Centerfield

The lead over Washington once stood at 7 games. It seems almost incomprensible that such an advantage could be squandered in such a short time. During the win streak they were getting a ton of timely hits, Herculean performance from their bullpen, and winning a ton of close games. We all said at that time that their method of winning wasn't sustainable, and now we are really getting a look at the flaws on this team. They're clearly not as bad as they've played this week, but they are in some serious trouble.

Yeah, 2016 was puzzling and alarming. I was willing to write that off as just an aberration but he looks like that again now doesn't he?

Who fucking cares. They’re not going to score anyway.

It occurs to me that Matt Harvey may be the first True Yankee before ever playing for the Yankees.

Yeah. With Matz I feel like he’s high strung and really tough on himself but not a dickhead.

The worst part is that there is nothing surprising about Wheeler’s performance. Giving up the 5 run lead before you even settle in is basically the Zach Wheeler specialty.

Torn on this. I believe that Matt Harvey will one day find himself again and be a productive major league pitcher. And because of the how little we know about TOS it might have happened for him this year. But more than anything, I feel like this resurgence would require a change in attitude, and for whatever reason it’s clear it wasn’t going to happen for him here. I read someplace that before this new manager, Harvey said there was no chance he would re-sign here. And even with this new regime it doesn’t sound like he bought in at all. I was at the 2013 All Star game. All we had then were Wright and Harvey. What a shit ending to both of their Met careers.

Trying to find some positives here. Hey at least it’s not Vargas!

Nymr83 wrote: "They should do it because it's the right thing to do. If doing the right thing is considered covering your ass, then sure." Is there any evidence given his current condition that a skipped start would be beneficial or that he would be less likely to cause further injury 10 days from now instead of 5? the "right thing" is following medical advice. unless there is medical advice not to play he should play. You assume that the medical advice is couched in black and white. That the doctors will say he can, or cannot play. Medical advice is seldom given in absolutes. They can diagnose an injury, give an estimate of recovery, but then whether a player is recovered depends on feedback from the player, assessments as to how he "looks", and then you weigh that against the risk of re-injury. If you asked any of those doctors whether deGrom could benefit from missing a start, I would guess not one of them answers with "No, makes no difference. Go ahead and pitch."

I tend to agree with JCL. But the biggest problem is the rotation.

I don't mean to sound like an ass about this, but do you suppose that the medical team just might know a bit more about medicine and physiology than we do? Sure. They might know more, but it doesn't mean they are right. The medical staff cleared Noah to pitch in Washington last year and cleared Cespedes to return when his leg was "healed". Both, in hindsight, were bad decisions. Anyone that knows anything about medicine knows that it's an inexact science. There is a certain amount of guesswork involved. That is why caution and prudence are recommended. Could deGrom make his next start? Maybe. Would it be prudent for him to give himself extra time? Absolutely. And I'm sure the doctors at HSS would agree. Here we're getting GOOD news on deGrom and all we can do seemingly is bitch about it. Not one person is bitching about the good news. If he's medically cleared to throw and his between start program goes well then I'd want to see him out there for next turn, and sitting him out simply because you're afraid of what folks might say if and when things go south is a really stupid way to make decisions. So this is like, completely the opposite of what I said. I said: "They should do it because it's the right thing to do. If doing the right thing is considered covering your ass, then sure." But hey, don't let my actual words get in the way of a good rant. And perhaps it's telling that the Rico/plane thing comes up again because for years, whenever it would surface, I'd ask about whether anyone had info evidence that being on a plane is a bad idea post-concussion and the only answer I ever got was, 'well I have no idea but they shouldn't have done it'. There are plenty of doctors who say that this shouldn't be done. And by your logic, that means it cannot be contested right? There are others who are not sure that this has any effect. Still others feel that flying is ok for some, not for other, but it's impossible to tell who will be affected in what way. In other words, it's an inexact science. When something is unclear, prudence and caution should be exercised. Now, it's easy to criticize now, since we know a lot more about brain injuries now than we knew then. But failing to exercise caution when it comes to medical decisions is foolish. And will ultimately hurt you. We (including me) frequently complain whenever the Mets make decisions based on PR reasons, and yet here we are not only bitching but pre-bitching that they might not. Like I said before, I explicitly state that PR has nothing to do with my thinking. If the right decision also ends up covering your ass, so be it, but make the right decision. If you DL deGrom, you exercise caution and it costs you one start. A start against the worst team in the NL. In the meantime, you get 10 days where you can get either a fresh arm, or an extra hitter of the bench. To me, this is a no-brainer.

So, I guess when I woke up there were four scenarios. Mets win. deGrom ok. Mets lose. deGrom ok. Mets win. deGrom badly hurt. Mets lose. deGrom badly hurt. This is the second best thing that could have happened today.

So we get insanely hot, then suck ass. It's like we miss Duda so much we decided to turn into him.

One thing the Mets are doing to improve pace of play is cutting out all that run scoring.

I think there are a lot of positives to be drawn from the three scoreless innings in the middle of Vargas's outing.

Edgy MD wrote: So much for that whole working-Nimmo-into-the-lineup thingie. Our offense looks like crap. How about we play the guy that always gets on base? "No. You know what? Get me Reyes. Let's bat him first."

By 7:15 Tuesday night, Atlanta had scored 3 runs off Syndergaard. As of 1:35 p.m. on Thursday, the Mets have yet to match that total.

This has the feel of one of those "you've been put on notice" series. This team looks like crap.

They should do it because it's the right thing to do. If doing the right thing is considered covering your ass, then sure. That next start is against the Reds. Hopefully they can get by without him. The DL is 10 days. Put him on there, protect him against himself, and get a fresh arm for the pen. Remember, Jake is the one that declared himself fit to go back and pitch the 4th inning. Love the guy, but maybe you tell him to cool off for a bit. DeGrom, 29, sustained the injury on a swing-and-miss in the third inning of Wednesday’s 7-0 loss to the Braves. He told Callaway and pitching coach Dave Eiland of the discomfort, but felt he could continue to pitch. He has felt similar pain after previous swings this season, and it hasn’t effected his pitching. This time, he felt pain in the biceps, and was pulled after the fourth inning with his ERA down to 1.87 after four shutout frames. So, he's clearly swinging wrong. And if this happens, you tell the guy to go up and take until the elbow is completely healed.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: They have to be aware that if they let Jacob make his next start, and as a result he makes the injury worse and it's his last start of the season, they'll face a shitstorm like few they've ever seen before. Now, I know that these likely aren't the same people who kept putting Ryan Church on plane after plane after he suffered a concussion, but I also can't help but think about that. I'm not convinced that the Mets don't know what they're doing, nor am I confident that they do. Exactly right. Miss a start. DL him now and get the extra arm in here. This should not even be a consideration.

It's not me! Kristie Ackert posted a report saying minimum 4 starts. Now the Mets are holding a press conference saying he will prepare for his next start. Communication!

Um. NVM. Now he might make his next start.

Missing four starts says twitter. MRI clean.

I’m thinking he shouldn’t have cut his hair.

We’re fucked.