The Official 2015 Mets Thread

[Rocktheworld]

Can't wait for this game to be over so the series can of KC. So sick of seeing these clown fans behind home throwing up their hands and yelling at the umpire at every third pitch.

 

[8893]

And now I can't wait for basketball season.

We look like the Cubs. Totally shell-shocked and crapping our pants.

KC looks like pros. They are on a mission. @Deepster 's point about them being fortified by their heartbreak last year is a good one.

And unfortunately now I agree with @Rico444 that the loss of the first game set the tone like 2000.

Syndergaard and Matz don't have secondary stuff as good as deGrom or Harvey. The KC bats are likely to chew them up even worse. Now I'm really wishing we had Harvey or deGrom saved for game three. I don't think we'll be seeing a game seven, but we may grab a game or two.

We knew our defense was a weakness, but when our offense doesn't show up it doesn't really matter. We made Cueto look like Cy Young, and he's far from it. That was essentially a no-no; Duda's hits were duffers.

Cespedes is the one guy who could have made a difference if he showed up. He's costing himself several million this post-season, essentially confirming the doubts about him and his puzzling inconsistency. No chance the Mets will even make a run at him.

And maybe we can at least experiment with Uribe at third and give Wright a break? He's clearly not close to 100% after the wear of post-season play.

It was a good season to get this far, but a disappointing series for sure.

 

[Danzz]

KC may be the best contact hitting team in the history of the world. They don't even strike out on pitchers pitches. Very impressive.

 

[Deepster]

So. Can Syndergaard and Matz claw us back to 2-2 against Ventura and Chris Young? I guess so, but the margin for error is paper thin. I sound like Kevin Millar when the Sox were down 0-3, but if we can grab 2, then Harvey at home and deGrom in Game 6? I'm not ready to shovel dirt on the grave yet. #LGM #yagottabelieve

 

[UConnMike04]

It's far from over, but we need to win these next two. Take Fri and Sat and then we have Harvey on regular rest (when he's at his best) at home. Very real chance we go back to KC up 3-2.

That being said, if we lose either Fri or Sat it's over. Can't come back on these guys down 3-1, ESP not down 3-0.

 

[Alum86]

How about our big crybaby SS they keep marveling at on TV, like, get off the 0 rbi for playoffs snide?

 

[8893]

So. Can Syndergaard and Matz claw us back to 2-2 against Ventura and Chris Young? I guess so, but the margin for error is paper thin. I sound like Kevin Millar when the Sox were down 0-3, but if we can grab 2, then Harvey at home and deGrom in Game 6? I'm not ready to shovel dirt on the grave yet. #LGM #yagottabelieve

I'd feel more optimistic if I thought it was about our pitching, but I don't, so I'm not. I actually think our pitching has been good enough to put us in position to win. It has been neutralized as expected by the Royals' offense, so I think they really cancel each other out. Their defense has been better than ours as expected, but they've still made some errors and we've made some nice plays. It's a factor, but not as big as I expected or feared it to be. The bottom line is that we are not going to hold this team scoreless so we've got to put up some runs to beat them.

For me, it comes down to our offense massively under-performing, or KC's pitching massively over-performing, depending on your POV. There are reasonable explanations for everyone on our side except Cespedes imo. That's why I say he's the one guy who could've changed this script, but he doesn't look close to coming around to me. I know Wright is not right; and we know Duda is streaky; and I didn't expect Murphy to continue to be superhuman; and it is reasonable to expect Conforto's inexperience to come into play; Granderson has been fine, and the others are what they are. But Cespedes is the single biggest disappointment to me. As we saw in August, when he is perceived as a threat he changes the dynamic of the entire lineup. And the corollary, then, is that when he is off, it means that there is a dropoff for the entire lineup. That's what I'm seeing.

I had not watched Cespedes much before he came to us, but good friends who have had warned me of his maddening inconsistency. Now I see what they were talking about. Unfortunately for him and for the Mets it is coming at a very bad time, and I don't have the feeling that he's going to snap out of it this season.

It's impossible and unfair to isolate one factor in a series because so many things contribute, including luck. But if I had to point to the one that I thought was most responsible for our bleak outlook, that would be it.

 

[Alum86]

Well, 8893, we are at home this wknd. Means our pitchers hit. We lose the DH. Noah and Matz cannot fare worse than Cuddyer or Johnson, or even Conforto for that matter.

 

[8893]

Ok, it's a new day. I'm ready to believe. One game at a time. We can do this.

