Shea Lidlifter IGT 4/9/07

[Benjamin Grimm]

The icing on the cake is that the Phillies must be a bit demoralized at this point.

It will be so great if the Mets can take the next two as well.

[Guest cooby]

Last I checked the score at work it was 5-4 Phillies. Got in the car to come home and found the Mets had hit it big!

[Willets Point]

Actually, walked, error, wild pitched, and hit it big.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

Willets Point wrote: So now that this game is over, someone explain to me what a lidlifter is.

It was one of those phrases ye olde time sporrtswriters frequently used but hardly ever came up in conversation, like "Middle gardner" for centerfielder, utterly inelegant and overwrought.

[Guest ABG]

If we did a shoulda won/did win/shoulda lost/did lose thread like existed last year, this game would have to go in the Did Win/Shoulda lost columns.

[nymr83]

ESPN's game summary puts it well:

]• Goat: Rollins said before the season that the Phillies were the team to beat in the NL East, but his error and a double-play grounder he hit into with the bases loaded earlier in the game helped the Mets win.

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

Been out doing yard work most of the afternoon. Just sat down and read through this thread. I must say that this was one of the most enjoyable reads I have had in quite some time.

The Mets overcame Willie's bone headed decision to let Burgos pitch to Ryan Howard, with a little help from my favorite Phillie (at least for today) Jimmie "E" Rollins. I'm rather fond of Geoff Geary as well. Thanks guys, we likely couldn't have done it without you.

[Gwreck]

This game was pretty ugly all-around. Man, there were a lot of stupid Mets fans there today. The "Jimmy Rollins" chant -- it actually broke out right after the error, but got louder after the WP -- was great, though.

I couldn't see the bullpen from my Upper Deck, Section 35 seats, but does anyone know if Feliciano was actually warming up when Burgos was pitching to Utley? I couldn't believe Burgos was pitching to Howard either. The Endy pinch-running for the wrong runner bothered me, too.

He got one-upped by Manuel, however in the "stupid strategy" department. Geary came in to get the final out in the 7th, but then stayed in the game to lead off. A one-run game, and you lead off with your pitcher? Manuel could've double-switched in Wes Helms at 3B, too, had he wanted to. Big brain freeze there.

Maine's fastball was registering on the Shea gun consistently in the 86-88 range, which seemed a bit slow.

Was surprised to see Franco PHing. Figured we'd get Newhan as the lefty in that spot.

The muffed popup consisted of Nunez, Howard, Hamels and Ruiz all coming together at the same spot in right in front of the mound. Nobody called it.

I couldn't believe Delgado wasn't out at the plate on that Valentin single. No idea what happened (way too far away to see) but the throw had him easily beat.

[metirish]

Watched the game tonight ,no way Rollins get a double play on Reyes even if he handled that ball cleanly...Keith threw his first pitch high but Hojo caught it...

[Guest iramets]

Still doesn't make Willie smart for pitching to last year's 58-HR MVP with the wrong pitcher. His offense got him off the hook, but I don't think you'd be very pleased with his move if the scoriing had stopped at that point.

I haven't read the papers so I dont know if he responded to anyone's question about the move with his usual clueless hostility. Anyone hear anything yet, or was this another bone-headed move he skates away from?

[Benjamin Grimm]

He said it was because Heilman was unavailable and he didn't want to go too deep into his bullpen too early.

And that Ryan Howard "isn't Barry Bonds."

[Guest iramets]

He's also not Babe Ruth or Willie Mays or Orville Redenbacher. Nice non-response response. Yancy, where was this q and a quoted? I'd like to read the full exchange.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

He wasn't particulatrly hostile as per the postgame pc as broadcast on the radio. It wasn't as if he was being grilled on his choices as you might have, but said he was comfortable with Burgos, and that he made a bad pitch. He noted he preferred not to get too deep into the bullpen in the 6th inning with Heilman unavailable. No hostility.

[Guest iramets]

Obernauer in this morning's Daily News (annotated):

Willie Randolph is a manager who relies on gut instinct otherwise known as brainless hunches, not subject to any reasoning process known to man or to rational questioning ; he is not known to act strictly by the book. It's worked for him so far, and will work as long as his offense gets him 11 runs per game so the Mets skipper threw that book in the trash again yesterday - only this time, a one-run lead followed it right down the chute.

With the Mets leading 3-2 in the top of the sixth, Ryan Howard strode to the plate with two Phillies aboard, first base open and a righthander, who gave up a zilion HRs for the KC Royals last year Ambiorix Burgos, on the mound.

So why pitch to the reigning NL MVP in that situation?

"Why not? He's hitting .200," Randolph replied. "I mean, he's an excellent hitter, but Pat Burrell's a Met killer.

"I respect Ryan like crazy," Randolph claimed after giving Howard one of the most obvious disses a manager could give a slugger, " but he's not Barry Bonds." In other words, he's not a HR hitter I have much respect for."

