Santana wins in Phillie Dispite Heilman's Best Efforts

I enjoyed this game from the 1st pitch Santana threw. He was everything an Ace should be. Johan went into the Lion's den and came out with Hamel's hide as his trophy. He was throwing strikes to both sides of the plate, mixing in his slider with the change-up and fastball. He pitched into the 8th, and left with 2 on and none out. That's when things got predictable.

Witless Willie did it again. Two on none out and he brings in Heilman? I was screaming at the TV. Before he threw his 1st pitch, I said to myself, "watch him give up a home run". And what did he do? Inside corner change-up promptly parked into the seat for three runs. I swear, Heilman does this crap intentionally. I think he's trying to get himself traded out of town. And where was Sanchez? What about Feliciano? How about Smith? Anyone but Aaron in the 8th inning in Phillie please. I wonder how Willies "guts" felt after that shot by Dobbs?

Earlier today I read Adam Rubin's blog article about the up coming game in Phillie. there was a quote in there from Hamels saying that he needed to be careful about pitching to Reyes and the Carlos brothers. I said that if I was Hamels, I'd worry more about David, Ryan, and Angel. Guess he should have read my comments. David had 4 hits and drove in 2 runs. Ryan had 2 hits and scored 3 times, and Pagan had 2 hits and 1 RBI. And Castillo? He was 0-4. Are you starting to agree that Ryan is better in the 2 hole Guinness? Without Ryan's 3 runs, the Mets lose.

David Wright loves Phillie pitching, and Hamels is overrated in my view. I've rarely been impressed with his efforts against the Mets. If Hamels was smart, he'd also start worrying about Ryan too. Church continues to prove that he's the bat needed in the 2 hole to keep the offense humming. Ever since he's started in the 2nd spot, the Mets have been more consistent in scoring runs. And I have to give Delgado his just due. Even though he didn't get a hit, 2 of his outs drove in 2 runs. So while he continues to struggle at the plate and in the field [1 error tonight], he at least contributed to the win. I also want to give a pat on the back to Jose'. After a hard slide into 2nd base in which his head was hammered by Utley's knee, he stayed in and never complained about it. In fact he insisted on staying in. That's the hard nosed baseball this team needs to play.

Overall it was a good night for the Mets. They needed to win this game and set the tone for the weekend. Without Rollins or Victorino in the line-up, the Mets had to win. Tomorrow is Ollie's turn to go. Hopefully he pitches better this weekend, then he did against the Brewers. The Mets have to keep the Phillies down, and step on their throats until they stop breathing.