Klapisch on Maine's success: It's the wind's fault.

[Guest metsguyinmichigan]

Freaking Klapisch. He seems to forget that the Dodgers' pitchers might, too, have been assisted by the wind, if that, indeed was a factor. I think the last time I saw a pitcher affected by wind was Stu Miller falling off the mound.

But, if you are brave, here's when the golden bard of Bergen had to say about Mr. Maine:


The prosperity is so thick, even John Maine looks salvageable. He struck out nine in six-plus innings, getting 14 swings and misses despite hitting 90 mph only twice in 101 pitches.

There were two reasons for Maine�s success: The wind gusts reached upward of 50 mph, which affected not only the trajectory of fly balls, but turned four-seam fastballs into de facto knuckleballs.

That was the antidote Maine needed, given how straight his fastballs usually run. Even at 86 to 88 mph, the wind-aided movement gave Maine an enormous advantage over the Dodgers. He proved that velocity isn�t always king, at least not in the National League.

Instead, Maine got in touch with an old pitching axiom: Nothing makes a hitter more uncomfortable than a ball that moves late and unpredictably, even at 86 to 88 mph. Whether he can sustain Wednesday�s success remains to be seen, especially under normal weather conditions, but Maine and the gusts were too much for the Dodgers to handle.

[Guest Edgy DC]

I always love descriptions of the future as "it remains to be seen." Thanks, here's your check.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

I know that Media Hates Us reflex is well-warranted but don't let it colonize your total perspective. Maine himself appears to be the source of the whole "wind helped me" story.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

The Mets hit the actual knuckleballer pretty well, didn't they?

[Guest Edgy DC]

I think it would be instructive to make a thread for each writer so we can track their evolving perspectives through the season.

[MFS62]

I'm waiting for him to describe a 450' home run by Ike Davis as a "seeing eye homer".

Later

[Guest metsguyinmichigan]

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: I know that Media Hates Us reflex is well-warranted but don't let it colonize your total perspective. Maine himself appears to be the source of the whole "wind helped me" story.

What's Maine doing reading Bob Klapisch? Don't do it, John! He'll never give you soft rain. (Hmmm. Maybe the throwing in soft rain helps Rivera's cutter?)

My reflex is particularly sensitive when in comes to Klapisch, who gets under my skin. Now, if he had said that Maine believed the wind aided him, I'd be less jumpy.

On Metsblog:

In yesterday�s win against the Dodgers, John Maine pitched in to the seventh inning, allowing three runs and four hits while walking three and striking out nine.

�The wind, the coldness, you can�t do anything about it, you just got to go out there and enjoy it,� Maine said after the game. �I�ve never seen my fastball move like that. I guess it was the wind.�

[batmagadanleadoff]

I don't know if what Klapisch writes is true or not, but I don't find his story implausible.

[metirish]

Edgy DC wrote: I think it would be instructive to make a thread for each writer so we can track their evolving perspectives through the season.

I'll do Harper......

[Fman99]

Fman99 on Klapisch's success: He's a Douche.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

MetsGuyinMichigan wrote: What's Maine doing reading Bob Klapisch? Don't do it, John! He'll never give you soft rain. (Hmmm. Maybe the throwing in soft rain helps Rivera's cutter?)

Funny, because, according to YES, Mariano Rivera was-- at that very moment-- having a gigantic bowl of chili for lunch in the Inner Harbor. Wind causing "late movement?" Only if it's a special, dignified sort of wind.

[Guest Edgy DC]

It may be instructive to re-read Klapisch's farting in Maine's face in light of last evening.

Or just read the story he filed in anticipation of this weekend's series:

Manuel's job could hinge on Subway Series


For more than a decade, the inter-league Subway Series has been Bud Selig�s gift to New York � a chance for inner-city bragging rights that traces its roots back to the 1950s.

No thanks for that gift. And, uh, fact-checky time. Not everything cool in New York baseball happened in the fifties. The first all-city World Series happened in 1889. The first in the era of the modern World Series and the new York subway happened in 1921. NINETEEN-TWENTY-ONE!

Despite an 8-1 win over the Nationals Thursday night, the situation has otherwise spun out of control for Manuel.

The score was 10-7. Way to finish your bullshit story after the fifth and forget to update before hitting submit, dumbass.
________________

I'm not interested in dissecting the rest, but here it is: http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/Jerry-Manuel-job-could-hinge-on-Subway-Series-052110

He also offers the one thousandth "reservoir is dry" assessment of the Mets' farm system. Thanks for that, Scouty McBushbeater.