The Mack Attack - 5-19-8

By John Mackin Ade
Posted Monday, May 19, 2008

May 19, 2008

Mets News:

Pitchers for Atlanta series: Game 1: John Maine; Game 2: Claudio Vargas; Game 3: Mike Pelfrey

From: SlidingInHome (NYY Blog):

The Yanks racked up a grand total of 3 hits, a single up the middle by Derek Jeter, and 2-run homer by Hideki Matsui, and a double by Jose Molina.

Once again the Yankees fail to hit with RISP, and I feel the turning point in the game tonight came in the 5th inning with the Mets leading 4-2. Molina led off with a double, and Johnny Damon successfully moved him over to 3rd, but Bobby Abreu was unable to drive Molina in as he struck out looking. I'm not saying the Yankees come back and win if they cut it to 4-3 there, but that was a very important run, and once again the Yanks failed to get the run in. It was almost like the whole stadium was like "here we go again" when Abreu took that third strike. How bad of a night was it? The umpires mistakenly took away what should have been a 3-run HR by Carlos Delgado and the Yanks still lost by 9, that's how bad it was.

Here's two post game quotes from Kat O'Brien of Newsday. First from the captain on missing A-Rod and Posada: "It doesn't matter if guys are out of the lineup. You could have brought back Gehrig, Ruth and DiMaggio. We still need to swing the bats better."

And from Johnny Damon on hearing Mets fans cheering during the game: "They had reason to be out there cheering. They ended up kicking our butts. It's pretty embarrassing."

From: The Bergen Record:

Asked directly if he believes black managers are held to different standards than their white counterparts, Willie Randolph said: “I don’t know how to put my finger on it, but I think there’s something there. Herman Edwards did pretty well here and he won a couple of playoff [games], and they were pretty hard on Herm. Isiah [Thomas] didn’t do a great job, but they beat up Isiah pretty good. ... I don’t know if people are used to a certain figurehead. There’s something weird about it.

“I think it’s very important ... that I handle myself in a way that the [African-American managers] coming behind me will get the opportunities, too ... .”

From: NY Daily News:

But the blown call on a Carlos Delgado fourth-inning shot that bounced off the left field foul pole was still reverberating in the umpires’ clubhouse afterward, with home plate ump Bob Davidson giving a frank assessment of what turned out to be his incorrect ruling.

“I ----ed it up. I’m the one who thought it was a ---- foul ball. I saw it on the replay. I’m the one who ----ed it up so you can put that in your paper,” Davidson told reporters. “Bolts and nuts, I ----ed up. You’ve just got to move on. No one feels worse about it than I do.”

From: The Hardball Times:

Julio Franco was born August 23, 1958. That predates the Berlin Wall and the first man in space. Wrigley Field and Comiskey Park were both multi-use fields back then. The Bears played on the North Side and the Chicago Cardinals (who hadn't yet moved to St. Louis) played gridiron in Sox Park.

A youthful, pimply-faced Peter Gammons was about to enter high school. The Quarrymen were breaking in their new guitarist, George Harrison. Bob Hope was funny. Johnny Carson hosted a game show (Who Do You Trust?). Ty Cobb, Charlie Parker and Frank Lloyd Wright all still lived. Karol Wojtyta was a new bishop presiding over services to Poland's Catholic faithful in Latin.

The Ayatollah Khomeini had not yet become politically active, let alone been exiled and returned to set up a theocratic state. Speaking of fascist lunatics, Saddam Hussein had just dropped out of law school, Bobby Knight was a freshman basketball player at Ohio State and Pat Robertson worked towards his Masters of Divinity.

Put it another way—try this pop quiz on how old Julio Franco is. Which one of the following is NOT true? (See references & resources section at the end of the article for the answer). When Franco was born:

1) There had never been an overtime game in the NFL.

2) There were only 48 states in the union.

3) Not every baseball team had yet integrated.

4) That very day, United Airlines received its first jet aircraft.

Organizational Leaders (per Adam Rubin):

Average: Jesus Feliciano, New Orleans, .356; Jordan Abruzzo, Savannah, .331; Mike Carp, Binghamton, .326; Daniel Murphy, Binghamton, .315; Nick Evans, Binghamton, .299; Lucas Duda, St. Lucie, .292; Francisco Peña, Savannah, .282; Fernando Martinez, Binghamton, .280.

Homers: Nick Evans, Binghamton, 8; Chris Aguila, New Orleans, 7; Valentino Pascucci, New Orleans, 7; Mike Carp, Binghamton, 6; Leivi Ventura, St. Lucie, 6.

RBI: Nick Evans, Binghamton, 30; Lucas Duda, St. Lucie, 28; Daniel Murphy, Binghamton, 27; Jose Jimenez, Savannah, 24; Mike Carp, Binghamton, 23.

