Archie Bunker's Army

Oh, where to begin? A second loss on the road in a row to the Dodgers? Anyone forget this humiliating homerun trot last season? Why wasn't he beaned in his first plate appearance??! Letting a virtual non-entity like Kong-Chih Kuo beat them again, striking out 8 of the 13 Mets he faced to essentially shut down any late-inning rally potential. This, the same Kuo who hit that massive homer off Maine last season, the third homer in a row that night and then flipped his bat in arrogance. This, the same Kuo who has earned three of his first four Major League victory against these very same Mets. Kuo, Met Killah. Yes, we all wanted to see him pounded into dust for last season when he entered the game in the 4th last night with two on and one out and the Mets threatening to blow the game wide open. Instead, he struck out Carlos Delgado (no suprise there) and Angel Pagan to end the inning. Instead, he didn't allow a single hit in his 3 2/3 inning outing and kept the Dodgers in ...

First impressions of post-bullocking Oliver Perez is that in an effort to maintain control over the strikezone he decided to lob them in to be hammered out of the park. What else would explain the prodigious gopher ball Johan Santana impersonation in Los Angeles on Monday? D'OH! What we call it is an Economy of Pitches In Allowing Runs (EPIAR) meaning whilst he gave up runs he did so on less pitches because he walked fewer batters. Last outing he gave up 7 runs on just 55 pitches. Last night, 5 runs on a whopping 95 pitches. That's what we can call efficiency. But then again, just look at his first inning against Rafael Furcal . Here he's got the poor bastid in the hole, working the advantage, here, it's OK to throw a ball, maybe just outside the strikezone and get Furcal to chase a bad outside pitch for strike three, but no, the man whose version of the strikezone is often inches, sometimes feet out of touch with that of the umpire's, decides to throw his cra...

What was supposed to be a pitcher's duel between two pitchers acquired in big trades during the offseason to two of the NL's finest teams (allegedly so but at the rate Tony LaRussa is gaining Manager of the Year votes, you might think the Cards were the team to beat this season), ended up coming down to the joyous schadenfreude of the Mets needing a 9th inning throwing error to win the game. Is Mr Wright attempting to break Reyes in two with a submission hold bear hug? Johan Santana did his part, for the most part, and left the game with the lead and a potential win even though he'd laboured heavilty at times needing 116 pitches to get through 6 innings. Still for all his work, this was his second start in a row with no decision leaving the game with the lead. Think he's enamoured with the bullpen crimping his Cy Young pose? The final irony of this game of course was Jorge Sosa earning the victory on less than two dozen pitches and the fact that he's now the staf...

I dunno. Personally, I wasn't expecting a big win in this game. One of the few bright moments...Delgado busts one out for three runs Not with Mr Mouthpiece taking the mound against Brandon Webb , the NL's best pitcher, maybe baseball's best pitcher at the moment. So, should we just shrug our shoulders, point out we could still take 2 out of 3 in the dessert against the NL's best team to date? Do we really need to bemoan the bullpen tossing this one away? Almost as many Mets on the mound as D-back runs scored in an ugly 8th Well for one, no one really expected the Mets to score 4 runs off of Webb so in a way, it would have been a good opportunity to hand Webb his first loss of the season. And that 8th inning turned the game on its head; from a close game the Mets had a chance to steal to a blow out to give us that here we go again sort of feeling. Nah, let's just say this was one that was going to go their way. Ryan Church was hitting again in the 2nd slot even th...

Although a hitless debut clouded Moises Alou's return and perhaps Diamondback starting pitcher Micah Owings was performing some grotesque sort of Oliver Perez imitation, the Mets jumped on the D-Backs early and fast for a somewhat surprising 7-2 victory over the NL's best team. Thanks for handing the Mets the game... Yes, Alou's first at-bat did result in a run being scored but scored as an error Orlando Hudson, it meant that he's still hitting .000 on the season. Perhaps more exciting was what his return meant to the batting order, pushing Ryan Church back into the 2 hole where he has hit in 6 Met games, 6 Met victories. And here's a little more info for Willie if he wants to secure his hold on the manager's job: in those six games with Church hitting #2, he is hitting .400 with two homers, five runs batted in and 10 runs scored. Church's presence, perhaps but probably not coincidentally, has seen Reyes hit .500 in 28 at-bats with 2 homers and 9 runs ...

