Mack Attack: July 10, 2008

By John Mackin Ade
Posted Thursday, July 10, 2008

Phils: 43 losses - Mets: 44 – Marlins: 44 - Braves: 48 – Nats: 57

-look for OF Moises Alou to possibly be in the Mets lineup Friday night (just not this Friday night, as he reported tightness in his hamstring and was pulled from a rehab start at Binghamton… SP Mike Pelfrey’s last 8 starts: 51.2 IP 15 ER 2.61 1.30 WHIP 7-1… Eddie Kunz hasn’t given up a run in his last 9 outings… GCL Mets catcher Juan Martinez is 4-4 for the season and stats are 1.000/1.000/1.500/2.500…

His team in need of outfield help given the uncertain health of Ryan Church and Moises Alou, Mets manager Jerry Manuel revealed his affection for Matt Holliday, who extended his hitting streak to 12 games. "It's kind of a ticklish situation. If you go and get Holliday, I can take that. I think I can find him a spot," he told Newsday. -- Denver Post

Zephyrs

The New Orleans Zephyrs got a huge night from catcher Raul Casanova to break out of their losing streak, winning 10-6 over the visiting Memphis Redbirds on Wednesday.

Casanova led the Zephyrs offensively, going 3-4 with six RBI, four off of a third-inning grand slam. In fact, the first four Zephyrs runs of the game were driven in by Casanova, as he hit a two-run homer in the second inning as well.

Starting pitcher Claudio Vargas (3-1) got the win after giving up five runs (three earned) on six hits in five innings. Vargas contributed on the offensive side as well, going 2-2 with an RBI.

B-Mets:

-Dan Murphy is playing 2B again… guess we might as well stop reporting that because it’s not going to go away… Emmanuel Garcia has switched permanently to 3B to accomodate Murph... neither is his bat, pounding a double in the first inning (.315)…

The Connecticut Defenders scored six times in the sixth, defeating the Binghamton Mets 9-0 at Dodd Stadium Wednesday. The loss is Binghamton’s sixth in their last seven games.

Connecticut (47-45) didn’t trail after a two-run first, with Antoan Richardson and Eddy Martinez-Esteve picking up RBI singles off Tobi Stoner. Stoner (0-3) departed after allowing the first two men to reach in the sixth. Reliever Joe Hietpas then allowed a two-run double to Jake Wald before Kyle Haines hit a three-run triple. Edgar Alfonzo gave up Pablo Sandoval’s RBI single, which put Connecticut up 8-0.

Ryan Rohlinger’s solo homer off Eddie Camacho in the seventh provided Connecticut with the final margin of victory.

The B-Mets (49-43) were unable to push any runs across against Connecticut starter Adam Cowart (7-6), who tossed six shutout innings. Relievers Ronnie Ray and Josh Sharpless completed the whitewash for the Defenders.

Lucy:

-bunch of us were starting to worry about SP Dylan Owen, but it looks like we can stop doing that right now… Owen pitched a complete game shutout in the 1st game of the doubleheader at Lucy, beating Tampa 3-0 on a 4 hitter. Dylan had 6 Ks and only one walk… DH Jordan Abruzzo (2-4) cracked the .300 BA again (.309)… the 2nd game was rained out…

Gnats:

-I was at the Gnats game last night… SP Scott Moviel is quietly putting his game together and showing why the Mets had drafted him so high. He has one of the sickest 11-6 curve that comes over the plate in the 68-70 range, and if his fastball is on, the combo is close to unhittable. Moviel is 5-3 in is last 10 games and has an ERA of 3.20… this is the 2nd year in a row that the Mets have not sent enough bats to Savannah and it gets quite frustrating to watch this team lose another well pitched game… the team batting average is .247, next to last in the league.

The West Virginia Power scored three runs in the fifth inning and hung on for a 5-4 win on Wednesday night to take the third consecutive game over the Sand Gnats at Historic Grayson Stadium.

The Power (15-5, 47-42) scored three times in the fifth on a two-run single from Eric Farris and an RBI hit from Eric Fryer.

Savannah (7-13, 40-50) answered with two in the bottom half, as B.J. Hubbert walked and scored on an RBI groundout from Michael Parker. Greg Veloz then scored from second base when Juan Lagares’ infield single kicked of the glove of shortstop Matt Cline to pull Savannah within a run, 4-3.

The Power added a crucial insurance run in the sixth when Matt Cline doubled down the left-field line to score Ulrich Snijders with two outs.

Joaquin Rodriguez singled home Jose Jimenez with two outs in the eighth for his second RBI of the night, cutting the deficit to 5-4.

Elvin Ramirez (6-7) took the loss, permitting 4 runs on 4 hits in 5.0 innings. The right-hander walked 4 and struck out 7.

Clones:

SS/2B Ignacio Medrano has been transferred from K-Port to Brooklyn.

If you haven’t heard of Maverick the Wonder Dog by now, then you haven’t been coming to enough of our games. If you are currently reading this blog, however, then you are probably aware that the Cyclones (or technically, Rebecca Schwartz, the Entertainment Manager), now proudly own an office puppy. As anticipated, Maverick is fun to play with, and even more fun to hand back to Rebecca when it’s time to take him outside/feed him/do anything with him that requires work. Watching Rebecca look after Maverick is not entirely unlike watching a mother chase and clean up after an energetic toddler (except I guess, and hope, that most mothers do not lock up their children in kennels when they’re being naughty).