Steals: Greg Veloz, Savannah, 14; Ezequiel Carrera, St. Lucie, 10; Emmanuel Garcia, Binghamton, 9; Argenis Reyes, New Orleans, 8; Ambiorix Concepcion, Binghamton, 7.

ERA: Tony Armas, New Orleans, 2.63; Angel Calero, Savannah, 2.68; Ruddy Lugo, New Orleans 2.70; Michael Antonini, Savannah, 2.79; Dylan Owen, St. Lucie, 3.14; Willie Collazo, New Orleans, 3.23; Elvin Ramirez, Savannah, 3.29; Salvador Aguilar, Binghamton, 3.58; Jose Sanchez, Binghamton, 3.86.

Saves: Eddie Kunz, Binghamton, 9; Carlos Muñiz, New Orleans, 5; Jose Bierd, Savannah, 5; Nate Field, New Orleans, 3.

Strikeouts: Brian Stokes, New Orleans, 45; Tony Armas, New Orleans, 41; Dillon Gee, St. Lucie, 41; Dylan Owen, St. Lucie, 40.

Mets Contracts:

Moises Alou of - 1 year/$8.5M (2007), plus 2008 club option - NY Mets exercised $7.5M 2008 option 10/31/07 - signed as a free agent 11/06 - 07:$7.5M, 08:$7.5M club option ($1M buyout) - 1 year/$7.25M (2005), plus $6M 2006 player option - Alou exercised $6M 2006 player option 10/05 - signed as a free agent 12/04 - 05:$7.25M, 06:$6M player option - $1M of 2005 salary deferred to 2006, $1.5M deferred to 2007 portion of 2006 salary deferred if option is exercised - $0.25M/year in incentives (PAs) - 3 years/$27M (02-04), plus $11.5M 05 club option ($2.5M buyout) - signed 12/01 02:$6M, 03:$9.5M, 04:$9.5M - 05:$11.5M club option ($2M buyout) (Cubs declined 10/04) - 5 years/$25M (1997-2001) - no-trade clause - agents: Hendricks brothers - ML service: 17.037

Zephyrs:

The Nashville Sounds scored three runs in the sixth inning and defeated the visiting Zephyrs 8-5 on Sunday afternoon. Eric Munson delivered a three RBI double to drive home the runs in the sixth inning. Tim Dillard pitched two scoreless innings to earn the win in relief. The Z’s starter Willie Collazo pitched five innings and left the game with the lead but for the second time in three days the Z’s pen could not hold the contest. Collazo had 94 pitches in five innings and also had a lengthy rain delay factored in to his start. Reliever Joselo Diaz allowed three runs and took the loss. The Z’s outhit the Sounds 10-8 and were led by Victor Mendez who had three hits and three RBI. Mendez and Gustavo Molina each homered in the game. Nashville won the series three games to one.

B-Mets:

Going into Sunday’s game, the B-Mets have won 6 straight games

The B-Met bullpen hasn’t allowed a run since 5/8.

C Salvador Paniagua was transferred to High-A St. Lucie.

OF Josh Petersen was added from High-A St. Lucie.

Caleb Stewart had four hits and Nick Evans and Ambiorix Concepcion homered, but the Binghamton Mets fell to the Erie SeaWolves 10-5 at NYSEG Stadium Sunday. The loss snaps Binghamton’s win streak at six games while Erie ends its 12-game skid. Erie (16-26) didn’t trail after a five-run second. Ryan Roberson opened the scoring with an RBI double off Bobby Parnell (3-3) before Jeff Frazier singled in a run and Max St. Pierre hit a two-run homer. Deik Scram added a two-out run-scoring single later in the frame. Evans led off the Binghamton (20-22) half of the second with a solo homer before Stewart tripled and scored on Jonathan Malo’s base hit to right, pulling the B-Mets within 5-2. After St. Pierre singled in another run for Erie in the third for a 6-2 lead, Binghamton erupted for three runs in the bottom of the frame. Jose Coronado drew a leadoff walk off Danny Christensen before scoring on Evans’ double. Stewart had a double of his own and scored on Concepcion’s two-run homer that put the B-Mets within 6-5.

Lucy

RP Emary Frederick was added to the squad and pitched one scoreless inning Sunday.

Gnats:

The Sand Gnats (18-25) held the lead briefly on Sunday before the Greenville Drive poured it on to defeat Savannah, 13-5, in front of 1,799 at Historic Grayson Stadium. Jose Jimenez was 2-for-3 off the bench with his fifth home run of the season for the Gnats. A five-run Drive fourth inning would propel Greenville into the lead for good. Savannah starter Scott Moviel, who had been efficient to that point, allowed two home runs in the frame. One home run went to Luis Exposito, which tied the game at two. The other two-run home run flew off the bat of Manny Arambarris to make it 5-2 Drive. After Greenville added a pair of runs in the top of the fifth, Savannah answered right back to once again pull within three. Jimenez, who came off the bench to pinch hit for Matt Bouchard, hit his fifth home run of the season to pull the Gnats within three. That would be as close as the Sand Gnats could get as Greenville tacked on 2 more runs in the sixth and 4 more runs in the seventh to extend the lead. Savannah would add a run in the eighth. Moviel (3-5) took the loss for Savannah, allowing 7 runs on 7 hits with a pair of walks and strikeouts. Eammon Portice (3-4) earned the win for the Drive. Carlos Guzman, the newest Sand Gnat, homered on the first pitch he saw from Portice in the third. He would finish the game 2-for-3.