You know things are hitting the skids when Billy Wagner is seizing the reigns as Clubhouse leader by eviscerating Oliver Perez's pathetic career-worst-tying 1 2/3 -inning outing in which he walked five, gave up two hits and yielded seven runs, all in the second, although five were unearned. What's in that drink thar, Ollie, muppet juice? "Perez has honestly got to step up and know that we've just used every guy in our bullpen the night before," Wagner said. "He can't come out there and decide that, gee, he hasn't got it today and so be it." Wagner's remarks raise several issues. Was Wagner justified in outing Ollie or is this simply a case of throwing a teammate under the proverbial bus? After all, Wagner himself has had his fair share of key, monumental failures in his brief tenure as Mets closer, particularly in clutch games and the saying goes, he who lives in glass houses should not cast stones. Perez appear to have been ok with Wagne...

Maybe some day Johan Santana will positively sparkle at Shea when it really matters, say in the NLCS. So far though, his two starts at Shea have been less than impressive yet optimism prevailed last night. He walked off the field to cheers rather than boos. Ouch Maybe some day David Wright will get the MVP award he deserves but for the moment, he'll have to settle for a game-winning, 11th inning walk-off hit to avoid what would have been a gutting loss. Billy Wagner's first blown save of the season wasn't necessarily his fault. Jose Reyes' error certainly didn't help but considering he managed two full innings of relief, Wagner was able to escape Shea's now-notorious boo-birds. Better Wright than Never... Overall, last night's 5-4 11 inning win inched them that much closer to the NL East lead but frankly, it was hardly a heart-warming performance. Mr No Curtain Call Strikes out with the bases loaded...hardly breaking news. Consider that Reyes was on b...

Is it raining in Queens today? I dunno, but it's raining here in the UK. Again. And again, etc. Like Pittsburgh, maybe. Nobody will be playing two in this fucking weather... But seeing as how the Army itself has been in some serious neglect when it comes to regular updates on the ups and downs of the Mets, I thought it would be appropriate to open the mailbag for a change and actually answer readers' questions. Why have you been skiving off the Mets reports most games? Have you lost interest? Have you switched allegiances? Too busy watching bloody rugby and Indian billionaire league cricket matches until the wee hours of the morning? --Concerned in Barnstaple I waiting for a curtain call after every article and if I don't get it, well, I'll probably strike out with the bases loaded... Bearing in mind the excitement the trade generated, do you think Johan Santana's performance so far this season has disappointed, inspired or simply been adequate? --Viktor Rice...

Well of course the season is full of pitfalls, valleys and peaks and of course, the consecutive day embarrassment in Wrigley Field, this time a hideous 8-1 loss, is the valley with the potential peak of the Nats rising on the horizon but, woa - losing this ugly is boring, unpalatable and a dreary exercise. At least someone has a hero Don't hesitate to blame Jorge Sosa but by that same token, whilst he did surrender a disgusting grand slam to little Ronnie Cedeno , ultimately, the Mets were heading nowhere rather rapidly without his assistance with no rally in sight. Without the hometown crowd in his ear, Nelson looked well, Figueroa-ish Are the Cubs really this good, the Mets this bad or is this just one of those cases of someone being high hitting someone low and an inevitable explosion? An aggregate 15-2 score over two disastrous days leaves one not pondering the source of the illness but frantically searching for the toilet. There's a rather ponderous hole in the batting o...

