IGT 4/28/2013: PHI @ NYM -- Turn Hamels to Cole Slaw

[G-Fafif]

Slice and dice that smug bastard Sunday.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Me and the 'Pail will be in Section 106 for this one, flapping our gloves and licking our wounds. We lost today in Mets, little league baseball and soccer.

[Guest themetfairy]

If you decide to come up to the Caesar's Club (since you have access due to your field level tickets), stop by Section 307 and say hi!

[Zvon]

David Wright makes an error in the first. That was his first errors in like a thousand games. Phils loaded the bases but do not score.

Tejeda (double) and Wright (rbi single) combine for a run in our half of the first. 1-0 Mets.

[Zvon]

Hamels walks the bases loaded in the 4th. Then with two out he Ks Niese. Hamels up to 82 pitches. Twenty-three of those were to Tejeda and Duda.

[Zvon]

Freddie Galvis. Fuckin Freddie Galvis golfs one out.

[Zvon]

Mets come up in the bottom of the 8th down 5-1. Collins gambled by removing Niese for the ol'man in the 7th. This resulted in Ryan Howard pinch hitting and driving the ball off the wall for two RBIs.

[Zvon]

I'll give a half hearted for the last of the 9th. Paps on to close.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I did feel a sense of foreboding when Buck dropped that pop foul. I was really hoping that it wouldn't come back to bite them, but it very much did.

[Zvon]

Swept by the Phils. Hide this in the books.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

What a singularly uninspiring performance. I really felt the team was headed into a bad funk with the Dodgers series if not earlier, and they're there now. They really should have lost all 6 on this homestand so far.

We were near the right field corner, only a few rows up, the weather was warm and comfy. It was a perfect setting for one of those kid-falls-in-love-with-baseball games but the Mets didn't love us back.

The "giveway" of an Iron-Man drinking bottle that had nothing to do with the Mets or baseball was just perfect for an irrelevant afternoon.

The Mets will have better stretches this year but until then, stay away.

[Fman99]

Not on TV in Syracuse, for the FIOS subscribers out there. I listened on my iPhone via XM as they gave it away. Bastards.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Allow me to add I quite enjoyed watching Lagares cover the ground in center field. He is leading the league in my advanced defensive measure, ED (eyewitness defense). One of the many terrible things that happened as a result of Buck's error was the double-switch that replaced Lagares with Cowgill in CF. Not saying that those bombs Utley & Howard hit off Atchy ought to have been caught, but the difference between Lagares and Cowgill just in the pursuit of balls in the air was stark.

Seeing as they're both RH hitting CFers who can't hit, I'd just as soon stick with Lagares here. He needs to chillax at the dish but it's obvious he has a better glove. A really good one in fact.

Send Cowgill down, call up Downtown Andrew Brown and have him breath down Byrd's back. We have to get better if even a little.

[Ceetar]

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Allow me to add I quite enjoyed watching Lagares cover the ground in center field. He is leading the league in my advanced defensive measure, ED (eyewitness defense). One of the many terrible things that happened as a result of Buck's error was the double-switch that replaced Lagares with Cowgill in CF. Not saying that those bombs Utley & Howard hit off Atchy ought to have been caught, but the difference between Lagares and Cowgill just in the pursuit of balls in the air was stark. Seeing as they're both RH hitting CFers who can't hit, I'd just as soon stick with Lagares here. He needs to chillax at the dish but it's obvious he has a better glove. A really good one in fact. Send Cowgill down, call up Downtown Andrew Brown and have him breath down Byrd's back. We have to get better if even a little.

I agree. Duda's good but none of the others have convinced me of anything. I'd put Baxter second and would play him more myself (I'm not convinced about platoons with him) but I'd like to see Brown up and Lagares getting more time. I'd have given Kirk actual time too, but Lagares is better defensively, if not by as much as he is over the others. Duda, Lagares, Baxter for a week, sprinkling some Jordany and Brown and lets see what happens.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

I don't think Baxter is anything more than a decent pinch-hitter whose contributions good and bad aren't going to matter a whole lot when it's all over, unless he starts a lot, which will indicate big trouble. But your everyday CF does matter a lot, and I think we might have to give that job to Lagares at least until his hitting gets so awful that Cowgill looks like an upgrade.

Byrd meantime looks like the kinda guy who will hit a double every couple of days but that's about it.

Brown is OPSing near 1.000 in Vegas, plays right field, and hits RH.

[Ceetar]

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: I don't think Baxter is anything more than a decent pinch-hitter whose contributions good and bad aren't going to matter a whole lot when it's all over, unless he starts a lot, which will indicate big trouble. But your everyday CF does matter a lot, and I think we might have to give that job to Lagares at least until his hitting gets so awful that Cowgill looks like an upgrade. Byrd meantime looks like the kinda guy who will hit a double every couple of days but that's about it. Brown is OPSing near 1.000 in Vegas, plays right field, and hits RH.

1.000 in Vegas? What's that, subpar or mediocre? (Good for 25th in the league, below Josh Satin fyi)

I know it's smallish sample for both Cowgill and Valdespin, but I'm good to try Lagares there for sure.

I say this with extremely crossed fingers, but has it seemed like Duda's been..not horrific...in LF the last week or two?

[Edgy MD]

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Send Cowgill down, call up Downtown Andrew Brown and have him breath down Byrd's back. We have to get better if even a little.

I can get behind this. I think they even have a spot on the 40-man since the jettisoning of Laffey. Brown is somehow going .357 / .440 / .560 // 1.000 despite having only one homer. He has ten doubles!

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

So, like, a double every three days and not much else, then?

I'll get behind it too, if only because why not?

[Ceetar]

Edgy MD wrote: John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Send Cowgill down, call up Downtown Andrew Brown and have him breath down Byrd's back. We have to get better if even a little. I can get behind this. I think they even have a spot on the 40-man since the jettisoning of Laffey. Brown is somehow going .357 / .440 / .560 // 1.000 despite having only one homer. He has ten doubles!

I just had a (dirty, bleh random Manhattan hole in the wall shops) Dr Brown's Cream Soda can. clearly I'm on board.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Like I said, I don't need Brown to replace Byrd, but rather to replace Cowgill as a RH bench batter and spot-starter.

[Edgy MD]

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: So, like, a double every three days and not much else, then?

Well, a double every 2.2 days, plus a triple every 11, and a homer every 22.

Plus 1.23 singles per game, plus 0.54 walks. He's getting it done, which is in direct contrast to his punchless spring training. He's 11th in the PCL in RBI.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

And I'm certain Dominique Wilkins could have TOTALLY kicked ass at Slamball.

Apologies if I was unclear-- I was speculating on how his skills would translate to the majors.