VSL:

Mets de Nueva York mejoró su invicto a 5-0 en el torneo 2008 de la Venezuelan Summer League al derrotar este viernes a Cardenales de San Luis con pizarra de 9 carreras por 7 en el campo Portachuelos de Bejuma. Nueva York vino de atrás para mantenerse imbatible. Anotó par de carreras en la séptima entrada para acercarse 6-3 y luego fabricó decisivo racimo de cinco en la octava para asegurar el triunfo. En el inning grande metropolitano hubo complicidad de dos errores de la defensiva cardenalera, además del descontrol de los lanzadores. Héctor Alvarez y Wendley VanGurtRay recibieron boletos con las bases llenas, mientras que José Bellorín dio sencillo impulsor. Alvarez, quien dio jonrón solitario en el séptimo inning, y VanGurtRay terminaron con dos carreras impulsadas cada uno. Roberto Pérez fue el mejor de San Luis al golpear de 5-4 con un doble, una carrera anotada y par de producidas. Oralbis Hernándz (2-0) fue el ganador con relevo de 2.0 entradas permitiendo cuatro hits y una carrera sucia con dos ponches. Salvó Johan Romero (2) al trabajar el noveno episodio perfecto con un guillotinado. Perdió Moisés Colorado (0-1).

Minor Mets Bios:

Marcos Tabata P R R 5-10 175 6-12-86

In 2007, Tabata pitched for Kingsport (3-3, 7.49, 1.69 in 13 appearances, 5 starts 41 Ks in 39.2 IP).

Shaun Tabrett P R R 6-4 Australia

Tendinitis as a 16 year old actually helped Tabrett work on his velocity while rehabbing. His arsenal includes a solid curveball, change-up, and a high-80s fastball. He isn’t projected to play in the US until late 2008.

Jefferies Tatford C L R 6-3 210 9-16-84 Univ. Of Louisiana (Lafayette)

Tatford’s stats in his last season in college: .351/.408/.586. Can play in the OF and also at 3B.

A scouting report:

2007: Second Team All-Sun Belt Conference Selection...Named to the Sun Belt Conference All-Tournament Team...One of just two players on the team to start all 62 games for the Cajuns...Second on the team with a .351 batting average...Had a career high 10 homeruns, two triples and 18 doubles in his final season...Drove in a career high 46 RBI on the year...Drew a career high 42 walks, second on the team behind fellow senior Devon Bourque...For the third consecutive year, led the team with number of times hit by a pitch...Finished the year with 16 HBPs, second most in a single season...Finished his career with a school record 48 hit by pitches...Ranked in the Cajuns’ top-5 in 12 offensive categories (batting average, slugging percentage, on base percentage, runs scored, hits, runs batted in, doubles, triples, homeruns, total bases, walks and hit by pitches)...Tied a career high with five RBI against Western Kentucky on April 7...Had a career high nine total bases against Arkansas-Little Rock on May 13...Drew a career high three walks against McNeese State on March 21.

The Mets drafted Tatford in the 15th round of the 2007 draft. He played the 2007 season for Brooklyn (.169/.229/.260 in 77 at bats).

Ex-Mets:

Mike Jacobs tripled, homered, and drove in 3

This Day In Mets History:

1998 - After giving up eighth inning three-run homer to Bernie Williams, Armando Benitez nails Tino Martinez between the shoulder blades and touches off a brawl. Graeme Lloyd races in from the Yankee bullpen to punch the O's closer and Alan Mills bloodies Darryl Strawberry’s face after the New York outfielder ends up in the Baltimore dugout trying also to get a shot at Benitez.

1993 - With the team record at 13-25, Dallas Green replaces Jeff Torberg as the Mets manager.

2000 - In the park's last year, Jason Kendall became the first Pirate to hit for the cycle in Three Rivers Stadium. The Pittsburgh backstop has a two-run homer in the first, a single in the second, a double in the third and a two-run triple in the eighth to join Giant Jeff Kent (1999) as the only player to accomplish the feat in the stadium's 31-year history.

2004 - Breaking his own record set two weeks ago, Julio Franco becomes the oldest player to hit a pinch-hit home run. The Braves’ first baseman is 45 years, 269 days old when he accomplishes the feat.