Cowtipper

Severino's shutout. Alvarez's walk-off. This team is beginning to really feel like a playoff team. It's creating moments. The ennui is fading away, there is more excitement now. What a great ending.

Vasil, Hamel & Tidwell, each of whom the Mets have pinned some level of hope on, have all struggled mightily at Triple-A this year :-(.

Between them, the Severino, Manaea, Quintana and Peterson have the following combined line: 30-20 W-L, 472 2/3 IP, 405 K, 3.75 ERA. Solid, very solid.

Catching up on some games. This was brilliant. Even though I knew how it was going to end, when Severino got that last strike, I reacted with the excitement I would have had I watched it live. Severino has given us some headaches, but consider where he was just a year ago. He was 4-8 with a 6.65 ERA in 19 games for the Yankees. This was a guy they pulled off the trash heap, a guy who missed all of 2020 and made 3, 4, 19 and 19 appearances in 2019 and from 2021 to 2023, respectively. Everything he's done for us is a gift and a boon. Sure, he's not pitching like a future Hall of Famer anymore, but he's also been on the mound for more innings than any other Mets pitcher this year. He does seem a little Taijuan Walker-ish, in that he had a great first half and a less impressive second half, but I'll take it. Walker, 2021: 1st half—7-3 W-L, 2.66 ERA 2nd half—0-8 W-L, 7.13 ERA Severino, 2024: 1st half—6-3 W-L, 3.78 ERA 2nd half—2-3 W-L, 4.36 ERA So it's not as stark as Walker, but the point remains the same. Nevertheless, this is a signing I'm glad the Mets made.

Segui, Burnitz and Brogna are correct! Alexander, though a good guess, is incorrect. The correct answer might have been the son of a '60s and '70s relief pitcher named Diego. New questions have been added: 1. https://i.imgur.com/PudWDVM.png> Who am I? Hint: Spent just 1994 with New York, going 4-10 with a 5.55 ERA in 21 starts. Went 47-71 in a big league career that spanned from 1987 to 1998. 2. From the back of an old baseball card: "When the Mets traded Kevin Baez and Tom Wegmann to the Orioles for this player, they obtained a first-rate first baseman and considerably tightened up on their infield defense. A contact hitter, he has power to the gaps." Who am I? 3. From the back of an old baseball card: "This pitcher became a regular starter for the Mets in '94 after being traded by the Braves for Dave Gallagher. A big righthander who was 7-0 in '92, he has fine control and relies chiefly on a tremendous curveball and a hard-breaking slider." Who am I? 4. From the back of an old baseball card: "A superb combination of speed and power, this player is one of the Mets' bright young hopes for the future. He has outstanding bat speed as a classic pull hitter and great makeup. 'He gets dirty, gets after it,' said an observer, 'He doesn't leave anything on the field. And he doesn't take himself too seriously.'" Who am I? This is vague, but the player in question is from the era of the majority of the recent answers. He also might have been a recent answer to one of the baseball card image questions. 5. From the back of an 'old' baseball card: "Sports Illustrated recently published a photo of this player as a tiny tot, wearing powder-blue jammies (with footsies) and a catcher's mask. Little did his parents know that by age 24, in 2013, he would be a starting pitcher in the MLB All-Star Game." Who am I? Running tally of correct guessers: Johnny Lunchbucket: 117 Edgy MD: 87 stevejrogers: 72 batmagadanleadoff: 34 DocTee: 9 metsmarathon: 9 Benjamin Grimm: 6 The Hot Corner: 5 MFS62: 4 Marshmallowmilkshake: 1 Methead: 1

Catching up on some games. This was well played. Butto is a solid pitcher. His whole career looks like one solid season: 29 G, 15 GS, 108 2 /3 IP, 77 H, 110 K, 3.40 ERA, 119 ERA+. If he gets the walks down a bit, he could be dominant; he averages almost 5 per 9 innings. I think I said earlier this year that Manaea was pitching like an All-Star. I abandoned that thought a bit as he started to taper, but he's pitching like an All-Star again. He's 6-2 with a 2.73 ERA in 12 starts since June 14. His mark is 2.61 in 10 starts since June 26. I also said earlier this year that the Mets were a 92-win team. I don't think they'll get there, but they look like they could manage a respectable, 2019-style 86-win campaign. Murphy's a good announcer. Very calm. A good foil to hyper Kermit the Frog (Gary).