So we at the Cyclones would like to give all dog owners their due respect and invite them out to our Bark in the Park Night on Monday, August 11th, sponsored by the Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals and Maddie’s Fund. On this night, fans are welcome to bring their canine companions to the bleacher area of our ballpark. Bleacher tickets are only $7, and each human and doggy needs a ticket (yup, like many of their owners, we view the dogs as people). Tickets can be ordered over the phone with me (718-382-2619) and picked up at the back gate on the day of the game, where dog owners will then be asked to sign a waiver of liability.

We are also giving out Maverick the Wonder Dog bobbleheads, so be sure to line up when gates open at 5:30 p.m. (the game starts at 7:00 p.m.). The Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals will also be showcasing some fine dogs for adoption. Finally, we are organizing a small expo with local businesses from the pet supply industry behind our bleachers, so be ready to take home some promotional samples. All in all, if you’re a dog-lover, you won’t want to miss this game! - CloneBlog

K-Port:

2B Josh Satin and OF John Servidio have been shipped to K-Port from Kingsport.

2Bman Josh Statin had no trouble adjusting to the Appy League... he went 4-4 in the 1st game of the DH... Mets pitching let down and they lost the first game...

VSL Mets:

The VSL Mets continue their downslide, losing 9-5, to the Phillies… SP Jhonathan Torres had his 3rd suck outing in a row, pushing his ERA to 3.14… no real hitting stars on this team, though LF Adrian Pirela went 2-4, raising his team leading BA to .292.

Minor League Bios:

Emary Frederick P R R 6-0 175 Southern University

The Mets signed Emary Frederick out of Southern University prior to the 2007 season. Frederick is a native of Deltona, Florida. He was signed by the Mets along with his college teammate, Darren Clark. Fredrick, pitcher and native of Deltona, Fla., appeared mostly in a relief role for the Jaguars, posting a 1-1 record with three saves. He also struck out 22 batters and had a 3.33 era in 17 appearances last season. In 2006, Frederick (along with fellow-Met minor leaguers C Bradley Hubbert and SS Joaquin Rodriguez) were named to the all-Black College All-Star Team by BlackCollegeBaseball.com.

His college coach was quoted to say: “I'm surprised that Emary wasn't drafted. As a true freshman, he had everything a pitcher needed, including movement on his fastball."

Emary got off to a particularly slow start this year, which included being thrown out of RiverDogs game that resulted in a 3 game suspension. Since then, he has settled down and proved quite effective as a middle reliever.

The 2007 season was a topsy-turvy one for Frederick. He spent the entire season with Savannah, where he went 2-0, 6.80 ERA in 32 appearances, until he hurt his shoulder in late July. Hidden in this obvious disappointing ERA was the fact that he threw 50 strike outs in 46.1 IP, making him one of the Mets organizational leaders in this stat.

Frederick was assigned to the Florida Instructional League for the off season to continue his healing and progress.

Frederick was born in Sanford, Florida and currently resides in the city of Deltona.

Ex-Mets:

42 bunts, 21 bunt hits -- Carlos Gomez, 2008* - So Gomez has been successful (and by successful, I mean successful in reaching base, not successful in the productive out sense) half of the time he's bunted this year. What happens if we divide his plate appearances into bunts and non-bunts?

.235/.276/.352 -- Gomez, 2008, not bunting
.500/.500/.500 -- Gomez, 2008, bunting
.266/.301/.370 -- Gomez, 2008, overall

In general, bunting gets a bad rap because, in general, a player is going to give up an out when he bunts. But Carlos Gomez is a freak. When he bunts, it's to increase his OBP, and thus far, bunting has gotten him on base more than frequently than swinging away has. - The WGOM

And lastly:

Citi Field's outfield concourse, accessible to all ticket holders, will feature:

* Blue Smoke: the pioneer of urban ‘cue, Blue Smoke will offer mouthwatering real pit barbecue (Highlights: Pulled Pork Sandwich and Kansas City Ribs)

* Shake Shack: the enormously popular hamburger and hot dog stand that made a splash with its original location in Madison Square Park will griddle up game day favorites (Highlights: ShackBurger and Shack-Cago Dog)

* Taqueria (name TBD): this new concept will feature authentic tacos

* Pop Fries: another new concept for USHG, this frites stand will serve freshly-cut, Belgian-style fries with a variety of dipping sauces

The Sterling Club will feature several different dining options, including:

* Sterling Market: this casual café will serve classic, artisanal comfort foods

* Sterling Beer & Wine Bar: located inside Sterling Market, this venue will offer specialty brews and an extensive selection of wines from around the world, available by the glass or bottle

* Sterling Dining Room: reservations required, with limited seating for walk-in guests, will present a small-plates menu ideally suited to game day dining

* Sterling Bar & Lounge: offering guests a view of the large outdoor patio and ball field, the bar and lounge will serve specialty cocktails and small bites

* Sterling In-Seat Service: waiter service will feature “Best of Ballpark” food from the outfield concourse