by Eric Young, resulting in a season-ending brake. (A shaken-up Young left the game himself today.)

The Good Stuff:

• Daniel Murphy had two doubles and drove in the team's only two runs in the 8th inning.

Thursday
The Good Stuff:

(NYDailyNews.com)

• Zack Wheeler picked up a W and another quality start, overcoming a rough 1st to deliver six innings of four-run (three earned), four-hit, two-walk, five-strikeout ball.
• Murphy was just as good at the plate today, going 3-5 with a double, two runs, and an RBI.
• David Wright went 2-5 with a run and a run-scoring triple.
• John Buck had a double and three RBIs.
• David Aardsma, LaTroy Hawkins, and Bobby Parnell proved to be a strong triumvirate of relief pitchers, holding Atlanta scoreless in the final three innings.

The Bad Stuff:

• For all the offense the Mets had, they could have had a lot more if they hadn't stranded 14 men on base and hit just 4-19 with RISP.

Final Analysis:
Jeremy Hefner isn't looking great post-Break. If he regresses to his pre-Yankee form, the Mets will have some trouble.

Daniel Murphy is on another hot streak; let's see if he can keep it up long enough to hit .300 again.

Prayers for Tim Hudson's speedy recovery, and also for Eric Young, who will hopefully not be so hard on himself for what was a freak accident.

Overall, a nice 4-3 homestand. The Mets can now take that momentum on the road as they face the underachieving Nationals and nonexistentMarlins.

MM

Game #96: Mets 4, Braves 1

What vacant spot in the rotation?

(NYDailyNews.com)

Carlos Torres pitched brilliantly for his first New York W and Ike Davis's double highlighted a three-run 6th as the Mets bounced back to a 4-1 win over the Braves.

The Good Stuff:

• After serving up a leadoff home run to Andrelton Simmons, Carlos Torres was untouchable in six strong innings, allowing the sole run on seven hits and two walks, striking out six on 96 pitches. He also drove in the tying run on an RBI single in the 3rd.
• The Mets brought the big bats just in time for Torres to get the decision. Daniel Murphy and Davis Wright led off the 6th with singles. After Marlon Byrd's fielder's choice, Ike Davis took a Kris Medlen curveball and bounced it off the wall in right. Murphy scored and New York was on top. John Buck followed with a single to score Byrd, and Juan Lagares added an RBI to his earlier double and run with a sac fly to plate Davis. 4-1 Good Guys.
• David Aardsma, Scott Rice, and LaTroy Hawkins shepherded the Mets through scoreless 7th and 8th innings, and Bobby Parnell redeemed his failings yesterday with a 1-2-3 9th, complete with two strikeouts in 10 pitches.

The Bad Stuff:

• Omar Quintanilla was the only Met starter to fail to get on base, going 0-3 to drop his average to .223. Quintanilla's glove has always been an asset, but if Ruben Tejada is close to getting his act together we may see the end of Mr. Q's reign at shortstop.

Final Analysis:
Now that's more like it. Solid starting, great relief work, clutch hitting. They all came together tonight. I especially feel good for Ike Davis, who is finally showing signs of life in this series. And Carlos Torres is certainly making Jonathon Niese's & recently released Shaun Marcum's absences easier to deal with; he'll make a fine long man once Niese comes back. All in all, a very nice night at the ballpark.

MM

P.S. The New York Daily News's recap of tonight's game like this: "Maybe Anthony Weiner isn't the only Carlos Danger in town." Touche, Daily News. Touche.

Game #95: Braves 2, Mets 1

From a six-inning no-hitter to no hit when they needed it most.

John Buck's critical passed ball led the way for two Atlanta runs off Bobby Parnell, and the Mets' chance at a comeback was snuffed out by Jason Heyward in the 2-1 loss.

The Bad Stuff:

• Things were looking so good through eight innings. Then Bobby Parnell came on and did his best K-Rod/Frank-Frank impression. Brian McCann singled through the shift and Evan Gattis blooped a single in front of Marlon Byrd. After David Wright forced the lead runner at third, John Buck let a fastball go through his glove, and both runners advanced. That led to Chris Johnson's game-tying RBI groundout and Reed Johnson's go-ahead single, and all of a sudden a 1-0 Mets lead was a 2-1 Mets deficit.
• The bottom of the 9th got interesting as New York did its best to get to Craig Kimbrel. Buck was hit by a pitch and Omar Quintanilla drew a 10-pitch walk with two outs. That brought up Justin Turner, fresh off the DL, and Le Grande Orange came this close to delivering himself his own pie with a bloop shot to left center. But Jason Heyward laid out for a spectacular diving catch, putting it in the books for the Braves.
• David Wright and Marlon Byrd stranded two men on base each in the 8th inning, two of the eight men the Mets left in scoring position in the game.