The righthand-hitting Burrell had never faced Burgos but still has 32 homers and 92 RBI in his career against the Mets, and already had two singles off John Maine yesterday. He was the man on deck, so Randolph went after the lefty-hitting Howard instead - and last year's NL home run king went deep. Of course, no one suggested that he walk Howard, but simply bring in a righthanded pitcher to replace Burgos and his pet gopher. It was his fifth straight game against the Mets with a homer, and fourth straight at Shea, but hey, no one says that Willie should pay attention to crap like that when he's got his hunches going for him.

He fell behind 1-and-2, then fouled off the next two pitches, and when the flamethrowing Burgos then tossed a slider, Howard scorched it over the fence in right-center for his first homer of the year.

Asked if he was surprised that Randolph let him hit - and face a righty - Howard said: "Fuck, yeah! My fucking eyes got round like saucers when I saw--oh, excuse me, fellas, could we change that answer? Thanks. Try: .Little bit, little bit. I didn't know if - I know (lefty Pedro) Feliciano was down in the pen, I didn't know how loose he was. And I know Chase (Utley) had about a 20-pitch at-bat, so I was figuring that he'd probably be loose by then. Man, is Willie a total dumbass or what? I mean, Christ! A four year old would have a righty hot in that situation"

Utley's at-bat actually lasted 12 pitches, ending in a strikeout.

Howard said that standing in the on-deck circle during that at-bat helped immensely.

"You got to see pretty much everything (Burgos) had," Howard said. "Hitting behind Chase and watching him work the pitcher was definitely good there."

Nothing about Heilman here.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Obernauer, Michael, "Willie defends pitch to Howard: He's not Bonds", New York Daily News, Tuesday, April 10, 2007, page 54.

[Lundy]

My brother in law gave me an Easter surprise with tickets to yesterday's game. We were in the Upper Deck, but we were in the sun so it was actually quite warm for most of the game. Lots of people in my section were getting on David Wright much like Dickshot was in this thread. We saw Feliciano come to the door of the bullpen, and my brother in law commented that now that he didn't come into the game that he was going to catch Howard's homer. He was wrong. He hit it to just left of the bullpen...

Also of note, the "Professor Reyes" segment is now the "Jose Reyes Spanish Academy" sponsored by Delta.

[Guest ABG]

Yancy Street Gang wrote: Obernauer, Michael, "Willie defends pitch to Howard: He's not Bonds", New York Daily News, Tuesday, April 10, 2007, page 54.

Correct. He's better.

[Guest iramets]

Willie's response seems pretty stupid to me. If he could not afford to burn his bullpen early, then he should have left Burgos in the game after Ryan's HR. Plainly he could afford to use Feliciano, because he did, and one extra (crucial) batter didn't mean a thing as far as providing "length." Just once, I'd like to see him take the blame for puling a dumb move and not try to justify it with some stupid bullshit that persuades six-year olds of his managerial expertise.

from this morning's TIMES:

Unable to throw his fastball for strikes, John Maine allowed six walks in four and two-thirds innings and was replaced, with the bases loaded and two outs, by Ambiorix Burgos. Burgos induced a groundout from Abraham Núñez to end the threat and came out to pitch the sixth. “I needed some length,” Randolph said.

With one out, Burgos hit Rollins and allowed a bloop single to Shane Victorino that pushed Rollins to third. In the Mets’ bullpen, the left-handed specialist Pedro Feliciano was warming up, ostensibly to face the Phillies’ dynamic left-handed hitters, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard, who were up next. Burgos struck out Utley in an exhausting 12-pitch at-bat in which Victorino stole second, leaving first base open if the Mets were interested in intentionally walking Howard, the reigning most valuable player in the National League.

Randolph went to the mound — “He told me to make good pitches,” Burgos said, with the third-base coach, Sandy Alomar, serving as interpreter — while in the bullpen, Feliciano assumed he was coming in and opened the gate before he was told to come back.

Randolph made his decision as much out of necessity as to boost Burgos’s confidence. Aaron Heilman, who is battling elbow tendinitis, threw 41 pitches Sunday and was unavailable except in an emergency. Randolph said he did not want to use Feliciano because he could have been forced to turn to the right-handed specialist Joe Smith to pitch to the on-deck hitter, Pat Burrell, if the inning continued.

Burgos went right after Howard, getting ahead, 1-2. But on a 2-2 count, Howard blasted Burgos’s seventh consecutive splitter 390 feet over the fence in right-center field to put the Phillies ahead, 5-3. It was the first homer allowed by Burgos this season, but his 17th in his last 75 1/3 innings.

[metirish]

Lets not let the dubious pitching decisions over shadow some other poor decisions,pinch running Chavez for Green who was on first and not for Alou who was on second in the eight inning and then Alou getting cut down on third on Jose Valentin's sac bunt,Mets were still down a run at this point.

Willie said he wanted to keep the better offensive player in the game.

[Theoldmole]

]We were in the Upper Deck, but we were in the sun so it was actually quite warm for most of the game.

We were on the cold side. But it was still great.