what got into delgado?

I mean, all of his swings look like this now:

Don’t believe me? Look at the previous post!!!

I know there are chants of “MVP!” at Shea and I know there are grumbly Mets fans who find it ludicrous but in my mind, if Jimmy Rollins can win last year then why not Delgado this year? Especially if he continues to put this team on his back, hitting huge homers in big spots. I can’t recall a homer of Delgado’s in the past few weeks that hasn’t been important, tying a game or providing a lead. And sure, there have been steadier players this year with the numbers to back it up, but when has that ever stopped emotion from ruling all? When has that stopped the importance of narrative? And Delgado’s narrative–a year and a half of uselessness to unstoppable power–is as compelling as any other in sports right now. Who doesn’t love redemption? Just ask Roger Federer and Serena Williams this weekend.

Oliver Perez was absolutely dreadful last night, and it seemed terribly predictable that he’d struggle against the Nationals. One hoped that his season’s turnaround would continue; I don’t ever recall him being as consistent in his career as he has been in the past few months. Part of me wondered if it had to happen at some point, his regression to Mr. Hyde; thankfully he was helped by the offense as well as a bullpen that was able to shut it down (not including Nelson Figueroa and Brandon Knight, but what does it say about Heilman that he wasn’t even considered last night?) and get a win for Joe Smith, for the Mets, and thank God for the Marlins for almost-but-not-quite blowing a huge lead to the Phillies. Identical scores of 10-8. 2 1/2 game lead. Phew.

le week-end

Prior to the storm of Hanna not the sportscaster lady, my weekend was shaping up to be pretty full and satisfying: Mets-Phillies Saturday afternoon game, women’s U.S. Open final on Saturday night, Mets-Phillies Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN (I was planning on heading to a bar). And then! RAIN ALL DAY ON SATURDAY OH MY GOD. So my perfect Queens-related sports obsessions were thrown all out of wack.

I managed to catch the first two games of the Mets-Phillies series, unhappily. All credit to Brett Myers (that hurts to type) and Jamie Moyer for pitching brilliant games, though I will continually be befuddled by the Mets’ (the previous one notwithstanding) inability to smack the crap out of Moyer’s slop. And my golly did Fernando Tatis play outfield like a little leaguer.

With the weather, the U.S. Open women’s final was pushed from Saturday night to Sunday night, meaning an athletic Sophie’s Choice between my beloved Mets and my tennis version of the Mets (i.e., Serena Williams). Considering the previous two listless losses to the Phillies, my general confidence in Santana vs. Hamels, and the fact that I haven’t seen Serena win a big title since January 2007, I decided to go with tennis and headed over to my pal Stan’s place to watch the final, during which he’d give me updates on the Mets-Phils score.

So then this stuff happened:

CARLOS I’M SORRY FOR EVERYTHING I SAID. AGAIN.

(Sidenote: Pfffft Hamels. You guys should’ve just let Kendrick pitch, he would’ve done a better job)

Serena battled Jelena Jankovic for nearly two hours before prevailing 6-4, 7-5 in a tense, dramatic rollercoaster of a match that saw both women playing for not only the U.S. Open title (Serena’s ninth Grand Slam, and what would have been Jankovic’s first) but also for the crown of #1 player in the world. Serena is once again top dog after five years, the longest such stretch in tennis history (besting Andre Agassi’s 3 years and 5 months).

Pretty good Sunday for me; pretty good weekend once the weather cleared up.

***

The perfect capper to all this would be the ability to go see Daniel Murphy sign some crap at the Last Licks in Scarsdale tonight. Why do they hold these things in places like Scarsdale or someplace out on Long Island? Why can’t they do this kind of stuff in Midtown or some other horrible crowded place in Manhattan? SIGH WHINE.

just because

Earlier today the boy I’m seeing or whatever was comparing my love of the Mets to his love of America’s Next Top Model, of all things, a show I maybe have seen 10 minutes of total. I said that it didn’t seem the same considering he has contempt for the show’s participants. He emailed the following in response:

I don’t hate all of them. There are heroes and there are villains on every season, like every reality show, and the villains tend to be high-camp witches (Yankees), and the heroes tend to be unsophisticated but bright and likable (Cubs?), and the fun comes from putting vaguely ditzy girls in high-pressure situations (infield fly rule). There is fundamental injustice in Tyra Banks’ judging every week (bad ump), and it used to be that Janice Dickinson would say something hilarious and cruel at least three times a week (Marv Albert). She’s not on the show anymore.

Which is pretty good considering he knows nothing about baseball. I suppose the better analogies here would be “Eric Gagne” instead of “infield fly rule,” and since Marv Albert doesn’t do baseball, perhaps Joe Buck or Tim McCarver?

odds and ends

This team can be totally adorable sometimes. Especially after a three-game sweep over the vaunted Milwaukee Brewers (again…not convinced). This is a nice surprise after what I felt on Monday, as the LACKLUSTER NO HEART COMPLACENT PUSSY Mets charged into Milwaukee and I found out the GRITTY FULL OF HEART NEVER SAY DIE COCKSURE Phillies were playing the Nationals. “GREAT,” I groaned. “Enjoy your division lead, Philly.” Little did I know that prior to that series, the Nats had won six in a row! And that they’d win the series against Philly. The Mets are now up three games with an absolutely crucial three-game set this weekend against Philly at Shea.