The Good Stuff:

• Dillon Gee's spectacular efforts went to waste, as he took a no-hitter into the 7th and finished matching Matt Harvey's start from yesterday, tossing seven shutout innings. After loading the bases with one out, Gee got Johnson to ground into the force at home, then followed that up with a three-pitch strikeout of pinch-hitter Joey Terdoslavich (the best Braves name since Tim Spooneybarger of 10 years ago).
• Byrd took advantage of poor fielding by Justin Upton in right by running out a triple in the 4th inning, and Ike Davis singled him home on the next pitch for New York's lone run.
• Davis went 2-4 with a double and RBI; his third at-bat was a very hard groundout to first, and in his last he took a typically nasty pitch from Craig Kimbrel for the backwards K.
• Eric Young didn't get a hit but reached base on a fielder's choice in the 8th and promptly stole both second and third.

Final Analysis:
Dillon Gee more than deserved that win tonight. Unfortunately he was dealt a dead battery in the 9th, as this one falls on both Bobby Parnell and John Buck. For shame - aside from that, this was a really fun game to watch. But serious props to Jason Heyward for making that catch: he comes up a foot short and it's a walk-off double for Turner. Bad luck for the home team.

MM

Game #69: Mets 4, Braves 3

The boys from New York rallied around one of their own tonight and came up big in their traditional house of horrors.

Josh Satin's pinch-hit RBI double put the Mets over the top in the 7th inning, and Bobby Parnell and company slammed the door shut on the Braves as the Mets won 4-3 to clinch their first series in Atlanta since 2011 and deal the Braves their first series loss at home this year.

The Good Stuff:

(NYDailyNews.com)

• David Wright socked two solo home runs, one in the 1st and one in the 4th.
• Andrew Brown hit a pinch-hit home run in the 5th to tie the game at 3-3.
• After Omar Quintanilla battled Mike Minor to a 10-pitch double to lead off the 7th, Josh Satin pulled through with a double of his own to provide the final margin.
• After Jonathon Niese's early departure (see below), the New York bullpen came together to toss 5.2 scoreless innings in relief. LaTroy Hawkins was on the winning line for the Mets after taking care of the 5th and 6th innings, and Bobby Parnell picked up his 11th save with a no-nonsense 1-2-3 9th.

The Bad Stuff:

• Jon Niese left the game in the 4th with discomfort in his left shoulder, the same shoulder that bothered him earlier this season. Niese will head back to New York for an MRI.

Final Analysis:
Now that is how you win a close game. Clutch hitting and clutch pitching haven't come together often for the Mets, but when they do, it's a thing of beauty. Now they can celebrate (to a degree) winning a rare five-game series in Turner Field, where so much had gone wrong in the past.

The only thing that spoils the victory is Niese's lingering shoulder problems. This hasn't been his season, and he will be crucial to the team's success in the long-term. It would be so wonderful if he only had to miss a start or two, but if you're looking for silver linings in a potential long loss of playing time, at least we didn't lose him at the height of a pennant race. Get well soon, Jon.

MM

Game #68: Braves 5, Mets 3

In a game closer than it should have been, New York barely missed out on stealing one from Atlanta.

Shaun Marcum gave up five runs in less than five innings and the Mets couldn't get enough offense going on their own, falling to the Braves 5-3.

The Bad Stuff:

• Shaun Marcum didn't help his case to stay in the rotation after Zack Wheeler's full integration, allowing five runs on six hits and four walks in 4.2 innings, striking out six on 96 pitches. Every Brave run came with two outs (Chris Johnson's three-run homer in the 4th, a wild pitch and B.J. Upton double in the 5th).
• The Mets managed one earned run and six hits off Kris Medlen in seven innings and failed to record a hit off Luis Avilan and Craig Kimbrel in the 8th and 9th. Overall, they had just three at-bats with RISP, collecting one hit and stranding two men on base.

