It wasn’t quite as dramatic as Willis Reed hobbling onto the court for Game 7, but after the game Willie Randolph said “it couldn’t get better than that,” and he was right.
For one afternoon, things were perfect for the Mets. For one afternoon …
By his own admission, Pedro Martinez said there’s more work to do. His fastball has to pick up and the bite on his curve wasn’t there.
Reds hitters said the same, so it wasn’t just him being overly critical of himself. Still, despite the caution there is a lot to be positive about.
15 Comments
Great day all around. Pedro pitched well and the offense added to a lead in the late innings, which has been sorely missed most of the season.
John – There was a quote from David Wright in the Daily News today that said he “tweaked” his hamstring in the 7th inning yesterday. Anything new on how he feels today? He is one guy they cannot afford to lose.
JD: Do you still think this team is playing “listless?” :-)
HAs delgado actually stayed consistent. it was good to see him finally wake up. I think being stuck in 6th helped him focus. I think &th would have made it happen earlier.
Its good to see the fire back. I couldnt stand the news anymore. I saw the game on fox 5. they were good. But I had to comment on Pelfrey. These guys thought the mouth guard was to stop grinding teeth. Which means the fox boys dont know Pelfrey too well and that he likes to show Off his Gene Simmons tongue when he pitches and thats what the guard does. I missed pedro pitch , so i hope he did well…
&th was supposed to be 7th.
Watch that “shift” key Steve C. LOL
L yeah tell me about it. I do it all the fricken time. LOL
Pedro’s “own admission” was exactly why he needed to face big league bats now and not later. 75 pitches, 100 pitches it didn’t matter. He’d never really see what was weak in the minors.
Yesterday was a special day for NY sports fans. It was a day that sports is meant to be, it is meant to make us feel good and forget all the sstuff in our lives that drive us crazy. Pedro’s return was like Willis Reed Getting on the court in game 7 many a year ago. or Willie Mays coming back to NY and hitting one out, It wasn’t about should he wait a week, should Milledge be in right or anything like that. It was a about little boys getting their first Little League hit or their first bike. Can this guy make it back… That’s sports the way its meant to be…. No drugs, no contract talk, no scandal, just sports…
That’s why there’s so much hostility to posters like Mike C. They just don’t see…. the forest thru the trees and they ruined or at least tried their best to ruin a fun and happy day for many sports fans.
Steve: They were listless when I wrote it. The are better now.-JD
JD: It was your opinion. It wasn’t fact. And if you recall I disagreed with you because IMO, no team that showed the fight that they had in the 4th game of the Philly series coming from both those deficits when they could have put their tails between their legs when it was 5-0, couldn’t be considered listless. At least not in my book.
Steve: You’re right. It was my opinion. In my mind, that last game in Philly they were flat. They were listless. They came back against lousy Philly pitching. Big deal. Overall, they pitched poorly, didn’t hit in the clutch, ran the bases like they were asleep, and let’s not even talk about the bullpen.
You’re giving them too much credit when you say they didn’t roll over that day. They did not sustain and fizzled in that game. What is the value in a comeback if you give it back?
I said it then and don’t take it back. But, they have not been listless for the past four games. This might have been their best four-game stretch of the year.-JD
The Return of Pedro Martinez, even at 75% speed, is honestly what I think sparked the Mets out of that Philadephia hell-ride.
Especially when you’re playing with a lead in your division, Willie’s “no fire, no energy, playing like a professional is more important than winning, writing the line-up card according to seniority” bullcrap can lull a team flat to sleep.
Pedro’s confidence and loopiness and flat-out talent is the counterbalance to Willie’s Torre-lite sleepwalk mentality…
And thank God for it.
That’s why it was important to rush the guy just a little bit.
They were at a nexus point after dropping all those games to Philly… their young fire players consigned to the bench, their manager refusing to inject any energy himself, beaten down and beaten up and dropping game after game to astonishingly bad bullpen management…
The team could’ve given up right there.
To steal a line from Vonnegut, well-deserved is Kurt’s rest, “God Bless You, Mr. Martinez”.
To Mike C.: Be careful how much credit you give Pedro. If the Mets need Pedro Martinez’s presence just to give them an emotional lift, they are in trouble. He works once every five or six days. What about the rest of the time?-JD
Oh, that’s kinda what I’m saying, John.
The Mets ARE in a bit of trouble if there’s nothing around to balance out Willie’s tepid vetocrasy approach to the game of ball.
And… further… what else changed between the Bandbox Massacre and the Mets sweep of the Braves?
Pedro’s increased clubhouse presence and the promise of his coming into the rotation like a knight on a snowy white horse seem to be the only factor that changed.
At least from the perspective from the outside looking in.
Castillo’s injuries are still making him play like an All-Star one day and a veteran hanging around in the indepedent leagues the next day… Reyes is still slumping from exhausted… Delgado is still Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde…
Willie’s still convinced that the Schmotele Triplets can pitch, all statistical evidence aside, he’s still running Green out there like it’s 2002…
All the problems that were there are still there.
Pedro’s what changed.
You’re right to not be cautious overestimate it, John, but it’s the only thing that seems to have changed, you have to assume that it was the catalyst.
There’s a guy with energy and sunlight in the clubhouse, now and he’s a veteran All-Star so Willie can’t just push him aside on the excuse of youth like a Gotay or a Milledge.
I agree with Mike C.
Pedro’s influence seems to have sparked the team to a 4 game winning streak as JD says playing perhaps the best ball of the season.
In the past few years Pedro’s presence picked the team up. His emotion an energy is reflected in quotes JD has made over the weekend notably DWright. No one on this team has his charisma. It has been sorely missing on this team. He is back and not coincidentally so is the team.
Go Mets.
Dave