IGT - 5/16 - Mets vs. Cards - NLCS Preview

[Centerfield]

My first IGT of the year...might as well give it a shot right?

(If this was supposed to be started by someone else, feel free to delete this one)

I realize I'm tempting the fates with this "NLCS Preview" business, but I realized that after Lima's first start in that Braves game, I've been resorting to lucky positions on the volume dial, sitting in certain ways, trying to help the Mets win. In other words, the more superstitious I've been, the more they lose.

So, in an attempt to help the Mets win, I've decided to be less superstitious. Glavine, 2 hits, 0 ER over 7 tonight. Mets win going away.

[Guest KC]

METS
Reyes SS
Lo Duca C
Beltran C
Delgado 1B
Wright 3B
Floyd LF
Nady RF
Matsui 2B
Glavine P

=red]CARDS
Eckstein SS
Taguchi LF
Pujols 1B
Rolen 3B
Encarnacion RF
Edmonds CF
Bennett C
Luna 2B
Suppan P

[Guest Edgy DC]

Cliff Floyd back in the sixth hole. My early pick for PotG.

[Guest Bret Sabermetric]

Usually, don't you expect some glove from batters in the 7 and 8 (w)holes? If you're not putting Nady and Matsui for their offense, why are they in the lineup?

[Guest GYC]

Bret Sabermetric wrote: Usually, don't you expect some glove from batters in the 7 and 8 (w)holes? If you're not putting Nady and Matsui for their offense, why are they in the lineup?

Who would you put there, oh almighty and knowledgable one?

[Guest Bret Sabermetric]

GYC wrote: ="Bret Sabermetric"]Usually, don't you expect some glove from batters in the 7 and 8 (w)holes? If you're not putting Nady and Matsui for their offense, why are they in the lineup? Who would you put there, oh almighty and knowledgable one?

Me? I'd have Mike Cameron batting 7th and in RF, and Marco Scutaro or Danny Garcia batting 8th and at 2b. Oh, wait, you prefer the other answer: [thumb up nostril] I dunno, I just make stupid criticisms of whatever the Mets are doing.

The point is that when your 7th and 8th guys can't field well, you damn well better be smacking the living piss out of the ball.

OE: Or maybe I'd be thinking about moving Reyes down to the tail end for a while. And actually I probably wouldn;t have Cameron, either, since I would have traded him last June when he was fetching someone (a pitcher?)way better than Nady. I might have Diaz leading off in RF, and using Cameron's and Matsui's salary to get some much needed pitching.

[Guest GYC]

Bret Sabermetric wrote: ="GYC"] Bret Sabermetric wrote: Usually, don't you expect some glove from batters in the 7 and 8 (w)holes? If you're not putting Nady and Matsui for their offense, why are they in the lineup? Who would you put there, oh almighty and knowledgable one? Me? I'd have Mike Cameron batting 7th and in RF, and Marco Scutaro or Danny Garcia batting 8th and at 2b. Oh, wait, you prefer the other answer: [thumb up nostril] I dunno, I just make stupid criticisms of whatever the Mets are doing. The point is that when your 7th and 8th guys can't field well, you damn well better be smacking the living piss out of the ball.

Why Danny Garcia? If he had any talent, he wouldn't be hitting .248 for the Columbus Clippers, and Scutaro wouldn't be hitting .173 as a backup in Oakland.

Matsui's defense has actually been pretty good this year. With the exception of maybe 2 or 3 plays, he has been rather impressive (considering what we have come to expect from him). His defense has helped the Mets this year more than it has hurt.

Nady wasn't moved down because of his poor hitting, and you know it. He was moved down so Floyd can get hot or something since he has been so bad. More of a confidence booster for Floyd rather than an insult to Nady.

[Guest Bret Sabermetric]

GYC wrote: Nady wasn't moved down because of his poor hitting, and you know it. .

You'd be amazed by what I know and don;t know.

What's Garcia's OBP at Columbus? I'll bet it's higher than Matsui's. What's Garcia getting paid?

[Zvon]

Bret Sabermetric wrote: Usually, don't you expect some glove from batters in the 7 and 8 (w)holes? If you're not putting Nady and Matsui for their offense, why are they in the lineup?

Thats a rediculous post Bret.
Its Bret bait.
Okay-game dont start till eight..
Ill take the bait.

Because thats our starting nine at this point in time.

Should we move our best glovemen down in the order?
Yea, lets bat Beltran 7th cuz of that fine glove of his.

A line up is a purely offensive stratigical thing where you work in your strengths and weaknesses where they can best be in a position to help the team produce, and you use the balance of talent, such as bat as opposed to glove, in a way that makes that gloveman hurt you the least at the plate, so he can help you the most in the field.

Thats not the case here. (the days of carrying a glove man in the everyday lineup may be a thing of the past. These days-they are late inning replacements)

You may have a point about Nady being so low, but as stated here....where do we put him?
If Floyd dont snap out of his funk, in front of him, I suppose.
But Cliffs 1st game back after his lil vacation, he should be given that 6th slot.