The Good Stuff:

• After falling behind 3-0 in the 4th, New York fought back to tie the game in the 5th. Marlon Byrd led off with a single and Lucas Duda was hit by the pitch. John Buck then grounded to the pitcher, but Medlen tossed it away from third base and eventually both Byrd and Duda scored. Buck went to second and was immediately driven in by Kirk Nieuwenhuis (who should have had two hits if not for a spectacular catch by Jordan Schafer in right on a line drive in the 3rd).
• Carlos Torres tossed 2.1 scoreless innings in relief, keeping his ERA spotless in a couple appearances. David Aardsma and Scott Rice followed by combining for a scoreless 8th.

Final Analysis:
Shaun Marcum doesn't deserve the 0-9 record he's been dealt, but he certainly deserved the L tonight. After the six-man rotation plays out for the next few weeks, don't be surprised to see Marcum lose his job, especially with Dillon Gee and Jeremy Hefner each pitching so well.

Kirk Nieuwenhuis is finally making good, consistent contact with the ball after months of frustration. Definitely this is a good sign for a man who's had more hits in the past week than he had in the 18 major-league games before.

Tomorrow night the Mets finish up their long series in Atlanta looking to win the five-game series. Jonathon Niese will get the ball opposite Mike Minor; he will look to follow the great performances of Matt Harvey, Zack Wheeler, and Dillon Gee (he was great for most of Monday night!) with a signature outing of his own.

MM

Games #66 & #67: Mets 4-6, Braves 3-1

Mets fans have been waiting 23 months for this day, and its two main actors did not disappoint.

(NYDailyNews.com)

Matt Harvey took a third no-hit bid into the 7th inning and the Mets held on to give him a 4-3 win over the Braves in the first game of the doubleheader. In the second game, late offense propped up Zack Wheeler's stellar big league debut in a 6-1 Mets victory.

The Good Stuff:

(NYDailyNews.com)

• Matt Harvey technically finished up statistically worse than his last start in which he lost his first game of the year, allowing three runs on three hits and three walks in seven-plus innings. But no one would argue that this start was an electric one: he struck out a career-high 13 batters and took his third no-hit bid of the season into the 7th inning, only to see it lost on a Jayson Heyward infield single that Lucas Duda failed to cover first base for.
• The major difference for Harvey in this one was that he actually got run support: John Buck's solo home run in the 4th highlighted a day in which the Mets scored four runs, or double what they had put behind Harvey in his past two starts combined.
• After LaTroy Hawkins and Scott Rice almost spoiled another decision for Harvey, Bobby Parnell came on for a clutch four-out save, his 10th of the season. The victory was Harvey's sixth and first in a month.
• Following a stellar opening act, the baseball world watched the pilot of The Zack Wheeler Show. And call it a hunch, but I think it's gonna get picked up. Wheeler dazzled the hometown faithful (Smyrna, GA is 16 miles outside Atlanta) with six scoreless innings and seven strikeouts in his big-league debut. He was far from perfect, issuing five walks to go along with his four hits, but he showed veteran poise by getting out of jams in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 6th frames.
• Like Mets veterans already know, Wheeler had to be as perfect as possible, as he was still locked in a scoreless tie after the 6th. But Josh Satin led off the 7th with a single, and Anthony Recker blasted a two-run homer to put some runs behind his battery mate. Brandon Lyon ran into some trouble in the bottom of the 7th but eventually got out of it with a one-run New York lead in tact.
• With two other one-run games in the rear view mirror from the same calendar day, the midsection of the Mets order decided it was time to relieve their fans of any potential heart palpitations. Marlon Byrd started things with a two-out double and then scored on a pickoff attempt-turned-double error. Then after a walk by Satin and single by Recker, Juan Lagares laced a single to left to score one. Omar Quintanilla followed with a hard grounder into right to plate two more runs, making it a much-more comfortable 6-1 lead for Wheeler and company.
• And just like that, with a Josh Edgin strikeout of Freddie Freeman, Queens's newest hope had his first major league W.

The Bad Stuff:

• The injury bug bit again: hours after Justin Turner landed on the DL with a strained left side, Scott Atchison appears to be headed back there too. Atchison left during his warmup in the 7th inning with a sore right groin, not even throwing a pitch before being replaced by Brandon Lyon.

Final Analysis:
In the words of my dad, who messaged me after the final out: "We've seen the future of the New York Mets, and its names are Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler." I know it's bad luck to look so far ahead, but can you blame me? Mets fans have been wallowing through five years of mediocre baseball, and now we finally have some rays of hope for the long-term future. Should all go according to The Plan, we'll look back on this day, June 18, 2013, as the day it all started.

