On the verge of being swept by the Dodgers to make a once-successful road trip a misery, the Met batting order, sans Moises Alou, Brian Schneider and Carlos Delgado piled on the runs against Dodger starter Brad Penny en route to a laughable victory, their first this season in Chavez Ravine.
Look, kids! It's the John Maine Victory Dance!
Maybe we shouldn't have been suprised by this - Penny allowed a career-worst 10 runs on 10 hits in just 4 2/3 innings but more interesting, he is now 5-12 with a 6.20 ERA in 20 career games against the Mets.
John Maine, on the other hand, put in the kind of starting performance that for a night anyway, justified the pre-season Cy Young hype. (Ok, that was only coming from my corner and probably only because I picked him for my fantasy team but irregardless...) he still pitched a hell of a game, nearly a complete game in doing what an ace is supposed to do: stop losing streaks. He also hit a two-run blooper to seal Penny's fate. He allowed only 4 hits and a run in 8 1/3 innings of work, one of the more sparkling performances by a Met pitcher not named Johan this season.
Support for Maine was not only at the plate. Angel Pagan, subbing for Alou yet again because Alou in essence is too old and too fragile to play two games in a row, made a wonderous, head-over-heels catch of a foul ball in the first inning.
Not just tumbling into the stands to make great catches but diving all over the field, hustle winning games...
"Offense, offense, offense," Willie Randolph gushed after the game. "It makes a world of difference." That's what 12 runs on 13 hits will do for you. A day when every Met starter bar Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran drove in at least one run.
Ryan Church had three hits, three runs including another homerun in 4 at-bats to lead the charge batting back in the 5th slot whilst Luis Castillo, back in the number two spot in the order, showed some uncharacteristic life at the plate with a pair of hits and a pair of RBIs.
Another homer for Mr Glue Holding the Offense Together last night...
What it all means is that the Mets can go back to the dreaded Shea, Boo-Bird Sanctuary without their tails between their legs. Yes, they lost the series against the Dodgers but overall, they won 3 out of 6 against the NL West's best. No mean accomplishment.
Then again, the Phillies just finished taking two of three from the D'backs as well with another game, plus three more in San Fran to go, but who's counting? They're still a game and a half behind the Marlins and Phillies - just like the Braves so the NL East race is not going to be over any time soon.
It's nice to see the Mets show some character, some spunk, to punch back sometimes. The more I'm watching them the more I see a team that is struggling with injuries and consistency but a team that potentially, once everyone, or a few people even, start hitting, could explode into a nice fat long winning streak that could pull them ahead of everyone else.
Wishful thinking perhaps but after a game like today, why not?
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That's Maine's third straight win, isn't it? Looking a bit better now. But maybe it's more exciting that Fernando Martinez knocking in three last night to beat the Raading Phillies - sure, he's no Mike Carp (who it clearly seems should be taking Delgado's wasted spot on the roster) but he's getting better, hope for the future...
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