If I was running the show the lineup would be different, but Willie has already proved me wrong with what he's gotten out of LoDuca in the 2nd slot.
So good thing Im not.

Id be more like:

Reyes SS
Beltran C
Wright 3B
Delgado 1B
Nady RF
Floyd LF
Lo Duca C
Matsui 2B
Pitcher P

...and Reyes on a short leash at this point.
I think Id shuffle him afew times just to get him on his toes in the lead off spot. Dare I say with Matsui?
With Floyds current performance I, as Willie is, would be trying this and that and wondering what the hell else I could do to get him hitting.
Cause you just dont give up on him this soon.

I cant complain with what Willie has done.
LoDuca has been awsum in the 2nd slot and has been a catylist for many productive innings.

Im not nearly as concerned about our lineup or offense as I am about our pitching.

[Guest Bret Sabermetric]

Garcia has walked 12 times and gotten 25 hits in 101 ABs so far. No note of HBPs but you got to think he has a few by now, so his OBP is around .333 or higher. Just one of the many 2b men who could perform at Matsui's level of ability whom the Mets have unceremoniously dumped.

Of course, Zvon, there's not much room to shift these batters around. I'm mostly questioning the wisdom of having players whose bats you assess as less than stellar and whose gloves you try to hide. If Matsui can't bat higher than 8th (and he really shouldn't) and your lousy-fielding RFer can't bat higher than 7th, and your LFer is in a season-long cold spell, and your leadoff man can't get on base adequately, you've got problems.

[Guest GYC]

Saying a 26 year old struggling in AA is just as good as Matsui is just plain ignorant.

[Zvon]

Bret Sabermetric wrote: Of course, Zvon, there's not much room to shift these batters around. I'm mostly questioning the wisdom of having players whose bats you assess as less than stellar and whose gloves you try to hide. If Matsui can't bat higher than 8th (and he really shouldn't) and your lousy-fielding RFer can't bat higher than 7th, and your LFer is in a season-long cold spell, and your leadoff man can't get on base adequately, you've got problems.

With Nadys timely hitting, these are problems I can deal with.
I give Cliff every chance to come around, at this point.
Matsui's another ball O'wax, but he has shown enough improvement in the field to give his bat the chance we are giving him. He has shown some offensive output, though not in a timely (or clutch) manner.

These are not the problems that concern me.

[Guest Bret Sabermetric]

GYC wrote: Saying a 26 year old struggling in AA is just as good as Matsui is just plain ignorant.

I don't know if Matsui's your best example of a ballplayer who's not struggling, but I'm pretty sure that calling Columbus a Double-A team is fairly ignorant.

[Gwreck]

Bret Sabermetric wrote: and using Cameron's and Matsui's salary to get some much needed pitching.

How would you have dumped Matsui's salary?

What pitcher(s) would you have if you didn't have to pay Matsui?

[Guest GYC]

Bret Sabermetric wrote: ="GYC"]Saying a 26 year old struggling in AA is just as good as Matsui is just plain ignorant. I don't know if Matsui's your best example of a ballplayer who's not struggling, but I'm pretty sure that calling Columbus a Double-A team is fairly ignorant.

...fair enough.

I'd still take Matsui, or Hernandez, or Keppinger, over Garcia.

[Willets Point]

There's this kind of warm yellowish glow in St. Louis. Kind of reminds me of the effect this thing called the sun is supposed to have. I wish I knew what the sun was like, I seem to remember it from my past but can't be sure that's its not just a myth.

[Zvon]

Reyes must now teach the Cards that....


(wait for it...)


errors kill.

[Zvon]

OMG--Reyes gets picked off.

[Zvon]

Beltran LOOKS at a third strike-----poo.

[Guest GYC]

Eckstein is a little bitch.

[Zvon]

Glavine hits the Cards lead off man.
.....dont get tossed LoDuca.......




(a Ryan Howard RBI single in the 1st has the Phils up 1-0, vs the Brewers)

[Zvon]

Everytime Pujols come up Im gonna close my eyes.

] Alomar:"Mind if we clone your bat Al?" Pujols: "You can have my bats. I can hit with any stick."

Pujols dribbles out.
Eck to second.
Pujols may have been hurt by that foul--that would be a real shame, huh?

[Guest GYC]

He goes to the locker room injured - put him on the 3 day DL

[TransMonk]

GYC wrote: Eckstein is a little bitch.

I bet if Glavine throws at his head next time he'll get out of the way.

[Zvon]

Glavine gets out of it.
Nice.
(Brews have tied it 1-1 in the 1st - i DO NOT wanna share 1st place with the darn Phils)

[Zvon]

(...not even for a day)

[Zvon]

Floyd gets the Mets 1st hit-
a 2 out double in the 2nd.
Nice.


Nady---bring him home.

[Zvon]

Nady LOOKS at a third strike.

[Willets Point]

Bugger.

[Willets Point]

The section of seats at Busch Stadium just behind home plate is so small it looks like a jury box.