MM

P.S. The Mets may finally have a leadoff man, as they have acquired outfielder Eric Young, Jr. from the Rockies in exchange for Collin McHugh. Good news all around today!

(MetsBlog.com)

Game #65: Braves 2, Mets 1

As we already know, the walk-off home run is a two-way street.

Dillon Gee's shutout and win were lost with one swing of Freddie Freeman's bat, as the Braves knocked off the Mets in the wee hours of the morning, 2-1.

The Bad Stuff:

• Gee started the 9th inning off right by getting Jason Heyward to ground out to second. And that was all she wrote for Gee, whose next eight pitches resulted in a Justin Upton single and Freddie Freeman home run. Just like that, a 1-0 nailbiter became a disappointing 2-1 decision.
• It shouldn't have come down to that walk-off, but New York managed only seven hits off Tim Hudson and the Atlanta bullpen, going 1-6 with RISP and stranding eight.

The Good Stuff:

• Despite not getting the final two outs, Gee was phenomenal on the mound, allowing three hits in the previous eight shutout innings with one walk and six strikeouts. At the very least, he registered his first complete game of the season.
• Dillon's bat also came up big in the 7th, as he poked a single through the left side of the infield to plate John Buck and get the Mets on the board.
• Lucas Duda went 4-4 with a double, collecting more than half the team's hits on the late night.

Final Analysis:
Wins and losses are moot at this point, so let's talk about Dillon Gee, who has finally settled back into good form. Did you know he's 3-1 with a 1.53 ERA in his last four starts? Or that he's struck out 32 and walked a mere four batters in 29.1 innings over those starts? Or that all four of those outings came against legitimate contenders (Yankees, Nationals, Cardinals, Braves) instead of cupcakes?

Suffice it to say, Dillon Gee is back, and he looks unlikely to lose his spot in the rotation. With Zack Wheeler primed to eventually replace Shaun Marcum in the rotation, the Mets finally have one piece of the puzzle completed in that they have a starting rotation that will keep them in the game much more often than not. The offense being able to reward the starters' efforts with wins, however, is an entirely different situation...

MM

Game #47: Mets 4, Braves 2

It was a result so unlikely that I don't even know how to begin this piece. So...here you go.

Ike Davis, yes, THAT Ike Davis, hit a two-run single in the bottom of the 8th to give the Mets the lead and the win over the Braves, 4-2 on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball.

The Good Stuff:

(NYDailyNews.com)

• Down 2-1 in the bottom of the 8th, Justin Turner led off with a pinch-hit single up the middle. After a struggling David Wright struck out, Lucas Duda sliced a groundrule double down the left field line. John Buck singled on a line drive to left and brought home the tying run in Turner, and Mike Baxter was hit by the pitch to load the bases. That brought up the man whose very place on the team was at stake, a man who mere days ago was a pitch or two away from an extended Memorial Day trip to Las Vegas. But Ike Davis put all that behind him and swung at a 1-1 sinker that zoomed into right field and plated the go-ahead runs.
• The two-run single was the apex of a game as good as Ike has had all season: 2-3 with a walk. Tonight in front of a national TV audience he eked out as many hits as he had in his previous 40-something at-bats.
• The runs came a little late for Shaun Marcum, whose grand effort resulted in a tough no-decision. His final line for the night: 7 innings, 4 hits, 2 earned runs, 0 walks, 12 strikeouts.
• LaTroy Hawkins earned the W with a scoreless 8th, and Bobby Parnell shut down the Atlanta bats 1-2-3 for his 7th save to send the 27,296 fans at Citi Field, including 3,000+ military personnel on Military Appreciation Night, home happy. Finally.
• Lucas Duda had the other run of the game, a solo homer that just cleared the wall in right to lead off the 4th.
• Daniel Murphy started two more double plays on the night, including a key turn in the top of the 8th.

The Bad Stuff:

• David Wright's slump continued as he went 0-4 to drop his average down to an ordinary .284.

Final Analysis:
Even the collective relief and joy of all Mets fans cannot possibly trump the feelings of relief and joy Ike Davis is experiencing tonight. An enormous burden was lifted from his shoulders with his swing in the 8th inning. Time will tell if this is the moment where he finally turned it around for good, but for the first time all season, Issac Benjamin Davis has some momentum going into tomorrow's game.

