No No-No And No Win

"We're not that special, either. We're not as good as last year." - Billy Wagner's post-loss speech of encouragement.

So, the Mets have lost a series and their opponents weren't the Braves.

Easily the Mets could blame the absence of Carlos Beltran, Moises Alou and Shawn Green.

On the other hand, their replacements; Endy Chavez, Ben Johnson and Carlos Gomez were a combined 4 for 11 from the plate and played sound defence.


Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird, it's a plane, it's the end of a no-hit game...

Oliver Perez pitched another quasi-stellar game, a no-hitter and four strikeouts through the first four innings and gave up only four hits all game, a performance tainted by three walks and a trio of runs - good for a win most days but on Sunday, not. Not on a day where the margin for error was so small.

And whilst the subs were doing their bit the rest of the starting batting order of regulars went a combined 2 for 16 at the plate, shut down by an incomprehensibly effective Doug Davis and a pair of relievers after blowing a bases-loaded opportunity in the 8th - an opportunity which was foul by two feet and could have changed the face of the game but didn't as the D'Backs won their 9th game out of 10 and moved into a tie for first place in the NL West.

Davis puts together meticulous game plans for each of his games using the team's BATS video scouting reports, and one of the things he learned in researching the Mets is that they don't hit curveballs well. So he threw more of them -- 35 of his 111 pitches, Davis estimated.

And now, a day off to heal both the bodies and the minds and prepare for battle with the Phillies coming to town.

Help on the horizan

Carlos Beltran said he is certain he will play on Tuesday.

Three-time Cy Young Award winner Pedro Martinez, recovering from rotator cuff surgery, is scheduled to throw off a mound for the first time Tuesday in Port St. Lucie, Fla., the team said.