Wrong game!

Brandon Drury, who played for the Mets in 2021, is hitting .164/.247/.204 with 1 home run and 10 RBI in 69 games for the Angels. Phillip Evans, who played for the Mets in 2017 and 2018, began 2024 in the Braves system, hitting .222/.305/.324 with 5 home runs and 18 RBI in 51 games for the Triple-A Gwinnett Braves. He was released on June 12, but was quickly signed by the Toros de Tijuana of the Mexican League, with whom he is currently hitting .324/.418/.456 with 3 home runs and 11 RBI. Jeurys Familia, who pitched for the Mets from 2012 to 2018 and from 2019 to 2021, made 9 appearances for the Diablos Rojos del Mexico, posting a 1-1 record and a 2.00 ERA, but was released in mid-May.

McReynolds and Kent are correct! Two new questions have been added, with hints for the rest: 1. https://i.imgur.com/PudWDVM.png> Who am I? Hint: Spent just 1994 with New York, going 4-10 with a 5.55 ERA in 21 starts. Went 47-71 in a big league career that spanned from 1987 to 1998. 2. https://i.imgur.com/PNF4bj3.png> Who am I? Hint: Played for the Mets in 1994 and 1995, but spent most of his career with the Orioles. Was traded for Reid Cornelius. Was hitting .329 in 1995 at the time of his trade away from NY. 3. https://i.imgur.com/uwJi8MG.png> Who am I? Hint: Played for the Mets in 1993 and 1994, then returned for 2002 and 2003. Hit over 300 career home runs. Traded by the New York Mets with cash to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Kole Strayhorn (minors), Jose Díaz and Víctor Díaz. 4. https://i.imgur.com/a3VlpFt.png> Who am I? 5. From the back of an old baseball card: "When the Mets traded Kevin Baez and Tom Wegmann to the Orioles for this player, they obtained a first-rate first baseman and considerably tightened up on their infield defense. A contact hitter, he has power to the gaps." Who am I? Running tally of correct guessers: Johnny Lunchbucket: 114 Edgy MD: 87 stevejrogers: 72 batmagadanleadoff: 34 DocTee: 9 metsmarathon: 9 Benjamin Grimm: 6 The Hot Corner: 5 MFS62: 4 Marshmallowmilkshake: 1 Methead: 1

Catching up on some games. Hey, it was fun at first. But it dragged and dragged. Too many walks by the pitching. The pitching will be why the team doesn't make the playoffs this year, should they not make the playoffs. The Mets walked more batters this game than Carlos Silva did in all of 2005, when he tossed 188 1/3 innings (he allowed 9 walks that year). Seth Brown of the A's looks like Lucas Duda. Carlos Mendoza always looks like he just smelled something bad.

All correct, save for #5. #5 was more well-known as a reliever for the Braves in the late-80s and early-90s. He was involved in this trade: "November 24, 1993: Traded by the Atlanta Braves to the New York Mets for Dave Gallagher." Well done on the others! Here's some more. 1. https://i.imgur.com/PudWDVM.png> Who am I? 2. https://i.imgur.com/PNF4bj3.png> Who am I? 3. https://i.imgur.com/Zc9RZFQ.png> Who am I? 4. https://i.imgur.com/uwJi8MG.png> Who am I? 5. https://i.imgur.com/GPUqcA7.png> Running tally of correct guessers: Johnny Lunchbucket: 114 Edgy MD: 87 stevejrogers: 72 batmagadanleadoff: 34 DocTee: 9 metsmarathon: 9 Benjamin Grimm: 6 MFS62: 4 The Hot Corner: 3 Marshmallowmilkshake: 1 Methead: 1

New questions: 1. Who was the New York Mets general manager in 1977? He was later GM for the Cardinals and Tigers. 2. https://i.imgur.com/f9O3WeW.png> Who am I? 3. https://i.imgur.com/yk2YIwY.png> Who am I? 4. https://i.imgur.com/xh58eFA.png> Who am I? 5. https://i.imgur.com/PudWDVM.png> Who am I? Running tally of correct guessers: Johnny Lunchbucket: 114 Edgy MD: 87 stevejrogers: 68 batmagadanleadoff: 34 DocTee: 9 metsmarathon: 9 Benjamin Grimm: 6 MFS62: 4 The Hot Corner: 3 Marshmallowmilkshake: 1 Methead: 1