There is one common denominator in the two consecutive road losses, including last night's disappointing 7-1 thrashing at the hands of the Cubs. No Angel Pagan . Now, some might argue that it isn't the absence of Pagan so much as the presence of Endy Chavez out there in right field and perhaps when and if Moises Alou returns for a streak of 10 games before being befelled by some other mysterious old man misery, this point will be borne out with a little more clarity. For the moment, the Mets are looking at two consecutive losses, either way and last night's embarrassment, although somewhat of a nail-biter before the game unraveled (shall we point fingers at the omnipresent scapegoat Aaron Heilman ), blame Jose Reyes' duplicitous handling of a ground ball hit his way (whilst practicing elaborate handshakes??) or a murderous road trip schedule, the game unraveled and the loss was recorded. Hard to imagine he hasn't eaten his way out of the league by now... Yes, we...

Aye, whilst away (rehearsals, gigs and packing for The Move) and incapable of commenting on this recent surge of victories by our favourite lads, (easy now, those of you kicking the newcomers off the rapidly departing bandwagon for being Doubting Thomases)it appears even an intriguing run of victories is insufficient to lift the Mets to the rafters of the NL East but nevermind. Not even last night's exciting loss could deflate the enthusiasm deriving from a near sweep of Philly in their mutton chop little homer shop called home. To briefly revisit the efficient mechanisms of this victories march, I thought it might be appropriate to allow some fellow bloggers' own words suffice wherein my own have been absent. The funny thing is, going through my blog roll, I found so many of my fellow bloggers had either been equally busy, absent or unable to lend much commentary. Perhaps the Nats were simply not up to snuff when it comes to exciting opponents. Wednesday, Game 2 at Shea v Na...

Oh, c'mon. Yes, it was nice to see a little modicum of efficiency displayed by the favourites to win the NL East. A 5-0 victory is something to be cherished, especially as it was led by persistent mouth guard chewer, Mike Pelfrey . Realistically, it was one game. One game against what is arguably the worst team in the East. One victory against a team who has lost 10 of their last 11. The Magical Lastings, Captain Bonehead, tossed out trying to steal third by the man he was partially traded for... Regardless, perhaps the wisest words on dealing with this Mets squad are found in this paean to mediocrity : "So, get 2006 out of your minds. In actuality, this is more like 1998, when a superstar joined a bunch of middling players. (Although clearly Wright & Reyes > Alfonzo & Olerud). In other words, go to Shea, have fun, cheer the wins, shrug your shoulders at the losses, and, above all, feel free to make other plans this October." But now I've wandered off c...

You could go a long way in life making up empty excuses and bromidic slogans about losing, can't you? Not long ago, the signing of Johan Santana had every pundit drooling saliva which formed in the pattern of Mets Are The Team To Beat . Now look at them. Mutts. Mets performance leads to a slight variation on the fit bird spread... Lose a 6-2 lead, well hell, that's nothing, how about losing an entire season long choke hold on first place in compellingly choking fashion? Double plays in five straight innings squashing any tic of hope as the Brewers tried over and over to GIVE this game to the Mets only to see the Mets didn't appear to want to take it. No, we'd rather bounce into double plays every effin inning and complain about the quality of the dirt on the base paths. (Well, no one actually did the last bit to my knowledge but why let reality get in the way of a good whinge...) You don't hear see Willie crying in his Cornflakes over this one. Maybe he's...

Ahhh, staring down Fred Wilpon in his personalised contract negotiations has a price for Johan Santana . The saviour who has the weight of the Mets on his shoulders did not exactly knock 'em dead in his Shea debut in a Mets uniform. Three of his pitches were knocked dead though. Dead over the fence and the Mets took the loss which had the nightmarish trifecta of the Saviour Disappointing , Reyes On The Mend and David Wright looking like Billy No Mates trying to work his way through some intense fielding yips. No tears of joy for this outing... But I'm all for looking on the bright side of this. Yes, the home town fans gave him an earful. Yes, he took the loss, yes the Mets winning streak ended at 3 and no, Johan did not do a Cy Young impersonation that was very believable. thanks but no thanks Still, he lasted more than 5 innings which is rare for a Mets starter, he took the gruff from the fans and the booing in stride and doesn't seem too fazed at all that he is di...