It was an utter shame Shaun Marcum couldn't get the win after a brilliant 12-K night where his only mistake was a hanging changeup that Dan Uggla put in the upper deck. Unfortunately, when New York doesn't score runs, pitcher basically have to throw near-perfect games every time out. Matt Harvey learned that lesson a couple weeks ago, and Shaun Marcum learned it tonight in wake of his best start as a Met.

Speaking of Harvey, he has a date with destiny coming up on Tuesday night in the middle of this year's Subway Series. The Mets will split four this week with the hated New York Yankees, two at Citi Field and two at Yankee Stadium. If Matt Harvey wants to affirm himself as one of the best in the game, he'll have to go toe-to-toe with the game's Evil Empire. What a fine matchup it should be.

MM

Games #45 & 46: Braves 7-6, Mets 5-0

Fans at Citi Field today found themselves recipients of a double feature: they were treated to not one but *two* excruciating Mets losses for the price of one. Oh, goody.

Brandon Lyon allowed two runs in the top of the 10th as the Braves won last night's suspended game 7-5, while Dillon Gee's 5th-inning implosion and a serious lack of offense combined to bury the Mets 6-0 in the nationally-televised regularly-scheduled game.

The Bad Stuff:

• After Jeremy Hefner's great outing on Friday night (see Good Stuff), LaTroy Hawkins let the lead blow up in his face in the 7th, and Scott Rice was no good in the 8th as Atlanta took the lead. New York rallied to tie the game before rain washed out the ending, but after Bobby Parnell's solid 9th to start off Saturday evening's conclusion, Brandon Lyon let in two Braves runs, including one on a B.J. Upton sac bunt, in the top of the 10th.
• Despite getting the first two runners on against the almighty Craig Kimbrel in the bottom of the 10th, the Mets could not put together another rally, as Ruben Tejada failed to advance the runners with a bad sac bunt and Justin Turner grounded into the game-ending 4-6-3 double play.
• In the full Saturday game, Dillon Gee looked solid for 4.2 innings. Then a Chris Johnson single eventually led to five Atlanta runs, including a home run by opposing pitcher Mike Minor.
• The New York (I guess you can call it) "offense" was powerless against Minor, who allowed just three hits and struck out 10 in 7.1 innings.

The Good Stuff:

• The aforementioned Hefner had one of his best outings of the season, allowing two runs on three hits in six innings, including two walks and seven strikeouts on 94 pitches. Despite being on a roll, Terry Collins removed him from the game before the 7th so "he could feel good about himself."
• John Buck hit his 11th home run of the year in the first game.
• Daniel Murphy went 3-4 in the first game with two runs and a key RBI during the 8th-inning comeback.
• Ruben Tejada scored the tying run of the first game on a wild pitch in the 8th and followed up with three hits in the second.
• Following a "golden sombrero" (four strikeouts) on Friday night, Ike Davis actually kept the 10th-inning rally going with a single of Kimbrel, his first hit in what seems like a career and a half.
• While the game was broadcast on FOX, it may not have been completely national: in Indiana at least, they showed us the Cardinals-Dodgers game. So maybe it wasn't the whole country who saw how much we suck. Come tomorrow night on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball, though...

Final Analysis:
There is only one word I can use to describe this team, which has now lost five straight and 11 of 14: Ew. Just ew. Nothing is going right for anyone, and even when it does for a moment, the team snuffs out its own success. And Terry Collins's reason for removing Hefner? Pretty lame.

You have to now start wondering whether the New York Mets will be the worst team in baseball in 2013. With the Marlins and Astros struggling so mightily, such a feat would have been hard to believe. All I can say about that is it's a double-edged sword: we will be terrible this year, but we won't even get the top pick in the 2014 MLB Draft. What a gyp.

MM

Game #28: Braves 9, Mets 4

Coming back after another rainout, New York was once again stuck in the mud.

A misjudged fly ball by Lucas Duda led to a five-run Atlanta 3rd, and the Mets 8th-inning comeback came up short, as they fell to the Braves 9-4.

The Bad Stuff:

• One run was in already for the Braves in the bottom of the 3rd, but a fly ball to left by Freddie Freeman created all sorts of trouble for Lucas Duda, who circled under it and failed to catch what became a two-run double. When the dust had finally settled, Jonathon Niese had given up seven runs on seven hits and six walks. He would last only one more inning.
• Down 8-2, the Mets got a couple runs home and leaded the bases, but Marlon Byrd swung and missed at ball four from Eric O'Flaherty to kill the rally.
• Ike Davis was due up just before Byrd with the bases loaded, but with a left-hander coming in he was pinch-hit for with Justin Turner. Turner drew the RBI walk, but when your supposed slugger is removed from the game in a clutch situation, that's some Bad Stuff.

