Mets continue the road trip and do what they never did in franchise history: Win a series in Philly and Atlanta on the same road trip.
Game 70: Jeremy Hefner
The Mets Playboy Pitcher knows that sometimes you perform even when you’re not on your game. Hefner only went six and gave up an exuberant amount of hits, 10 total but managed to keep the Phillies to three runs, one of which was unearned thanks to a Daniel Murphy error. He was saved from further damage in the fifth, when with 2 outs and the bases loaded Juan Lagares chased down a deep fly in center for the final out in the 4-3 Mets win
Game 71: Josh Edgin
One of the issues with Dillon Gee that is preventing him from being more than a back of the rotation starter is that when he’s off, he has a hard time keeping the team in the game. That was the case in the Mets 8-7 loss to the Phillies. While he ultimately didn’t lose the game, that pleasure went to a Carlos Torres who gave up a Kevin Frandsen home run in the bottom of the 9th, he put the Mets in a 6-1 hole that was a lot to come back from. It was disappointing that Gee couldn’t carryover his near Complete Game hard-luck loss in Atlanta over to Philly.
As for the Pitcher of the game, nobody really stood out in the Mets pen. I’m giving it to Edgin cause he had the cleanest inning vs the top of the Phillies order, allowing a single to Rollins then striking out Utley and getting Michael Young to ground into a double play. Many talk how important it is to get the Mets young bats going to see what they have for the future, but getting Edgin to rebound would be huge for the 2014 pen.
Game 71: Matt Harvey
Only Mother Nature could stop Matt Harvey from dominating the Phillies for eigth-nine innings. Harvey went six innings, allowed 2 hits, a walk, and struck out six on seventy-two pitches. A rain delay in the seventh paused the game long enough for Terry Collins and Dan Warthen to remove Harvey. The fact Mets already had a 6-0 lead in what would become an 8-0 win made the decision easier.
Game 70: Juan Lagares
The Mets rookie outfielder is starting to look comfortable at the MLB level. He is getting the Position Player of Game award here not just for his big catch in the 5th mentioned above, but also for his 3-4 at the plate including a run and a big go-ahead RBI double in the sixth inning.
How big was the double? Well, it scored the runner from first base. Who happened to be Lucas Duda. Yes, you read that correctly. Duda scored from first base. I checked the replay, it was really Duda.
Game 71: Jordanny Valdespin
Jordanny Valdespin doesn’t do a lot of things well, but you can’t knock him for coming through with the big hits late. Down 7-5 in the 9th facing Jonathan Papelbon, JV1 was “the man right then” hitting a big solo Home Run to close the gap to one run. Wright then reached base on a throwing error by Michael Young, and Daniel Murphy singled to center to tie the game before Torres would lose it in the 9TH. Valdespin also drove in two runs earlier on an RBI groundout in the sixth and a fielder’s choice in the 3rd. All RBIs can’t be dramatic, but they can be productive. Honorable mention goes to Quintanilla, who was 3-4 with 2 runs and an RBI, Eric Young with his two RBIs, and of course Murphy with his late game tying single.
Game 72: David Wright
There’s an old joke in baseball: A starting pitcher goes against a strong hitter. First time around he gives up a double. Second time a triple. Third time a home run. Before he faces his again the manager calls for a pitching change. The reliever comes to the mound and ask the starter if the hitter had any weaknesses. The starter says “Yeah, he doesn’t hit singles.”
For Game 72, that hitter was David Wright. The Mets Captain went 4-5 with two doubles, a triple and a home run, scoring twice and driving in two. The home run though was just icing on the cake, as it came in the 9th inning. The Mets went on a double barrage against John Lannan and the Phillies pen, as Wright (twice), Byrd (twice), Young Jr., Lagares, and even Matt Harvey all doubled in this game. Matt Harvey drove in Lagares with a big RBI double in the fifth and scored on Eric Young’s double.
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Pitcher of the Game Scoreboard:
Matt Harvey: 14
Jeremy Hefner: 10
Jonathan Niese: 9
Dillon Gee: 7
Shaun Marcum: 5
Bobby Parnell: 4
Scott Atchinson: 3
LaTroy Hawkins: 3
Brandon Lyon: 3
Greg Burke: 3
Josh Edgin: 2
Jeurys Familia: 2
Scott Rice: 2
David AArdsma: 1
Rob Carson: 1
Carlos Torres: 1
Zack Wheeler: 1
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Position Player of the Game Scoreboard:
David Wright: 13
Daniel Murphy: 9
John Buck: 8
Marlon Byrd: 8
Ike Davis: 4
Lucas Duda: 4
Reuben Tejada: 4
Juan Lagares: 3
Kirk Nieuwenhuis: 3
Rick Ankiel: 2
Mike Baxter: 2
Colin Cowgill: 2
Omar Quintanilla: 2
Anthony Recker: 2
Justin Turner: 2
Jordany Valdespin: 2
Andrew Brown: 1
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Special Thanks to Sean Engel for the Kiner’s Korner Pitcher and Position Player of the Game graphics. You can follow him on twitter with the handle @SeanEngel05
Posted by Robert Z
Kiner's Korner & The Kult of Mets Personalities 