 

[Deepster]

Just get the W tonight. I'm having a houseful tonight. Let's get this Mojo train back on track.

 

[8893]

Cespedes back in center tonight, Conforto back in left.

I would have stuck with Lagares in center and Cespedes in left.

And I would have started Uribe at third.

 

[UConnMike04]

1986 Game 1: Mets lose by 1.
Game 2: Mets lose by 6.
Game 3: Mets win by 6.

2015 G1: Mets lose by 1
G2: Mets lose by 6
G3: Mets lead 9-3

If this score holds up..

 

[8893]

And I would have started Uribe at third.

And that is why I watch from a recliner and not a dugout. But it was great to see Uribe deliver, too.

Good for Wright though. I never saw that coming and don't think many others did.

Now maybe Cespedes can get his swing back. He looked a little better last night.

Really impressed by Syndergaard's recovery from a shaky start. That experience is invaluable for his future...hopefully later this series... I also loved the opening chin music to Escobar. The only thing better would have been to plunk Moustakas on top of that.

One game at a time. Lefty rook up next. I like that KC will finally see a bit of a different look from our starters.

 

[8893]

Call me sappy, but I thought this was a pretty cool moment last night--especially for Joel himself:

 

[Dove]

Liking Matz a lot tonight. And the crowd!

 

[mauconnfan]

Call me sappy, but I thought this was a pretty cool moment last night--especially for Joel himself:

Didn't see that very cool thanks. He was touched when the crowd got loud and so was Kevin James who was having some fun with it. Good stuff there.

A LOT better than Neil Diamond at Fenway

 

[Mots010]

If bill Buckner was dead that would have been his ghost haunting that ball. Just brutal.

 

[Dove]

Tyler Clippard...smh

 

[joober jones]

That loss could not have occurred in any more of an infuriating fashion.
Side note - Thank you Clippard for my kids learning some words they shouldn't yet know at their age.

 

[noeynox]

Just gotta tip your cap to the royals. They're making all the heads up plays and us the bonehead plays. Just don't let em clinch in NY.

 

[joober jones]

Just gotta tip your cap to the royals. They're making all the heads up plays and us the bonehead plays. Just don't let em clinch in NY.

It's easy to tip my cap to the Royals in game 2, but games 1 and 4 the Mets couldn't hold on to 'n soap and the Royals caught them bending over. I'm in near Mad Dog "Giants rant" mode at the moment.

 

[mauconnfan]

Let's see what Harvey is made of now!

 

[Rico444]

Not ready to concede the series, but it certainly doesn't look good. Our bats are getting neutralized by their bullpen, and our pen isn't good enough to compensate. Familia is starting to remind me of Armando Benitez, too, which doesn't help. This can all be forgotten with a three-game winning streak though.

LGM!

 

[8893]

Can't put that loss on Familia imo, and I don't think the Benitez comparison is a fair one. I never would have trusted Clippard in that spot, and definitely not for that long. Familia should have been brought in at least one batter earlier. Bad call there by Collins imo. Just can't put Clippard in that spot. I'm guessing it's the last time we'll ever see him on the field for the Mets, too. Not a bad late season pickup, but definitely not a guy to sign. Guys like him are a dime a dozen because they are simply not that good.

I think the loss can be most attributed to two other guys who probably won't be wearing Mets uniforms next season, either. But interestingly, they're also the two guys most responsible for getting us this far. We don't make the playoffs without Cespedes, and we don't get to the World Series without Murphy. But as we know with both of them, they giveth and they taketh away. Last night they took that game away. Murphy's error is exactly what we've come to expect from him, and Cespedes getting picked off at first is simply inexcusable. And the lack of any significant offense from Cespedes the entire post-season will make it an easy decision for the Mets to not even pursue a deal with him. It's a closer decision whether they make a qualifying offer to Murphy, and even then, it probably won't be enough to keep him.

I'm not holding out much hope for this series. I expect Harvey to keep us in the game tonight by yielding three runs or less through five or six--and I expect that to be the case for as many games as the series lasts, no matter who starts for us--but these guys are going to keep the pressure on by continuing to put runners on base and testing our defense, which won't pass every test, especially not when/if the series gets back to KC. Our offense may be able to make up for it one more time at Citi, but that won't continue in KC, either.

All of which is to say that the Royals are the better team, at least when they are playing with home field advantage. And I hate that stupid all-star game rule.

 

[Danzz]

KC is the worst possible matchup for the Mets. The Royals outstanding contact hitting closes the edge the Mets have on starting pitching. A prediction: the Royals light up Harvey and the series ends in NY.