Game 98 - Saturday Afternoon, July 20th in Flushing
Record - 49-49, 2nd Place, 6 1/2 games behind the Braves
One Sentence Summary: Cole Hamels' struggles continued, as the former ace couldn't contain the Mets and the bad guys won, 5-4.
What It Means: It's back to .500 for the Phils and they'll go for the series win tomorrow afternoon. Sunday's game should be a pitcher's duel, with Cliff Lee facing off against Matt Harvey.
What Went Wrong: En route to this 12th loss of the season, Hamels allowed four runs on seven hits in his five innings of work. The offense went 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position. Although Delmon Young had three hits on the day, his strike out with the bases loaded in the fifth was the at-bat I'll remember most.
Jimmy Rollins homered to start the ballgame, and Chase Utley homered in the ninth to bring the Phils to within a run.
Featured Card: With the Phillies seeking center field help, one of the players that could be available this month is current Mets outfielder Marlon Byrd. Byrd had two hits in this game to raise his average to .274, and he's a very strong candidate for N.L. Comeback Player of the Year honors. Byrd appeared in 47 games last year for the Cubs and Red Sox, hitting .210 with one home run. In 80 games this year, he has 16 home runs and 55 RBIs.
It's doubtful Byrd will be reunited with the Phils however, as intra-division trades are few and far between, and because the Mets are said to be seeking a boatload of prospects for Byrd. Don't do it, Ruben.
4 comments:
If I may add some perspective from a fan of the (*ahem*) "bad guys"...
As surprising as it may seem, the Mets have not always been a joy to watch this year. Marlon Byrd has been one of the few bright spots, and even though the Mets are not in contention and Byrd may not play a part in any future contention, he's done his part to make this team reasonably fun to watch.
More importantly, he indirectly helps young pitchers like Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler because you don't want them to walk on the mound thinking that they have to throw a one-hitter just to have a chance to win.
So while Byrd's "book value" might be a borderline Class-A prospect, he's worth more to the Mets and their fans.
...That being said, if you want to get Sandy Alderson's attention with some real prospects, well...
Some of my good friends root for the Mets, and I always remind them that there's still time to be rehabilitated. ; )
I'd love to have Byrd, and he'd be an instant upgrade over some of the outfield options the Phillies currently have. However, I'd hate for the prospects the Phils gave up to come back and haunt us for years to come while wearing the orange and blue.
Pffft. There's no hope for me.
Unlike most Mets fans, I don't hate the Phillies... you should take your small victories where you can. :-)
A friend of mine once said something to the effect of, "Mets and Phillies fans are essentially the same people in terms of having a general level of frustration in their rooting life." I pointed out that the Mets never had a losing record in 30 out of 31 seasons, but as that occurred long before my birth, I could see his point.
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