There probably aren't too many willing to bet he'll do it again but for a night anyway, the local boy, Nelson Figueroa done good; retiring the first 14 batters in order-sort-of-good and the Mets snuck away with an improbable 4-2 victory over the Brewers. Pedro's replacement shines on the home town stage: Perhaps it was the quirky underarmed delivery that befuddled Brewers. That's three victories in a row and a leg over .500 again as the bullpen did it's job in efficient order: Joe Smith and Aaron Heilman retiring 6 in a row through innings 7 and 8 leading up to Billy Wagner's first save of the season, just like they draw it up on the board in class, for a change. No bases loaded melodramas or white-knuckle moments, just a simple victory. But aha, not entirely simple. Jose's Hammies have made an unexpected visit again after hiding away for a couple of years. Unlike most of the Mets' injury worries, this has nothing to do with age and given his slo...

A play at the plate, Jose Reyes sliding safely home, Angel Pagan , delivering the game-winning two-out hit in the 12th inning, wow. On Rally Towel Night nonetheless. Yes, we'll take it... "I had the plate blocked. I had the ball before [Reyes] got there," Phillies catcher Chris Coste whinged afterwards in a moment of sour grapes as the Phillies lost a pair on the trot to the Mets. "He hit my glove [as] he reached for the plate. It's simple. I tagged him before he touched the plate." Yeah, right. Except that's Jose Reyes, speed demon and you're...Chris Coste, who's the judge gonna believe? Bring on delirium... Sure, Reyes didn't touch the plate the first time in. But home-plate umpire Ted Barrett ruled that there was no tag, either so on his second try, Reyes touched the plate with his left hand, before Coste could land the glove. Oh yes, it's early days but I believe there's a little chap whose head is still emerging from th...

It's a strange world I inhabit when I open the London Times this morning only to find out about Rick Astley, Champion Muppet and the song contest gone awry. It takes news a long time to travel buddy but when the Mets get a big plug in the London Times , even if it's as the butt of some sick internet joke well, we've made it. Just remember this, it could have been much, much worse: an internet conspiracy to include a Culture Club tune or a George Michaels ditty. And yes, I'm pulling an El Puque having missed the first two games of the Home Opening series and worse still against the Phillies - and can I get confirmation on who I am supposed to hate more these days the Effin Braves or the Phucking Phillies ? Is there a consensus on this somewhere out there? Hate in equal parts? And yes, whilst I'm temporarily on the Blogging DL with calloused fingertips and repetitive motion strain, I am lusting in my heart for the Mets. So, yes, Tuesday appeared to be an unmiti...

Maybe it would have been better to have been pissing down rain all weekend. A grand summation of a futile weekend. Two days, two losses show the Mets, even with Santana, haven't moved far from the miserable collapse of 2007. You'll struggle to excuse this ugly weekend. The Mets had John Maine and Johan Santana going for them. Carlos Delgado , thought to be spinning out of his prime at light speed, Ryan Church, Angel Pagan and Brian Schneider, all thought to be potentially equal part of offensive inadequacy, are hitting .350, .381, .313 and .357 respectively. But if you examine Games 4 and 5 of the 2008 season you will notice that not only did the Mets lose to their arch rivals. Not only did they lose twice. Not only did they fall into the bowels of the NL East, most importantly, they just didn't impress. Maine's debut was hardly representative of his Spring. Four innings pitched? Three walks, eight hits, four earned runs? Is this an attempt at sabotage or furt...

After reading about the latest Mike Hampton injury you might almost wonder how this guy escaped Omar's radar. He's got real DL cred: 2005, 12 games pitched, then DL. 2006, Disabled all season. 2007, Disabled all season. 2008, DL'd after "warming up" before pitching his first game. Now Pedro's made of a little tougher mettle. 2006: All winter and Spring Training worries about The Toe , ended up turning in a decent performance most of the season before season-ending shoulder surgery. 2007: out nearly the entire season before a brief comeback 2008, DL'd after less than 4 innings pitched. On the other hand, we could think about the fact that three games into the season and there's yet to be a fit bird photo appearance, so here's a few extra: But forget it. I'm done feeling bitter about Pedro's latest injury and the Old Timer's roster Omar has assembled to lead the Mets to the promised land this season. I'm declaring a moratori...