I find it hilarious that the Phillies are so intent on skipping Kyle Kendrick’s start in favor of Cole Hamels on Sunday. It makes sense, surely, but I can’t even remember the last time Hamels actually scored a win over the Mets (I know he’s started games the Phillies won, but that was mainly the bullpen blowing leads, no?). The Mets seem to hit him well. So OOOOH I’M SO SCARED. Bring it. And then there’s this:

“I understood the situation. I think this is the time that really matters. I know [pitching every] five days is what I just did five days ago. That’s what I’ve been able to do all year, and that’s what I’ll do this time. The main guy, when it’s the playoffs or the division championship or the big division rivalry, that’s what I want to be. It’s time to step up to the plate, and I know that I’m ready for it.”

WOW, pitching on only four days’ rest? My, Cole Hamels, you are quite the studly man, with your puppy-dog eyes and Jennifer Aniston hair. Shut up.

In some “OMG the bullpen has been so good lately!” news, this blog’s Baseball Boyfriend #2 Joe Smith has currently seen himself usurped by the emergence of one Jesus Daniel Murphy (who may have also usurped BB#1 David Wright! oh no!), but looking at his data I was surprised and happy to see that he hasn’t allowed a run since August 11th, and since that time he’s only allowed three hits. That’s pretty studly. So Joe, I give you some well-deserved love. And keep it coming, because Daniel Murphy has decided he likes being my one true guy. Competition is good!

this is getting fun

Barring the two losses on this road trip, the Mets are looking like a team difficult to keep down. And those two losses (blowing a 7-0 lead to Philly and Aaron Heilman walking in the winning run in Florida) were games in which they beat themselves more than anything. What a difference it’s been from last year and earlier this season; they no longer seem like a team that’s ready to roll over and die. And that in itself is some kind of victory.

Tangible actual victories are even better. And what has been so encouraging over the last few months have been the Mets’ propensity to bounce back after a difficult loss. They’ve done so again on this road trip, coming from behind to beat the Phillies and now winning three in a row since Heilman’s blunder in Florida, two of which against the probable Wild Card winner Milwaukee Brewers (who, I’m sorry, I’m not altogether convinced by, and I thought the same thing last year when they were the hottest team for two months) in a possible NLDS preview. Monday’s game saw them come back from a 2-0 deficit to take in late innings–when did this team learn how to score in the late innings (LOLGagne)? Yesterday they spotted a 5-1 lead to Defiance, OH’s Jon Niese, making his major league debut. Niese, at least this night, turned out to be no prizewinner, as he worked in and out of trouble for three innings before being pulled in the fourth with the score 5-4 and runners on base. He’d be charged with all five Brewer runs when Nelson Figueroa gave up a bloop single that could have been worse without Beltran’s tremendous throw to cut down JJ Hardy at the plate. The defense was sharp all night; in the eighth, Endy Chavez replaced Nick Evans in left field and promptly threw out Rickie Weeks trying to stretch a single into a double, and David Wright atoned for his miserable hitting by recording the final out in the ninth as Corey Hart hit a hard shot off Joe Smith that proved all for naught with Wright smothering the ball and throwing a beaut to Delgado.

How is it possible that this nausea-inducing (I seriously almost threw up last night when Ayala was facing Weeks) bullpen has thrown thirteen scoreless innings? Were they just waiting for the September call-ups, for fortification, for increased backup? Figueroa is the only call-up whose pitched; otherwise we’ve seen the normal parade of Smith, Feliciano, Sanchez, the increasingly reliable Stokes, Schoeneweis, and Ayala. There’s something to be said for strength in numbers, and thirteen arms is a nice-looking luxury.

Lastly, Daniel Murphy is becoming our own nice-looking luxury. When he was brought in to pinch-hit in the top of the tenth, I sat back and thanked Jerry for not using him earlier, and knew there’d be something a-brewin’ (ahem). A lead-off single, a Reyes bunt that was misplayed, and an Endy Chavez sac fly conspired to manufacture the game-winning run. It seems that Murphy has been in the middle of every late-inning game-winning rally the Mets have had over the past week. His past few starts have seen him struggle early on in the game only to come up big, be on base, and score important runs at the end. Murphy late in the game and we will not lose. And he said, “It shall be so.”

***

Quote of the day comes from an interview given by Brian Schneider yesterday on WFAN, regarding the near-brawl in Florida over the weekend:

“Jacobs and some guys on their team–Scott Olsen, guys like that–are known to be idiots and do stupid things sometimes.”

Schneider, sometimes I wonder what the hell your value on this team is, but I’ve decided I love you.