The Good Stuff:

• David Wright homered in his third straight game, blasting a two-run shot in the top of the 4th.
• Brandon Lyon and Scott Atchison each had an inning of scoreless relief.

Final Analysis:
I'm convinced that even Mother Nature is against the Mets this season. Every time they seem to get a winning streak going, the weather steps in and wreaks havoc on the playing schedule, whether it's rain in Atlanta or snow in Minneapolis and Denver.

But it wasn't just the unexpected day off: Jonathon Niese is not pitching the way we expected him to. His ERA now stands at an unexceptional 4.66. Niese needs to get back confidence in his pitches. The old adage for the 1940s Boston Braves was "Spahn and Sain and pray for rain." The Mets thought they would have both halves of their "pray for rain" duo in Niese and Matt Harvey. Only Harvey has kept up his end of the bargain in 2013. While the two-man rotation is highly, highly unlikely, a one-man band would be utterly impossible.

MM

Game #27: Mets 7, Braves 5 (10)

In a week defined by blown leads, it was nice to see our boys do the blowing up tonight.

David Wright blasted a mammoth home run off Craig Kimbrel in the 9th and Ruben Tejada brought home Jordany Valdespin in the 10th inning to give the Mets a dramatic comeback win over the Braves, 7-5.

The Good Stuff:

(NYDailyNews.com)

• New York got quick runs in the 1st when John Buck launched his 10th home run of the young season, a two-run shot off Mike Minor. In the next inning, Lucas Duda hammered his own homer to make it 3-0 visitors.
• Down 4-3 in the 8th, Marlon Byrd took the second pitch of the inning from Eric O'Flaherty and put it in the right field stands to tie the game. After Atlanta re-took the lead in the bottom of the 8th, David Wright came up against the "unhittable" Craig Kimbrel. They must have meant Kimbrel was unhittable the same way the Titanic was unsinkable: Wright got contact on a 97 mph fastball and deposited it ten rows back in right center, tying the game on the Mets' fourth longball of the night.
• After Bobby Parnell got out of a jam in the bottom of the 9th, Terry Collins took over in the top of the 10th.
• After two quick outs, Jordany Valdespin was sent up to pinch-hit and drew a rare walk, the first base-on-balls issued by the Braves all night.
• Up to the plate next came not a pinch-hitter but Bobby Parnell, who stayed out of the way on the first strike from Jordan Walden as Valdespin swiped second base. Parnell was then brought back in favor of a pinch-hitter, Mike Baxter.
• Baxter got himself hit in the foot to put two runners on for Ruben Tejada, who in his trademark fashion came back with two strikes to line a base hit over the shortstop's head to score a head-first-sliding Valdespin and give the Mets a 6-5 lead.
• Daniel Murphy's base knock added one more insurance run to provide the final margin.
• Jeurys Familia was then brought on and easily converted his first major-league save with a 1-2-3 inning, finishing off Dan Uggla with a wicked slider.
• The Mets hit well in the clutch for what seems like the first time in a month, going 3-6 with RISP and stranding only two men (the last two in the 10th).

The Bad Stuff:

• Shaun Marcum was not great in his second start, surrendering three runs and needing 87 pitches just to get 13 outs.
• Scott Atchison and Brandon Lyon let Atlanta re-take the lead in the 7th and 8th innings respectively.
• Ike Davis pinch-hit for Justin Turner in the 9th and feebly struck out on three pitches from Kimbrel.

Final Analysis:
A sudden power surge, cracking the Braves' bullpen, and some key managing by TC. What a way to win a ballgame! After a tough week of games, Mets fans were treated to one of the team's finest performances in its first visit to Turner Field without having to worry about Chipper Jones. No doubt he would have given Atlanta another lead in the 9th inning, but their loss is our gain.

Keith Hernandez was quick to point out Terry Collins's smart managing in the 10th inning, noting that Parnell was sent up in a situation where Valdespin was stealing flat-out; if he swiped the bag, Parnell would be relieved in favor of someone whose last clutch at-bat had come more recently than high school, and if he was caught, de facto bullpen ace Parnell would still be able to take the mound for the bottom of the frame. Smart moves from a guy whose instincts had been questioned even by me. Tonight those instincts led to a big W. If that is the result of me being proven wrong (at least for one night), by all means let me be wrong again.

MM