Answering the unanswered: Which pitcher surrendered Ventura's Grand Slam Single in 1999? Kevin McGlinchy In 2000, Mike Hampton became the fourth putcher to toss a Shutout in an NLCS-clinching game. Which three pitchers did it before Hampton? Orel Hershiser, Danny Cox, John Smoltz Who was the last Met rookie to hit two home runs in a single World Series game? Michael Conforto Through May 2016, four major league players had attended Liberty University. One of those players played for the Mets. Can you name that player? He was a short-lived reliever for the club in 1992. Since 2016, three more men from Liberty University have reached the majors, including 2020 Met Ryan Cordell. Lee Guetterman http://i.imgur.com/VYh0rvf.jpg> Who am I? Eddie Murray

Catching up on some games. A quality rout, glad I watched it. Peterson has done very well this year, but I'm not sure I want the Mets to parley this run of effectiveness into a longer-term deal. He's been an every-other-year guy and this is his "good" year. Don't be fooled, Mets!

Alejandro de Aza, who played for the Mets in 2016, is still going at 40 years old. He is with the Staten Island Ferry Hawks of the independent Atlantic League, hitting .271/.368/.400 with 4 home runs and 26 RBI in 44 games. Jacob deGrom, who pitched for the Mets from 2014 to 2022, hasn't played yet in 2024, but is still with the Rangers. He's on the 60-day IL and might be starting a rehab assignment soon. Yennsy Diaz, who pitched for the Mets in 2021, made 6 appearances (1 start) for El Aguila de Veracruz, posting a 12.71 ERA. He was released May 14.

Mets released RHP Lucas Gordillo.​ Mets released RHP Wilson Esterlin.

He better not be too cocky, he has an ERA near 4 and is barely an average pitcher. Finishing up this game now. Weak team. Actually, I lied...weak pitching. Check out the offense. Every primary starting position player, save for McNeil, has an OPS+ over 100, and McNeil is getting there. The team OPS+ is 110. Iglesias and Torrens also have great OPS+s. The team is 6th in BA, 6th in OBP, 5th in SLG and 5th in OPS. And 6th in R. 6th in H. 2nd in 2B. 3rd in HR. 7th in BB. 5th in TB. The offense is really solid. And the pitching isn't BAD, per se. Hard luck is more like it. They're 9th in the league in ERA, so it's not like they're at the bottom of the pile. The ERA+ is 96, which leaves a lot to be desired, but they're also 3rd in Ks, which is excellent. If the pitching can put it all together for this last month-and-a-half, they'll make the playoffs. Not just that, they'll be formidable. But they need to coalesce, stay coalesced and perform consistently. The streakiness is not going to take them to the promised land.

I very loosely watched this game, not knowing initially how it ended. I'm glad I didn't pay much attention.

Catching up on some games. This wasn't a terrible game on either side, it's just the Mariners scored a bit more than the Mets, which was not at all.

Catching up on some games. This was a quality romp. Rather enjoyable. Vientos is good. I'm surprised that of the Big Three (or Four if you include Mauricio) that he's the 2024 breakout.

John Curtiss, who pitched for the Mets in 2023, has a 15.43 ERA in 3 relief appearances for the Rockies. At Triple-A, he is 1-4 with a 4.03 ERA in 32 relief appearances for Albuquerque. Travis d'Arnaud, who played for the Mets from 2013 to 2019, is hitting .252/.313/.473 with a 115 OPS+, 12 home runs and 37 RBI in 76 games for the Braves. J.D. Davis, who played for the Mets from 2019 to 2022, hit .236/.304/.366 with 4 home runs and 5 RBI in 123 at-bats for the Athletics before being traded to the Yankees in June. With the Yankees, he hit .105/.227/.158 in 18 at-bats and was released August 2. Combined he hit .218/.293/.338 with 4 home runs and 6 RBI in 142 ABs. The Orioles signed him on August 7, but he hasn't played in the majors with them. He's spent a total of 8 games in the minors, all at Triple-A, hitting .179/.324/.429 with 2 home runs and 5 RBI.

New day, new hints.

Off to the great Cubbage patch in the sky.

Catching up on some games. This was a rough one to watch. Quintana was decent at first. Ottavino continues to be inconsistent.

Bean signed an autograph for me through the mail in 2017. He also sent a short note. Jim Umbarger, who played in the 1970s, died in July. No articles yet, but Baseball Almanac has him listed as deceased.