Oliver Perez was awesome!! Way to go Ollie!! I've like Maine and Perez since I 1st saw them last year. I love their attitudes and grit. Before this year started I predicted that Maine and Perez would win 15 games each. I also believed Perez would have an ERA around 3.75 and strikeout around 200 batters. Well he won't strike out 200 but his ERA now stands at 3.32. He's got 170 strikeouts in 173.1 innings. If he hadn't missed those 2 starts after the All-Star game, he'd be pushing 195 innings and 190 strikeouts by the end of the year. If the pen had done a better job this season, and the hitting was up to last season's standards, Ollie could easily have 17-19 wins this year. Great job by a special pitcher in a pressure situation. Sometime in the future I do believe he could be the 1st Mets pitcher to throw a no-hitter. His stuff is that nasty. I'm sure glad the Pirates decided to get rid of him.
Because Ollie threw 8 awesome innings [8 strikeouts and NO WALKS] the pen got a rest today. I still don't get Witless Willie's thought process. The Mets have a 5 run lead and Heilman comes into pitch. Why? That's a perfect time to rest Aaron and give some young arms a few pitches in the big leagues. The bull pen is over flowing with young rested arms, but the Witless Wonder still uses Heilman. It would have been a perfect time to see what Carlos Muniz could do. In 58 2/3 innings between New Orleans and Double-A Binghamton, Muniz allowed 43 hits and 16 earned runs. He struck out 62, walked 17 and recorded 23 saves. Sounds like someone the Mets can use, don't you think?
David Wright continues to punish baseballs and bases. He had 3 more hits and stole 2 more bases. He now has a .320 average, 182 hits, 40 doubles, 30 home runs, 104 RBI, 106 runs, 90 walks, 33 stolen bases [and only caught 5 times], an .414 OBP, and a .552 slugging %. He has an outside chance at getting 200 hits this year. 8 games left to get 18 hits. That would be unheard of for a Mets 3rd baseman. Looks like an MVP type season to me. Unfortunately, he had another throwing error. He always seems to have more problems with routine throws than the difficult ones. He made a great play on Cabrerra well behind 3rd base and in foul ground, and threw him out by 1/2 a foot at 1st. But he threw wide after making another great stop on a hot smash by the bag.
Reyes continues to struggle at the plate. He only got 1 hit and looks lost when hitting. Alou' extended his hitting streak, and now is tied with David for the longest in club history. Castillo is hurting. He can hardly get out of the batter's box and should rest tomorrow. Gotay is playing well in the field, and Castillo needs to rest his battered foot and knee. Beltran should have sat. He only had on hit, but struck out twice and couldn't cover any ground in the field. I think he cost Perez two hits today because he could get two bloop hits. I know I rag on him about being a baby, but his defense and lack of production at the plate tell me he needs to rest his knee for a game. Castro had the big hit. A 3 run bomb into the vacant seats in left field. Too bad he's so bad behind the plate. It will be interesting to see if Omar resigns him as the back-up next year.
Well, here's to hoping John Maine can follow Ollie's effort with one of his own. John needs to get things going before the season ends. I want him to get that 15th win and solidify his spot in the rotation for the post season [if the Mets hold on] and next years roster.
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